Diplomatic design

Nashauna Drummond, Acting Lifestyle Editor

Dr José Tomás Ares Hernandez is exactly where he wants to be, and has done it in fine style. He is the Dominican Republic ambassador to Jamaica, a dream come true, since he wanted to be a diplomat from childhood. "I like meeting people and sharing with them," he told Outlook.

In the 1980s, when he wanted to study diplomacy, it wasn't taught at the universities in the Dominican Republic, so he went to Madrid, Spain. There, he learnt that he had to become a lawyer first, so he returned home and studied law. His specification? International law. He then moved on to his master's and then doctorate in diplomatic relations.

But while the good ambassador long ago planned his professional career, he didn't plan on becoming a jewellery maker with an insatiable love for cufflinks.

And these are not just any ordinary cufflinks. About 10 years ago, Dr Ares asked his wife, Sheila, who makes jewellery, to make him some.

"My wife loves to make everything. She was making some jewellery and I asked her to make some cufflinks for me. I wanted something different and unique. I don't like the regular ones you can buy in a store; they don't make the ones I like. I prefer large, colourful links."

His customised cufflinks are
made from amber, pearl, volcanic rocks, or any precious or semi-precious
stones he can get his hands on. The stones he loves to use the most?
Amber and larimar, "Because they are from my
country".

After watching his wife, the ambassador
tried his hand at it, and now it takes him just a few minutes to
assemble his gems. "It's my hobby," he told Outlook,
his hands busy assembling a link made with African Tiger
Eye.

Whatever stone strikes his fancy, he has a
jeweller cut it to his specifications and the rest is all up to him. He
has lost count of how many he currently has, as most of his collection
is at home in the Dominican Republic. The ambassador is very generous
with his designs and is known to take off the cuffs he is wearing and
give to fellow ambassadors on the spot.

But the Ares
family is very creative. His wife makes gorgeous earrings out of
Swarovski crystals and various stones. She has been doing them since she
was a child and can have one done in six hours, sewing on each crystal
one at a time. She also makes clothes. "When I was younger, I used to
say she was my superwoman - she makes everything," piped in her son,
Alsredo.

Other staples in the ambassador's wardrobe
are his chacabana shirts. The shirts have two tiny vertical rows on both
the front and back, and four large pockets on the front. They are
popular in Latin American countries, and Dr Ares has them in every
colour, and they are perfect for every occasion, unless the dress code
is black tie or business suit. Hand-made in Santo Domingo, Dr Ares'
chacabanas are made of cotton or linen with his initials embroidered on
the cuff.

"I like being well put together and I love
chacabanas because it's our culture." As coordinator of the GRULAC (name
given to Caribbean and Latin American group by the United Nations), he
insists that members wear them to cultural events.

The
17-year diplomat who speaks English, a little French and Italian, has
chacabanas in a variety of colours and loves to wear them with his bow
ties. So, next time you see the goodly ambassador, take a look at his
cufflinks. I guarantee you, they are one of a
kind.

nashauna.drummond@gleanerjm.com

Photos by Ian Allen/Staff Photographer