Contrary to popular belief, luxury is not out of your average shopper’s reach. We’ve got the diamond-pavé jewels to prove it.            CUFFS ON THE EDGEBracelet in 18k RougeRoyal gold with 3.84 cts. t.w. brilliant-cut diamonds; $42,000; IsabelleFa, Eisingen, Germany; 49-723-238-1660; isabellefa.com   LET THE SUN SHINE INRising Sun cuff in 14k…

On the scene at Mandalay Bay with newcomers, veterans, and JCK lifers             Cyril Magne, a correspondent for the French fashion site Guide Joailliers, was at JCK to explore the U.S. market. “The customers in the U.S. are not afraid of big rings, big pins, and big necklaces on a…

“You can’t go wrong with blue and green gems.” —Editor-in-chief Victoria Gomelsky  1. Turquoise, white and blue topaz, and yellow sapphires are the perfect combo for these Deco dangles. (Jane Taylor, $2,765, janetaylor.com) 2. Two-finger rings typically don’t look as stylish or feel as comfortable as this sapphire and diamond stunner. (Gabriel & Co., $1,530, gabrielny.com)     3.…

They came, they saw, they shopped. For the LUXURY and JCK Las Vegas shows, Year Five at Mandalay Bay went off without a hitch. Meanwhile, the Diamond Empowerment Fund’s Diamonds in the Sky gala brought jewelers, students, and celebrities to Vegas.          LUXURYTacori’s Paul Tacorian tells the brand’s retail partners that 60…

1133 20th St. NW, Washington, D.C. D.C. is famously conservative when it comes to fashion, which makes the long-running success of I. Gorman—a showcase for avant-garde jewelry created primarily by European designers—pretty astounding. The store, founded by Ivan and Bonnie Gorman in 1981 and now owned by their children, Adam Gorman and Nicole Gorman-Shrum, performs…

Model Pernilla Fransander, the ethereal Scandinavian beauty on the cover of this issue, struck many a provocative pose during the shoot for our post–JCK Las Vegas edition, which celebrates the best jewels, coolest trends, and most interesting news of 2015 jewelry market week. We layered her with the season’s open geometric designs, jazzed her up…

We know what you’re thinking: It’s just J.Lo in another barely-there gown. But the one-shoulder Atelier Versace design actually upheld the evening’s theme quite well, with a fiery beaded dragon and embellished flames covering the singer’s torso in some very strategic spots. Ruby-accented earrings and a spinel statement ring rounded out Lopez’s red-hot ensemble. Meanwhile,…

Just one of the jewelry takeaways from the fall 2015 runway shows: It’s time to broach the brooch subject. Brobdingnagian bejeweled and Perspex styles popped up at Prada; Chanel affixed clusters of gold button-size versions to its tweedy, tailored designs (for both men and women); Dolce & Gabbana used vintage-inspired varieties in models’ updos. Need…

In 1924, Baron Eugène de Rothschild purchased this East-meets-West necklace for his bride, Catherine Wolff, an American-born socialite later described by Vogue as “one of the small group of women in the world who are internationally known for their great chic.” Designed by Cartier’s celebrated creative director Charles Jacqueau, the necklace, which fetched $2.59 million…

We give you the details on a ring that tells you what you need to know plus a new polishing system. WHO, WHAT, WEARABLE Ringly Of all the wearables we’ve test-driven here at JCK over the last year, Ringly—a notification device embedded in a classic cocktail ring that buzzes or blinks to show when calls,…

There’s an art to using icons and GIFs in marketing (hint: think diamond rings) Adam Leibsohn, chief operating officer of Giphy, the largest search platform for GIFs (those short, repetitive video clips) on the Web, may be overreaching a bit when he says that one day soon “we’re not going to ­communicate through words anymore”…

From Las Vegas to New York to Miami, JCK’s circle continues to widen JCK Las Vegas concluded its fifth year at Mandalay Bay with a 4 percent bump in attendance, reflecting renewed vigor in the trade, especially among vendors of high-end and branded goods. JCK’s Yancy Weinrich gives us the postmortem. JCK: What was the…

Feninjer’s 60th edition comes to São Paulo Aug. 12–15. (Above)1. Bracelet in 18k gold with tanzanite, peridot, emeralds, diamonds, pink tourmalines, agates, and pink sapphires; $43,600; Goldesign, Belo Horizonte, Brazil; 55-31-3271-2636; international@goldesignjoias.com.br   2. Necklace in 18k gold with tourmalines and diamonds; $13,630; Benne Fatto, São Paulo; 55-11-3862-9611; bennefatto.com 3. Ear climbers in 18k rose…

LUXURY Privé returns for a weekend of good food, good people, and great jewels LUXURY Privé New York returns to the Waldorf Astoria for its second consecutive year on July 26–28. Privé, considered the luxury anchor of New York City’s jewelry market week, is now in its fifth annual edition. Event director Sarin Bachmann says…

Beautiful, original photography is supremely shareable, but clever copy also wins hearts (and minds!) on social sites. Here, five fabulous Instagram captions that made us stop mid-scroll. 1. The new #AudiQ7 battles the great outdoors in Africa. Although, a battle suggests both sides have an equal chance of winning. —@audi 2. Tumbled out the front…

How designers and retailers are taking a page from high-end glossies, capturing consumers with gorgeous images and original, compelling content Jewelry designer Jacquie Aiche’s Instagram page is a checkerboard of bronzed California skin draped in bold bohemian jewelry. In one shot, layered gold and braided leather necklaces hang around the neck of a ­shirtless model…

Ways jewelry brands have enticed top-tier travelers: 1. Mexico City–born sisters and Anndra Neen designers Annette and Phoebe Stephens created a six-piece capsule collection exclusively for The Beverly Hills Hotel last year. Their rose quartz, alpaca, and brass handmade clutches, cuffs, necklaces, and rings replicate the hotel’s pink-wash walls and palm-frond wallpaper. 2. At the…

Across the country, stylish hotel properties are becoming home to a new breed of retailer, swapping 50-cent postcards for $5,000 jewels Sig Ward, a Manhattan Beach, Calif.–based jewelry designer, scored a coup at a recent trunk show in Hawaii. She sold $34,000 worth of earrings, opal and diamond chains, and a bangle to a local…

Tips and tricks on marketing to millennials, getting shoppers in the door, giving sales a goose, and more—straight from the pros at JCK Las Vegas THE TOPIC “What Matters Most” Shane Decker, consultant and president, Ex-Sell-Ence THE TAKEAWAYS What matters most, Decker said, is the experience customers have in your store: “Clients are buying experience.…

From rubies to runways, 15 of the most memorable moments from JCK Las Vegas As keen observers of the jewelry marketplace, we’re ­committed to ensuring that what happens at JCK Las Vegas doesn’t stay in Vegas. That’s why we put our heads together to determine the best of this year’s market week. From a profusion…

TREND GAME Strange Love Uncommon engagement rings are no longer all that uncommon. We’re talking about the proliferation of bridal styles featuring colored gems, bands with open space, black and brown diamonds, and rough rocks, all in endless combinations and stone arrangements. Millennials and their insatiable appetite for custom looks and entry-level prices are driving…

CAMPAIGN UPDATE Chasing Mavericks Alexis Bittar champions strong, smart women with unique stories in his ad campaigns, and his spring-­summer 2015 media push—featuring nonagenarian fashionista Iris Apfel and 19-year-old actress/Rookie Mag editor Tavi Gevinson (below)—is no exception. “The industry needs to look at the segment that we’re selling to and adore it,” Bittar says. And who…

Encapsulating a major metropolis in the space of half a finger is no easy feat. But German jeweler Wempe’s New York City ring does just that. In the one-of-a-kind piece—part of a series of 13 city-themed custom rings in the Cosmora collection, the newest in the By Kim line—Manhattan’s massive skyscrapers shrink to jagged diamond…

Everyone comes back from vacation a little happier. But when designer Coco Chanel and jeweler Fulco di Verdura returned from a joint holiday in Italy in the 1930s, they were also filled with inspiration. They’d been awestruck by two sights: the colorful Byzantine mosaic of Empress Theodora in the Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna,…

On literal and figurative crushes If you said Pamela Froman was crushing it as a ­jewelry designer, you’d be right. Because you can’t talk about Pamela Froman without talking about Crushed gold. “I thought I should name it,” says the Los Angeles–based artist of her now-signature textured technique. “It reminded me of how tinfoil looks…

What’s trending and who’s advertising in the June issues Elle Pushing:• Double-ended open emerald ring; blue enamel ­diamond baguette starburst-style ring (“The (New) Rules of Engagement Rings: Big, bold jewels make the standard solitaire look downright staid”)• Skinny gold wire choker; single gold and diamond earring (“Escape Route: Effortless summer style is as easy as…

Keenan’s celebrates 60 years of bejeweling Big Sky country Ryan Lee, a third-generation retailer at Keenan Jewelers in Butte, Mont., occasionally earns skeptical glances from customers wondering if someone so baby-faced is equipped to sell them diamonds. “He looks so young, people sometimes don’t understand how knowledgeable he is,” says his mother, Rhonda Lee, who…

Amy Greene and her 45 smiling sales associates help shoppers sparkle and shine 1. What one advertisement or promotion elicited the biggest response, and why do you think it worked? We have an event called Sparkle & Shine where we offer a professional jewelry cleaning for customers. There is almost no cost involved; we do…

Retailer Richard Kessler outlines his grand succession plan Richard Kessler, owner of Kesslers Diamonds—an ­independent fine jewelry retailer based in Germantown, Wis.—hopes that in roughly five years, he won’t own a shred of the company he founded 35 years ago. Why? A slow transfer of ownership is central to his personal succession plan. The bustling…

It’s been a year since Chow Tai Fook bought Boston diamond brand Hearts On Fire. Kent Wong, managing director of the world’s largest jeweler, talks about his plans for the brand. JCK: What do you see next for Hearts On Fire? Kent Wong: We acquired the brand one year ago. We appreciate that we have…

At the same time that De Beers has decided to resurrect “A Diamond Is Forever,” another old idea is coming back: that diamonds should be promoted as a generic product. Seven leading miners—Rio Tinto, De Beers, Dominion Diamond Corp., Petra Diamonds, Gem Diamonds, Alrosa, and Lucara Diamond Corp.—are forming the Diamond Producers Association (DPA), a…

The top stories for May. Don’t miss a headline! Sign up for our daily ­newsletter at jckonline.com/newsletters/subscribe. 1. Mystery Diamond Color Treatment Stumps GIAAs many as 500 diamonds were exposed to a treatment that ­temporarily improves color up to three grades, reported the GIA. 2. Why the Industry’s in a FunkAmong Rob Bates’ hypotheses: a…

It’s been a couple of weeks since I returned from this year’s LUXURY and JCK shows in Las Vegas, but my head is still spinning with thoughts of what an amazing week it was. Many congratulations to Reed Exhibitions’ Yancy Weinrich and her team, including LUXURY event director Sarin Bachmann and Katie Dominesey, industry vice…

As a 15-year veteran of JCK Las Vegas, I’ve come to love the cacophony of foreign voices that greets me when I join the streams of people flowing toward the Mandalay Bay Convention Center every morning during jewelry market week. It’s chaotic and crowded, but the multicultural scene represents everything I love about the trade.…

1. Laws After the Supreme Court ruled on June 26 that same-sex marriages are legal, the jewelry industry flooded social media with photos of rainbow-hued jewels (#LoveWins). “Same-sex marriages will be a much larger pillar of the wedding industry than ever before,” says New York City designer and longtime ­marriage equality supporter Rony Tennenbaum. “It…