(PRESS RELEASE) ATLANTA, GA — As part of an ongoing effort to expand educational resources and opportunities for its community of independent jewelers, the Atlanta Jewelry Show offers a Gemological Institute of America Diamond Grading Lab Session from Feb. 26 through March 2, 2019, in connection with its spring show held March 2-4 at the Cobb Galleria Centre.
“Diamond treatments, synthetic diamonds and diamond grading issues were covered in recent sessions as part of our enhanced education program at the Fall show. We also presented a diamond power panel of industry experts sponsored by the Diamond Council of America,” said Cindy Chandler, director of education for the Atlanta Jewelry Show. “Our August attendees showed great interest in these discussions exclusively focused on diamonds, so we believe the timing is right to offer the GIA Diamond Grading Lab Session during the March show.”
Participants will spend more than 16 hours practicing grading techniques on diamonds that were carefully selected and graded by GIA. In the process, participants will be taught how to recognize the most common diamond features. Bringing together a combination of hands-on training, one-on-one coaching and integrated multimedia presentations, the successful completion of this lab session can be credited towards the GIA Graduate Gemologist and Graduate Diamonds diplomas. Students must pass a two-stone practical exam to complete the class successfully and earn a letter of completion.
During the five-day lab session, participants will:
- Learn to grade diamonds consistently and accurately using a modern gem microscope and jeweler’s loupe.
- Become familiar with the GIA International Diamond Grading System.
- Discover time-saving shortcuts to determine a variety of grading factors.
- Learn to read a GIA Diamond Grading Report.
The GIA Diamond Grading Lab Session will be held from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Feb. 26-March 2, 2019, in Room 102 at the Cobb Galleria Centre. Registration and nonrefundable pre-payment is required. The price is $2,512 (payable by check) or $2,562 (payable by credit card).
Jewelers are encouraged to act quickly, as space is limited and available on a first-come, first-served basis. For information and to register, send an email to Judy Lince at jlince@atlantajewelryshow.com or call 800-241-0399 0r 404-634-3434.