Events & Awards

This Year, Couture Will Be Asking: WTF?!

Events & AwardsMay 01, 2019

This Year, Couture Will Be Asking: WTF?!

The jewelry trade show wants exhibitors to submit images of designs gone wrong for a new award that is a “celebration of imperfection.”

20190501_Couture_header.jpg
The three entries so far for Couture’s inaugural “WTF?!” Award are this necklace from Stephen Webster (left), Katherine Jetter’s pendant (top right) and this 18-karat gold calculator from Deakin and Francis. See slideshow in story for more information on the inspiration, or lack thereof, behind each piece.

New York—Couture, the high-end jewelry trade show synonymous with the best in design, is on the lookout for the opposite.

Show organizers announced Monday the inaugural “WTF?! Award,” a “celebration of imperfection” for jewelry designs gone wrong or, as one might call it today, a #designfail or #designdisaster. (For those unsure of what “WTF” stands for, Urban Dictionary can provide an explanation.)

Submissions for the WTF?! Award opened last Thursday and are being accepted through May 15.

Those who want to enter are asked to submit a photo of a design disaster in any stage of production, as well as to complete this thought: “So what I was thinking was … ”

SEE: The Contenders for the “WTF?! Award” So Far


After May 15, online voting will open to the entire Couture community—meaning anyone who is registered for the jewelry trade show—and will remain open through May 29.

The so-called winner of the award will be announced at Couture’s opening night party, scheduled for Thursday, May 30 on the Sunset Terrace at Wynn Las Vegas. She or he will be presented with a medal befitting of the honor—think gaudy—and encouraged to wear it on the second day of the show.

The prize medallion will be passed onto the next winner of the WTF?! Award.

Couture Director and Emerald Expositions Senior Vice President Gannon Brousseau said the idea for the award came out of conversations with several veteran Couture designers at the Tucson gem shows earlier this year.

“We loved the idea and thought it was a great way to infuse some humor into our event, as well as highlight how the creative process, even among established designers, can have its ups and downs,” he said.

Couture 2019 is scheduled for Thursday, May 30 to Monday, June 3 at Wynn and Encore Las Vegas.

For more information about Couture, or to obtain press credentials, contact Michelle Orman at 646-302-5521 or email Michelle@LastWordComm.com.
Michelle Graffis the editor-in-chief at National Jeweler, directing the publication’s coverage both online and in print.

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