Hey Dev Community 👋
I’m Menula De Silva, a 12-year-old developer from Sri Lanka 🇱🇰 who loves building full-stack web apps.
Recently, I created my most advanced project yet — LustellaGems.com, a complete e-commerce website for selling premium gemstones online.
This project is extra special to me because it’s inspired by my mom’s real gem business idea 💖
I wanted to turn her dream into a real, working online store — and that’s how Lustella Gems was born.
🧠 The Vision
It all started when my mom shared her idea of creating an online platform to showcase and sell gemstones.
I decided to take on the challenge and build it from scratch — not just as a demo, but as a real e-commerce website.
So I asked myself:
“What would a real gem shop need to run online smoothly?”
That question helped me design and plan every part of the system carefully.
⚙️ Tech Stack I Used
| Area | Technology |
|---|---|
| 🖥️ Frontend | HTML, CSS, Bootstrap, JavaScript, jQuery |
| ⚙️ Backend | PHP, MySQL |
| 🧮 Currency Conversion | JavaScript (LKR → USD calculation) |
| 🔐 Authentication | PHP Sessions + MySQL |
| 📦 Hosting | cPanel with a custom domain |
| 🧩 UI/UX Design | Figma |
💎 Core Features I Built
🧍 1. Login, Signup, and Profile Management
Users can create accounts, log in securely, and edit their profile details anytime.
The system uses PHP sessions to manage authentication and prevent unauthorized access.
All user data is stored safely in MySQL, and both frontend and backend validation ensure clean, secure inputs.
🛍️ 2. Dynamic Product System
Products are database-driven, dynamically loaded using PHP and displayed through clean Bootstrap card layouts.
Each product has:
- Name, price, image, and description
- Real-time LKR → USD conversion (using JavaScript)
- A “Request Product” button for customers who want something custom
📨 3. Product Request System
This was one of my favorite features to build.
Users can send special requests for gemstones that aren’t currently listed.
Submissions are handled via AJAX and stored in the database (or emailed to the admin).
It gives the site a more personal, customer-friendly feel.
💬 4. Review and Rating System
Logged-in users can write reviews on products.
If someone tries without logging in, a SweetAlert pop-up gently reminds them to sign in first — just like a professional shop.
🌍 5. LKR → USD Price Conversion
Every product shows both:
LKR. 15000-
USD. 50(automatically calculated and rounded with JavaScript)
It helps international customers easily understand prices, making the store feel global.
📰 6. Blog Section
To make the website more engaging, I built a blog system.
The admin can post articles about:
- Sri Lankan gem history
- Mining and gemstone culture
- Gem categories and fun facts
This turns the site into both an online store and an educational hub for gem lovers.
🎨 UI/UX Design
The design follows a luxurious white, gold, and sapphire blue theme — elegant yet minimal.
I designed the layout in Figma and implemented it with Tailwind + Bootstrap.
All pages are fully responsive and feature smooth animations for a premium experience.
⚔️ Challenges I Faced
- 🔐 Building a secure login & signup system with sessions
- 💾 Structuring the database for users, products, reviews, and requests
- 🎨 Keeping the same premium feel across every page and device
Each challenge helped me understand how real-world e-commerce systems are built from the ground up.
💡 What I Learned
- How to connect PHP with MySQL efficiently
- Using AJAX to update data without page reloads
- Validating user input securely
- Organizing both frontend and backend logic neatly
- The importance of combining creativity with functionality
🚀 What’s Next
I’m currently working on:
- Admin panel for managing blogs
- Email notifications using PHPMailer
- Wishlist and cart system
- Advanced search filters with real-time results
My goal is to make LustellaGems.com a complete online store — professional, scalable, and user-friendly.
❤️ Final Thoughts
Building Lustella Gems wasn’t just a coding project — it was a personal mission to bring my mom’s gem business idea to life.
It taught me how to balance creativity, logic, and real-world requirements as a young developer.
If you’d like to check it out, here’s the live site 👇
👉 LustellaGems.com
If you enjoyed this post, please drop a ❤️ or comment your thoughts!
I’d love to hear your feedback and connect with other developers around the world 🙌
Top comments (0)