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boutique in Seoul, South Korea just after graduating from high school. In this boutique, virtually all jewelry was
handmade. It was here that Bopie mastered the skills of designing gold jewelry using precious & semiprecious
gemstones, grading jade, and grading and stringing pearl necklaces.
Bopie met her husband, Mike, while he was stationed in Korea with the U.S. Army. Upon coming to the United States,
Bopie worked in several large retail jewelry chain stores. While working for these large jewelry stores, Bopie, a certified
Diamtologist, continued her specialized jewelry training and so far, Bopie has received jewelry related training and
certifications from notable jewelry organizations including the:
Gemological Institute of America
Diamond Council of America
Miami Jewelry Institute
Bopie and Mike moved to Fayetteville in 1992 when Mike was assigned to Fort Bragg. They immediately fell in love with
the area, and Bopie went to work for another large retail jewelry chain store in Cross Creek Mall. Although Bopie had
many wonderful experiences working for large chain jewelry stores, she wanted to design and create her own
one-of-a-kind pieces of jewelry.
In 1995, Bopie decided that it was time to open her own shop. She felt that a lot of people were looking for jewelry that
no one else had and that was not mass-produced. Since she loved pearls and jade, she made these the cornerstone
of her collection. Bopie has been busy designing and creating unique jewelry ever since. Bopie quickly discovered that
in designing her jewelry, she often needed gemstones of exacting dimensions, unique designs, superior color and
flawless quality. It became increasingly difficult to find gemstones of the quality, color and cut in the exact shape and
size that Bopie needed for her unique designs. Her husband Mike came to the rescue by learning to cut and facet
gemstones. Now, Bopie simply has Mike cut and facet the exact gemstone for which her unique designs require. Bopie
continues to maintain a great selection of uncut, flawless gemstones which are ready to be cut and facetted into the
next jewelry design.
By late 2002, Bopie's Pearls & Gems had outgrown its small kiosk in Cross Creek Mall and began construction to
relocate to a larger space. In April 2003, Bopie's Pearls & Gems opened the doors in its current location in Cross
Creek Mall. During the construction, a local artist painted a rendering of the future store on the temporary construction
wall. Just click the photo to see a larger version.
Bopie continues to design custom jewelry and even carves individual pieces from wax and then casts the wax mold into
gold - breaking the mold in the process to ensure much of her jewelry is one-of-a-kind and not mass-produced.
