All That Glitters...in San Diego...

All That Glitters: San Diego Museum Launches Two-Year Exhibition

Pala International to provide 100 gems and minerals

The San Diego Natural History Museum is opening an exciting new exhibit for all those gem lovers out there. “All that Glitters: The Splendor & Science of Gems and Minerals” will include mineral specimens, faceted gemstones, and designer jewelry. It tells the story from the formation of gems within the Earth to Man’s creations employing all the wonderful gem materials. The exhibit will appropriately focus on the fascinating array of gems and minerals found in San Diego County, along with a wide variety from major gem producing regions around the Earth.

Over 100 gems and mineral specimens will be provided by Pala International. Prominent names in the industry like Tiffany & Co., Van Cleef & Arpels, and Cartier will provide a wide range of original jewelry pieces. Harvard University, the Smithsonian, the American Museum of Natural History, and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston all will be adding to the extravaganza with more jewels and mineral specimens.

The exhibit opens May 15, 2010 and is scheduled to run through April 2012. “In addition to demonstrating the ‘splendor and science of gems and minerals,’ All That Glitters will have a playful side,” says Exhibition Curator and Graduate Gemologist Elise B. Misiorowski. “Jewels and carvings incorporating natural-history themes will give children as well as adults delightful surprises to hunt for. How many jeweled butterflies, birds, and flowers can you find? Which case contains the Faberge carved pig with diamond eyes?”

Excerpt from the January Gem News from Pala International

ISA Celebrates 30 Years with Assets 2010 Conference

INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY OF APPRAISERS CELEBRATES THIRTY YEARS WITH “ASSETS 2010” CONFERENCE IN TORONTO

ISA will host a Conference April 30-May 3 with Museum tours and seminars by noted authorities in the fields of Fine Art, Antiques and Residential Contents and Gems & Jewelry

(Toronto, Canada) The International Society of Appraisers will celebrate its thirtieth birthday with an in depth three pronged Conference in Toronto on April 30-May 3. The Conference, entitled “Assets 2010”, will consist of programs in Fine Arts, Antiques and Residential Contents and Gems & Jewelry. Conference coordinator Kathryn Minard, ISA, CAPP, and conference co-chairs Irene Szylinger and Catherine Williams and Jim Poag, Gems and Jewelry program coordinator have arranged a lineup of credentialed powerhouse presenters for each session, a pair of dynamic keynote speakers, Robert Ramsay and David Ben, and scheduled tours of such important venues as the Art Gallery of Ontario, the Royal Ontario Museum, the Gardiner Museum of Ceramics, the Bata Shoe Museum, the Textile Museum of Canada, Corona Jewelry Company, the Stephen Bulger Gallery and a tour of a private residence featuring Jamieson Tribal Art.

According to Minard one of the main points of emphasis for this Conference is affordability and flexibility. ISA has arranged very generous rates for participants at the host hotel, the Park Hyatt Toronto in downtown Ontario. It is close to convenient public transportation and is surrounded by a wide variety of eating establishments for all tastes and budgets.

While the Conference will have three distinct sections, participants will be encouraged to pick and choose among sessions to accommodate the cross-over interests of many attendees.

The Fine Art program will feature sessions on the art market, contemporary photography, Inuit art, authentication, insurance appraisals, cross border appraisals and report writing. The Antiques and Residential Contents program will feature sessions on hallmarks, quilts, Victorian, style and design, paperweights, insurance appraisals, appraising pop culture, cross border appraisals and report writing.

The Gems & Jewelry program adds Carole Tanenbaum, a costume jewelry expert; Dave Sawatzky from Korite International, the maker of Ammolite jewelry from Calgary; Ravi Poddar, a representative from Ontario based Byrex Gems; John Borzak, author of the Rolex Report and Paul Cassarino, ISA, CASPP, presenter of the report writing workshop.

The Conference itself is very reasonably priced beginning at $575 for ISA members with Super Saver early registration which ends January 31. Rates are slightly higher after that. Special rates are available for single day events and for spouses/guests. The tours and events are also very reasonably priced. To register online go to http://www.assets2010.org.

Site of the course is the Park Hyatt Toronto, 4 Avenue Road, Toronto, Ontario M5R 2E8 Canada, (416) 925-1234. A group discount rate is available through ISA for accommodations at the hotel. Hotel registration is available online at the above address. For more information contact the International Society of Appraisers, 737 N. Michigan Ave., Suite 2100, Chicago IL 60611, phone (312) 981-6778, fax (312) 981-6787, email isa@isa-appraisers.org, website www.isa-appraisers.org

Margaux Lange Puts Her Best Foot Forward...

If you have been following this blog for any length of time you know I am a huge fan of Margaux Lange's Barbie Jewelry.

...well - for those of you in the Eastern US - you have 2 days left to catch her contributions to the current exhibit at the Fuller Craft Museum in Brockton, MA

Lange's blog reports:

The Perfect Fit: Shoes Tell Stories, the museum exhibition this bracelet and two other works of mine are included in at the Fuller Craft Museum in Brockton, MA will be closing on January 17th. However… it will soon be traveling on to the Nicolaysen Museum in Casper, Wyoming (hooray!) The show will open there April 30 and will remain until September 12, 2010.

Vicente Agor On 2010 Trends for WJA Event!

On January 21^st, the San Francisco chapter of the Women’s Jewelry Association will be hosting a dinner that’s open to the public and are excited to announce that fine jewelry designer Vicente Agor will be speaking about upcoming fashion and business trends for 2010.

Vicente’s 18 karat gold jewelry is sold in some of the most exclusive boutiques, has celebrity fans like Gwyneth Paltrow, Reese Witherspoon, and Oprah.

His jewelry has been featured multiple times in Cosmopolitan, InStyle, Marie Claire, Self, and Lucky, as well as appearing in publications like Elle, W, C Magazine, Sports Illustrated, and appearing on the covers of Self, O, and Brides local editions.

Awarded by some of the most respectable organizations in the Industry, Vicente has been named Best New Designer by Instore Magazine, and has been honored by the World Gold Council for the past four years.

Event Info:

Women’s Jewelry Association

Thursday, January 21st at 6:00pm

E&O Trading Company

314 Sutter Street, San Franicsco, CA 94108

Phone: 650-692-7880

Tickets: $50 for members and $65 for non-members

Last day to purchase tickets Jan. 18th

Tickets will not be available at the door

About the Women's Jewelry Association - WJA

WJA Mission - To empower women to achieve their highest goals in the international jewelry, watch and related businesses.

WJA Vision - To strengthen WJA as the preeminent international association representing the interests of professional women in the jewelry, watch and related businesses.

Gem Shopping at Bagram AB from the ISG

The ISG was recently contacted by a member of the United States Marine Corps inAfghanistan regarding our 10 minute YouTube video on Gem Shopping at Bagram AB. It seems that the internet access available to our soldiers there does not have sufficient bandwidth for them to view the video properly. As a result of this situation the ISG has produced an expanded 35 minute edition of this video to be available for direct mailing to any military personnel stationed anywhere in Afghanistan.

This expanded video covers the following information:

• How to use a jeweler’s loupe to inspect gemstones
• How to identify authentic Afghan Lapis Lazuli
• How to identify treated or imitation Lapis Lazuli
• A brief overview of traditional Afghanistan jewelry designs
• How to identify glass filled and otherwise treated rubies
• Images of fake rubies and fake emeralds being sold in bazaars around Bagram AB
• Information on a variety of other gemstones that have been reported from the area

This 35 minute DVD video has been formatted and tested to play on any Macintosh laptop computer and/or any Windows based PC using Windows Media Player or comparable viewer. In additional to Macintosh computers, we have tested this video on players ranging from our 5 year old Acer laptop using the home version of Windows XP to our new HP laptoprunning Windows 7 to insure that it will be compatible with all anticipated players available to our military personnel stationed in Afghanistan.

This video is available free of charge from the ISG Community to any coalition military personnel stationed in Afghanistan, and will be shipped to any APO AE or FPO AE address sent to the email address listed below as long as we have the resources to supply these. Any military personnel stationed in Afghanistan who needs assistance with shopping information can also email to the below address to get free assistance.

Please use the following email address to contact the ISG regarding this DVD.

military@schoolofgemology.com

It Is With Great Sadness That I Share This Report From The LA Times....

Antonio Pineda dies at 90; Mexican modernist silversmith

His works 'made absolutely beautiful use of semiprecious and precious stones,' and the jewelry was 'beautifully designed to fit the human body,' a museum curator says.

Antonio Pineda, the internationally renowned Mexican modernist silversmith who was praised for his bold, striking jewelry designs and ingenious use of gemstones, has died. He was 90.

Pineda died of kidney failure Monday at his ranch home in Taxco, Mexico, said his daughter Veronica Falzone.

A Taxco native, Pineda was among the most prominent of the many silversmiths to emerge from the mountain mining town beginning in the 1930s.

He was the subject of a 2008-09 exhibition at UCLA's Fowler Museum, “Silver Seduction: The Art of Mexican Modernist Antonio Pineda,”which traced the evolution of his work through the 1970s.

"He was certainly one of the major modernist silversmiths in the 1950s, '60s and certainly into the '70s," said Betsy Quick, the Fowler's director of education and the show's in-house curator.

...for more of the story as reported in the Los Angeles Times... and a gorgeous photo gallery of Pineda's work

Honora Pearls Declares It's "TIME" to give!

It is that time of year when we traditionally look for worthy causes to donate time and money to. When the plight of those less fortunate is brought home every time we sit down to a family dinner in a warm house.

In the spirit of the season the folks at Honora are taking on a HUGE project! For those of you who follow the Social Media platforms, you know that Honora Pearls has invested mightily with a presence on Twitter, Facebook and their own Honora Blog...well they are hoping that this investment will pay off in the fight against Childhood hunger in the US!

Honora Aims To Raise $30,000 For Children’s Hunger This Holiday

Honora is working with Share Our Strength, a national charity seeking to end childhood hunger by 2015, to raise $30,000 to fight Children's Hunger using Social Media outreach.

Honora is using the last two weeks of the holiday season as an opportunity to give back to those who are truly in need this year. To encourage donations, anyone willing to give $30 dollars or more to Share Our Strength will receive a black genuine leather and mother-of-pearl floating Freshwater Pearl watch courtesy of Honora valued at $100 MSRP.

“No matter how challenging this year has been we must seek out opportunities to give back to those who are truly in need,” says Joel Schechter, CEO of Honora Industries, Inc. “Helping children who go without just felt like the right way to end the year.”

Honora will offer these watches to the first 1,000 people living in the United States who donate. Visit The Honora Blog on Monday, December 14^thto find out all of the details behind our “Time to Share” initiative with Share Our Strength.