Australian 26.45ct Boulder Opal and Diamond Necklace in 18K Yellow Gold

Through the Australian jewelry brand Opal Minded, Renata Bernard creates contemporary jewelry featuring gorgeous opals sourced from Australia's renowned opal mines. Her pendant necklaces, cocktail rings and dangle earrings showcase the beauty of the multicolored gemstone. She also designs one-of-a-kind opal engagement rings as striking alternatives to classic diamond rings.

Bernard moved to Australia from Eastern Europe in 1994 with only $100 in her wallet. She met and later married John Bernard, who had founded Opal Minded in Sydney in 1989. The brand is dedicated solely to opal jewelry made from stones unearthed from its own Queensland mines. While Australia is not the only source of opals in the world, it provides some of the rarest and most sought-after stones.

An ex-academic with a Ph.D. in cinema, Bernard fell in love with opals after meeting her husband. She became an accredited gemologist and valuer and took up the position of creative director at Opal Minded. She now designs every piece of Opal Minded jewelry in-house at the company’s design studio in the Dymocks Building in Sydney. The pieces are sold in Opal Minded’s chic boutique in The Rocks, a historic Sydney neighborhood.

Bernard reveals the inner beauty of Australian opals with jewelry ranging from understated bracelets that allow the stones to shine to glamorous necklaces with sparkling diamond embellishments. She finds inspiration everywhere, such as the organic forms in nature and the clean lines of modern architecture. By approaching every stone individually, she creates keepsakes made to be passed down through generations.

On 1stDibs, find Renata Bernard necklaces, rings, earrings and more.

Established in Sydney in 1989, Opal Minded is the only jewellery maison dedicated exclusively to Australian opals. Millions of years in the making, Australian opals are among the rarest and most valuable gemstones in the world. Distinctive and unique, each opal is a part of the earth’s oldest continent and carries within it the colours and stories of the Australian Dreamtime. Designed in-house by Renata Bernard, our opal pieces vary from the unaffected and elegant to the unashamedly glamorous. Whether it’s a custom made opal engagement ring, eye-catching opal earrings for a hardworking mother or a beautiful opal pendant just because; each precious piece is a one-of-a-kind—just like you. Our passion for opals can be traced back to a family line of explorers, treasure hunters and three generations of opal miners and designers of opal jewellery. We share this passion with our team of qualified gemmologists and accredited valuers. Our opals are ethically sourced, many from our own mines in Jundah-Opalville in Queensland. They are also available at our Sydney boutique steps away from the Harbour Bridge, or by appointment at our Sydney atelier. Each Opal Minded opal jewellery piece for sale comes with a guarantee that no one else in the world would have one like it. Each comes with a Certificate of Valuation by an NCJV accredited valuer. Let us make your opal dreams come through. The most beautiful opals in the world.