NANCY ATTAWAY

Nancy Attaway began her career in colored gemstone faceting in May 1987 with the New Mexico Faceters Guild and has continued working with the group as a past President, Newsletter Editor, and as one of the faceting instructors. She served on the Board of Directors for the New Mexico Jewelers Association for eight years and presented a paper at the 2018 Santa Fe Symposium, "Back from the Dead," on how to resurrect gemstones. Several of Nancy's original faceting diagrams and articles have been published in Lapidary Journal/Jewelry Artist magazine, in Rock & Gem magazine, and in faceting guild newsletters across the United States and outside the country.

One of a group of experts who worked with Dr. Jeffrey Post, the curator of the Smithsonian Gem & Mineral Collection regarding the origins of the Hope diamond In 2004, Nancy faceted a replica of the French Blue diamond for the project; the stone was featured on the cover of the June 2005 issue of Lapidary Journal/Jewelry Artist magazine. The Discovery Channel televised the project, entitled, "The Unsolved History of the Hope Diamond." An eye-shaped Bolivian ametrine of 85 carats called the "Eye of Horus", created by Nancy, is on permanent display in the Smithsonian Gem & Mineral Hall.

Nancy has won awards from the New Mexico Jewelers Association's competition, including several first place awards, two Premier Awards, and a People's Choice Award. In 2007, the American Gem Trade Association (AGTA) awarded Nancy an Honorable Mention in the Classic Gemstone Category for her 5.85-carat bi-colored 10 x 10mm modified square Barion Montana sapphire.