The American Gem Trade Association (AGTA) 1994 Spectrum Award competition—which honors the use of colored gemstones by American jewelry designers—identified several gem trends from its pool of more than 350 entries.

            Tourmaline came out on top with 16 percent of the Spectrum entries featuring tourmaline as the stone. The broad range of tourmaline colors were used in graduated formats, as well as in striking color contrast combinations.

            The AGTA reported an increase in the use of ruby, sapphire and emerald for this year’s contest, with more than ten percent of the entries using one or more of these stones as either a primary or accent stone.

            Opals—including black, boulder, fire and crystal varsities—were the focus of ten percent of the entries. Opals of all varieties were also used to accent other colored gemstones in traditional and non-traditional formats. Opalized fossils were popular. The first place piece in Division II showcases a 27.49 carat opalized fossil clam shell.

            Ammolite—which first appeared in a winning Spectrum design in 1993—is featured in two Spectrum winners for 1994.

            The use of tanzanite remains strong with 8.5 percent of the entries featuring it as the primary stone. Eighteen entries used black onyx as a feature gemstone—which represents five percent of the competition and four of the winning pieces.

            Carved gemstones appeared throughout the five contest divisions, with the first place piece in Division I featuring a carved 262.70 carat am trine. Abstract designs were rendered in onyx, citrine, chrysocola, aquamarine and meteorite. Jewelry designs featuring carved animal and moon faces proved popular again in 1994.

            Other trends reported by AGTA include faceted and cabochon gemstones used together in designs and asymmetrical sets and pairs of varying sizes and colors.

            Some of the more popular color combinations seen were warm earth tones; blues and greens with gold; and purple with gold, orange of pink. Metal combinations were reported in more than 50 percent of the entries. The mixes ranged from simple uses of yellow and white gold or matte finished used with high polished gold’s. Other designs featured inlaid, patterned, enameled, granulated and reticulated gold. Platinum use was high with nine percent of the entries featuring platinum as the primary metal.

            Rings were the most popular type of jewelry entered in the competition this year, representing 33 percent of total submissions. The most popular category was once again Division III (pieces with a suggested retail price between US$2,001-$5,000).