A huge, huge thank you to the Women’s Jewelry Association for honoring me with an Award for Excellence for design Monday night!
I was nominated for this award last year but didn’t win, and I sincerely expected the same result this year. The award recognizes a body of work, rather than a single design, and when I reviewed the three other 2017 nominees’ websites, I thought, “These wimmins are so deserving; I need to be prepared to sit this one out.” (Yes, I called them “wimmins” in my mind.) Pippa Small does clean, bold work inspired by nature. Annie Koenig’s Annie K line includes a stunning pair of earrings that won the MJSA Vision Award in 2015. And I didn’t really have to look up Deidre Featherstone’s Featherstone Design line because I know it so well, but I like looking at it, especially her opal designs. Therefore, this moment was a big surprise (shout out to Hannah Becker of DiamonDoodles for the video!)
Monica Stephenson of iDazzle (a 2015 WJA winner for editorial media) and ANZA Gems caught most of my short acceptance speech on video. That’s her little “oh!” in the background when I thanked her by name.
I should have also thanked Melissa Quick of Steve Quick Jeweler, a 2015 and 2017 nominee for retailer, for the lucky socks she sent me ahead of the event.
Later, Barbara Palumbo of Adornmentality and What’s on Her Wrist — a 2016 and 2017 nominee for editorial media and my forever duckface partner — tried to steal my award.
We really do love doing gifs at parties. We got Melissa Quick to join us for one.
And my right-hand woman Eryn and I did our own celebratory, post-ceremony gif.
One of the WJA members who I didn’t get to thank by name during my speech — due to lack of time, not lack of appreciation — was Becky Stone of Diamonds in the Library, who shared this photo with her social-media followers.
Congratulations to all the other 2017 WJA winners, including our friend Severine Ferrari of Engagement 101 for editorial. It was also a joy to see industry guru Peggy Jo Donahue win the first Cindy Edelstein Mentorship Award — which was named for yet another beloved and inspirational colleague.
Stay tuned for my separate outfit post from the awards dinner.
Congratulations! Well deserved.
Thank you!