PRESS RELEASE: Platinum Honors winners named at the 2026 AGTA Spectrum Awards

A carved Paraiba tourmaline necklace lit by a hidden LED took Best of Show at this year’s AGTA Spectrum Awards, and Platinum Guild International has named the winners of its Platinum Honors for the best use of platinum with coloured gemstones and pearls.

Platinum Guild International (PGI) has announced the winners of its Platinum Honors at the 2026 AGTA Spectrum Awards, the American Gem Trade Association’s annual design competition for jewellery featuring coloured gemstones and pearls. The competition was judged at the Omni Frisco Hotel at The Star, near Dallas, Texas.

More than 60 platinum pieces were entered for Platinum Honors, in categories from Evening Wear to Engagement Rings. Jenny Luker, President of PGI USA, judged the category. According to AGTA, total entries to the Spectrum Awards rose by 21% this year.

“Because of platinum’s durability, strength, and tensile properties, designers can achieve things that might not be possible with other metals,” said Luker. “Whether it’s intricate micro pavé work or delicate prongs, platinum allows for exceptional precision while ensuring that gemstones remain secure.”

Platinum among the main award winners

Several of the overall Spectrum Award winners were made in platinum:

• Best of Show and 1st place, Classical Wear: Can’t Look Away, a necklace by Lezlie Slavens of Luxe Fine Jewelry and collaborators. A carved Paraiba tourmaline is backed in platinum and hangs from a diamond-set platinum chain, lit from behind by an LED that is switched on by a magnet.
• 1st place, Evening Wear: Joseph Dardashti’s Art Deco-inspired Horus Egyptian Revival bracelet, set with rubies, sapphires, emeralds, diamonds and onyx. It also won Platinum Honors in the same category.
• Stuller Colour of the Year Award and 2nd place, Classical: Jeffrey Bilgore’s platinum ring set with a Mahenge spinel and diamonds. This new award recognises the best interpretations of Stuller’s “Signature Red”.
• 1st place, Bridal: Niveet Nagpal of Omi Gems for a platinum ring set with a 5.32ct Paraiba tourmaline, tourmalines and diamonds.
• 1st place, Engagement Rings: first-time entrant Shelby Lichtenstein for Something New, Something Blue, a platinum ring set with a 4.50ct emerald-cut blue zircon and diamonds.

Trends

Luker noted several platinum trends across the competition: bezel settings in engagement rings, platinum paired with moonstones for a soft, white-on-white look, and brooches for men and women combining several types of gemstone in different cuts and sizes.

“The level of design this year was incredible,” she said. “Platinum plays such a wonderful supporting role to gemstones, and that relationship has endured — and will endure — forever.”

2026 Platinum Honors winners

• Best Use of Platinum and Colour: Roland Krainz, Krainz Creations, Ambrosia necklace with opals, diamonds, emeralds, sapphires and tsavorite garnets (140.80ct total)
• Best Use of Platinum, Crown: Ricardo Basta, E. Eichberg Inc., Everest ring with a 9.70ct cushion-cut tanzanite and diamonds
• Bridal Wear: Jeffrey Bilgore, JuneStones for June Brides necklace with a 27.02ct blue-sheen moonstone, a 7.95ct natural conch pearl, alexandrites and diamonds
• Business/Day Wear: Gabriel Angulo, Pompos Jewelry Corporation, a stretchable platinum ring with titanium springs, set with a 5.42ct black opal cabochon, diamonds and sapphires
• Classical: Eve Streicker, Original Eve Designs, with Rohan Agrawal, Zellige brooch with marquise aquamarines and diamonds
• Engagement Rings: Underwood Design Team, Underwood’s Fine Jewelers, ring with a 3.66ct cushion sapphire and diamonds
• Evening Wear: Joseph Dardashti, Horus Egyptian Revival bracelet in platinum and 18ct yellow gold
• Innovative Design: Cari Goldman, Pieces by Cari, with Alexsey Yarnikh, Love Spun ring with marquise crystal opals and diamonds
• Men’s Wear: Ricardo Basta, E. Eichberg Inc., Siren’s Relic ring with a 5.35ct emerald-cut zoisite

Many of the winning pieces will be on show at AGTA GemFair Tucson, at the Tucson Convention Center, from 31 January to 4 February 2027. The full list of winners is on the AGTA website.

Find out more: agta.org

Images: Listed in order of  2026 Platinum Honors winners from left to right.
Jeff Mason Photography