Smith recalls a bit of wisdom the industry leader, who died last week, shared at a diamond conference years ago.
Town & Country to Hold Jewelry Awards
The magazine announced the winners of the awards, a first for the publication, in its February issue.

New York--When longtime editor, author and jewelry expert Stellene Volandes was promoted to editor-in-chief at Town & Country in 2016, it was good news for jewelry lovers.
In March, the industry will see some of the effects of that move, with the inaugural Town & Country Jewelry Awards.
“The jewelry world is filled with more talent right now than I have seen in my 20 years covering it,” Volandes told The Daily Front Row. “It was time that jewelers be celebrated and that jewelry be honored in this way.”
The Daily Front Row also reported that the awards will take place at the Hearst Tower in partnership with Saks Fifth Avenue on March 15.
Town & Country enlisted a number of notable jewelry editors, retailers and collectors to determine the winners in the various categories. The judging committee consisted of Volandes; Town & Country’s Fashion Market and Accessories Director Will Kahn; Sotheby’s Senior VP Sales Director Frank Everett; jewelry collectors Lisa Pomerantz, Jennifer Tilly and Lizzie Tisch; Moda Operandi Co-Founder Lauren Santo Domingo; The Adventurine Founder Marion Fasel; Hodinkee Editor Cara Barrett; jewelry writer Rachel Garrahan; stylist Kate Young; and Christie’s specialist Claibourne Poindexter.
Volandes, who penned Jeweler: Masters, Mavericks, and Visionaries of Modern Design last year, touched on her personal passion for jewelry design when she announced the inaugural awards last September, speaking on her “mission to make people understand jewelry as a cultural artifact and to appreciate it even if they never own a single piece.”
The Town & Country Jewelry Awards are an excellent step in that direction.
Here is the full list of the 54 winners, three selected per category, as announced in Town & Country’s February issue, on newsstands now.
Red Carpet Award:
Tiffany & Co.
Irene Neuwirth
Nirav Modi

Collection of the Year:
Bulgari
Temple St. Clair
Silvia Furmanovich
Fashion House High Jewelry Award:
Chanel
Louis Vuitton
Dior
Stone of the Year:
Assael Pearls
De Grisogono’s 4 de Fevereiro Diamond
Martin Katz’s Unheated Red Spinel
Diamond of the Year:
Harry Winston
Repossi
Fernando Jorge
Watch of the Year:
Cartier Panthere
Omega 1957 Trilogy Trio
Gold Design of the Year:
David Webb
Cadar
Marco Bicego
Pearls of the Year:
Mikimoto
Mizuki
Nikos Koulis
Innovator of the Year:
Taffin by James de Givenchy
Coomi
Alexandra Mor
Breakthrough of the Year:
Lauren Adriana
Ana Khouri
Foundrae
Collaboration of the Year:
Audemars Piguet/Carolina Bucci
Chopard/Rihanna
Messika/Gigi Hadid
Legend of the Year:
David Yurman
Sabina Belli
Jim Kerwin
Rediscovery Award:
Andrew Grima
Verdura’s Ravenna
Boucheron

Philanthropist of the Year:
Sidney Garber’s Brooke Garber Neidich
Vhernier’s Carlo Traglio
Steven Lagos
Green Award for Sustainability:
Pippa Small
Tiffany & Co.
Forevermark
Jewelry Champion of the Year:
The Adventurine’s Marion Fasel
On the Rocks Magazine
Moda Operandi’s Lauren Santo Domingo
Retail Innovation of the Year:
Saks Fifth Avenue, The Vault
Jennifer Fisher
Tiffany Blue Box Café
Event of the Year:
Cartier Haute Joaillerie
Van Cleef & Arpels L’Arche de Noe (Noah’s Ark)
Patek Philippe Grand Exhibition
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