Lika Behar wins with reversible gold hoops, diamonds and silver

Reversible hoops in oxidized silver and 24K gold gave Lika Behar Collection a clean victory in Best Hoops, with the Diana Reversible hoop earrings taking both First Place and Retailer’s Choice. The 30 mm design carried 0.50 total carat weight of diamonds and a listed price of $3,410, a combination that made a familiar silhouette feel newly useful from day to night.

The judges’ response pointed to the real reason the piece stood out: it updated a classic without abandoning what makes gold hoops sell in the first place. Reversibility gives the wearer more than one look from a single pair, while the mixed-metal construction adds contrast that standard yellow-gold hoops often lack. In a category crowded with simple rounds, the Diana Reversible earrings offered a sharper argument for utility as luxury.

That logic fits the wider picture from the 2026 INSTORE Design Awards, the 11th edition of the program, which drew 229 entries and matched the previous year’s total. INSTORE said colored gemstones were especially strong across the competition, a sign that buyers and judges alike were rewarding jewelry that feels distinct but still wearable. Lika Behar’s hoops landed in that same lane: recognizable at a glance, but with enough technical and visual variation to feel current.

The brand’s broader identity reinforces that approach. Lika Behar Collection describes its jewelry as handcrafted and built around 24K gold, oxidized silver and gemstones, with pieces sold through authorized retail partners across the United States. That material mix is also the brand’s signature strength: it lets the company work in gold without making every design look identical, and it gives retailers a story to tell that goes beyond karat weight alone.

This was not the first time the Diana name found favor with judges. In a prior INSTORE awards result, Lika Behar’s Diana hoops were described as “an amazing twist on a must have classic,” language that now reads less like a one-off compliment and more like the brand’s design playbook. For shoppers and stores alike, the lesson is clear: classic gold jewelry performs best when it delivers both familiarity and fresh function.