This past weekend I had a quick overnight trip to Miami to talk trends to the Miami area GIA-AGS Guild as part of the Miami Antique Jewelry & Watch Show. While my presentation “10 Jewelry Trends You Need to Know Now & Why” was lightly attended—there were only about a dozen folks there—I had a super-attentive audience with whom I had a great time. Plus, my hosts—April Matteini, president of the guild as well as regional director for Skinner Auctions in Coral Gables, Fla.; Mary Bender of the show; and Dan Darby, Emerald Expositions’ vice president and general manager of the show—could not have been more gracious and lovely.

Since my core responsibility for JCK is looking at new jewelry, a chance to walk a show floor full of antiques was a treat! I fell for an amethyst, citrine, and diamond ring from exhibitor and retailer Betteridge, with stores in Greenwich, Conn.; Palm Beach, Fla.; and Vail and Aspen, Colo. I didn’t bring it home with me, but its retail price of $2,400 definitely seemed like a bargain!

Vintage ring in yellow gold with amethyst, citrine, and diamonds from Betteridge at the show

Preparing for the talk also served as a warm-up to my annual trends post that will go live after Christmas. To pull it together, I reviewed the Fashion Trend Report on clothes for spring 2015, Pantone’s most recent color selects, red carpet trends in the past year, and my notes from all the 2014 jewelry shows. Among my predictions: yellow gold to complement all the 1970s fashion influences, and lots of necklaces, among other thoughts.

Most importantly, though, I really wanted jewelers to understand the reason why trends are important for them to know: Because they are tools in your sales arsenal. Knowing the dominant colors, clothing silhouettes, and red carpet trends of the year is important so that retailers can suggest appropriate jewelry to complement the clothes that customers are wearing. Fashion is important for that reason, because it’s a marketing tool. I was happy to hear April agree with me after the talk. “There’s always something in your jewelry case that you can suggest that speaks to the trends of the moment,” she said.

The Style 360 blog is your editorial source for the newest jewelry, trends, market analysis, trade show highlights, designers profiles, and more.

JCK