Jewellery designer Yi Guo on Annie Leibovitz, Myanmar sunrises and Sri Lankan gems

"My first job out of college was as a fashion assistant at Vanity Fair. Working with celebrities was a little nerve-wracking at first but I learned to deal with it. They may be recognised all over the world, but they really are just regular people. Working on the [annual] Hollywood issue shoots with Annie Leibovitz was always the most fun … they were very well researched and well produced, with tons of celebrities in one photo [for the cover fold-out]. We would have all these celebrities in one room, which made me almost want to pinch myself."

"It's full of secrets, with new venues that pop up every day. That's what's great about it - the creative class build new things every day. My favourite [neighbourhood] has to be the Lower East Side, which has grunge and cultural elements mixed together."

"I travelled to Sri Lanka for my agent's wedding and stayed at a boutique hotel in a southern coastal town called Mirissa. The country is gorgeous - the ocean, the colonial villas, the gentle Buddhist culture and, of course, the gem shopping … I loved it all. It's home to some interesting stones. They have some of the world's best sapphires as well as an amazing gemstone called alexandrite, which changes colour depending on the light."