INSTORE Design Awards add Small Batch colored gemstones category
Colored gemstones stayed hottest as INSTORE added a small-batch lane for makers with five or fewer employees, signaling a turn toward distinctive, maker-led jewelry.
Colored gemstones kept the spotlight in the 11th annual INSTORE Design Awards, where the 2026 contest drew 229 entries, matching last year’s total. INSTORE said the category was “hotter than ever,” and the expansion of the awards program into a new Small Batch Colored Stone Jewelry class made the market signal even clearer: shoppers are still gravitating toward color, but they are also responding to pieces that feel made by a specific hand, not turned out at scale.
The new small-batch category was limited to makers with five or fewer employees, giving smaller studios a dedicated lane alongside the contest’s broader field. That matters because the awards have become a useful snapshot of what jewelry buyers actually want to wear now. The lineup stretched across 31 traditional and trend-driven categories, from colored stone jewelry, pearl, gold, platinum diamond and silver to rings, necklaces, earrings, bracelets, engagement and wedding, and men’s jewelry. Special-design classes pushed further into the market’s current taste map, with celestial, hoop earrings, snake design, unisex design, floral designs, enamel, heart motifs and statement piece among them.
The addition of Small Batch Colored Stone Jewelry also shows how design competitions are adapting to the way jewelry is bought and shared. Mass-market polish still has a place, but the awards are making room for smaller workshops that can lean into unusual cuts, bolder color combinations and more individualized design language. INSTORE’s separate small-batch gold category points in the same direction: the value is no longer just in the metal or the stone, but in the point of view behind the piece.
Entry fees reflected the scale of the competition, with the first submission priced at $495 and each additional entry at $395. Winners were set to appear online in late May and in the June issue of INSTORE, giving the contest a quick runway from entry to visibility. That timing matters for retailers and designers watching the market, because the awards now function less like a ceremonial one-off and more like a forecast for what will filter onto counters and into wish lists next.
The most revealing detail is the category mix itself. Alongside Couture’s Choice Award for INSTORE and the Cindy Edelstein Memorial Emerging Designer Award, the contest built a lane for both established voices and newer makers. In a year when colored gemstones dominated and small-batch design earned its own place, the message was simple: jewelry with personality is still winning.
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