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Lorraine Schwartz is normally frantic this time of year, prepping for awards season and dressing her celebrity pals in megawatt jewels worth millions. She’s the indisputable go-to source for A-listers when they want to make a dramatic entrance, like when Beyoncé showed up at the Grammys in a red sequin dress and a 400-carat diamond necklace worth $12 million, or when Blake Lively appeared at the Met Gala in a goddess-like halo with 100 carats of diamonds.
Those entertainers didn t just borrow the jewels; they became her friends and collaborated on image-making looks. And even when other big jewelry houses offered them big bucks to wear their designs many of the celebrities remained loyal to Schwartz, who says she never pays them. Time and again, the designer has created custom-made, jaw-dropping pieces, often with hundreds of carats of spectacular gems and just a few days notice.
Lorraine Schwartz and Pharrell Williams
The jeweler collaborated with the Natural Diamond Council to create the $1 million program, enlisting stylist Jason Rembert and other experts as members of the selection committee.
Her jewels create high-wattage red carpet moments, but lately Lorraine Schwartz is focused on inclusivity in her industry. I wanted to share my passion with a new generation, explains the New York-based designer. “This is an industry that tends to be passed on from generation to generation the grandfather teaches his son, who then passes the knowledge along to his son. I’m a third-generation diamond dealer, yet as a woman I also found challenges. But for the Black community, there are fewer opportunities for mentoring or to break through as a result. I thought I could do something about that.”
January 25, 2021
The Natural Diamond Council (NDC) and fine jewelry designer Lorraine Schwartz are addressing a little-known inequity in the jewelry business: access to diamonds.
Today, the NDC and Schwartz announced the debut of the Emerging Designers Diamond Initiative, a program created to remove barriers to entry to diamond suppliers, industry education, and resources, while providing ongoing mentorship to BIPOC jewelry designers. The initiative will also give a total of $1 million in the form of $20,000 diamond credits to the chosen designers.
“It is past time for our industry to be more supportive and share the magic of diamonds with a larger, more diverse group of jewelers,” said Schwartz in a prepared statement. “Helping BIPOC designers, and more specifically the underrepresented Black designer community, gain entry to diamond vendors and credit financing, as well as expand their businesses, is a necessary step in the process towards a more equitable industry.”
(Image: @lorraineschwartz/Instagram)
The Natural Diamond Council (NDC) and famed celebrity jewelry designer Lorraine Schwartz have established an initiative to help make their industry more inclusive. The Emerging Designers Diamond Initiative will support Black and minority-owned jewelry designers, distributing $1 million dollars in diamond credits to help brands expand.
The new initiative will award recipients $20,000 in diamond credits to be used as a guarantor for businesses to work with partnered suppliers with the existing BIPOC brands and help new designers have a way to enter the field. The program committee will include industry veterans and celebrity advisors, including Tina Knowles, Kelly Rowland, and stylist Jason Rembert to review applications in addition to lending their expertise.