The deadline to qualify for early bird pricing for the AGTA Spectrum & Cutting Edge awards is Sept. 25, and the final deadline is Oct. 9. Pictured is the “Elements” bracelet from Somewhere in the Rainbow Gem and Jewelry Collection, in collaboration with Marc Höllmüller, which took home Best of Show in the Spectrum division last year.
Editor’s Note: This story was updated post-publication to include the names of all the judges for the 2026 AGTA Spectrum & Cutting Edge Awards.
Dallas—The American Gem Trade Association announced it is accepting entries for the 2026 AGTA Spectrum & Cutting Edge Awards and has released this year’s list of judges.
The annual contest, established in 1984, recognizes design excellence in the world of colored gemstones and cultured pearls.
The winners of the awards set the standard for beauty and innovation, launch trends, and earn worldwide recognition, said AGTA.
They will receive mentions in the press and on social media and will be recognized at the Spectrum & Cutting Edge Awards gala during the AGTA GemFair in Tucson next February.
Categories for the Spectrum awards for finished jewelry include bridal wear, business/day wear, classical wear, engagement rings, evening wear, and men’s wear.
There is also the new “Innovative Design” award, which will be granted to the most outstanding entry with a wholesale cost under $10,000.
For the Cutting Edge awards, entrants can submit loose goods and non-wearable items to categories including classic gemstones, pairs and suites, innovative faceting, objects of art, phenomenal gemstones, carvings, and all other cut gemstones, as well as “North American Mined Gemstones.”
Entrants choose their own categories upon entry for Spectrum & Cutting Edge, but special and sponsored awards are selected by judges and representatives of sponsoring organizations.
A vetted panel of judges, comprising experts from various facets of the industry, will choose the winners in each category.
Entries will be judged on the criteria of beauty and wearability, innovative design, effective use of materials, quality of gemstones, quality of workmanship, consumer appeal, and potential to generate positive publicity for natural colored gemstones and cultured pearls.
Each piece will be examined by hand with an eye for craftsmanship and quality of the materials used.
This year’s retailer judge is Jerry Raine of Turgeon Raine in Seattle. The gemstone dealer judge is John Bachman of John M. Bachman, Inc.
Gemologist and gem cutter John Bradshaw is the lapidary judge. Yehouda Saketkhou, founder and CEO of Yael Designs, is the manufacturing judge, while master goldsmith and designer Zoltan David is the designer judge.
The judges for the 2026 AGTA Spectrum & Cutting Edge awards
Along with choosing the winners in each category, judges also recognize a “Best of Show” and a “Best of Single Entries” award from each division, as well as “Best Use of Color,” “Best Use of Pearl,” and “Fashion Forward.”
The Alfie Norville Women in Excellence Awards is sponsored by Allan Norville and their family. Introduced in 2024, it will be given to one female designer in each of the seven Spectrum categories.
These awards are open to all women entering Spectrum who indicate eligibility on their entry form.
The judges for The Alfie Norville Women in Excellence Award are Reena Norville, Michelle Alfena Spector, and Ben Norville.
Platinum Guild International (PGI) sponsors the “Platinum Honors” awards, which recognizes the outstanding use of platinum in colored gemstone and/or pearl jewelry. The awards will be given to one winner in each of the seven Spectrum categories.
PGI also presents the “Best Use of Platinum and Color” and “Best Use of Platinum Crown” awards.
Jenny Luker, president of Platinum Guild International USA, will be the judge for these awards.
Debuting this year is the “Stuller Color of the Year Award,” sponsored by Stuller. The award will honor “exceptional interpretations” of its color of the year, “Signature Red.”
Gemologists Lauren Stuller and Charles Evans will select one entry from Spectrum and one from Cutting Edge for the award.
Entries can also win the “Editor’s Choice” award, which is given to one entry from each division, voted on by trade media during an invitation-only “Editor’s Day” event this fall.
There is also the “Buyer’s Choice” award, which is given to one entry from each division, voted on by buyers during the 2027 GemFair in Tucson.
Judging will take place in the fall in Dallas.
Related stories will be right here …
This year marks the 42nd Spectrum Awards and 35th Cutting Edge Awards.
“Every year we look forward to the Spectrum & Cutting Edge Awards because they truly change lives and elevate careers,” said John W. Ford, Sr., CEO of AGTA.
“It’s exciting to watch all the entries pour into the office and wonder who might win! But even if a piece doesn’t officially place in the competition, it will receive a lot of attention from editors, many of whom write about entrants and their designs.”
The early bird deadline is Sept. 25.
The first entry is $285, and all subsequent entries are $225 each.
To qualify for early bird pricing, entries must be paid for and received by that date.
Entries that do not meet this deadline will be charged the difference in price for the regular fee, AGTA said.
The final deadline is Oct. 9. First entry is $315, and all subsequent entries are $245 each.
The AGTA Spectrum & Cutting Edge Awards are open to all companies and individuals in the United States and Canada.
AGTA membership is not required.
All winners will be photographed by Jeff Mason Photography and will appear in Volume I 2027 Prism, while Best of Show Spectrum and Best of Show Cutting Edge recipients will be featured on the cover.
A full list of eligibility requirements and judging criteria is available on the AGTA’s website.
