Jeweler News

It’s not every day you have the chance to peek behind the doors of the top jewelry houses in the world. And it’s not every day there’s a documentary made about a topic so near and dear to our heart: jewelry.

The screening was held on September 18th in California.

We’ll keep you posted as to when you can check out this special documentary.

Check out the trailer…very exciting!

[vimeo]http://vimeo.com/61145012[/vimeo]

Masters of Dreams is a four-part documentary series that goes behind-the-scenes with 13 of the world’s most legendary jewelry houses: Boucheron, Buccellati, Bulgari, Chaumet, Chopard, Damiani, De Beers Jewellery, Forevermark, Graff Diamonds, H. Stern, John Hardy, Stephen Webster and Verdura. From Paris to New York, London to Bali, and Milan to Rio, the series offers a breathtaking journey into the world of fine jewelry, filled with famous families, gemstone hunters and some of the world’s most innovative designers.

Source: The Daily Jewel

The Couture Press Preview took place in New York City last week, a fun, intimate event which features lesser-known jewelers. Jewelry expert and 10x writer Hannah Connorton picked a few of her favorites.

Syna debuted swan cameo earrings at the event, set in 18-karat yellow gold with black diamonds (below, $4,950). I was impressed with the introduction of ivory carvings–which designers Dharmesh and Namrata Kothari found in Indonesia–as they add another dimension to the brand’s aesthetic, which is mainly smooth, round stones.

One trait I have noticed about designer Pamela Huizenga is that she’s great with mixing colors, especially when it comes to neutral and warm hues. Her chrysoprase bracelet, however, set in 18-karat gold with diamonds (below, $16,800), really caught my attention. The pavé around the single cabochon chrysoprase adds a delicate, feminine touch to the piece, that’s just enough and not too much.

Jacquie Aiche has a great collection that covers a range of styles, from elegant and floral to tribal and bold. Her 14-karat yellow gold agate slice prong ring with diamond pavé (below) is a great pairing of a gorgeous gemstone with edgy accents; the warm colors and gold metal is eye-catching but not scene stealing.

Sara Freedenfeld, the designer behind brand Amáli, weaves her gold jewelry by hand, with some pieces taking up to 10 hours to complete. I loved her 18-karat gold Peruvian opal clasp necklace with blue diamonds (below, $6,000), especially since the clasp mechanism allows the wearer to adjust the length of the necklace.

– See more at: https://blog.nationaljeweler.com/2013/08/editors-picks-part-ii.html#sthash.Dd7jgCDe.dpuf

While we’ve seen some jewelry that looks like it could have been created by aliens, this ancient iron jewelry contains remnants of meteorites in them.

Read on:

Some of the earliest pieces of jewelry discovered have been found to contain samples from outer space. Archaeologists have confirmed funeral beads strung around bodies from a 5000-year-old Egyptian cemetery contained pieces of iron from meteorites that fell to Earth.

Using high-tech scanning methods, researchers from University College London (UCL) found the nine small beads, which were discovered in the Lower Egypt village of el-Gerzeh in 1911, confirm the metal came from outer space rather than terrestrial iron ores, as previously believed. The beads came from two burial sites dating back to 3200 BC and were discovered along with other exotic terrestrial minerals such as agate and gold.

UCL Archaeology Professor Thilo Rehren, lead author of a paper published in The Journal of Archaeological Science, said, “The shape of the beads was obtained by smithing and rolling, most likely involving multiple cycles of hammering, and not by the traditional stone-working techniques such as carving or drilling which were used for the other beads found in the same tomb.”

Source: RedOrbit.com

When you visit our blog, you’re most likely to find advice about jewelry, jewelry trends, celebrity jewelry and the like. Rarely, if ever, do you find movie reviews. But when we heard about The Bling Ring, we decided to change our ways and just dish about Sophia Coppola’s latest movie.

According to Vanity Fair:

The film is based closely on actual events, reported in a 2010 Vanity Fair article that, in retrospect, reads like a shooting script. From October 2008 to August 2009, a group of high school students from Calabasas robbed a series of celebrities’ homes, using the Internet to find out when their victims would be out of town. They took mostly designer clothes, accessories, and jewelry, and the thrill lay as much in crashing the lifestyles of the rich and famous as in coming away with loot. Because they were young and stupid, they were eventually caught, but “The Bling Ring” is less concerned with comeuppance than in gazing at these kids and marveling at their hollowness. In a way, the film plays like a more tasteful and less bonkers version of the recent “Spring Breakers.” The comparison isn’t to Coppola’s benefit.

Well, it’s getting mixed reviews apparently. A little too chilly and distant. No empathy felt for the characters. Oh well. We have bling rings of our own…and not the kind that steal!

Here’s the official movie trailer:

This necklace is more than just amazing in its length; it’s part of an amazing project called The Portable Playhouse, a non profit organization that has joined together with a nationally-known bead company, to raise money for a specialized art therapy program.

The money raised will be used to help fund our specialized art therapy beading programs at hospitals and cancer centers across the country. We work with hospitalized children, (regardless of their illnesses) and women fighting cancer in outpatient cancer centers across the country.

Our goal is to create the world’s longest beaded necklace. We are working under the guidelines of The Guinness Book of World Record’s to record and certify our efforts.

We have already worked with tens of thousands of children and women and we are looking for your help to reach even more!

See how you can help!

Perhaps this isn’t the type of jewelry that you’d wear to your average Mother’s Day luncheon, but boy, does it capture the eye.

Throughout May, Aaron Faber Gallery, located at 666 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY, will present the dramatic jewelry in an exhibition that explores the striking works of five legendary international jewelry artists:  “Dramatic Jewelry: The Five Masters” showcases the extraordinary works of British jeweler, Charlotte De Syllas; Italian jeweler,Paolo Marcolongo; American jeweler, Michael Good; and German jewelers Peter Schmid of Atelier Zobel and Tom and Jutta Munsteiners.

Here are a few examples:

Source: The Daily Jewel

 

The “Princie Diamond” [above] was named in honor of the 14-year-old Prince of Baroda and its $39.3 million sale at Christie’s set new world records for the most valuable Golconda diamond sold at the auction and the most valuable diamond ever sold at Christie’s and the United States.

According to National Jeweler:

An anonymous bidder paid $1.1 million per carat for the 34.65-carat cushion-cut fancy intense pink diamond at Christie’s New York on Tuesday. The auction house’s previous record was $24.3 million, set in December 2008 with the sale of the Wittelsbach Diamond to Laurence Graff.

Christie’s said the Princie possesses all of the most desirable qualities today’s collectors are seeking in diamonds: a large size, desirable shape and polish, exceptional color and quality, Golconda origins and a noble history.

“A major event took place in the global auction industry with the record-breaking sale of the Princie Diamond at Christie’s New York. Aside from Christie’s sale of the legendary Collection of Elizabeth Taylor, this was the most successful jewelry auction ever held in the U.S.,” said Rahul Kadakia, head of jewelry at Christie’s Americas and Switzerland.

Above: Milka Karağaçlı with actor Orlando Bloom who bought a necklace from her collection for his wife Miranda Kerr. AA photo

Looks like Hollywood is going to Turkey this season, as rising jeweler Milka Karaağaçlı becomes all the rage with such stars as Orlando Bloom, Madonna, Pink and Anne Hathaway. Karaağaçlı has taken part in the New York and Paris fashion weeks since 2010 and hopes to open stores in Europe and the U.S.

“Each model is born like a baby. I wear them at first, experience it and then put it up for sale,” says Karaağaçlı.

Source: HurriyeNews.com

What a stunning gem and exciting auction up ahead. Better start saving your spare change!

A 75 ct. D-color pear-shaped diamond—the most important white gem ever to be auctioned in the United States—is expected to rake in between $9–$12 million when it goes up for sale at Sotheby’s annual spring auction of Magnificent Jewels on April 17.

The stone is also one of the few pear-shaped diamonds of D color more than 50 carats to be auctioned in decades, the auction house says.

75 ct. pear-shaped diamond

“It was acquired by the present owner in 2001 for $4.3 million, and today we have estimated it conservatively at $120,000 per carat,” said Lisa Hubbard, chairman of North and South America, Sotheby’s International jewelry division.

Source: JCK