Jewelers use a magnifier, called a loupe and pronounced loop, to inspect gemstones and other jewelry. The magnifiers have special lenses that allow our eyes to focus on an object at a much closer distance than is normally possible, bringing it in closer to reveal tiny details we couldn’t see with our normal vision. Even beginners can use a jewelry loupe, but don’t buy one until you understand how it is used and have a good feel for what you can expect to see when you look through the lens.
Some of the presentations include Challenges for Palladium Casting Alloys; Tarnish-Proof Sterling Silver: Understanding the Limitations; Lost Wax Glass Casting, and Wire and Bar Manufacturing - Some Basics. As I said, technical is the word here, and you’ll mainly find industry professionals talking and listening to one another.
For registration, hotel details, speaker bios, and other related information, go to the group’s web site.