Victoria Gomelsky

The summer slowdown is in full effect. This week's (light) agenda includes the latest vodcast from JCK , a paradigm-shifting exhibition on Etruscan culture, and a soon-to-close nomination period for the jewelry industry's answer to the Oscars. Get to it!

This story is from an installment of In the Loupe , our weekly insider newsletter about the best of the watch world. Sign up here.

Share Since joining the Natural Diamond Council as editor-in-chief in 2022, Sam Broekema has brought a fashion editor's sensibility to the council's robust diamond jewelry coverage.

Popularized during the Victorian era, when “mourning lockets”—designed to keep locks of hair or portraits of deceased loved ones—gained currency (Queen Victoria, mourning the death of Prince Albert, was a catalyst), lockets resurfaced at the recent

If, as temperatures climb, you're seeking refuge indoors this week, use the time to apply to one of a number of promising scholarship and empowerment opportunities with looming deadlines. Otherwise, bid on some California jewels, or pop by one of two Women's Jewelry Association (WJA) events taking place, in Los Angeles and Lexington, Ky.

Since Bvlgari introduced its snake-inspired Serpenti collection of jewelry and watches in the mid-20th century, the icon has continuously shed its skin.

We talked to Hank Edelman about the watchmaker's history. This story is from an installment of In the Loupe , our weekly insider newsletter about the best of the watch world. Sign up here.

That explains why, during her visit to the Las Vegas jewelry shows in late May, Sammi was struck by the stories she discovered. “I found all the designers were really trying to focus a lot more on storytelling,” she says. “They all had the story behind their collections and were ready to show their inspiration and how they created it, whether it was a one-of-a-kind necklace at Yael Designs or a piece from the New Zealand designer Alice Herald or whoever they were—there was a lot more thought being given to that, which I really appreciate because that's what I look for.”

Cord necklaces—in leather, rubber, velvet, or silk—were ubiquitous at the Las Vegas jewelry shows.

The holiday season may seem a long way off now that the blazing dog days of August are upon us, but it'll be here before you know it. Stock up on fine and fashion jewelry essentials at a pair of designer-focused buying shows opening in Manhattan this week. And, if you're relaxing poolside, cue up one of the podcasts we've highlighted.