It's a dog's life at many show stops   

Big show featuring Fabergé is opening

The long-awaited Tucson Gem & Mineral Show opens today.

This year's centerpiece will offer the public a view of art treasures by Peter Carl Fabergé, the one-time jeweler to Russia's czars.

The Fabergé display dovetails with the theme of the 47th annual show: Russian minerals and gem art.

The show offers the largest Fabergé selection of objets d'art ever exhibited in Arizona, said Jim McGlasson, president of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Society, which sponsors the show.

The annual show that runs through Sunday at the Tucson Convention Center, 260 S. Church Ave., draws one of the largest crowds downtown, said Jean McKnight Guymon, public relations director of the Metropolitan Tucson Convention & Visitors Bureau.

"I think it's very important that people realize how great this is and go see the exhibit," said Joann Johnson, development director with the Tucson Arts District Partnership.

"His (Fabergé's) work is some of the highest quality craftsmanship ever created," said Robert Yassin, executive director of the Tucson Museum of Art. "It will amaze, mystify and dazzle."

For a $5.50 daily fee, visitors can view displays of more than 60 Fabergé pieces from several collectors and dealers. The displays will showcase the Imperial Renaissance Egg and a royal Hoof Egg from the Forbes Magazine Collection.

But don't think the show's organizers are getting stuffy. Like the exhibits every year, they're aiming at all visitors' interests.

The show will host more than 4,000 schoolchildren who may lay claim to an identified mineral collection if accompanied on a later visit by an adult. The show also will feature hands-on events for kids that include treasure hunts for minerals and question-and-answer exhibits with small prize rewards.

Other highlights:

* 250 gem, mineral and fossil dealers, including those from Russia.

* Free mineral seminars on Friday and Saturday.

* Display of crystallized native elements ranging from gold and silver to platinum and diamond.

* Display of one of the seven known gem imperial seals from the desk of a czar.

* Two eggs created by Theo Fabergé, grandson of Peter Carl Fabergé.

* Two Russian malachite mosaic vases.

* Gem boxes with inlays of precious opal, lapis, malachite, agate, coral, jasper and azurite.

* 15 Russian gemstone desk seals.

* Exhibits from more than 20 museums including the Smithsonian Institution, the Harvard University Museum, the American Museum of Natural History and the Royal Ontario Museum.

* Two large gemstone carvings of peasant life loaned by the Denver Museum of Nature and Science.

* Authorized replicas of the Fabergé Imperial Eggs, dinnerware and goblets.

The show will be opened today by Mayor Bob Walkup; Russia's Minister of Natural Resources, Boris Yachkevich and his wife, Natalia; and Tatiana Fabergé, great-granddaughter of Peter Carl.

The Tucson Gem & Mineral Society started the first gem show in Tucson nearly a half-century ago. Exhibits in the past have included an Emily Post jewelry collection and meteorite pieces from the Smithsonian Institution.

* Contact reporter Jeannine Relly at 573-4213 or by e-mail at jrelly@azstarnet.com.

How to get ahead of the gem curve at swank boutiques

Follow jewelry designers on their gem show shopping sprees and you'll glimpse what the country's poshest boutiques will carry in six months.

Ask the wholesale gem dealers what Tiffany's, Macy's and Saks Fifth Avenue ordered this week at the Tucson gem show, then guess what stores will sell this Christmas.

Certainly the trends don't start in Tucson. But wedged somewhere between the fashion runways in Milan and the next yuletide season catalogs, you'll find thousands of department store, jewelry design and auction house shoppers buying gemstones here in February.

About 36,000 out-of-town buyers and exhibitors come to Tucson for the gem show, according to a recent study released by the Metropolitan Tucson Convention & Visitors Bureau.

Southern California jewelry designer Michael Pitkow said he comes to the Tucson shows for the purity and variety of the stones. "Outside of L.A. and New York, this is the greatest opportunity for people to buy from people from all over the world." said Pitkow, whose jewelry has appeared in fashion magazines from Elle to Town & Country. "They all bring their best stuff. It's new and exciting."

Pearls and diamonds are still big sellers, gem show insiders said yesterday. Ruby and sapphire sales also were steady.

Emerald sales were in a slump, but sales had picked up from last year, said Robert Linder, president of the American Gem Trade Association and owner of the New York City-based Lindeau Gems Inc.

Sapphires were selling in all colors this year, from the cornflower blue to the lemony colored gems. The 30-carat emerald-cut lemony colored sapphires look like $150,000 canary yellow diamonds, he said, adding that they are almost as hard as diamonds but sell on the retail shelf for $30,000.

Other big sellers: orange sapphires, along with the other gemstones in golden and earth tones such as topaz, citrine and amethyst. Pearls sold heavily in the "spice" colors, ranging from brown to orange to lavender.

For a second straight year, blue and lavender chalcedony sizzled, said Cheryl Wormington, show director for the Gem & Jewelry Exchange.

Jewelry designer Pitkow said he's buying up green and honey-colored garnets for his autumn collection with Talisman Unlimited, based in Tarzana, Calif.

The mid-range-priced gemstones were more popular this year among buyers than high-end stones, said Douglas Hucker, executive director of the Dallas-based gem trade association.

"The current trends in jewelry reflect what's going on culturally and economically," said Mimi Shin, accessories director for Harper's Bazaar. "Diamonds had been insanely popular for the past year. People were spending money on the glitz and glamour." With a slowing economy, "people are becoming more reserved." But not in bead cuts. Big, bold and unusual cuts are in, said industry experts.

* Contact reporter Jeannine Relly at 573-4213 or by e-mail at jrelly@azstarnet.com.

If desert bores, try Mount Lemmon

Mount Lemmon

This pine tree-filled treasure northeast of Tucson in the Coronado National Forest offers a cool respite for our usually sun-drenched community.

In the summer, the mountain acts as a hideaway from the heat. In the winter, it sometimes gives Tucsonans a chance to play in the snow.

The area provides several hot spots for hikers and nature watchers, and cyclists enjoy the challenging climb to the top of the mountain along steep, winding Catalina Highway.

Molino Canyon Vista (4.3 miles up the mountain), Windy Point Vista (Milepost 14) and Butterfly Trail (Milepost 22.8) are some of the more popular mountain hangouts during the winter.

Mount Lemmon Ski Valley provides skiing and sledding opportunities. It's smart to check on snow conditions on the mountain before planning a trip. Call 885-1181.

For those in the mood for shopping and dining, there's the small mountaintop village of Summerhaven.

To get to Mount Lemmon, take Tanque Verde Road east to Catalina Highway and turn left.

Fee: It costs $5 per carload to drive up the mountain, unless you're passing through to Summerhaven.

Alpine Lodge

Summerhaven

576-1544

Alpine Lodge offers a friendly dining spot for those who've made it to the top of Mount Lemmon.

The lodge offers a variety of sandwiches and hamburgers to help tide over hungry hikers. If there's room left over, you can order a piece of one of Alpine Lodge's pies.

The restaurant is open daily except Tuesday and Thursday.

Hours: noon-5 Monday and Wednesday; 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 11 a.m.-7 p.m. Sunday.

Gem Show briefs

It's a dog's life at many show stops

Diamonds may be a girl's best friend, but many a diamond dealer's best friend is her dog.

Gem and mineral dealers at hotel shows throughout Tucson, wary of spending two weeks without their beloved companions, are sharing their showrooms with their canines.

Most of the pooches are no bigger than a table-top geode and far more valuable to their owners.

"It would be cruel to leave him, and I'd get lonely," Kathmandu Imports dealer Natalie Ghale said of her miniature dachshund Hot Dog.

Hot Dog seems happy at the Four Points Hotel, 350 S. Freeway, where he can dart straight from the room to a grassy yard.

Ghale wasn't always sure her dog would be welcomed at the shows, but hearing the pitter-patter of four little feet in neighboring rooms last year persuaded her to pack him.

"The customers all love him because he's small and not intimidating," Ghale said.

- Hanna Miller