Jewelry Industry Orange County

When a local jewelry market moved next door to one of Orange County's largest diamond dealerships and tried to operate under a similar name, the result was a business rivalry that at times bordered on the absurd and resulted in a $2.05-million verdict against the upstarts, attorneys said Wednesday. The allegations were ordinary and the jury award wasn't especially large.

When a local jewelry market moved next door to one of Orange County's largest diamond dealerships and tried to operate under a similar name, the result was a business rivalry that at times bordered on the absurd and resulted in a $2.05-million verdict against the upstarts, attorneys said Wednesday. The allegations were ordinary and the jury award wasn't especially large.

When the Orange County Performing Arts Center stages its $500-per-plate 10th-anniversary gala Sunday, many women will wear their biggest diamonds, grandest sapphires and fattest emeralds. "All of the important stuff will be trotted out," says Catherine Thyen, gala chairwoman. Dazzling displays of fine jewelry are expected not only at the center gala but also at a host of ritzy black-tie affairs slated for Orange County this fall, including the South Coast Repertory's Embassy Ball on Sept.

Kirk Milette is a jeweler with dirt under his fingernails. When not waiting on customers in his diminutive Laguna Beach shop, he's in the back-room workshop, soldering, putting in settings, carving and assembling his art nouveau-inspired pieces. It's about four footsteps from workbench to display case. Milette does not sell Rolex watches. He considers himself an artisan, creating and selling his work much in the tradition of the many artisans and artists who populate Laguna Beach.

After 46 years, Newport Beach jeweler J.C. Humphries is going to call it a career. The certified gemologist has cleaned countless watches, appraised countless diamonds, even waited on local legend John Wayne. Now he will close his store in the Courtyards shopping center at Harbor and Newport boulevards in a month or so, after his going-out-of-business sale has run its course.

Kirk Milette is a jeweler with dirt under his fingernails. When not waiting on customers in his diminutive Laguna Beach shop, he's in the back-room workshop, soldering, putting in settings, carving and assembling his art nouveau-inspired pieces. It's about four footsteps from workbench to display case. Milette does not sell Rolex watches. He considers himself an artisan, creating and selling his work much in the tradition of the many artisans and artists who populate Laguna Beach.

When the Orange County Performing Arts Center stages its $500-per-plate 10th-anniversary gala Sunday, many women will wear their biggest diamonds, grandest sapphires and fattest emeralds. "All of the important stuff will be trotted out," says Catherine Thyen, gala chairwoman. Dazzling displays of fine jewelry are expected not only at the center gala but also at a host of ritzy black-tie affairs slated for Orange County this fall, including the South Coast Repertory's Embassy Ball on Sept.

After 46 years, Newport Beach jeweler J.C. Humphries is going to call it a career. The certified gemologist has cleaned countless watches, appraised countless diamonds, even waited on local legend John Wayne. Now he will close his store in the Courtyards shopping center at Harbor and Newport boulevards in a month or so, after his going-out-of-business sale has run its course.