Martine van der Meer (1962) has been a photographer for many years, but once the pearl-virus struck her, she couldn't let go of it. She started out by making her original designs for friends and family. However, she soon found interest in her designs reached far beyond that immediate circle.

'As a photographer I am always working with images. I have done fashion photography, portraits of many Dutch celebrities and lots of travel reports. It was during my travels that I was inspired by the different cultures as well as by nature's breath-taking beauty. The wildness of the Amazon with all its different plants and animals, sounds and smells, the forests of Gujarat in India, the silent nature reserves of Utah in The United States and the abandoned beaches that I visited. From all these places I took memories home with me. In thought, smell and colour, but also cuttings, little stones and shells. And pearls!
That's how I began designing my necklaces. First, just for myself, whatever I liked. The enthusiasm of friends and later friends of friends led me to create this website to share my designs with you.'