Porini Gems at JCK Las Vegas 2015: New Seller of Ethically Sourced Stones

Blog readers might recall a mention of Diana Atieno of Porini Gems a few months ago when she addressed WJA New York Metro chapter members at a dinner in the city.

“I want to see more recognition of Africa’s contribution to the jewelry world,” she told us at that time. “I want more recognition for the efforts of the miners.”

It’s common to meet sellers of gemstones at the jewelry shows, but less so to meet the miners themselves. And meeting a female mine owner? Well, that’s akin to seeing a unicorn! Yet, visitors to booth no. B2381 in the Exchange section of JCK Las Vegas were able to meet Atieno in person and see her selections of tsavorite and tanzanite, the former from her own mines in Kenya. This show marked her first participation in JCK Las Vegas and her second show overall in the U.S. Below are some shots from one of her tsavorite mines, as well as some of her loose stones. She will be visiting New York City in the coming weeks, before she heads home to Kenya, so if you missed her in Las Vegas you still have a chance to connect in person. Reach out to her at datieno@porinigems.com to learn more about this lovely “unicorn’s” ethically sourced stones.

Tanzanite, tsavorite, and sapphires from African mines