Robin Callahan Designs' Exuma cuff shines with color-change tourmaline

An 11.3-carat blue-green tourmaline turned Robin Callahan Designs’ Exuma cuff into a miniature seascape, the kind of bracelet that can command a formal wrist and still reward a second look up close. Set in 14k white gold, the cuff won first place in INSTORE Design Awards 2026’s Bracelet Over $5,000 category with a price tag of $95,000, a number that reads less like spectacle than like a claim about labor, materials and intent.

What makes the piece memorable is not just the scale of the center stone, but the way Callahan used it. The tourmaline is an antique cushion cut, a shape that softens the stone’s geometry and gives the color room to breathe. Its color-change quality adds another layer of meaning, shifting the jewel’s mood as the light changes and making the cuff feel alive rather than static. Around it, G-H-color, VS-clarity diamonds totaling 1.21 carats provide brightness without stealing focus, while 4.162 carats of sapphires deepen the bracelet’s cool palette. The result is a study in restraint and emphasis at once: a strong center, controlled sparkle, and a surface that invites the eye to move.

That balance is exactly what the judges responded to. Catherine Fitzgibbon praised the bracelet’s detail and the serene mix of gem colors, while Mary Murray singled out the thoughtful placement of the stones. In a field that drew 229 entries across 31 categories for the 11th annual INSTORE Design Awards, those qualities mattered. Colored gemstones were especially strong in the 2026 competition, and Exuma stood out because its color story felt composed rather than merely abundant.

Callahan has described Exuma as a marine-inspired design built around waves, turtles, dolphins and starfish, a motif that ties the bracelet to the Bahamas-linked name and gives the piece its emotional architecture. That oceanic language also helps explain why the cuff feels more personal than decorative. It reads like a memory translated into metal and stone, with the white-gold setting acting as a frame for movement and water-like light.

Exuma is also not an isolated idea. A related Exuma ring, centered on a 25.85-carat Cuprian color-changing blue-green tourmaline, won an ALFIE Museum Award in the Classical Category, and Callahan has completed companion cuff and pendant designs. Based on Bainbridge Island, Washington, the metalsmith and lapidary artist sources gem rough directly from mines and specialty dealers, building one-of-a-kind and limited-edition pieces with the stated aim of making jewelry with meaningful intention. Exuma shows how that philosophy becomes visible: in the cut, in the setting, and in the disciplined use of color that turns a luxury bracelet into a lasting signature.