MJSA's Eighth Annual Thinking Ahead Awards

MJSA Announces Winners of Eighth Annual 

Thinking Ahead Awards

Kliar by the Legor Group and Etype by Castel Technologies earn honors

 MJSA, the U.S. trade association dedicated to professional excellence in jewelry making and design, has honored two products--a nanoceramic e-coating and an automated wax injection system--with its annual Thinking Ahead Awards.

Now in its eighth year, the MJSA Thinking Ahead Awards program recognizes products that are making a difference in the way jewelry is being made and sold. The winners are selected by an international panel of independent judges, all of whom are renowned for their expertise in jewelry making and design. In-depth articles on both products appear in the November 2011 issue of MJSA Journal, the association's flagship magazine.

The judges this year selected Kliar, an e-coating developed by the Legor Group, an international supplier of alloys, tools, equipment, and plating technology that is based in Bressanvido, Italy. Kliar enables jewelry makers and designers to easily add vibrant colors to both precious and base metals, and it also can serve as a tarnish inhibitor. Available in 17 hues as well as a transparent coating, it can be applied in the shop with basic equipment (the method is similar to rhodium plating).

"This comes at an important time," said judge Andrea Hill of Hill Management Consulting's StrategyWerx in Campbellsport, Wisconsin. "Consumers are increasingly interested in different colors and treatments of metals. At the same time, manufacturers are looking for ways to reduce dependence on gold and platinum as their primary manufacturing metals, due to the high costs."

 

"The Kliar process seems to exhibit significantly greater tarnish resistance than other existing processes," said judge James Binnion of James Binnion Metal Arts in Bellingham, Washington. "Given the ongoing increase in metals prices, this will help silver gain more customer acceptance, as tarnish is one of the main negative issues with some consumers."

The judges also named as a winner the Etype automated wax injection system developed by Castel Technologies in Hod Hasharon, Israel. The system features a motorized conveyor belt that brings bar-coded molds to an injection station, where they are automatically filled with wax based on computerized parameters. The molds are then returned by conveyor to workers who remove the wax. Depending on the number of injectors being used, the Etype can produce from 360 to about 1,250 waxes per hour.

Judge Chris Ploof of Chris Ploof Studio in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, noted that the Etype can help both large and small shops. "The equipment is great for large manufacturers, as it can replace multiple technicians with one person," he said. "It's also great for small manufacturers, allowing one person to do the work of several."

In addition to the above judges, this year's panel also included Steven Adler of A3DM in Portland, Oregon; Michael Coan of the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City; Dr. Christopher W. Corti of CoreGold in London; Linus Drogs of Au Enterprises in Berkley, Michigan; goldsmith/educator Charles Lewton-Brain of Calgary, Alberta, Canada; Jurgen J. Maerz of The Platinum Expert Consulting Service in Hawkins, Texas; and J. Tyler Teague of JETT Research inJohnson City, Tennessee.

The winners of the Thinking Ahead Awards will be honored at a special ceremony during the 2012 MJSA Expo New York trade show, which will run March 11-13 at the Hilton New York in New York City. For more information, or to purchase a copy of the November MJSA Journal, go to mjsa.org or call 1-800-444-MJSA (6572).

Gambling On Gems - Stahl Designs Meteorite Gaming Set

One of the highlights of Christie's Magnificent Jewels auction on November 29th in Hong Kong is likely to be a "set of multi gems gaming chips" designed and created by the Swedish artist and jeweller Kristian Ståhl. The outer frames of the 120 chips included in the set are made of 18K white gold and are set with a total of 5,160 calibrated top-quality gems, including diamonds, rubies and sapphires. But what makes the set unique is that each chip is created from a calibrated circular slice from the Muonionalusta meteorite which fell to Earth almost one million years ago.

Stahl, who gained recognition in the global luxury industry in 2004 with The Tailormade Audi project, is an artist, jeweller and gem dealer who creates 'out of the box' luxury projects. He said the idea for the gem-set gaming chips came about after he had crafted a set of dice made from Siberian mammoth ivory, which were successfully auctioned at Sotheby's Hermitage Gala Dinner in London in 2010.

"The creation of the gaming set has been a long process," Ståhl recalled. "However, it was only when I encountered a piece of meteorite from a remote part of northern Sweden called Muonionalusta, that I hit upon the idea of how to make each of the chips truly unique, by integrating in each chip a circular slice of etched meteorite," he said.

"The meteorite crashed into a remote part of northern Sweden, called Muonionalusta, almost one million years ago," Ståhl noted. It's made of iron and nickel, along with some other exotic metals and rare earth minerals. All together these are the main ingredients needed to produce man-made steel - or 'Ståhl' in Swedish. "The appeal and the challenge were too exciting to pass up," he said.

"Hong Kong is the right location to auction this unique set," Ståhl said. "There's a collector out there who is going to buy this set, knowing that this piece is a sure bet and not a gamble."

STÅHL - Bespoke Jewels, Showroom Stockholm: appointment only

Phone: +46 8 661 01 00 Mail: info@stahlstockholm.com

Spectrum Winners to Teach Design Secrets at Revere

For the first time, San Francisco's Revere Academy will host a design class that teaches students five key essentials to creative success. The five-day class, Awaken Your Creativity, will be held during Revere's annual Masters Symposium, from April 23-27, 2012 - taught by Gregoré and Jennifer Morin, a husband-wife team, both of whom are multiple AGTA Spectrum award-winners. The class is open to students at all levels.

Intended for those who want to learn what it takes to create a line of jewelry and design award-winning pieces, this class gives students step-by-step techniques to achieve these goals. Both instructors are outstanding, award-winning jewelry designers who will teach students how to open creative doors, solve problems, and enhance their jewelry design skills. The class combines lectures, guided exercises, individual exploration, group discussion, and skill building. All of this is accessible and fundamental to the novice, key to those building on past experience and invaluable to those farther along the path. 

The class is organized into the five essentials of creative success: Imagination, Seeing, Drawing, Designing, and Believing. Participants will learn the foundation principles of design, drawing, and coloring and how to render dimensional jewelry designs with gemstones using watercolors and colored pencils. Each student will learn how to create a personal "jewelry journal" for use as inspiration to design a collection of original jewelry. This class provides the tools and environment for students to identify and develop their own style, create new work, and unleash their creativity.

Gregoré Morin is a Canadian-trained master goldsmith and jewelry designer. He has won 12 AGTA Spectrum awards for jewelry design, 2 MJSA awards, the AJDC New Talent Contest and JA's Mort Abelson New Designer of the Year Award. All work is designed and hand made by Gregoré with the utmost care and attention to detail. 

Jennifer Morin is a London-trained master goldsmith and jewelry designer who received High Commendations in her final examinations. Jennifer has an MFA in metals under the tutelage of German-trained Dieter Müller-Stach, as well as a California High School teaching credential. Jennifer is the in-house designer at Silverhorn Jewelers in Santa Barbara. She has won 4 AGTA Spectrum awards and was an AJDC New Talent Contest runner-up. Gregoré and Jennifer Morin are married and share a studio in Santa Barbara, California. Visit gregorejoailliers. com.and jenniferjoailliers. com.

Awaken Your Creativity will be part of the Revere Academy's 2012 Masters Symposium, a world-class series of workshops held from April 7-27 in San Francisco. The Masters Symposium is an opportunity to learn from top-notch jewelry artisans, teaching 2 and 5-day workshops in the areas of their greatest expertise. Most classes are open to students at all levels; from absolute beginner to advanced. Each week during its Masters Symposium, the Academy hosts a Wednesday evening lecture/reception for visiting masters, open to the public.

 Master's Symposium
Each spring the Academy invites prominent master craftsmen from across the country and overseas to teach workshops in their areas of specialization. A reception and slide lecture by visiting masters is open to the public each Wednesday evening during the Symposium.

We are pleased to present an exciting line-up of all-star instructors for our 2012 Masters Symposium including Michael Boyd, Charles Lewton-Brain, Andy Cooperman, Tom Herman, Jayne Redman, Davide Bigazzi, Hariete Estel Berman, Deborah Lozier, and AGTA Spectrum Award winners, Gregoré and Jennifer Morin. Click on the class title to the right for more details.The Revere Academy of Jewelry Arts is a professional jewelry school located in downtown San Francisco's historic Phelan Building. Schedules, information and a free video tour are available upon request from:

Revere Academy of Jewelry Arts
760 Market Street, Suite 900
San Francisco, Ca 94102

Tel: 415-391-4179 

Web Site: www.revereacademy. com
E-mail: info@revereacademy. com
Fax: 415-391-7570

Jeweler Thom Underwood Chosen to Receive the 2012 Antonio C. Bonanno Award!

AGA Conference & Gala

Conference check-in begins at 8:00 a.m. on Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Conference sessions from 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Continental breakfast, light lunch & Gala ticket are included with the conference fee.

The evening will conclude with a festive dinner and awards ceremony, honoring this year’s winner of the prestigious Antonio C. Bonanno Award for Excellence in Gemology.

Jeweler Thom Underwood will be awarded the 2012 Antonio C. Bonanno Award!  The Antonio C. Bonanno award—named in honor of the AGA’s founding father—was created to recognize people who have made significant contributions to the gemological field. The award, which includes a check for $2,000, not only calls attention to the outstanding contributions of the recipient, but also underscores the responsibility of the international gemological community to encourage and reward ongoing research, education, and dissemination of information. 

The Gala Champagne Reception is from 6:30 to 7:30 pm followed by the Gala Dinner Dance & Bonanno Award Ceremony from 7:30 to 11:00 p.m.

We are pleased to have the following distinguished researchers and gemologists as speakers:

Edward Boehm, President and CEO of RareSource (formerly JOEB Enterprises) is a world renowned gemologist, author and dealer of fine gemstones.  He has traveled the world extensively collecting some of the finest specimens seen in any collection and conduction research at gem deposits. (Biography)

Edward is presenting The World of Spinels, focusing on sources, treatments and quality characteristics. The hands-on session provides a great opportunity to learn about the nuances that expert spinel dealers look for when grading.

Tom Chatham, President of Chatham Created Gems, is recognized as the leader in created gemstones. Pioneers in the created gemstone industry, today their product line extends far beyond grown emerald and ruby. Chatham Created Gems is also a leader in the created diamond industry. Tom has been involved in the created diamond market for decades and is presenting an information packed program exploring the current State of the Synthetic Diamond Industry.

Thomas Hainschwang, Managing Director of GGTL Laboratories and founder of GEMLAB, Liechtenstein is a research gemologist and formerly led the colored diamond department for the GIA research laboratory in Geneva.  Thomas is currently engaged in a number of important gemological research projects in both colored stones and diamonds. (Biography)

Thomas will be addressing the AGA conference delegates regarding Color Enhancement of Tanzanite.

Dominic Mok, Founder and Principal Geologist at the Asian Gemmological Institute and Laboratory, Hong Kong, is an expert in the material Jadeite. He will be presenting a talk on Types, Identification and Testing Jadeite. The AGA is privileged to offer this opportunity to meet Mr. Mok and learn about Jadeite for an international authority on the subject.

Jay Neogi, CEO of Serenity Technologies is a leading researcher regarding nanotechnology. The company’s focus on nanotechnology has been key to the development of brand new products that have opened up new markets. The colored diamond project is one of many such examples of how Serenity’s patent pending technology was used to create a product that satisfies a growing trend in the jewelry industry for pink diamonds. Jay will be presenting a talk on New Coating Technologies - Benefits & Challenges.

Dr. Jim Shigley is Distinguished Research Fellow at the GIA Laboratory in Carlsbad. The editor of the Gems & Gemology in Review series and contributing editor to the journal, he received a bachelor’s degree in geology from the University of California, Berkeley, and a doctorate in geology from Stanford University. He has written extensively for Gems & Gemology and other professional journals.

Dr. Shigley is well versed in the current state of synthetic diamond detection having conducted numerous studies in the area of diamond treatments and synthetics. He will be discussing the Identification of Synthetic Diamonds from the Laboratory Perspective.

Bob Linares, SCIO Diamonds, is well known for his work regarding CVD grown synthetic diamond at Apollo. SCIO Diamonds is a new venture that recently acquired Apollo and is the only company in the USA currently focusing on the production of colorless synthetic diamonds. The company is expanding this effort and has reportedly produced material larger than 1 carat. Bob will be discussing Growth & Characteristics of their Synthetic Diamonds.

A hands-on session will follow both the morning and afternoon programs.

Information on prices - location - etc at:  http://accreditedgemologists.org/currevent.php