At the AGTA GemFair you have two opportunities to learn - first the MJSA's "At The Bench Live" - which offers demos that any Maker will apreciate. For Example this is the offering for Tuesday, January 31st:
| Red Flags for Repairs - MJSA's At the Bench Live and Beyond (www.mjsa.org) | |
| GALLERIA / TOOLS, TECHNOLOGY & SUPPLIES / BALLROOM | 11:30 a.m. - 1 p.m. |
| Presenter: Arthur Skuratowicz | |
| Beginning - Intermediate - Advanced | |
Some repair jobs are simple, and some only seem simple: Many times, one repair is a signal that other problems lurk below the surface. In this session, Arthur Skuratowciz offers some common "red flags" to help you uncover all of the problem areas in a piece of jewelry. He'll also suggest some handy tips to ensure those repairs go as smoothly as possible.
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| Hold It! Creating Your Own Fixtures for Holding and Positioning - MJSA's At the Bench Live and Beyond (www.mjsa.org) | |
| GALLERIA / TOOLS, TECHNOLOGY & SUPPLIES / BALLROOM | 3:30 - 5 p.m |
| Presenter: Arthur Skuratowicz | |
| Beginning - Intermediate - Advanced | |
Whether you're assembling components, repairing or modifying a piece of jewelry, or simply trying to see whether the parts of a design will fit together, you need a workpiece to hold steady. In this session, Arthur Skuratowicz will take a page from woodworkers and luthiers to demonstrate how to make your own positioning fixtures for complex fabrication or repetitive assembly. Ensure that even the most hard-to-hold shapes remain still for greater accuracy and ease.
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The second offering is the AGTA Seminar Program will offerings that will halp you improve sales, teach you to be more social, to educating you about gems and where they come from. This example is just Wednesday, Feb. 1st:
| Roundtable • Live! Hands on & Interactive | |
| GRAHAM ROOM | 9:05 - 10:05 a.m. |
| Betty Sue King, Pearl Goddess, King's Ransom, www.pearlgoddess.com | |
| Beginning - Intermediate - Advanced | |
Claim a seat at this Roundtable. Live in the moment through the eyes of your clients and feel the exhilaration of indulging passions for things unique and precious. Experience getting first dibs on remarkable pearls. Through this unique intimate setting you will sell more gems, attract new clients, and build custom designs as well as develop collectors and repeat buyers. Engage in a step-bystep guide to plan your own Roundtable. See invitations, place settings & guest interactions. You will be inspired to formulate your own Roundtable and drive your business to greater heights.
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| Intellectual Property Law for Jewelers | |
| COCONINO ROOM | 9:05 - 10:05 a.m. |
| Sara Yood, Senior Counsel, Jewelers Vigilance Committee, www.jvclegal.org | |
| Beginning - Intermediate - Advanced | |
Intellectual property - copyright, trademark, patent, and other areas of intellectual property law - is an important part of any business, and understanding how to use it to protect and promote your work can give you a leg up. In this seminar, we'll learn the difference between copyright, trademark and patent, what can qualify for protection, how to protect it, and the practical applications in the jewelry industry. This presentation will cover trade secrets and the right of publicity, which can affect how you advertise your products to the public. Come armed with questions - our expert is ready to offer guidance and education on protecting yourself and your IP.
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| Sourcing Colored Gemstones in Afghanistan and Central Asia. | |
| MARICOPA ROOM | 9:00 - 10:00 a.m. |
| Gary W. Bowersox, G.G., Geovision, Inc., www.gems-afghan.com | |
| Beginning - Intermediate - Advanced | |
This lecture is an update on mine to market gems from Afghanistan, Pakistan, Tajikistan and other Central Asian countries. Details on sourcing gems in this part of the world will be discussed in the light of the latest political situations, Global Witness, and other reports.
Gary W. Bowersox has been exploring and purchasing gems in this area for over forty-five years. He is a member of AGTA, ICA, GIA Alumni and President of Geovision, Inc.
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| Appraisal Essentials - Increasing sales, service, and appraisals | |
| MOHAVE ROOM | 9:00 - 10:00 a.m. |
| Cos Altobelli, Altobelli Jewelers and Appraisals, www.altobelli.com | |
| Beginning - Intermediate - Advanced | |
This presentation will cover the appraisal essentials including increasing sales, service, and appraisals; pricing colored gemstones and diamonds; stone setting; Rapaport subscription changes; Synthetic and treated diamonds waiver; grading diamond melee; appraisal software; U.S.P.A.P. update; American Gem Society independent appraiser availability; an advanced personal property appraiser program; color vision testing changes, and advertising and publicity.
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| Navigating Rough Diamond "C's" - Diamonds of color is the hottest trend | |
| GRAHAM ROOM | 1:05 - 2:05 P.m. |
| Chandra Horn, G.G., F.G.A., École De Gemmologie De Montreal, Montreal, Canada | |
| Beginning - Intermediate - Advanced | |
Color is the hottest trend in diamonds and can also be the hardest to predict when looking at rough. What causes color in diamonds and how do buyers and cutters approach these rare beauties in the hopes of coaxing out the best results.
How do the 4 C's apply to rough diamonds and how do sorters and buyers predict the quality of the final cut diamond? This talk will look at how rough diamonds are sorted and the unique challenges faced when grading and valuing rough diamonds.
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| Sustainable Gemstones | |
| COCONINO ROOM | 1:05 - 2:05 p.m. |
| Sheahan Stephen, Sheahan Stephen Sapphires, www.sssapphires.com | |
| Beginning - Intermediate - Advanced | |
Sheahan Stephen, will cover the importance of sustainable gemstones in today's marketplace. He will define what sustainability is and give specific (pictorial) examples of the process that a sustainable gemstone company would follow in order to offer you a sustainable gemstone. He discuss who the current buyers of sustainable gemstones are and why they are specifically asking for gemstones sourced through this method, also discuss and answer if this is just a trend or if there will be longevity in this specific sector of our industry.
Lastly, Sheahan will cover which countries have a sustainable gemstone mining model in place currently and what questions to ask your suppliers when looking for sustainable gemstones.
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| Proof of Provenance | |
| MARICOPA ROOM | 1:00 - 2:00 p.m. |
| Klemens Link, Director of Development, Gübelin Gem Lab, New York | |
| Beginning - Intermediate - Advanced | |
Consumers request more transparency on the provenance of the goods and services they purchase, and also applies to luxury products including gemstones. In stark contrast to this demand, the gemstone trade has a reputation of being opaque. No proper solutions are in place today that truly close this gap: the classical, gemology-based origin determination offered by gem labs merely states the country of origin, and cannot distinguish different producers mining the same geologic unit. Some mining companies have started to issue certificates of provenance, offering information such as the name of the mine, the mining company, and the mining period. The information provided in these documents, however, is largely based on self-declaration, i.e. is not an independent proof of provenance.
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| Rediscovering the Chivor Emerald Mine - In the Footsteps of Peter W. Rainier | |
| MOHAVE ROOM | 1:00 - 2:00 p.m. |
| Robert Weldon, G.G., Manager of Photography and Visual Communications. Gemological Institute of America | |
| Beginning - Intermediate - Advanced | |
An epic story of triumph over adversity, Peter W. Rainier, a South African, ran Colombia's Chivor emerald mine in the 1920s. He fought bandits, chased elusive emerald veins, and rode across the Andes. His story, revealed in his memoir Green Fire, was licensed by MGM for a movie starring Grace Kelly and Stuart Grainger.
Rainer brought Chivor into peak production, extracting the finest emeralds the world had seen. He fought in both World Wars, and helped defeat Rommel's troops at El Alamein. The rediscovery of a lost album of historic photos sparked the idea for a journey to retrace his path.
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