new diamond flood concerns sellers a new onslaught of small diamonds from russia has renewed concerns among indian diamond manufacturers about whether de beers will continue to support that end of the market. indian manufacturers say sales of russian rough diamonds under 11 points increased greatly in november, with goods priced as much as 15% below comparable de beers rough.

wittnaur expands award program wittnauer international, new rochelle, n.y., has expanded a program that honors “unsung heroes” for contributions to their communities. called the community pride awards, the program is now open to jewelers nationwide after a successful debut in october at don roberto jewelers, a 41-store chain based in los angeles, cal.

PRETTY IN PINK Pink and white, the latest incarnation of the mixed-metal look, offers a delicate and feminine but contemporary alternative to traditional yellow gold. It should be a sweet go-with for spring fashion, which early reports say will explode with color – both pastel and acid bright – but remain firmly feminine in shape…

u.s. watch imports rebound watch imports grew a modest 4.3% to 102 million units in the first half of 1995, according to the u.s. department of commerce and the american watch association. that’s a strong turnaround from the 2.2% decrease reported for all of 1994. the customs value (the value of the watches themselves before the addition of tariffs, freight, insurance and other charges) of the …

today’s move to more casual dressing at work as well as play offers new sales opportunities for an often overlooked jewelry category real men do wear jewelry. in ancient times, pharaohs festooned themselves with gold, roman emperors’ robes were encrusted with jewels and the high priests of israel wore colored gemstone breastplates whose symbolism inspired modern birthstone traditions.

jck subscribers are long-term loyalists we’re all familiar with many famous pairs – love and marriage, burton and taylor, ron and nancy to name a few – and our recent readership survey suggests another: jewelers and jck. it revealed that just about half of all our subscribers have been with us for 10 years or more, a striking loyalty.

this troy, mich., jewelry family quietly serves its community with top-drawer merchandise, service and charitable support. yes, jules r. schubot jewellers/ gemologists really does have lalique crystal doors. and yes, sydell schubot is the woman who wears the bees. the doors and bees are two things for which this upscale jeweler is known both in the industry and in its community.

openings cartier celebrated the opening of its new store in caesars palace, las vegas, nev., in november. cartier now has 153 stores worldwide (21 in the u.s.) and 9,500 authorized dealers. diane christensen and colleen rafferty recently opened christensen & rafferty fine jewelry in san mateo, cal.

the 30 dazzling pieces that won 1996 diamonds-international awards included two by u.s. designers robin garin rotstein and jodi stamp of the united states were among 30 designers honored with diamonds-international awards at a gala ceremony during haute couture week in paris last month. the bi-annual competition draws entries from around the world, with more than 2,000 hopefuls from 43 countrie…

industry members chosen for honors several organizations have announced honors for the following members of the jewelry industry. jewelers charity fund: the 12th annual retail jewelers dinner of the year, to be held feb. 3 by the jewelers charity fund, will honor terry burman, chairman of sterling inc.

it’s never too early to plan for a visit to a jewelry show. indeed, any show can be a disaster if you postpone the planning too long. always start with three critical w’s: why? what? when? planning to attend a jewelry trade show? then ask yourself these three questions: why? ask a score of jewelers why they plan to attend a particular show and you’ll probably get at least a score of varying rea…

2,500 stickpins collecting antique stickpins, by jack and elynore kerins. 1995. 128 pages. $16.95. (jck data center cp-025) to order call (813) 796-9663. jack and elynore kerins have one of the largest stickpin collections in the country. in their book, they divide their 2,500 pins into several useful categories, reflecting popular motifs such as horseshoe, hearts, bows, dragons, crescents and …

colorimeter questions in the november 1995 issue of jck i was surprised to find an article about the controversy over the diamond colorimeter, a product which we distribute throughout the u.s. while i realize the article was intended only to address the dialogue that the colorimeter has generated among the gemological laboratories, i was quite disappointed that jck didn’t present a full product…

by: george holmes first reports from jewelers about december business were mixed. some did very well; some did poorly. those in between had a ho-hum sort of season. in general, the real winners were stores that concentrate on the upper end of the market. the jewelry consensus reflects that of retailing as a whole; it wasn’t a great season.

jewelers mutual contributes to jef jewelers mutual insurance co. has made its third $5,000 contribution to the jewelers education foundation of the american gem society. the contribution will help jef to provide business and management training to fine independent jewelers nationwide. “jewelers mutual’s commitment to proper appraising and insurance documentation is a theme which jef is proud to…

jewelry sales shine during otherwise dismal holiday, but problems may be in store for ’96 christmas 1995 was dismal for most retailers, especially apparel and discount stores. in fact, retail and financial analysts say the overall 2% retail sales increase between thanksgiving and christmas was the smallest since the recession of 1990.

with the release of myanmar’s most famous dissident, nobel laureate aung san suu kyi, last summer after six years of house arrest, the ruling military junta sent its strongest signal yet that the country is ready to open its doors to the world. here’s what this means for myanmar’s legendary gem mining industry ring! the telephone wakes me in my hotel room in bangkok, thailand.

mixed metals and colorful gem combinations marked many of the winners in the 1996 agta spectrum award competition the annual spectrum award competition, sponsored by the american gem trade association, is the only contest in the u.s. to recognize excellence in the creative use of natural colored gemstones in jewelry design.