Everything you need to know about how technology can help you sell more wedding jewelry The popularity of immersive technology like virtual reality headsets and augmented reality mobile games is a clear indication that the next wave of high-tech experiences is no longer in some far-off, sci-fi future—it’s here and now. For jewelers, the constant…
January 2017
How to Click With Tech-Savvy, Custom-Craving Millennial Brides & Grooms
10 Things Rocking the Industry, January–February 2017
TRENDS Kermit the Frog famously lamented that “it’s not easy being green.” Well, Pantone just made it a little easier. The color authority has selected Greenery—one of its top 10 spring 2017 shades—as its Color of the Year for 2017. (A few past picks: 2014’s cheery Radiant Orchid, 2015’s much-maligned Marsala, and 2016’s pastel pair,…
From the Editor: January–February 2017
At press time. You’ve probably seen this phrase in the magazine before. That’s the way we cover our bases just in case something dramatic happens after we upload the issue to the printer. And at no time does it feel more appropriate than now. In the six weeks between my writing this and your reading it,…
Motley Hue: What JCK’s Randi Molofsky Is Loving This Month
“Statement earrings can’t be limited to just one color. The more the merrier!” —Contributor Randi Molofsky Long, lean, and lovely—Jane Taylor captures the spirit of spring in a perfect pair of shoulder-dusting stiletto earrings. ($8,525, janetaylor.com) Greece was the vacation destination in 2016, and these multicolor stunners from Athens-based Nikos Koulis are the ultimate grab-and-go…
From the Publisher: January–February 2017
Happy New Year from all of us at JCK magazine and JCKonline! This year promises to be a very exciting one for our team, and I’m thrilled to tell you why. As some of you may know, Reed Exhibitions purchased JCK magazine in 2010, hiring a third party (custom publishing house TMG) to produce the magazine. After…
Why @dabindra Is Our Favorite Feed of the Month
Get ready for Tucson Gem Week with @dabindra: Self-described “gemologist, globe-trotter, and treasure hunter” Dave Bindra unearths some of the most stunning and unexpected stones (Tanzanian malaya garnet!) you’re likely to ever see. Rock on! Bindra and his trusty loupe A multifaceted sparkler Sri Lankan rough sapphire Brazilian tourmaline slices Sweet mint tourmaline Violet and lilac spinels
Blue Nile Purchased by Bain Capital
Unable to get much traction as a public company, Blue Nile was purchased by Bain Capital and Bow Street LLC in November for $500 million. The deal ends the e-tailer’s 12 years as a public company. The all-cash deal, which was approved by the board of directors, calls for shareholders to be paid $40.75 a share, a…
Industry & People: January–February 2017
COMINGS AND GOINGS >> Paul Tacorian (pictured) has become CEO of Tacori, and sister Nadine Tacorian Arzerounian will become the chief operating officer and will guide design. Their father, Haig Tacorian, who founded the company with wife Gilda in 1969, will become chairman and serve on its board. >> Circa has appointed Alexandra Azrael Lopato director of its new Baltimore location and Ed Hartman director of…
Facèré Jewelry Art Gallery Is a Haven for Gem & Literature Lovers
Karen Lorene Facèré Jewelry Art Gallery Seattle facerejewelryart.com facebook.com/facerejewelryart Karen Lorene, owner of Facèré Jewelry Art Gallery in Seattle, began her retail career as an antique seller in 1972. But after moving a weighty cast-iron stove—piece by crushingly heavy piece—into a store window one day, she began dreaming about retailing “things I could carry by…
Enter a World of Pure Imagination at Warren Jewellers
Michael Warren Owner Warren Jewellers Lancaster, Pa. warrenjewellers.com What makes your store competitive with the other jewelers in your area? I think our unique store proposition would be the focus on creating exactly what’s in our customers’ imaginations. The client is the driver. We’re branded as Warren Jewellers, but we’re selling their product. We started with…
Store We Adore: Alchemy 925
48 Leonard St., Belmont, Mass. When Kirsten Ball moved to the United States from London nearly a decade ago, she began taking local metalsmithing classes with Munya Avigail Upin. Several years later, Ball sought out her former instructor to ask her advice on where to sell her work. “Munya joked that we should just open…
Jewelry That Gives Good Face
The human form has long served as a (sometimes surreal) source of inspiration for jewelry designers—think lip rings and evil-eye amulets—but this season, it’s all about the face. Stay ahead of the game with comedy-tragedy masks, smiling Buddhas, shadowy silhouettes, and more. Talk about expressing yourself! (Top) Shoko Leaf earrings in 18k yellow gold with…
Hollywood’s Sudden Case of Scarlet Fever
Marion Cotillard The Oscar winner continues her love affair with Dior, her favorite couturier, and with Chopard, her go-to jewelry house. For the Paris debut of her film Allied, she donned a traffic-stopping scarlet single-sleeve gown and drop earrings with multicolored sapphires that picked up the striking shade of her dress. A perfect alliance! ON COTILLARD (Inset) Temptations…
How Sylva & Cie Captures That Old World Feeling
Once upon a time, there were two boys, Jirair Guiragossian and Harout Yepremian, who were the best of friends. They met in the Boy Scouts in Lebanon in the 1950s, where they acquired an appreciation for natural stones. As teenagers, the two Armenians became apprentice jewelers together. Just a few years later, each sat at…
JCK Asks…Sydney Evan Designer Rosanne Karmes
Given the enormous popularity of personalized jewelry (see JCK’s November–December 2016 “Fully Burnished” still-life feature), there couldn’t be a better time for Sydney Evan to release its 15th Anniversary collection. Designer Rosanne Karmes picked a dozen of her “best-selling and most recognizable designs” for the 14k gold and pavé diamond celebratory collection, including a horseshoe,…
Michelle Pfeiffer Rocks Like an Egyptian in the Mackay Emerald
The Hope Diamond may be the most famous gem at the Smithsonian, but it’s by no means the only gobstopper on display at the Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. Even larger—and arguably even more beautiful—is the Mackay Emerald necklace, gifted to the institution by Anna Case Mackay in 1984. Originally mined in Muzo,…
Jacob & Co.’s Butterfly Earrings Are a Wing of Beauty
Jacob Arabo, founder and chairman of Jacob & Co., wanted to harness the ethereal beauty of butterflies with these stunning earrings. But reflecting the creature’s feather-light physicality was equally important. “I wanted the earrings to be as lightweight as possible, without taking away from the aesthetic,” he says. Arabo designed the earrings as part of…
Silver: January–February 2017
CAN’T–MISS COLLECTION Love Tokens Before they married, Zina Sterling vice president Andrew Goldstein received a kayak pendant from his wife, Dorian, to mark his love of the water. When the brand’s customers noticed it, they began to request their own special symbols, so he compiled a dozen of the most requested looks into the TokenZ collection.…
On the Rings of Love
Your wedding shoppers will be flying high with these eye-catching (and anything but traditional) engagement rings and bands BEZEL SETTINGS SIDE AYE (Above) 3.56 ct. emerald ring in 18k rose gold; $61,000; Robert Procop, Beverly Hills, Calif.; 310-276-6041; robertprocop.com CHAMPAGNE WISHES Art Deco–inspired ring in 14k gold with 1 ct. champagne-color princess-cut diamond, 0.4 ct.…
Retail 360
Think of any one of today’s top consumer brands as a cyclone—a churning, whirling cone encircling its target demographic. Whichever way a consumer turns—to a phone, a local shopping center, or a laptop—that brand is there, offering an attractive opportunity to engage and interact. That vigorous, swirling effect is more commonly known as omnichannel retailing, which…
The Right Manager
Nine years ago, Susan Purnell, owner of Kuhn’s Jewelers in Salisbury, Md., hired Diana Barber to manage her store. Barber, whom Purnell describes as “a breath of fresh air,” has not only helped get the store on track with its accounting and paperwork, but has also helped boost sales and lighten Purnell’s workload. Every jewelry store…
Green Boom: Why Colombian Emeralds Are 2017’s Hottest Rock
When buyers in the market for one-of-a-kind emerald jewels call Rayaz Takat, CEO of New York City–based Takat, they nearly always ask for stones with a specific provenance. “People have been buying more Colombian stones,” he says. “They want reassurance that the pieces will sell down the road at auction, and Colombian emeralds are more well…
What a Gem! Stellar New Colored Stone Jewelry
Photographs by Ted Morrison AMETHYST AND CITRINE MERGE IN A MULTICOLOR QUARTZ EXTRAVAGANZA. (Above) Earrings in 18k gold with ametrine; $3,370; Amáli, NYC; 718-789-8976; amalijewelry.com TRAVEL TO THE COAST OF BRAZIL WITH PRECIOUS PARAIBA. Ring in 18k gold with diamonds and Paraiba tourmaline, $127,750, earrings in 18k gold with diamonds and Paraiba tourmaline, price on…
5 Jewels to See at Baselworld 2017
A bounty of beautiful new jewels will be on display March 23–30 at the Baselworld fair in Switzerland. (Top) Masai necklace in hand-coiled 18k yellow and white gold; $26,050; Marco Bicego, San Francisco; 866-424-2346; marcobicego.com (Inset) Moselle necklace in palladium-plated brass with Swarovski crystals and pearls; $999; Swarovski, NYC; 212-935-4200; swarovski.com Honeycomb earrings in 18k white gold with 8 mm akoya…
JCK Tucson 2017 Delivers Fresh Talent & New Initiatives
This year’s JCK Tucson show, open Feb. 1–4 at the JW Marriott Tucson Starr Pass Resort & Spa, promises to be a haven for design lovers. Not only has JCK Events invited 1,000 of the country’s top retailers—including 90 premier design-focused stores, such as California’s Talisman Collection—but organizers also have attracted nearly 100 exhibitors, many on…
Mastering the Art of the Ultracool & Potentially Lucrative Instagram
In the never-ending race amongst social media networks to wield the most consumer influence, Instagram is currently an undisputed front-runner. As of September, the 7-year-old platform boasted more than 500 million active monthly users, according to market research firm Statista. That may pale compared with Facebook’s nearly 1.8 billion active monthly users, but the app’s base—which…
Tool Time: Cool Jewelry Gadgets, January–February 2017
WHO, WHAT, WEARABLE Garmin Fenix Chronos Serious athletes have always loved Garmin, and for good reason. The smart tech developer makes some of the best fitness trackers on the market. Garmin’s newest GPS sports watch, the Fenix Chronos, is as high-tech as its predecessors, but looks more like a luxury timepiece. The beautifully built smartwatch, which…
A Van Cleef & Arpels Necklace Makes a Statement at Sotheby’s
The phrase statement piece gets bandied about a lot in jewelry. Yet it was hefty, dazzling designs like this ruby and diamond necklace, crafted in 1971 by Van Cleef & Arpels, that gave rise to the concept of a jewel being so uncommonly bold, its message is pure declaration. The necklace didn’t earn its latest…