Anne Hathaway was seen wearing the toggle necklace three times while filming scenes for “The Devil Wears Prada 2.”
Nashville Is Great, and 4 Other Lessons from Conclave
Editor-in-Chief Michelle Graff shares her takeaways from AGS Conclave 2018.

I was in Nashville, Tennessee, earlier this week covering American Gem Society’s Conclave. It was my third—I attended Seattle in 2008 and Washington, D.C. in 2016—and I enjoyed it, as I always do.
I walked away with a number of story ideas that I’ll be working on in the weeks to come, but, as we wrap up the week that was Conclave 2018, I wanted to share a handful of quick takeaways on what I saw as some of the major themes that emerged at the three-day event.
1. Adapting to change was a big topic.
Marie Osmond addressed change in her lengthy lunchtime keynote address Monday, and emcee Joel Zeff did the same in his improv skit-centered session on Monday afternoon.
Zeff’s presentation, “The Tao of Change,” was fun and felt more like an evening at the Upright Citizens Brigade than a late-in-the-day education session at a work conference. He called on volunteers to act out various scenarios, all of which were improvised and, therefore, required the actors to adapt to change quickly and work together.
Change also came up in a Monday afternoon session led by Forevermark U.S. President Charles Stanley, who shared insights from De Beers’s proprietary research.
Chief among the changes he noted was the shifiting role of and attitude toward women—meaning the rise of movements like #MeToo and the renewed push for equal pay— which, he said, is “really significantly impacting all consumer purchases today,” and diamond jewelry is certainly not excluded from that.
In its 2017 Diamond Insight Report, De Beers noted that between 2005 and 2015, the percentage of diamond jewelry that women in the U.S. market bought for themselves increased from 23 percent to 33 percent.
2. Cybersecurity was too.
When releasing its crime report for 2017, the Jewelers Security Alliance called attention to the increase in cybercrime. Losses connected to crimes perpetrated using the internet averaged $1.2 million last year, and the year-over-year increase was so significant that the JSA made cybercrime its own category for the first time.
At Conclave, there were two sessions dedicated to cybersecurity, including the one I attended Monday led by Mary Myers, an information security analyst with Jewelers Mutual. You can read all about it here.
3. Jewelry store employees need training on taking in appraisals.
On Tuesday, I attended a session led by Sherrie Taylor, an independent appraiser from Canada, outlining common myths about jewelry appraisals.
It’s
The appraiser needs to know what the piece is being appraised for—estate, probate, divorce, immediate resale, etc.—in order to do a proper evaluation, but employees often fail to collect this information.
One jeweler in attendance shared a practice that other attendees seemed interested in adopting. He said he developed a form that contains check boxes for a couple of the most common reasons for getting an appraisal, like insurance, and then has an “Other” box with a few lines under it. Employees can check “other” and then write out the “why” of the appraisal.
4. There are misconceptions about photo rights and Instagram.
One of the last sessions I attended was Sara Yood’s on copyright, trademark and patent law. Yood is the senior counsel at the Jewelers Vigilance Committee. I’ll also be writing more extensively about this session later but wanted to share one lesson right now.
Toward the end of the presentation, Yood covered the right of publicity, which is the right of an individual to control the commercial use (meaning in advertising, marketing, etc., not in the news) of her or his name, image and likeness.
What this means is that you can’t use an image of a celebrity wearing your jewelry without her or his permission. What’s more, if the image was taken by a photo agency, like Getty, then you have to license the photo from that agency.
A jewelry designer in the audience asked: Don’t people give up that right when they post their image on Instagram?
No, said Yood, an individual is not releasing her or his rights when they share a picture on the social media site. You cannot take an image and use it without permission just because it was on Instagram.
5. I will return to Nashville.
Conclave marked my first trip to Music City. I lived not too far—in Atlanta—from 2000 to 2007, but I don’t remember there being quite the buzz about Nashville then as there is now.
On Tuesday night, a group of companies sponsored a concert at 3rd and Lindsley featuring The Time Jumpers, a country music supergroup with a rotating cast that currently includes Vince Gill.
I’m not a country music or a Vince Gill fan, but live music is one of my passions and seeing such a talented group of musicians together was a treat. The Time Jumpers were fantastic. For anybody who wants to check them out, go to 3rd and Lindsley on a Monday night.
Afterward, I headed out to Broadway (Nashville’s equivalent of Bourbon Street in New Orleans or, perhaps a better comparison, Beale Street in Memphis) with a colleague to hear a little more, and we didn’t even know where to start. There was good live music pouring out of every bar, and it was just a Tuesday night.
Earlier in the week, I took a walk and passed a few cute shops, the famous Ryman Auditorium, which was home to the Grand Ole Opry until the mid-‘70s, and a spot where they were giving trolley tours of Nashville. I am putting all of these on my to-do list for a return trip.
Have a great weekend, y’all.
The Latest

Jewellery & Gem World Hong Kong is scheduled for Sept. 15 to 21, and buyer pre-registration will be available until Sept. 7.

Renovations at Tiffany & Co. stores ate into profits in the company’s watch and jewelry division.

As a leading global jewelry supplier, Rio Grande is rapidly expanding and developing new solutions to meet the needs of jewelers worldwide.

Mark and Candy Udell of London Jewelers will receive the honor at the 24th annual Gem Awards next March.


While struggles continue at the mining and trading end of the pipeline, consumer demand for diamond jewelry is holding steady.

The “Fantasia” jewelry collection turns the intaglio animals from her “Close Encounters” collection into 3D characters.

The Seymour & Evelyn Holtzman Bench Scholarship from Jewelers of America returns for a second year.

The special Classic Avi Chronograph 42 with an Eagles-green dial is limited to 59 pieces, a nod to the Super Bowl Philadelphia just won.

JSA has received reports of mobs swarming jewelry stores, driving cars into the storefront or smashing through the windows.

The “Kashmir” collection features centuries-old craft techniques made in collaboration with the region’s master papier-mâché artisans.

Creative Director Erica Bianchini shared why the jeweler is looking to expand into the U.S. and how it’s putting Canadian craftsmanship on the map.

Two Los Angeles Fire Department stations plan to use the donations to upgrade their equipment and tools.

Next week, the auction house will kick off a selling exhibition of jewelry by British artist Hannah Martin and Coldplay’s Guy Berryman.

“Stolen: Heist of the Century” is based on “Flawless,” the book about the middle-of-the-night theft, and will debut on Netflix in August.

Emmanuel Raheb shares the top five gifting moments outside of major holidays that jewelers should build marketing campaigns around.

The wholesale trade show’s Luxury Lifestyle section will showcase established and emerging jewelry designers.

As demand for custom jewelry grows, the company is expanding its services to support retailers.

The mid-year conference for jewelry and watch appraisers is slated for Aug. 9 to 10 on Zoom.

Graduated stones make for elevated tennis-style pieces and dramatic statement necklaces.

Nominations in the categories of Jewelry Design, Media Excellence, and Retail Innovation will be accepted through July 30.

He retired last month after 28 years traveling the world to source the very best gemstones for his family’s jewelry business, Oscar Heyman.

The charm necklace features six nautical charms of shells and coral that founder Christina Puchi collected on Florida’s beaches.

The organization elected its youngest vice president as it looks to draw in fresh talent.

Campbell joins the company as vice president of business development while Liebler is the new vice president of operations.

The medals feature a split-texture design highlighting the Games’ first time being hosted by two cities and the athletes’ journeys.

Sponsored by The INSTORE Jewelry Show 2025