The Kwiat Blog

Our Beloved Patriarch, David S. Kwiat, Dies at 94

David S. Kwiat, a prime force behind the jewelry house Kwiat and the son of the company’s founder Sam Kwiat, died on Monday at the age of 94. David was an icon in the diamond industry and will be long remembered for his sharp mind, his love of diamonds and his reputation for integrity.

In 1933 at the age of 17, David joined his father Sam in business. David was a savvy businessman and a true craftsman, and he recognized the need in the marketplace for beautiful engagement rings and wedding bands. He began to design and create diamond rings for his clientele, and despite the difficult economic conditions of the Great Depression era, the business grew throughout the decade. He quickly became known for having one of the largest inventories of diamond jewelry, and retail stores from across the United States began to call on him when they had an important client. In the early 1950s, he published his first catalog showcasing a selection of important jewels – one of the first in the industry. He had an expert understanding of rough diamonds, and during the course of his professional career oversaw the cutting of many important diamonds up to as large as 100 carats. His clients included many of the world’s preeminent diamantaires and retail jewelers, including Harry Winston, as well as many in New York’s high society. In the 1970s, he was joined in business by his two sons, Sheldon and Lowell, who worked alongside him for more than 30 years. And now his grandchildren – the fourth generation of Kwiat family members – work alongside their fathers in the business. David continued to remain engaged in the business up until his last days, always contributing ideas and suggestions on new designs and manufacturing. But of all of the accomplishments in his long and distinguished professional career, none made him more proud than seeing his family continue to build upon the legacy that he and his father created.

Most importantly, David was extraordinarily dedicated to his wife, children and his entire family. He received great joy from spending time with everyone on holidays and vacations. At family gatherings, he often would sit with his wife overlooking the large family and would say “Shirley, look at all that we’ve created.” His love, kindness and integrity will continue to set an example for his children and grandchildren. He is survived by his wife Shirley, his three children Sheldon, Lowell and Carol, seven grandchildren and 4 great-grandchildren.

In the diamond business, the parties signal their agreement by concluding a deal with the word “mazal”. If you had told David years ago that he would live to be 94 years of age, engaged in the business until his last days, surrounded by his whole family, there is no question that he would have said “mazal” to that. And it would have been the best deal he ever made.

Memorial donations can be made to Jewelers for Children by visiting the website www.jewelersforchildren.org.

Metal Matters: What’s the Difference between Platinum and White Gold?

When it comes to jewelry, especially engagement rings, we all know people tend to focus on diamond.  But, let’s not forget it’s the setting that holds the diamond – one of the first major investments of your life – securely for as long as you both shall live.

So, make sure to do your homework to determine what setting is best for you and your lifestyle.  Maybe you know you want a yellow gold setting or maybe you prefer a white metal. If you want white, you’re in luck - you have options!  You’ve probably heard of platinum and white gold, but most likely don’t know the difference

Only you can determine what’s best for you, so below are a few fun facts about the metals as well as an in-depth, side-by-side comparison chart to help arm you with the knowledge to complete your engagement ring shopping journey. If you’re not in the market for a ring, you will at least be equipped with fun trivia to spout out at your next cocktail party!

• Did you know platinum is a naturally white metal?
• Did you know white gold is actually yellow gold that has been whitened and plated to look white?
• Did you know platinum’s strength and durability makes it the most secure setting for diamonds and other precious gemstones?
• Did you know platinum is one of the densest precious metals, making it 60% heavier than 14K gold?

 

So, next time you visit Kwiat or any other jewelry store, feel empowered to ask for what you want and ask to feel the difference between platinum and other metals.  And even if you think platinum is out of reach, you might be surprised. Visit www.preciousplatinum.com for more platinum tips.

 

Our guest blogger, Heather Zachary Rogoff is the Manager of Public Relations at Platinum Guild International.

 

Wedding Attire: What to Wear

I'm always flattered when I receive a wedding invitation; I think it's an honor to be a wedding guest.  Think about it like this, a couple has chosen you to be one of the few to participate in one of their most private and sacred moments.  You'll be a witness as they pledge their love and fidelity to one another 'til death do they part.  They've invited you to become a part of their intimate world of family and friends.  Cool.  Great. Exciting even.  Your RSVP has been sent in, the date set-aside on your calendar and now, you've got to figure out what to wear.  You'll know if a wedding is black tie or formal because the invitation will state it plainly.  Otherwise, it's sometimes difficult to know how dressed up you're supposed to be at a wedding.  Often the wedding invitation and other collateral will give you clues as to the direction the bridal couple is heading in.  And some bridal couples have taken to giving their wedding guests cues with cute phrases like "Resort Chic", "City Sophisticate", "Cocktail Attire" and the like on their wedding invitations or wedding websites.  While the bridal couple knows exactly how they want their guests to dress, their cues may not provide enough direction for some of their guests.  My husband and I were one of these couples - we used what we thought were great phrases and believed they spelled out exactly what the attire was for each of our wedding weekend events.  Some of our friends and family got it; those who didn't called for more explanation.  Lesson learned?  Be as explicit as you can.  No one's going to take offense, people just want to make sure they're dressed appropriately.

As a general rule of thumb, weddings are dressy affairs.  Unless otherwise indicated, one should assume that the Bride and Groom are going to be strolling about in their "best" and they'd love it if their wedding guests did too.  For women, this translates into no white and really no black if you can help it.  White is the province of the Bride on her wedding day and she should be accorded deference, point blank, no room for discussion.  While black is no longer a "no-no" at weddings (traditionally black was believed to be too funereal), some cultures do believe that wearing black to a wedding is bad luck for the bridal couple.  A pretty dress that can be dressed up or down with accessories is a wonderful option.  Find a dress that you feel comfortable in and a pair of heels as well as flats to match (trust me, Havaiana's paired with your silk dress isn't the best look). For men, it's much more simple, wear a suit and tie or a blazer, slacks and a tie.  In the Summertime, a light-colored linen or seersucker suit is perfect; you'll be cool and stylish all at once. Remember, the tie and jacket can always come off after the ceremony, but it's better to be overdressed than to show up in shirt-sleeves when everyone else is suited-up.  When it's all said and done, it's about celebrating your friends and family in style!

 

Guest blogger, Kalyn Johnson is a fashion stylist who specializes in helping brides navigate the path to I DO stylishly and sanely. Recently married, Kalyn learned more about weddings than one has the right to keep to herself so she decided to share some of the nuggets she gathered along the way. Check out Kalyn’s blog, Wedding STYLE by Kalyn Johnson. 

Have Jewelry, Will Travel - Tips From Jewelers Mutual Insurance

Tips for taking it with you

Summer officially kicked off last week and, with it, many of us are hitting the roads and runways in search of some well deserved R&R (including me!). As you consider what accessories to take on your travels, Jewelers Mutual Insurance offers a few tips for protecting your jewelry:

Carry on
If you're flying, never pack any valuables in your checked luggage. Never. Ever. Pack the jewelry you're taking with you in your carry-on bag or wear it.

Crowd control
Whether your travels include a visit to a must-see tourist hotspot or a colorful open-air market, crowded areas can be alluring to thieves. Consider turning any prominent gemstones on your ring toward the palm of your hand. Similarly, tuck a dangling pendant inside your blouse or shirt.

No need to attract unwanted attention that might make you a target for theft.

Water wisdom
Don't wear your jewelry to the pool or beach. Fingers constrict when they're cold, and rings can easily slip off in the water. (I can personally attest to this. It happened to my husband after we went snorkeling.)

Play it safe
Leaving your jewelry at your hotel is better than taking it to the beach-however, don't leave it unattended in your room. Rather, place it in the in-room safe or, if there is none, ask the front desk to hold it in the hotel safe.

Wide open spaces

Don't remove your jewelry in public places. It's best to leave it on when washing your hands in a public restroom, trying on that expensive lotion at a boutique, or applying sunscreen before a stroll downtown.

Tennis, anyone?
If you're the sporting type, bear in mind that luxury watches and bracelet clasps weren't meant for the court. Consider leaving them in your in-room safe.

Make sure it's insured

Finally, make sure your jewelry is properly insured before you begin your trip. Consider a policy that covers theft, accidental loss, and mysterious disappearance, such as the Personal Jewelry Insurance policy with Jewelers Mutual Insurance Company. Check them out at InsureYourJewelry.com. Also, make sure your coverage will travel with you!

Guest blogger, Layna Shuppert is a regular contributor to Jewelers Mutual Insurance Company's blog, The Jewelry Box, and has written about jewelry security for more than six years. With the tips she's learned, she hopes never again to lose a piece of jewelry. (Her keys, however, are a different story!) Visit The Jewelry Box for more advice about how to keep your jewelry safe.

Diamonds; the Classic & Fashionable

 

It's difficult to keep up with the dynamic relationship between diamonds and fashion. Jewelry trends, like clothing, change with the seasons. Now, of course the classics will always be classic... Diamond stud earrings will always be the most versatile piece of jewelry any woman can have in her wardrobe, and a diamond line bracelet will always compliment a little black dress as well as the season's most eclectic fashion.  But diamonds have come a long way from the pages of ancient Indian texts and tales of Kings & queens...Once reserved only for the wealthiest class, modern time made diamonds accessible to everyone.  From the diamond engagement ring to a pave diamond iPad, diamonds are used to convey love, style, desire, ambition, success.... So how are we wearing our diamonds now? Think organic... it's really a continuation of our on-going obsession with vintage influences. Older cutting styles have become very popular once again; rose cuts, slices, miners and even rough. These cuts are usually accompanied by pave diamonds - I mean let's be honest, we all need a bit of sparkle. And as the newest trends continue to borrow from our past, diamonds continue to lend themselves to all the latest fashions - colorful bracelets, drop earrings, big rings and of course our favorite gadgets.

Now if keeping up with today's trends feels like you're fighting a level five hurricane, let me give you a little piece of mind... A classic will always be a classic whether it's a Chanel suit or a diamond tennis bracelet, and as fashion and pop culture come & go, one thing is certain, a diamond should always be Simply Brilliant®.

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Kerr Wins the LPGA State Farm Classsic!

Kwiat partner and world-ranked golfer, Cristie Kerr won the rain-delayed LPGA State Farm Classic this week. With the win, Kerr moves up to No. 4 in the world rankings for women's golf. Congratulations Cristie!!

Kerr, pictured wearing earrings from Kwiat's Cristie Collection, finished 22-under par which means some great donations for Birdies for Breast Cancer. For for every birdie & eagle made on the tour, Kerr and come of her sponsors make a donation to the foundation. Go Cristie - keep those birdies coming!

For the Bride-to-Be: To Engrave or Not, Is Not the Question

The question is what to inscribe, and when to have it engraved, on your husband-to-be's wedding band.  Wedding planning is all about the details.  It's decisions, decisions and more decisions from the time you say "YES!" until you say "I DO".  Trust me, I got married 7 short months ago, I know how easy it is to get bogged down by the minutia.  Sometimes the minutia gets so thick that it's hard to see the forest for all the trees (i.e., you walking down the aisle in the perfect dress just as you envisioned when the whole planning process began).  If you're feeling overwhelmed by wedding planning you're not alone.  It happens to the best of us.  But, as Richard Carlson says, "don't sweat the small stuff."  One "To Do" list item that often gets overlooked by many brides is having her groom's wedding band inscribed.  While many other things on your bridal checklist may seem vitally important - the flowers in your bouquet, the rhinestone clips for your hair, the h'or d'oeuvres to be served at the cocktail hour - what's more important than your groom receiving his wedding band with a special message from you to him inside?  

Yes, it's one more decision you have to make.  And yes, it will likely require you to make a few more trips to the jewelry store, but it's nothing compared to the blood, sweat and tears he shed when he bought your ring.  Take a moment (while you're in the shower, sitting in traffic or running on the treadmill) to think of something creative and sentimental, something special that will make him smile when he reads it the first time and each time he re-reads it over the years.

And if your husband is anything like mine, he's going to lose and mis-place his wedding band more times than you'll care to count (and I haven't even been married a year yet).  Hopefully, the ring gods will be on his side and he'll find it easily each time.  Just as it took you a moment to get used to having a ring, his ring, on your ring finger; it's going to take him some time to get used to wearing his too.  Believe it or not, over time, he'll become just as attached to his wedding band as you are to your engagement ring because of what it represents.  A close friend of mine was knee-deep in details a month or so before her wedding, so much so that she decided to put off having her husband's wedding band inscribed until after their wedding.  Two years later and the inside of his wedding band is still bare because he's become attached to it and doesn't want to take it off.

The lesson here?  Take a deep breath and make time to do the things things that matter.  Your wedding day is going to be wonderful, rain or shine, because you're marrying the man of your dreams.  Take a moment to make his ring special, he'll truly appreciate the extra effort.

Guest blogger, Kalyn Johnson is a fashion stylist who specializes in helping brides navigate the path to I DO stylishly and sanely. Recently married, Kalyn learned more about weddings than one has the right to keep to herself so she decided to share some of the nuggets she gathered along the way. Check out Kalyn’s blog, Wedding STYLE by Kalyn Johnson. 

 

[Photo by Mel Barlow]

Kwiat Gives Back - Cristie Collection Launch Event

With Mother’s Day this Sunday, it was more than fitting to celebrate the Cristie Collection – a partnership between Kwiat and Cristie Kerr to benefit Birdies for Breast Cancer and The American Cancer Society – Babe Zaharias Events at Tuesday night’s launch party in the Kwiat Madison Avenue boutique. Passed hors d'oeuvre, champagne and Kwiatinis did not distract from the evening’s purpose – finding a cure. Lowell Kwiat said it best, “all of us know some who has been affected by this disease” and the Kwiat family feels fortunate to be able work with Cristie and support such a worthy cause.

Cristie Kerr started Birdies for Breast Cancer in 2003 after her own mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. The news of her mother’s diagnosis rocked the LPGA champion golfer, but reacting as her family and friends knew she would, Cristie decided to fight back. So far Birdies for Breast Cancer has given over 1 million dollars towards finding a cure, and shows no sign of slowing down. 10% of the proceeds from the Cristie Collection will go directly to support breast cancer awareness and research. So if you’re still stuck on what to give mom this Mother’s Day, consider a piece of Kwiat jewelry – a gift that will last a lifetime and help find a cure.  The Cristie Collection is now available at the Kwiat New York & Las Vegas boutiques as well as select Kwiat retailers.

See our Facebook page for more pictures from the evening!  

Always A Buyer For Rare & Brilliant!

Some truly spectacular diamonds have been showing up at the auction houses lately. Once again proving that even in troubling economic times, there will always be a buyer for these rare gems.  And even though most of us do not have the amount of capital it takes to own a diamond of this scale, we admire the brilliance and beauty accomplished by nature’s extreme conditions and then cultivated by mankind’s hand. ...and a girl can always dream, right? 

April 7, 2010 – Sotheby’s Hong Kong auctioned a rare and flawless blue 5.16 carat diamond that was sold for $6.4m. The gemstone, originally from the Da Beers Millennium Collection, is one of 12 in a collection that took decades to put together.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

April 11, 2010 – Sotheby's showed off an extremely rare 52.82 carat white diamond at the auction house in London. The diamond, which has received a first class grading from the GIA whose report states that the stone is Type IIa, is D-colour and has flawless clarity, is to be auctioned in the Magnificent Jewels and Noble Jewels sale in Geneva, Switzerland on May 11 with an estimated price of more than US$7 millions (4.53 million pounds or 5.14 million euro). Sotheby’s also showed off a rare 5.02 carat blue diamond that will be auctioned in the Geneva sale. Estimated price? Between $4m and $7m.

via The Economic Times, Rueters 

 

Kwiat Joins Madison Avenue Platinum Jewels in Bloom

As we emerge from some of the snowiest and wettest months we have ever seen, Kwiat is celebrating this celestial change by participating in Platinum Jewels in Bloom, April 8th - 17th. The event, hosted by The Madison Avenue Business Improvement District (BID) and sponsored by W magazine and Platinum Guild International, is waking up New York City after a long cold winter by pairing spring's vibrant florals with sparkling jewels. Starting tomorrow, the windows of the Kwiat Madison Avenue Boutique (725 Madison Ave. at 64th Street) will feature breathtaking floral arrangements, curated by horticulturalists from the Central Park Conservancy, alongside brilliant Kwiat Jewels and photography by Fred Marcus Photography. Timed to coincide with the blooming of the flowers in Central Park, this event celebrates the 30th anniversary of the Central Park Conservancy, and a portion of sales will be donated to the Conservancy's fund.

Thirty-two boutiques on Madison Avenue between 57th and 86th streets will participate in the ten day event; the perfect excuse to shop Madison Avenue and enjoy the beautiful spring weather... as if one needed an excuse.

 

For more information visit madisonavenuebid.org.

 

Photo provided by Fred Marcus Photography