Nonetheless, I must confess that I am, as always, looking forward to Tucson, and experiencing the giddiness and sheer delight of being totally immersed in the global colored gemstone community.

What will be different this year is that everything will be different this year. It will be harder, not easier. More complex, not simpler. The methods and processes that we have become comfortable with may no longer serve us. But, as our President Damian Cody points out in his letter, we as gemstone merchants are engaged in a trade that has thrived for centuries—one that has weathered countless crises and challenges, yet continues to thrive.

One element that can aid in success is membership in a global community of traders that have a shared passion for gemstones and a common commitment to working to improve the integrity and desirability of our products. The benefits of membership in ICA should not be measured in a simple transactional spreadsheet but rather in a reasoned consideration of what it means to be a member of this community:

• the often-unspoken acknowledgement of a client’s higher level of trust and confidence in a purchase due to your commitment to ethical practices and full disclosure requirements that govern all our members;
• the ability to communicate with others who share your values and to do so on a global scale through our member portal and social media platforms;
• the opportunity to reach your colleagues and clients by providing content for our newsletters and InColor magazine;
• and, certainly, the opportunity to participate in our ICA-member pavilions in worldwide trade shows.

I would also like to highlight two exciting developments as we look ahead to 2026.

Yes, the coming year looks to be a challenging one, but a greater effort to utilize the benefits that come with your membership can help. Consider that one or two sales, as a result of being a member, would more than offset the cost of membership.

If you would like to discuss these opportunities and other strategies, contact me by email, WhatsApp, or simply call me at 214-394-4054. If you are interested receiving printed copies of Incolor Magazine, please contact us ica@gemstone.org.

If you are not already a member, we look forward to welcoming you into our family in 2026. To learn more, visit www.gemstone.org and click on Membership.

I genuinely wish each one of you the most pleasant and enriching New Year and hope to visit with you personally at every opportunity.

Douglas Hucker, ICA CEO

The post Confronting new sensibilities in the year ahead appeared first on Incolor Magazine.

The rare treasures that we pluck from the Earth define beauty, rarity and desirability. But we should also remember that we have a partnership with Nature. She produces these magnificent crystals, and we in turn transform those crystals into works of art that have graced wearers throughout time. Without the lapidary’s art, these gemstones, although still unique and special, would not be the treasures that we have coveted and traded for so many years.

I also assume that, if you are lover of gemstones, you like myself have a bucket list. A list of magical wonderful historical places that have been the center of gemstone production for millennia. Think Mogok, Kashmir, Golconda – legendary sources of the most storied and legendary gem materials in history.

Although the prominence of some of these legendary places has waned, there is one magical name that for years has captured the imagination of gemstone lovers: Idar-Oberstein. While it began as a source of materials that the Romans fashioned into cabochons, cameos and carvings to satisfy the demand during Rome’s Empire, it has not only survived but thrived. This is due in large part because of its hundreds of years of devotion to the craft, with families that have passed down the art of gem cutting and carving from father and mothers to sons and daughters to the extent that it is arguably the historically most important source of carved and cut gemstones.

My first visit to Idar- Oberstein was as a young man, still an instructor for the GIA. While leading a gemological excursion of gem lovers through several European sites, we found ourselves in Idar.

The experience was magical to say the least and we were welcomed warmly as guests into our hosts’ businesses and their homes. We met people whose names we knew to be synonymous with gemstone artistry, many of the names that you will see mentioned in this issue of InColor, which features Idar and its artisans. Many of the people we met became friends and remain so to this day. What soon became evident to me then was that, if we had visited Idar decades before, we would have been greeted by families bearing the same distinguished names, owing to the fact that most of these families have pursued their craft for generations and even centuries.

Years later, my wife Marcia and I were contemplating a gift for her parents’ anniversary and we thought how wonderful it would be to have a cameo of her parents carved by a master carver in Idar-Oberstein. Erwin Pauly, a marvelous gentleman and incredible artisan, agreed and produced a stunning carving from the photograph we provided him. For years, the framed cameo adorned their mantle and now it resides on ours.

Every time I see Marcia admiring the gemstone portrait, I realize how this inexpensive piece of chalcedony, when placed in the hands of a true artist, inspired by a sense of love and devotion, became a true heirloom. It evokes fond memories for her and myself. But beyond those memories, I am reminded of the true power, the visceral impact that gemstones can have on us. How they represent so much more than their mere component parts. Let us never forget that this elegance inherent in gemstones is why we are in this business and why we are blessed with a pursuit that we truly love.

I would like to thank each of the authors who contributed to this exceptional ode to Idar-Oberstein. I hope that one day, if you have not already, you have an opportunity to visit this unique city. Until then, please enjoy the wonderful articles herein.

The post Ode to Idar appeared first on Incolor Magazine.