Day: January 27, 2009
Paz calls for single diamond marketing body
Speaking at the Antwerp Diamond Symposium, Paz said that rough diamond producers, diamond manufacturers and dealers, jewellery manufacturers and retailers should join hands and establish a joint organisation to promote and market diamond jewellery, emphasizing the value retention of diamonds and as such their significance as an investment.
“But before we turn to the consumer, we first and foremost need to reinforce confidence in ourselves, because ultimately, diamantaires all over the world are at the forefront of the diamond industry and trade,” he said.
“I urge all to use our internal communication tools to carry a message of optimism, belief and determination to our colleagues world-wide and to impress upon them that each and every one of us plays a vital role in building and maintaining consumer confidence in our product and our industry. It is what we do and what we say that can make the entire difference.”
TW Steel welcomes A1GP deal
In addition to the A1GP partnership, TW Steel is also hosting a global search to find Miss TW Steel 2008-09, with each country on the 2008-09 A1GP schedule hosting a round of ‘Miss TW Steel’ before the grand finale at Brands Hatch in England in May.
McGrath takes over timepieces
Gillet wins IT award
Ely wins overseas scholarship
Young mum wins Qld apprenticeship award
A 24-year-old new mother has been named the Jewellery Association of Australia’s Queensland jewellery apprentice of the year.
Angela Sharples, who gave birth to her first child last January, won the competition with her portfolio of work and a pearl and gold jewellery set of necklace, ring and earrings.
Speaking at the awards night at Southbank TAFE, Sharples said her portfolio and jewellery set were both inspired by her childhood dream of finding treasure on the beach.
Judge Densil Price said the “balance and attention to detail in each piece was outstanding” and that the “design concept successfully flowed through the whole set”.
Sharples is the third Stephen Dibb Jewellery employee to win the apprenticeship award.
Her $2000 prize package is made up of jewellery tools, a reference book, diamonds and precious metals.
Burke and Wills watch sells for $122,000
The pocket watch of Australian explorer William Wills has been sold to the National Museum of Australia for $122,000 at a Sydney auction.
Setting a new Australian auction record for a pocket watch, the inscribed timepiece was carried by Wills as a navigational tool on his ill-fated expedition with Robert Burke in 1860 and was referred to regularly by its serial number in his journal.
After Wills died at Coopers Creek in 1861, fellow explorer and the only survivor of the expedition, John King, presented the watch, along with a letter, to Wills’ father.
Isabelle Quinn, head of jewellery at the Sydney office of auctioneers Bohnams & Goodman, said the relic came to light when the vendor, the widow of a watch collector, brought it in to the auctioneers as part of a routine valuation.
“When it was first opened for examination by a specialist watchmaker grains of desert sand could be seen in the movement,” she said.
Quinn said it had been one of the highlights of her career to be entrusted with the sale of this most significant piece.
“I am thrilled that such an important piece of Australian history will go to the National Museum of Australia and is now available to the Nation.”
Manufactured by James Murray (London and Melbourne), the 18 carat gold open face pocket watch with gold chain is hallmarked ‘London 1859’.
Key features include a white enamel dial with black Roman hour numerals, blued steel spade hands and subsidiary seconds dial with blued steel seconds hand, a gilt three-quarter plate keywind movement with fusee lever escapement and a compensation bi-metallic balance with gold timing screws.
The back of the case is engraved Wm. John Wills Explorer Melbourne 1860 R.O.H.B. Wills.
Prior to the auction, the pocket watch was expected to sell for between $60,000 and $80,000.
Zodiac takes on soccer star
Zodiac Australia has appointed Socceroo star Tim Cahill as its brand ambassador in Australia.
Under the deal Cahill, who is currently signed to UK football team Everton, will travel to Switzerland to help design a limited edition collection of Zodiac watches due for release this year.
Announcing the new partnership, Fossil Group Australia managing director Annemiek Ballesty said she was delighted to have Cahill represent Zodiac.
“The Zodiac brand is both sporty and fashionable and I think Tim portrays both at the highest level,” she said.
Similarly Cahill said he was excited “to be associated with such a prestigious sporting brand” and was looking forward to “having input in the design of my very own range of watches”.
“Zodiac not only reflects my love of sport but also my sense of fashion and style,” he said.
NSW jeweller joins Skillaroos
Eighteen-year-old NSW jewellery apprentice Joshua Fimognari will travel to Calgary Canada this September to compete against 18 other young jewellers from around the globe in the 40th International WorldSkills Competition.
Fimognari, an apprentice at Carina Jewellers, is one of 29 young skilled Australians who won a place on Team Australia (also know as the Skillaroos) to compete in the biennial event.
WorldSkills Australia competitions are open to all Australians under 23 years of age with trades and skills in any of 50 categories including beauty therapy, cabinetmaking, cooking, floristry, plumbing, web design and jewellery.
Fimognari said entering the WorldSkills competition had been “an absolutely amazing experience”.
“Seeing so many other young people so committed to their chosen trade was great,” he said. “My hand skills have improved greatly and my confidence on the bench is definitely increasing.”
Fimognari first became interested in a career as a jeweller when a friend showed him a pair of earrings she beaded.
“Being interested in art and design, I started beading different bits and pieces for family and friends,” he said. “One of my pieces was shown to a jeweller in Beecroft who later contacted me and offered me work experience. I soon realised that jewellery design and manufacturing was for me.”
Currently training for the September competition, Fimognari said that in the future he hoped to study in Italy for a couple of years and then return to Australia to open his own jewellery studio “making one of kind, exclusive pieces”.
WorldSkills Australia CEO Mark Callaghan said all the 29 Skillaroos were perfect skills ambassadors who can be held up as genuine role models for all Australians.
We look forward to watching their progress as they continue to display the dedication, drive and passion that has allowed them to reach this point,” he said.
“As a nation we need to continue to strive for skills excellence,” he said.
“It is skills excellence that will ultimately improve individual and organisational success as well as improving performance and productivity.”