Luxury is no longer defined as formalness like it was by the World War II generation, she said in the lecture, titled "Consumer Trends That Affect the Marketplace." Today people think of luxury in terms of comfort and convenience, and jewelry is following suit.

"Now it's OK to wear diamonds and pearls with jeans," she said. "This whole 'retro' movement taps into a longing for simpler times. With all the choices we have now, it's no wonder we're reverting back to a simpler time like the 1950s," she said.

Recent trends not only apply to how jewelry is being used to accessorize, but who is buying it. Today, women buy much of their own jewelry and drive 85-90 percent of all household purchases, Schupak said. This goes hand-in-hand with consumer's new rationale for buying luxury items.

"Emotional gratification has replaced status as the driver of luxury goods purchases," she said. "People are acquiring fewer, but higher-quality items, and they are purchasing all luxury goods - including jewelry - as an emotional connection."

Modern consumers will "trade down to trade up," Schupak said. Students buy generic cereal in order to afford the "Starbucks experience," while business people travel on frequent flyer miles to build funds for a diamond necklace.      

Trend watching is key for survival in the marketplace, she said. Schupak encouraged the need to build desire for jewelry based on emotion, rather than price.

"In order to survive, you must be able to observe, adapt and change what you're doing to suit the trends and time," Schupak said.

The lecture coincides with JCK's recent donation of an extensive book collection to GIA's Richard T. Liddicoat  Gemological Library and Information Center. Among the 83 volumes - many of which are out of print - are three binders of original GIA coursework from 1931 by Institute founder Robert M. Shipley. Some of the books will be housed in the Library's Cartier Rare Book Repository and Archives, others will join the Library's circulating collection. 

"We are thrilled and honored that JCK saw the GIA Library as a fitting home for their most valuable books," says Patricia Syvrud, director,  In-Kind Gifts. "Their gift serves as an example to others and will help ensure that the Library continues as a world-class resource for gemological education and research."