GradingSep 20, 2023
Navneet Gems Introduces Portrait-Cut RubiesEditorsSep 28, 2023
The Gemstone World Is In Its Unique Cut Era
Associate Editor Lauren McLemore recently spoke with Columbia Gem House’s Eric Braunwart about the uptick in non-traditional gemstone cuts.
The “Woz Cut,” seen here in Australian sapphires, is an octagonal cushion cut named for a friend of Columbia Gem House founder Eric Braunwart. It is one of the company’s many proprietary cuts and one of this author’s favorite gems from the HardRock Summit.
In recent years, unique gemstone cuts have grown in popularity.
At the HardRock Summit trade show in Denver this month, I saw interesting cuts everywhere. Eric Braunwart, founder of Columbia Gem House, noticed it as well.
Columbia Gem House is one of a handful of companies that has been experimenting with interesting cuts long before this recent trend took hold.
Their gems have trademarked names like “GeoCut,” “Snowflake Cut,” and “Fan Cut,” and many were on display at their booth in Colorado.
At the HardRock Summit trade show in Denver this month, I saw interesting cuts everywhere. Eric Braunwart, founder of Columbia Gem House, noticed it as well.
Columbia Gem House is one of a handful of companies that has been experimenting with interesting cuts long before this recent trend took hold.
Their gems have trademarked names like “GeoCut,” “Snowflake Cut,” and “Fan Cut,” and many were on display at their booth in Colorado.
While many of the company’s unusual cuts are meant to be experimental, artistic or just interesting to look at, others, like a particular style called the “Woz Cut,” carry more significance.
The Woz Cut is named after an old friend of Braunwart’s who developed the cut about 40 years ago.
Shortly after he started in the business in the late ‘70s, Braunwart met John Wozencraft, who became his friend and at one point, his roommate.
Wozencraft was a gem-cutter, which, Braunwart explained, was not so common in the United States at that time.
“[Wozencraft] was a commercial gem-cutter as opposed to one of the amateur faceters, who are great but spend hours and hours and hours on one stone,” Braunwart said.
Wozencraft once came up with an eight-sided cut with a diamond-shaped table on it, and Braunwart loved it from the start.
“It was very different. Most people didn’t really do fancy shapes 45 years ago. They would do an oval or a round or a pear shape, but they didn’t do fancy shapes,” said Braunwart.
“John specialized in fancy shapes and this was his signature cut.”
While going through some old inventory a year ago, Braunwart found one of Wozencraft’s eight-sided cuts.
“I thought, ‘gosh, I should do something sort of reminiscent of that,’” he said. “So, I’m sure the exact facet pattern isn’t the same, but we call it a Woz Cut because his name was John Wozencraft. It’s a tribute cut.”
Columbia Gem House added the Woz Cut to its inventory 6 months ago.
“It’s nice for me, because I’m looking back over as long as I’ve been doing this and some of the people I’ve worked with and trying to think of things that remind me of them and this definitely did,” Braunwart said.
“I really loved [the cut] then and I like it now, and people seem to like it now too.”
A while back, Wozencraft moved to Bangkok, Thailand, to bring his fancy cutting skills to that area of the world, and he lived there for some time. He and Braunwart eventually lost touch.
“Maybe if this thing gets out there, then he’ll call me!” Braunwart said hopefully.
Columbia Gem House has used the Woz Cut on various gemstones, including sapphire, spinel, amethyst, tourmaline, and, for bigger sizes, quartz. The octagonal cut can be made into a square cushion shape or lengthened into more of an elongated cushion.
“We may get these long crystals of neon-green beryl or aqua or tourmaline, and by taking that Woz Cut and stretching it out, we can do a very long stone,” Braunwart said. “We’ve cut some that are 18 millimeters by 5 millimeters, like really long stretched out ones.”
The ability of this cut pattern to be “stretched” (as seen below) can have practical aspects also.
“It better utilizes the rough and creates a very interesting, unusual stone,” Braunwart said.
Proprietary cuts and custom carvings always have been enticing for designers or consumers looking for something truly one-of-a-kind, and true creativity and skill in this area long has been a celebrated art.
The American Gem Trade Association’s Spectrum and Cutting Edge Awards have been around since the 1980s.
But lately, it’s not uncommon to see some dealers keeping an assortment of unique-cut pieces stocked in inventory.
Columbia Gem House has a secret weapon when it comes to unusual cuts.
The U.S.-based company first set up its own managed cutting factory in China around 40 years ago, which allows it to experiment with production.
For example, Columbia Gem House can offer the Woz Cut in calibrated sizes, rather than it being limited to a one-of-a-kind cut likely used in a limited-edition piece.
It’s a good time to have such an operation.
“There’s a big demand for unusual cuts right now,” Braunwart said, adding that he believes the demand is also unique to the U.S.
“I would be very surprised if I could go and sell them in India or China or something like that; there, I think they want the more standard cushions, ovals and pear shapes.”
One particular thing that sets apart many, though certainly not all, of the trending unusual cuts from most standard cuts is a faceted girdle, which Braunwart said tends to be harder to set versus a soft, curved girdle like a cushion.
It’s especially difficult with prongs, because the sharp angular aspect of the feature increases the risk of chipping.
Cutting the faceted girdle is more work, and it takes more time. If a company doesn’t have Columbia Gem House’s level of managed cutting production overseas, there is another place these gemstones likely are coming from—American cutters.
“America has some of the best cutters in the world [and] most of them are one-of-a-kind cutters,” Braunwart said.
In the past, these cutters weren’t really a practical option for larger companies with big inventories. It made more sense from a volume, time and cost perspective to buy mostly from production cutters overseas and leave only the custom, finer work to be done in the U.S.
“If you’re cutting in Thailand, you’re cutting for the Middle East, Europe, China, you’re going to do whatever is the most common denominator—rounds, ovals, pear shapes, etc. They don’t do a lot of calibrated fancy cuts,” Braunwart said.
Things appear to be changing, though. One of Braunwart’s theories for why these unique cuts seem more common now is the increase in the number of American-cut stones on the market.
“Some of [the American cutters] are starting to do a little bit of production cutting where they’ll do 12 to 15 [unique-cut] stones a week that might all be different stones, but generally all will have faceted girdles,” Braunwart said.
While jewelry setting may remain a bit of a challenge for the faceted girdle cuts, I’m excited about the prospect of more unusual cuts becoming available.
Even though some companies like Columbia Gem House are able to mass-produce calibrated sizes of some cuts, I think these cuts are still different enough to give consumers that unbeatable feeling of having something unique.
All this talk of the new unique cuts on the market also has me really excited to see this year’s entries for the 2023 Spectrum Awards, for which the submission deadline recently was extended.
More on Editors
The Latest
CollectionsNov 22, 2024
Piece of the Week: Xander Jane’s ‘Spiked’ Pearl StudsThese punk-inspired earrings from the new Canadian brand’s debut collection reveal the alter ego of the classic pearl.
SourcingNov 22, 2024
Facets of Fire Expands to Include Pear, Marquise DiamondsThe company brings its nanotechnology to two new fancy cuts for diamonds that feature its signature color and brilliance.
Supplier BulletinNov 21, 2024
Tasha R Releases 2025 Labbelle Lab Diamond Jewelry CatalogSponsored by Tasha R
Brought to you by
Navigating Cybersecurity: Essential Guidance for JewelersFrom protecting customer data to safeguarding inventory records, it's crucial to learn how to tackle cybersecurity challenges.
AuctionsNov 21, 2024
Gold Watch Gifted to Titanic Rescue Ship Captain Sells for $2MThree Titanic survivors presented him with the personalized Tiffany & Co. timepiece about a year after the tragedy.
Weekly QuizNov 21, 2024
This Week’s QuizTest your jewelry news knowledge by answering these questions.
MajorsNov 21, 2024
Harris Jewelry Ordered to Reopen Claims Portal for Refund RequestsA federal court found that the jewelry store chain violated terms of the settlement reached after it was accused of defrauding customers.
CollectionsNov 21, 2024
Channel Elphaba in Muse’s ‘Have a Heart x Cynthia Erivo’ CollectionCynthia Erivo chose Dreams of Hope, an organization dedicated to empowering LGBTQA+ youth, as the charity for this year’s collection.
Brought to you by
Enhance Your Expertise with IGI’s In-Person Courses in NYCThis fall, sharpen your skills in jewelry grading, quality control and diamond assessment.
MajorsNov 21, 2024
Rocksbox Opens Pop-Up Store in San FranciscoThe new space was designed to evoke a warm, inviting vibe.
IndependentsNov 21, 2024
Mary Moses Kinney Is Now Part of The Edge’s Team Kinney, who spent nearly 30 years at IJO, has been hired to head Abbott Jewelry Systems’ new virtual marketplace.
CrimeNov 20, 2024
Sotheby’s to Pay $6.25M Settlement to NY State for Alleged Tax FraudThe auction house was accused of helping clients avoid paying taxes on millions of dollars’ worth of art purchased from 2010 to 2020.
Events & AwardsNov 20, 2024
Kering Debuts New Jewelry Award With Sustainability FocusThe four finalists will present their pieces at the 2025 JCK Las Vegas show.
CollectionsNov 20, 2024
Pamela Love Channels Surrealist Artists in New CollectionThe “Camera Oscura” collection showcases earring designs celebrating female Surrealist artists Claude Cahun and Leonor Fini.
Policies & IssuesNov 20, 2024
Columbia Gem House Raises $10K for Reforestation EffortsThe money will fund the planting of 10,000 trees in critical areas across Oregon, Arizona, Montana, and other regions.
Events & AwardsNov 20, 2024
The Jewelry Symposium Opens Registration, Scholarship ApplicationsThe event centered on advancing jewelry manufacturing technology will return to Detroit in May 2025.
CrimeNov 19, 2024
Woman Killed in Armed Robbery of Sacramento Jewelry StoreLocal reports identified the woman as the wife of the jewelry store owner.
AuctionsNov 19, 2024
‘A Tsar’s Treasure’ Fetches $2.9M at Sotheby’s Jewelry SaleA collection of pieces owned by Ferdinand I, the first king of modern Bulgaria, and his family, blew away estimates in Geneva last week.
MajorsNov 19, 2024
Trove Opens First US Flagship in NYCThe Australian jewelry box brand’s new West Village store will showcase new jewelers each month through its Designer in Residence program.
CollectionsNov 19, 2024
Snoop Dogg’s New Jewelry Collection Is All About Love“Lovechild” was created in partnership with Carolyn Rafaelian’s Metal Alchemist brand.
Policies & IssuesNov 18, 2024
Reciprocity Jewels Returns to NYC Jewelry WeekThe group will host several curated events and an exhibition of designer jewelry made with Peruvian gold traceable to the miners’ names.
CollectionsNov 18, 2024
Dolly Parton Shines in Collaboration with Kendra ScottThe collection honors the 50th anniversary of Dolly Parton’s “Love is Like a Butterfly” song, which shares a birth year with Kendra Scott.
Events & AwardsNov 18, 2024
IGI Jewelry Design Competition ReturnsThis year’s theme asks designers to take inspiration from classic fairy tales.
EditorsNov 15, 2024
Why Fine Jewelry Belongs at New York Comic ConSenior Editor Lenore Fedow makes the case for why more jewelers should be appealing to nerds at the annual event.
CollectionsNov 15, 2024
Marie Lichtenberg Battles Counterfeits with New ‘Raiz’in Scapular’ DesignsThe latest “Raiz’in” drop showcases a newly designed “Scapular” necklace and donates a portion of the proceeds to Make-A-Wish France.
WatchesNov 15, 2024
Piece of the Week: Citizen’s Commemorative Pocket WatchNo. 1 out of 100, the timepiece was created to mark Citizen’s 100th anniversary and will be auctioned off at Sotheby’s next month.
Recorded WebinarsNov 15, 2024
Watch: 10 Tips to Keep Your Jewelry Store Secure On the latest episode of “My Next Question,” two experts share best practices for store security during the holidays and year-round.
AuctionsNov 14, 2024
18th-Century Diamond Necklace Sells for Nearly $5M Sotheby’s sold the necklace, which potentially has ties to Marie-Antoinette, for $4.8 million to a woman bidding via phone.
