Last year at the AGTA Tucson GemFair, Brenda Smith of Brenda Smith Jewelry chatted up Russell Feather about possible additions to his mineral collection at the Smithsonian. Feather, the collection manager for the National Gem and Mineral Collection, told Smith, an AGTA exhibitor in the designer section, that he was looking for specific items to fill out his displays. The Woodstock, Ga.–based artist mulled over possibilities after the fair ended, ultimately showing Feather a masterfully cut amethyst from Darryl Alexander, an award-winning cutter from Gilbert, Ariz., that she had set into a ring. The piece impressed Feather so much that it earned a spot in the Smithsonian collection. (A formal presentation of the ring to Feather will take place at the show this year.)

I love this asymmetrical beauty because it’s purple (my favorite color), and because Smith crafted the mounting to hug the uncommon shape of the stone while also managing to mimic the effect of the cut in the seemingly jagged silhouette of the bezel. The amethyst itself is a concave, trillion-cut stunner from the Four Peaks mine in Arizona, weighs 10 carats total, is set in 18k white gold, and is surrounded by 0.84 ct. t.w. diamonds. I can’t wait to see it in person at the show before it journeys to Washington, D.C., to its final home.

Ring in 18k gold with 10 ct. amethyst from the Four Peaks Mine, cut by Darryl Alexander with 0.84 ct. t.w. diamonds by Brenda Smith Jewelry

Photo credit: John Parrish

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JCK