“I wanted to make jewellery with my dad, rather than go to school. I spent many hours just sitting there working, learning the trade and doing everything by hand,” said Sam as he reminisced in his showroom in Tyabb. surrounded by the wonderful pieces of handcrafted jewellery he has on display. “We were living in Cairo and my dad’s business was called “Jewel of the Nile”. My grandfather was also a jeweller, along with my uncle, cousins. nieces and sisters.”

How this talented artisan ended up 14,000 kilometres away from his homeland and on the Mornington Peninsula is a wonderful journey. The people of the peninsula have embraced the talents of Sam over the past 30 years, with thousands of regular clients entrusting their precious jewels and gold to him.

“I came to Australia, as I thought it was a good opportunity for a better life. I was 21 when I came out here and I was looking for something new,” said Sam. He found a home in Melbourne in 1977. “1 could not work as a jeweller immediately, as I did not speak English. So I went to work in a car factory for General Motors Holden, and studied English part-time for two years.”

However, even during those years, the idea of not making jewellery was not an option for Sam, who bought some equipment, and made his creations at home. “I never stopped making jewellery, and after two years, I got my first job in a jewellery business in the late 1970s,” said Sam, who always maintained his eye on the dream of one day having his own shop, like his dad in Cairo.

“I worked for different organisations and did contracting work. Then one day, I started up working in the Mornington Main Street Wednesday Markets. I set myself up there, and got a great response. I sat in the street and started to sell and trade gold, and people began to entrust me with their jewellery to have it redesigned, or made into something from scratch. One person even handed over $50,000 of gold to have it made into a custom-designed piece.

Since then, my jewellery business really took off. One day a friend told me about this shop in Tyabb, and that it would be perfect for me to set up. That was 25 years ago (in 1995). I have been at the Craft Village ever since.” And so the final stage of Sam’s dream came to fruition.

Sam is still creating stunning jewellery designs and being a part of momentous occasions in his customer’s lives. With his own shop, Jewel of the Nile Jewellers, he continues on in the family tradition from the other side of the world. He is still practising a craft that is no longer taught. “I do custom made jewellery all the time and design the pieces. We do manufacturing of the pieces, design and remodelling, all repairs, antique jewellery repairs and have a wonderful selection of jewellery in my showroom, including pieces from my sisters and brothers who are jewellers still back in Cairo.”