EditorsJan 16, 2026
Remembering Pete Yantzer for His Contributions and His Kindness Pete’s boundless curiosity extended beyond diamond cut and he was always eager to share his knowledge with others, no matter the topic.
Events & AwardsFeb 29, 2016
AGTA Moves Spectrum Awards to the Summer
The American Gem Trade Association is shifting its annual design competition to June and July to make it easier for participants to submit their pieces.
This year, AGTA will hold the Spectrum Awards, its annual colored gemstone and pearl jewelry design contest, in the summer. Pictured here are the Campbellian Collection blue-green tourmaline and emerald earrings that won the Best Use of Color award last year.
Dallas--The American Gem Trade Association announced it is moving this year’s Spectrum Awards design competition to the summer to make it easier for participants to submit their pieces.
Deadline for entries now will be June 17, with drop-off taking place on June 28. Winners will be announced at the end of July.
The annual design competition previously was held in the fall, but the AGTA said it changed the dates for a few reasons.
The first is that some participants were having trouble getting their goods back from the September Hong Kong show in time to enter Spectrum. The summer timing also will make it easier for people to get their submitted pieces back in time for the peak holiday selling season.
Drop-off and judging still will take place in New York.
The Spectrum Awards now are in their 33rd year. The annual colored stone and pearl jewelry design competition is open to U.S. and Canadian designers and cutters and features a number of categories: Evening Wear, Bridal Wear, Business Day Wear, Classical Wear and Men’s Wear, as well as a Best Of category.
The AGTA Cutting Edge Awards honor loose colored stones in everything from Classic Gemstones to one-of-a-kind Carvings, Pairs and Suites and Objects of Art.
“The Spectrum Awards are one of our biggest promotional efforts and we are always looking for ways to increase participation and to make participating even more beneficial to the entrant,” AGTA CEO Doug Hucker said. “We felt if we changed the dates to summer, this would be better for the designers and manufacturers, because it wouldn’t remove their inventory during the holiday selling season. And, what better publicity during that time than to promote a Spectrum Award-winning piece.”
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