Tips For Choosing Diamonds by Ken Snodin
Facts on Diamonds
It was more than 2800 years ago that the first diamonds were mined in India. In actuality, diamonds are much older than one would think. Most diamonds we find today are at least 900 million years old. Experts believe that the oldest known diamond is around 3.2 billion years old. Each mined diamond is completely unique. To the trained eye, one can find that there are no two diamonds that are precisely the same.
When learning how to purchase a diamond, there are many things to consider. Until you know more and have done your research, you should never rush into buying a diamond. It's especially important to learn how diamonds are priced.
The "4 C's"
You will have many factors to consider when buying a diamond. Throughout the world, there is an established method that jewelers use as a way of describing the value of a diamond. The method is known as the "4 C's". If you are interested in understanding how to buy a diamond, it would help to know exactly what the 4 C's are and how each aspect of the diamond contributes to its value.
The 4 C's represent Cut, Clarity, Carats and Color
Buying a Diamond based on Cut: The cut of a diamond is a description of how the diamond maker angles the gemstone in such a way as to best reflect light through the diamond, resulting in the diamond's sparkle. A high quality cut enhances the innate beauty of a diamond and increases its value. A poorly cut diamond isn't as brilliant or shiny and, therefore, will be less valuable.
How to Buy a Diamond based on Clarity: The clarity of a diamond involves looking at how clear the diamond is when you look through it. Most diamonds have inclusions and flaws and it is rare to find a perfect diamond. Flaws, however, cannot usually be seen without magnification. When purchasing a diamond for clarity, look for the presence of dark spots inside the diamond.
How to Buy a Diamond based on Carats: Carat defines the size of the diamond. Larger diamonds (those of a higher carat) will cost more than a cluster of smaller diamonds, even if the total carats of the diamond cluster are the same. This means that a single one-carat diamond will cost you more than three diamonds set in a ring that add up to one carat. The reason behind this is that larger diamonds are rarer than smaller diamonds. Unfortunately, this is impacted by the fact that, when diamonds are cut, they lose about half their size.
How to Buy a Diamond based on Color: The color of diamond you choose is entirely based upon your personal preference. Diamonds that are colorless, however, are the rarest and therefore cost more than other diamonds. Colorless diamonds are known as white diamonds. Diamonds also come in a variety of different hues, including yellow, green, blue and pink. There are even diamonds known as "black diamonds".
Certificates and Appraisals
While understanding the 4 C's in determining how to buy a diamond, you should also learn how to read diamond certificates. These certificates describe in detail the facts about the diamond in its unmounted state. Perhaps you have a specific diamond you want to have professionally appraised by an independent organization. This is probably not best done by the jeweler you are buying the diamond from because they are often biased and may appraise the diamond at a slightly higher value than what it's actually worth in order to receive more income from the sale of the diamond.
About the Author
Discover a collection of articles and resources offering tips and advice on buying or making gifts for any occasion by visiting http://www.gifts-tips.com
Wednesday, August 30, 2006
Saturday, August 26, 2006
Jewelry from 3000 BC Egypt to the 21st Century
Jewelry from 3000 BC Egypt to the 21st Century by Sher Matsen
Egypt The use of gold jewelry can be dated back to Egypt 3000 BC. Gold was the preferred metal for jewelry making during ancient times.
It was rare, it was easy to work with, and it never tarnished. Magnificent bracelets, pendants, necklaces, rings, armlets, earrings, collars, and head ornaments were all produced in ancient Egypt, the land of the Pharaohs.
In 1922 Howard Carter's excavations led to the discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb and many gold artifacts, all showing the art work of ancient Egypt.
Greece In ancient Greece, gold beads in the shape of shells, flowers and beetles were very common. In Northern Greece beautiful necklaces and earrings have been excavated from burial.
By 300 BC the Greeks were using gems such as emeralds, garnets, amethysts and pearls. They also created colored glass stones and enamel stones. Carved agate cameos and gold filigree work were widely made.
Italy The Italian Etruscans produced granulated textured gold work. They made very large, necklaces, bracelets and earrings.
They were also known for producing hollow gold pendants that were filled with perfume. Even today the Italians are still known for the quality gold jewelry.
Rome The Romans used 18 and 24 carat gold for their coins. Coinage gold was readily available so it was popular with craftsmen for decorative jewelry.
Over 2000 years ago the Romans were using sapphires, emeralds, garnets, and amber in their jewelry.
Europe During the 13th century the Medieval Sumptuary Laws were enacted which put a cap on luxurious jewelry and clothing.
The town folk of France, banned from wearing girdles made from pearls or any other gemstone. They were also banged from wearing gold or silver. Similar laws existed in England banning artisans from wearing gold and silver.
These laws show how fine jewelry had spread beyond nobility to the town folk.
Real and Fake Gems and Pearls For as long as mankind has existed gems and jewels have been used as token of ones love for another.
While many pieces of jewelry existed adorned with fine gems and made from precious metals, there was also some very good fake jewelry. True gemstones and pearls originated in the east and they were bought mainly by the Italians.
The Italian merchants then sold the jewelry to the Europeans. High quality glass imitations were often used and sold with the intent to deceive.
These high quality glass stones were often used in the Royal funeral robes and in children's jewelry.
Valued more than gemstones, were the flawless, round, natural white pearls. South India provided some of the finest pearls.
The Italians were able to make quality imitation glass gems and pearls that could only be identified by a gemologist. There is historical proof that recipes for false pearls existed as far back as 1300.
White powdered glass was mixed with albumen and snail slime to produce imitation pearls.
Earrings and Dress Jewelry During the 17th century woman always wore earrings, whether they were dressed or undressed. It was very acceptable to wear faux pearls and paste gem earrings during the day saving fine diamond jewelry and gem jewelry for evening attire.
Dress ornamentation decreased in size. Sleeves or skirts were often decorated with matching brooches. During the 16th it was very fashionable to wear large quantities of pearls. Both jewelry to clothing accessories were adorned with pearls.
During the 17th century Jaquin of Paris patented a method of making fake pearls. Hollow blown glass balls were coated with varnish mixed with iridescent ground fish scales. The hollow balls were then filled with wax to strengthen them.
This discovery made Paris the main producer of faux pearls for well over 200 years.
Paste is a compound of glass containing white lead oxide and potash. Paste jewelry was very common in the later part of the 17th century.
The highest quality and most long lasting paste jewelry was produced after 1734 by Georges Strass. Paris lead the production of faux gems [paste] and faux pearls. Just about any kind of fake gem could be made, including fake opals.
After 1760 the production of fake jewelery spread to London and to Birmingham. During the industrial revolution steel was produced in large quantities so it was easily available.
It was ues for setting marcasite and jasper ware cameos. Glass and Wedgwood porcelain paste cameos were made in English factories and were also very popular.
The fashion from this era also included ornate shoe buckles of paste, steel and tin, elaborate paste jewel buttons, as well as semi precious for day wear.
Empire Jewelry In 1804 Napoleon emerged as Emperor of France, resulting in a revival of jewelry and fashion as a new court of pomp.
'Joailliers' worked fine jewelry and 'bijoutiers' used less precious materials.
The members of the new French imperial family had the former French royal family gems re-set into the latest neo-classical style. The new trends soon found their way to Europe, particularly England. The main influence for design was the Greek and Roman.
Parures and Cameos Parures were a matching suite of coordinating precious gems which could include a necklace, a comb, a tiara, a diadem, a bandeau, a pair of bracelets, pins, rings, drop earrings or and cluster stud earrings and possibly a belt clasp.
A full parure consisted of a minimum of four pieces. A demi parure consisted of three or less pieces. Both Josephine and Napoleon's second wife had magnificent parures.
Once Napoleon's cameo decorated coronation crown was seen, cameos became the rage. Cameos were carved from hard stone, conch shells and even from Wedgwood porcelain.
Victorian Jewelry In 1837 when Queen Victoria came to the throne jewelry was romantic and nationalistic. It focused on European folk art, which later influenced the Arts and Crafts Movement.
Until mid century most western jewelry came from Europe, with some jewelry being produced in North America and Australia.
Mass production of mid Victorian jewelry in Birmingham, Germany and Providence, Rhode Island resulted in lower jewelry standards. Victorian women rebelled when they saw some the poor quality of much of this machine made jewelry.
Woman rebelled by wearing no jewelry at all, or buying from the emerging artist craftsman. Some jewelers like Tiffany recognized a niche market and began to make fine jewelry of a very high standard, opening shops in main European cities.
Mourning Jewelry During the Victorian era mourning jewelry was very fashionable. The initial months of mourning were unadorned by jewelry of any kind. As the mourning rituals increased, mourning jewelry developed as a fashion item.
Queen Victorian wore a great deal of jet mourning jewelry after Prince Albert's death.
Jet from Whitby, North of England was set into mourning pieces. All types of material that were black were used and almost all included a lock of the dead loved one's hair. Hair was also plaited, braided or twisted very tightly until it became hard and thread like.
Arts and Crafts Jewelry During the 1870s the Arts and Crafts movement evolved as a reaction to mass produced shoddy goods and inferior machine made products which were a result of the industrial revolution. William Morris and John Ruskin were both leaders of the arts and crafts movement in England.
They promoted simple Arts and Crafts of designs based on floral, primitive or Celtic forms worked as wallpapers, furniture and jewelry. The polished stones used in Arts and Crafts jewelry gave a medieval, simpler, gentler, tooled hand made look and feel to items.
Art Nouveau The Art Nouveau followed the arts and crafts movement resulting in a new jewelry look. The movement began in Paris and its influence went throughout the Western world. Art nouveau jewelry had curves, sinuous organic lines of romantic and imaginary dreaminess.
It was very ethereal turning into winged bird and flower forms. French, René Lalique was the master goldsmith of the era of Art Nouveau producing exquisite one off pieces. Today, the Art Nouveau style is still admired, sought after, and copied.
Pearls Various combinations of pearl necklaces come in and out of fashion with regularity so pearls too are a must. Today pearls are still a wardrobe essential.
Both faux pearls and cultured pearls are very affordable today. Since the opening of trade with China in the 1990s, many pearls are imported from China dropping the price to about 1/3 of what it was prior to China entering the market.
The Japanese have suffered disease in their pearl beds as well as facing competition and are finding it hard to compete with China's prices.
Pearl necklaces and pearl earrings can lift a complexion and bring light and radiance to the face taking years off a woman whatever her age. They have been a wardrobe staple for centuries, and a wedding attire tradition.
Cultured pearls have become very affordable, and faux pearls are very cheap and the quality can be excellent. Currently Pearls are a very "hot" fashion statement and with the modern twist of being interspaced on gold wire or floating on special synthetic cord they are essential to the millennium look.
Cocktail Jewelry During the 1920s Lalique mass produced and designed high quality glass jewelry. Fake, or costume jewellery was sometimes then called cocktail jewelry. Costume or Cocktail jewelry was greatly influenced by designers such as Coco Chanel, and Elsa Shiparelli as well as a host of other designers.
These two designers were particularly known for encouraging clients to mix their fine jewelry and costume jewelry. Both designers offered imagination and fun and both often sported fabulous fakes.
In the late 1930s Napier of the USA was at the forefront of manufacturing fake cocktail jewelry offer glamour and escapism. Today, Napier still produces excellent contemporary costume pieces.
Hollywood Influence By the 1940s and 1950s American culture was very dominant in Europe. The influence of movie films and the prominence of film stars set the fashion stage for womens make-up, hair and wardrobe.
People wanted copies of outfits and jewelry worn by the actresses. Women believed that the glamour of Hollywood would rub off on them if they dressed and looked like the glamorous Hollywood actresses.
During the Second World War metals were rationed, halting the production of fine jewelry. Quality costume jewelry picked up the now defunct fine jewelry market. Costume jewelry flourished becoming an acceptable alternative to fine jewelry.
1980's Television Influences Jewelry During the 1980s with the evolution of glitzy television soaps such as Dynasty and Dallas, costume jewelry once again became a "hot" fashion statement. With over 250 million viewers, it didn't take long for costume jewelry to be reborn.
Glitz and sparkle by day was not only acceptable, it became the norm. Earrings grew to an unbelievable size, as did other pieces of jewelry. By the 1990s this sparkly dazzling jewelry phenomena was dead, replace with tiny real diamond studs or a fine stud pearls.
21st Century Jewelry For the 21st century women believe a mix is good. Fine jewelry combined with costume jewelry are wardrobe essentials. The sophisticated women of this century know what they want from their jewelry and how to wear it to make their fashion statement.
They recognize that costume jewelry can liven up their wardrobe. The types and quality of costume jewelry has grown enormously. Today one can purchase what is classified as fine costume jewelry which is usually plated at least seven times with 10 22 ct gold.
Swarovski crystal set in gold are common accessories, and cubic zirconium, man's imitation diamond, can be purchased for a fraction of the cost of real diamonds allowing every women to add diamond styled jewelry to their wardrobe.
Ciro, Adrian Buckley, Butler and Wilson, Swarovski Crystal Jewelry Napier, Joan Rivers, Joan Collins, Christian Dior, California Crystal, Property of A Lady and of course Kenneth J Lane to name just a few continue to produce high quality fashion jewelry for today's women.
Costume jewelry can take you from the board room to a night out of dining and dancing to your most intimate evening. It can make you look your best for your wedding, or a day at the beach. You can make Your Fashion Statement! With costume jewelry
About the Author
© Copyright Sher Matsen, All Rights Reserved. About the author: Sher from Estate Jewelry International have been serving customers for over 20 years, providing affordable estate jewelry, and a wealth of information on jewelry, fashion, designers, and beauty with on staff industry professionals. Please visit us at Estate Jewelry International.
Egypt The use of gold jewelry can be dated back to Egypt 3000 BC. Gold was the preferred metal for jewelry making during ancient times.
It was rare, it was easy to work with, and it never tarnished. Magnificent bracelets, pendants, necklaces, rings, armlets, earrings, collars, and head ornaments were all produced in ancient Egypt, the land of the Pharaohs.
In 1922 Howard Carter's excavations led to the discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb and many gold artifacts, all showing the art work of ancient Egypt.
Greece In ancient Greece, gold beads in the shape of shells, flowers and beetles were very common. In Northern Greece beautiful necklaces and earrings have been excavated from burial.
By 300 BC the Greeks were using gems such as emeralds, garnets, amethysts and pearls. They also created colored glass stones and enamel stones. Carved agate cameos and gold filigree work were widely made.
Italy The Italian Etruscans produced granulated textured gold work. They made very large, necklaces, bracelets and earrings.
They were also known for producing hollow gold pendants that were filled with perfume. Even today the Italians are still known for the quality gold jewelry.
Rome The Romans used 18 and 24 carat gold for their coins. Coinage gold was readily available so it was popular with craftsmen for decorative jewelry.
Over 2000 years ago the Romans were using sapphires, emeralds, garnets, and amber in their jewelry.
Europe During the 13th century the Medieval Sumptuary Laws were enacted which put a cap on luxurious jewelry and clothing.
The town folk of France, banned from wearing girdles made from pearls or any other gemstone. They were also banged from wearing gold or silver. Similar laws existed in England banning artisans from wearing gold and silver.
These laws show how fine jewelry had spread beyond nobility to the town folk.
Real and Fake Gems and Pearls For as long as mankind has existed gems and jewels have been used as token of ones love for another.
While many pieces of jewelry existed adorned with fine gems and made from precious metals, there was also some very good fake jewelry. True gemstones and pearls originated in the east and they were bought mainly by the Italians.
The Italian merchants then sold the jewelry to the Europeans. High quality glass imitations were often used and sold with the intent to deceive.
These high quality glass stones were often used in the Royal funeral robes and in children's jewelry.
Valued more than gemstones, were the flawless, round, natural white pearls. South India provided some of the finest pearls.
The Italians were able to make quality imitation glass gems and pearls that could only be identified by a gemologist. There is historical proof that recipes for false pearls existed as far back as 1300.
White powdered glass was mixed with albumen and snail slime to produce imitation pearls.
Earrings and Dress Jewelry During the 17th century woman always wore earrings, whether they were dressed or undressed. It was very acceptable to wear faux pearls and paste gem earrings during the day saving fine diamond jewelry and gem jewelry for evening attire.
Dress ornamentation decreased in size. Sleeves or skirts were often decorated with matching brooches. During the 16th it was very fashionable to wear large quantities of pearls. Both jewelry to clothing accessories were adorned with pearls.
During the 17th century Jaquin of Paris patented a method of making fake pearls. Hollow blown glass balls were coated with varnish mixed with iridescent ground fish scales. The hollow balls were then filled with wax to strengthen them.
This discovery made Paris the main producer of faux pearls for well over 200 years.
Paste is a compound of glass containing white lead oxide and potash. Paste jewelry was very common in the later part of the 17th century.
The highest quality and most long lasting paste jewelry was produced after 1734 by Georges Strass. Paris lead the production of faux gems [paste] and faux pearls. Just about any kind of fake gem could be made, including fake opals.
After 1760 the production of fake jewelery spread to London and to Birmingham. During the industrial revolution steel was produced in large quantities so it was easily available.
It was ues for setting marcasite and jasper ware cameos. Glass and Wedgwood porcelain paste cameos were made in English factories and were also very popular.
The fashion from this era also included ornate shoe buckles of paste, steel and tin, elaborate paste jewel buttons, as well as semi precious for day wear.
Empire Jewelry In 1804 Napoleon emerged as Emperor of France, resulting in a revival of jewelry and fashion as a new court of pomp.
'Joailliers' worked fine jewelry and 'bijoutiers' used less precious materials.
The members of the new French imperial family had the former French royal family gems re-set into the latest neo-classical style. The new trends soon found their way to Europe, particularly England. The main influence for design was the Greek and Roman.
Parures and Cameos Parures were a matching suite of coordinating precious gems which could include a necklace, a comb, a tiara, a diadem, a bandeau, a pair of bracelets, pins, rings, drop earrings or and cluster stud earrings and possibly a belt clasp.
A full parure consisted of a minimum of four pieces. A demi parure consisted of three or less pieces. Both Josephine and Napoleon's second wife had magnificent parures.
Once Napoleon's cameo decorated coronation crown was seen, cameos became the rage. Cameos were carved from hard stone, conch shells and even from Wedgwood porcelain.
Victorian Jewelry In 1837 when Queen Victoria came to the throne jewelry was romantic and nationalistic. It focused on European folk art, which later influenced the Arts and Crafts Movement.
Until mid century most western jewelry came from Europe, with some jewelry being produced in North America and Australia.
Mass production of mid Victorian jewelry in Birmingham, Germany and Providence, Rhode Island resulted in lower jewelry standards. Victorian women rebelled when they saw some the poor quality of much of this machine made jewelry.
Woman rebelled by wearing no jewelry at all, or buying from the emerging artist craftsman. Some jewelers like Tiffany recognized a niche market and began to make fine jewelry of a very high standard, opening shops in main European cities.
Mourning Jewelry During the Victorian era mourning jewelry was very fashionable. The initial months of mourning were unadorned by jewelry of any kind. As the mourning rituals increased, mourning jewelry developed as a fashion item.
Queen Victorian wore a great deal of jet mourning jewelry after Prince Albert's death.
Jet from Whitby, North of England was set into mourning pieces. All types of material that were black were used and almost all included a lock of the dead loved one's hair. Hair was also plaited, braided or twisted very tightly until it became hard and thread like.
Arts and Crafts Jewelry During the 1870s the Arts and Crafts movement evolved as a reaction to mass produced shoddy goods and inferior machine made products which were a result of the industrial revolution. William Morris and John Ruskin were both leaders of the arts and crafts movement in England.
They promoted simple Arts and Crafts of designs based on floral, primitive or Celtic forms worked as wallpapers, furniture and jewelry. The polished stones used in Arts and Crafts jewelry gave a medieval, simpler, gentler, tooled hand made look and feel to items.
Art Nouveau The Art Nouveau followed the arts and crafts movement resulting in a new jewelry look. The movement began in Paris and its influence went throughout the Western world. Art nouveau jewelry had curves, sinuous organic lines of romantic and imaginary dreaminess.
It was very ethereal turning into winged bird and flower forms. French, René Lalique was the master goldsmith of the era of Art Nouveau producing exquisite one off pieces. Today, the Art Nouveau style is still admired, sought after, and copied.
Pearls Various combinations of pearl necklaces come in and out of fashion with regularity so pearls too are a must. Today pearls are still a wardrobe essential.
Both faux pearls and cultured pearls are very affordable today. Since the opening of trade with China in the 1990s, many pearls are imported from China dropping the price to about 1/3 of what it was prior to China entering the market.
The Japanese have suffered disease in their pearl beds as well as facing competition and are finding it hard to compete with China's prices.
Pearl necklaces and pearl earrings can lift a complexion and bring light and radiance to the face taking years off a woman whatever her age. They have been a wardrobe staple for centuries, and a wedding attire tradition.
Cultured pearls have become very affordable, and faux pearls are very cheap and the quality can be excellent. Currently Pearls are a very "hot" fashion statement and with the modern twist of being interspaced on gold wire or floating on special synthetic cord they are essential to the millennium look.
Cocktail Jewelry During the 1920s Lalique mass produced and designed high quality glass jewelry. Fake, or costume jewellery was sometimes then called cocktail jewelry. Costume or Cocktail jewelry was greatly influenced by designers such as Coco Chanel, and Elsa Shiparelli as well as a host of other designers.
These two designers were particularly known for encouraging clients to mix their fine jewelry and costume jewelry. Both designers offered imagination and fun and both often sported fabulous fakes.
In the late 1930s Napier of the USA was at the forefront of manufacturing fake cocktail jewelry offer glamour and escapism. Today, Napier still produces excellent contemporary costume pieces.
Hollywood Influence By the 1940s and 1950s American culture was very dominant in Europe. The influence of movie films and the prominence of film stars set the fashion stage for womens make-up, hair and wardrobe.
People wanted copies of outfits and jewelry worn by the actresses. Women believed that the glamour of Hollywood would rub off on them if they dressed and looked like the glamorous Hollywood actresses.
During the Second World War metals were rationed, halting the production of fine jewelry. Quality costume jewelry picked up the now defunct fine jewelry market. Costume jewelry flourished becoming an acceptable alternative to fine jewelry.
1980's Television Influences Jewelry During the 1980s with the evolution of glitzy television soaps such as Dynasty and Dallas, costume jewelry once again became a "hot" fashion statement. With over 250 million viewers, it didn't take long for costume jewelry to be reborn.
Glitz and sparkle by day was not only acceptable, it became the norm. Earrings grew to an unbelievable size, as did other pieces of jewelry. By the 1990s this sparkly dazzling jewelry phenomena was dead, replace with tiny real diamond studs or a fine stud pearls.
21st Century Jewelry For the 21st century women believe a mix is good. Fine jewelry combined with costume jewelry are wardrobe essentials. The sophisticated women of this century know what they want from their jewelry and how to wear it to make their fashion statement.
They recognize that costume jewelry can liven up their wardrobe. The types and quality of costume jewelry has grown enormously. Today one can purchase what is classified as fine costume jewelry which is usually plated at least seven times with 10 22 ct gold.
Swarovski crystal set in gold are common accessories, and cubic zirconium, man's imitation diamond, can be purchased for a fraction of the cost of real diamonds allowing every women to add diamond styled jewelry to their wardrobe.
Ciro, Adrian Buckley, Butler and Wilson, Swarovski Crystal Jewelry Napier, Joan Rivers, Joan Collins, Christian Dior, California Crystal, Property of A Lady and of course Kenneth J Lane to name just a few continue to produce high quality fashion jewelry for today's women.
Costume jewelry can take you from the board room to a night out of dining and dancing to your most intimate evening. It can make you look your best for your wedding, or a day at the beach. You can make Your Fashion Statement! With costume jewelry
About the Author
© Copyright Sher Matsen, All Rights Reserved. About the author: Sher from Estate Jewelry International have been serving customers for over 20 years, providing affordable estate jewelry, and a wealth of information on jewelry, fashion, designers, and beauty with on staff industry professionals. Please visit us at Estate Jewelry International.
Saturday, August 19, 2006
Synthetic Diamonds
Chagrinned When Jewelers Scoff At Fabulous Fake Diamonds
New synthetic diamonds are so closely resemble mined diamonds that the naked eye cannot tell the difference, often saving consumers enough money to make a down-payment on a new home or buy a car. Unfounded diamond jeweler arrogance, pretentiousness, and snootiness has gone too far!
My girlfriend has been parading around town with a magnificent 4-carat Round Brilliant cut synthetic diamond set in a stunning 14K solid gold filigree solitaire ring setting for a year now. She has been to restaurants, work, shopping, night clubs, museums, and parties. Family and friends have scrutinized her ring. She has been stopped repeatedly by others who were dumbfounded by her ring. Hundreds of people have seen her ring, astonished by its majesty, gushing about it. And despite its ostentatious size, no one has asked if it is a fake diamond!
How could this be? The latest breakthrough science in lab-created diamonds has brought them in line with mined diamonds. Long gone is the aurora borealis or "disco ball" effect that was seen in synthetic diamonds of the past decades. New millennium synthetic diamonds—with similar hardness, clarity, fire, and brilliance—are indistinguishable with the naked eye and simply don't look fake. High quality synthetic diamonds even have the coveted hearts-and-arrows effect.
This begs the question: If one were to saunter into a jewelry store with a synthetic diamond, can a jeweler tell the difference? Since all mined diamonds have color disparities (flaws), birthmarks (flaws), and inclusions (flaws), and lab-created diamonds have none of the above, a trained eye can tell the difference. A sneering glance under a loupe or even under discriminating examination with a magnifying glass, a jeweler will often proudly declare a synthetic diamond as a fake. Modern synthetic diamonds are too perfect in the world of jeweler snobbery when pushing over-priced high profit diamonds is the agenda at hand.
With the use of scientific testing equipment, mined diamonds will conduct electricity and synthetic diamonds will not. That is because mined diamonds are a carbon gem material and synthetic diamonds are polycrystalline. A thermal probe will produce different readings, differentiating the two. But does this really matter to a jewelry lover who is interested in aesthetic beauty and saving thousands of dollars? In the year my girlfriend has been showcasing her synthetic diamond on her finger no one has walked up to her with scientific equipment asking to test her gemstone.
Why do virtually all brick-and-mortar jewelers carry only mined diamonds? Why do jewelers scoff at synthetic diamonds? You need to look no further than your wallet. A 1-carat high quality mined diamond is about $3000, a 2-carat about $18,000, a 3-carat about $40,000, and a 4-carat goes for about $90,000. Respectively, synthetic diamonds run about $79, $158, $237, and $326. It's about the money. Don't kid yourself.
It's also about indoctrination. For over a century, the diamond cartel has spent billions of dollars convincing the public that jewel quality mined diamonds have intrinsic value like gold. Not true. Why? During this time DeBeers has limited production, bought up supplies from others, stockpiled inventory, and imposed its monopoly position on jewelry manufacturers in the successful effort to keep prices inflated. And to make matters worse, the diamond industry as a whole has a checkered past with conflict stones, debt-slave child labor in India used in cutting operations, and shady techniques used to enhance perceived quality to further squeeze out ridiculous prices from beleaguered jewelry lovers.
Smart jewelry shoppers today are considering synthetic diamonds as an alternative to mined diamonds for some very savvy reasons:
(1) They can acquire fine jewelry pieces set in solid 14K gold.
(2) They will save literally thousands of dollars.
(3) There is no need to buy insurance.
(4) When wearing their synthetic diamond jewelry nobody will know that they are not mined diamonds unless they tell them!
About Author
Robert Joseph is an expert jeweler and founding partner ofhttp://diamondnexuslabs.com/
To receive a FREE comparison chart on how Diamond Nexus Labs lab-created diamonds stack up against mined diamonds and register for a FREE no-obligation $50 Gift Certificate giveaway send E-mail to: freechart@diamondnexuslabs.com
New synthetic diamonds are so closely resemble mined diamonds that the naked eye cannot tell the difference, often saving consumers enough money to make a down-payment on a new home or buy a car. Unfounded diamond jeweler arrogance, pretentiousness, and snootiness has gone too far!
My girlfriend has been parading around town with a magnificent 4-carat Round Brilliant cut synthetic diamond set in a stunning 14K solid gold filigree solitaire ring setting for a year now. She has been to restaurants, work, shopping, night clubs, museums, and parties. Family and friends have scrutinized her ring. She has been stopped repeatedly by others who were dumbfounded by her ring. Hundreds of people have seen her ring, astonished by its majesty, gushing about it. And despite its ostentatious size, no one has asked if it is a fake diamond!
How could this be? The latest breakthrough science in lab-created diamonds has brought them in line with mined diamonds. Long gone is the aurora borealis or "disco ball" effect that was seen in synthetic diamonds of the past decades. New millennium synthetic diamonds—with similar hardness, clarity, fire, and brilliance—are indistinguishable with the naked eye and simply don't look fake. High quality synthetic diamonds even have the coveted hearts-and-arrows effect.
This begs the question: If one were to saunter into a jewelry store with a synthetic diamond, can a jeweler tell the difference? Since all mined diamonds have color disparities (flaws), birthmarks (flaws), and inclusions (flaws), and lab-created diamonds have none of the above, a trained eye can tell the difference. A sneering glance under a loupe or even under discriminating examination with a magnifying glass, a jeweler will often proudly declare a synthetic diamond as a fake. Modern synthetic diamonds are too perfect in the world of jeweler snobbery when pushing over-priced high profit diamonds is the agenda at hand.
With the use of scientific testing equipment, mined diamonds will conduct electricity and synthetic diamonds will not. That is because mined diamonds are a carbon gem material and synthetic diamonds are polycrystalline. A thermal probe will produce different readings, differentiating the two. But does this really matter to a jewelry lover who is interested in aesthetic beauty and saving thousands of dollars? In the year my girlfriend has been showcasing her synthetic diamond on her finger no one has walked up to her with scientific equipment asking to test her gemstone.
Why do virtually all brick-and-mortar jewelers carry only mined diamonds? Why do jewelers scoff at synthetic diamonds? You need to look no further than your wallet. A 1-carat high quality mined diamond is about $3000, a 2-carat about $18,000, a 3-carat about $40,000, and a 4-carat goes for about $90,000. Respectively, synthetic diamonds run about $79, $158, $237, and $326. It's about the money. Don't kid yourself.
It's also about indoctrination. For over a century, the diamond cartel has spent billions of dollars convincing the public that jewel quality mined diamonds have intrinsic value like gold. Not true. Why? During this time DeBeers has limited production, bought up supplies from others, stockpiled inventory, and imposed its monopoly position on jewelry manufacturers in the successful effort to keep prices inflated. And to make matters worse, the diamond industry as a whole has a checkered past with conflict stones, debt-slave child labor in India used in cutting operations, and shady techniques used to enhance perceived quality to further squeeze out ridiculous prices from beleaguered jewelry lovers.
Smart jewelry shoppers today are considering synthetic diamonds as an alternative to mined diamonds for some very savvy reasons:
(1) They can acquire fine jewelry pieces set in solid 14K gold.
(2) They will save literally thousands of dollars.
(3) There is no need to buy insurance.
(4) When wearing their synthetic diamond jewelry nobody will know that they are not mined diamonds unless they tell them!
About Author
Robert Joseph is an expert jeweler and founding partner ofhttp://diamondnexuslabs.com/
To receive a FREE comparison chart on how Diamond Nexus Labs lab-created diamonds stack up against mined diamonds and register for a FREE no-obligation $50 Gift Certificate giveaway send E-mail to: freechart@diamondnexuslabs.com
Thursday, August 17, 2006
About Clarity and Weights of Diamonds
What You Should Know About Clarity and Weights of Diamonds?
Clarity is an important feature of a diamond, and it is noteworthy to know how to grade the clarity of a diamond prior to purchasing one. It is really quite simple to learn how to grade the clarity of a diamond. There are fundamentally two things that you must understand. Diamonds with visual inclusions and flaws, and those that are eye clean implying that there are no inclusions or flaws that can be seen with the naked eye. And then the clarity of a diamond is further analyzed into subclasses.
Some people erroneously believe that diamond clarity pertains to how clear it is. This is not so. Clarity really pertains to the internal and external defects of the diamond. The best diamonds, as might be expected, get a grade of FL or IF, Flawless or Internally Flawless, this means that it is perfect. A grade of I-1, I-2 or I-3 signifies that the diamond is imperfect, with a grade of I-3 being the most defective.
Other grades are VVS1 and VVS2, which means that the diamond is very, very slightly defective. VS1 and VS2, meaning the diamond is very slightly imperfect; SI-1 and SI-2, which means that the diamond is slightly imperfect.
About Diamond Weights
Diamonds are graded in Carat Weight. One carat weighs 200 milligrams. If a diamond is mentioned to as four grains, this in addition means that it is a one carat diamond. The word carob is the basis for the word Carat. A carob that grows on a tree in the Mediterranean is a bean . Years ago, if a diamond weighed as much as a carob bean, it was one carob, or one carat.
Yet, in the far east, where Carob trees don't grow, rice was utilized to measure the weight of a diamond. If a diamond weighed the same as four grains of rice, it was four grains or one carat as we recognize it to be today. The bulk of diamond buys are for diamonds that are one third of a carat.
Be alert when browsing for diamonds that have been set or mounted. If many diamonds are used in the piece, the label on the jewelry will give the CTW or Carat Total Weight. It doesn't tell you the carat weight of each stone in the piece. You need to ask the jeweler for the whole carat weight of the biggest diamond in the piece to really understand what you are purchasing.
About the Author
Jim's articles are from extensive research on each of his topics. You can learn more of diamonds by visiting: Diamonds
Clarity is an important feature of a diamond, and it is noteworthy to know how to grade the clarity of a diamond prior to purchasing one. It is really quite simple to learn how to grade the clarity of a diamond. There are fundamentally two things that you must understand. Diamonds with visual inclusions and flaws, and those that are eye clean implying that there are no inclusions or flaws that can be seen with the naked eye. And then the clarity of a diamond is further analyzed into subclasses.
Some people erroneously believe that diamond clarity pertains to how clear it is. This is not so. Clarity really pertains to the internal and external defects of the diamond. The best diamonds, as might be expected, get a grade of FL or IF, Flawless or Internally Flawless, this means that it is perfect. A grade of I-1, I-2 or I-3 signifies that the diamond is imperfect, with a grade of I-3 being the most defective.
Other grades are VVS1 and VVS2, which means that the diamond is very, very slightly defective. VS1 and VS2, meaning the diamond is very slightly imperfect; SI-1 and SI-2, which means that the diamond is slightly imperfect.
About Diamond Weights
Diamonds are graded in Carat Weight. One carat weighs 200 milligrams. If a diamond is mentioned to as four grains, this in addition means that it is a one carat diamond. The word carob is the basis for the word Carat. A carob that grows on a tree in the Mediterranean is a bean . Years ago, if a diamond weighed as much as a carob bean, it was one carob, or one carat.
Yet, in the far east, where Carob trees don't grow, rice was utilized to measure the weight of a diamond. If a diamond weighed the same as four grains of rice, it was four grains or one carat as we recognize it to be today. The bulk of diamond buys are for diamonds that are one third of a carat.
Be alert when browsing for diamonds that have been set or mounted. If many diamonds are used in the piece, the label on the jewelry will give the CTW or Carat Total Weight. It doesn't tell you the carat weight of each stone in the piece. You need to ask the jeweler for the whole carat weight of the biggest diamond in the piece to really understand what you are purchasing.
About the Author
Jim's articles are from extensive research on each of his topics. You can learn more of diamonds by visiting: Diamonds
Wednesday, August 09, 2006
How to Buy Diamond Engagement Rings
How to Buy Diamond Engagement Rings by Mindy Landa
There is much to consider when purchasing a diamond - especially diamond engagement rings! The tradition of presenting a woman with a diamond engagement ring when proposing began in 1477 when Archduke Maximilian presented a diamond ring to Mary of Burgundy - and in most cases, the woman you plan to propose to will expect a ring to accompany that proposal!
First,do a little detective work to find out what your fiance would like to have. After all, she will be wearing it for a very long time. So you can subtly get her opinion on the subject by suggesting that a friend is seeking your help in picking out a ring for his fiance and ask your fiance's opinion. She will most likely describe to you exactly what she would like. You could also enlist her friend, sister, mother, etc, to go shopping with her and see what she tries on at the jewelry store. Or the friend could start up a conversation about engagement rings and what's popular and what you fiance's opinion is on the subject.
Next, determine how much ring you can afford. Most people use the two or three months salary rule. This means that the ring should cost the equivalent of two months of your current salary. Because you have other bills to pay, saving up this amount of money may take quite a bit of time. You should consider financing. Simply go to the jeweler of your choice and tell them that you plan to buy an engagement ring, and that financing will be necessary. Go ahead and get the credit check out of the way, find out what your payments will be, and how much of a down payment is required. Make sure that the jewelry store you buy the ring from will allow you to return the ring, if that is required, or allow your girlfriend to exchange it for another if she isn't happy with it!
You will want to take into consideration how your fiance feels about jewelry. If she's really into jewelry, you will want to get her as much ring as you possible can.Say she's not into wearing jewelry so much.You could get her a less expensive ring with a lower profile (not so raised off the finger and not so flashy) and she will be very pleased. Just take notice on how much and what type jewelry she wears and what her opinions are on the subject and use your best judgement.
Quality is very important. There is a great range of color, clarity, carat weights and cuts. All these aspects of diamond engagement ring buying can be very confusing and intimidating if you don't know much about it. Perfect diamonds are very, very rare, extemely expensive and difficult to find. Poor quality diamonds are a lot cheaper and more common but the sparkle and beauty of them is obviously diminished. Color ranges from D-Z and then the fancy colors such as blue, pink, yellow, etc. D color will be the highest quality, the clearest,and highest priced Quality decreases as you move down this alphabet scale until you get to the fancy colors in which the price rises again.The color of the diamond changes from colorless to yellow to brownish as you get to Z. You generally want to get a color somewhere between F and I or colorless to near colorless to stay in a better price and quality range.Fancy colors are not traditional for engagement rings but again it's a matter of preference.
Clarity ranges from Perfect to imperfect. Perfect diamond have no flaws and are the most expensive and least available. Imperfect diamonds have eye visable flaws such as black carbon spots, cloudiness, and crystal like imperfections. The in-betweens are VVS1, VVS2, VS1, VS2, SI1, SI2,and SI3. You will most practically and affordably want to stay in-between in the SI range. The diamonds in this range are eye clean and attractive.
Carat weight and cut are a matter of personal preference. The higher the carat weight, the bigger the diamond. And as far as cut,which is the shape of the diamond, there is a variety of shapes available which can be viewed on the education page of this website. Princess cut or square cut is the most popular diamond shape these days.
The different metals you have to choose from for the setting and the band of the ring are white gold, yellow gold and platinum. Platinum is the rarest and most expensive of the precious metals. Some ladies prefer white gold, some prefer platinum and so on. White gold is in highest demand over yellow gold as of recent. Platinum is, of course, the most sought after due to it's rarity but it is not the most affordable due to recent price rises in the platinum market.
There is also the matter of which style...solitaire, solitaire with side diamonds, cluster, 3 stone rings and so on. 3 Stone Diamond Engagement Rings are extremely popular. There is a variety of this type ring in various carat weights, yellow or white gold, platinum and different cuts (shapes) available to choose from here at Ashley Henning Fine Jewelry. Feel free to browse around.
If you have any questions or you are looking for something we don't have listed, please contact us and we will find it for you. We will be happy to help you with such an important purchase.
About Autthor
Mindy Landa Ashley Henning Fine Jewelry 114 Raintree Circle Jacksonville, NC 28540 Mindy@AshleyHenningFineJewelry.com (910)795-4177
There is much to consider when purchasing a diamond - especially diamond engagement rings! The tradition of presenting a woman with a diamond engagement ring when proposing began in 1477 when Archduke Maximilian presented a diamond ring to Mary of Burgundy - and in most cases, the woman you plan to propose to will expect a ring to accompany that proposal!
First,do a little detective work to find out what your fiance would like to have. After all, she will be wearing it for a very long time. So you can subtly get her opinion on the subject by suggesting that a friend is seeking your help in picking out a ring for his fiance and ask your fiance's opinion. She will most likely describe to you exactly what she would like. You could also enlist her friend, sister, mother, etc, to go shopping with her and see what she tries on at the jewelry store. Or the friend could start up a conversation about engagement rings and what's popular and what you fiance's opinion is on the subject.
Next, determine how much ring you can afford. Most people use the two or three months salary rule. This means that the ring should cost the equivalent of two months of your current salary. Because you have other bills to pay, saving up this amount of money may take quite a bit of time. You should consider financing. Simply go to the jeweler of your choice and tell them that you plan to buy an engagement ring, and that financing will be necessary. Go ahead and get the credit check out of the way, find out what your payments will be, and how much of a down payment is required. Make sure that the jewelry store you buy the ring from will allow you to return the ring, if that is required, or allow your girlfriend to exchange it for another if she isn't happy with it!
You will want to take into consideration how your fiance feels about jewelry. If she's really into jewelry, you will want to get her as much ring as you possible can.Say she's not into wearing jewelry so much.You could get her a less expensive ring with a lower profile (not so raised off the finger and not so flashy) and she will be very pleased. Just take notice on how much and what type jewelry she wears and what her opinions are on the subject and use your best judgement.
Quality is very important. There is a great range of color, clarity, carat weights and cuts. All these aspects of diamond engagement ring buying can be very confusing and intimidating if you don't know much about it. Perfect diamonds are very, very rare, extemely expensive and difficult to find. Poor quality diamonds are a lot cheaper and more common but the sparkle and beauty of them is obviously diminished. Color ranges from D-Z and then the fancy colors such as blue, pink, yellow, etc. D color will be the highest quality, the clearest,and highest priced Quality decreases as you move down this alphabet scale until you get to the fancy colors in which the price rises again.The color of the diamond changes from colorless to yellow to brownish as you get to Z. You generally want to get a color somewhere between F and I or colorless to near colorless to stay in a better price and quality range.Fancy colors are not traditional for engagement rings but again it's a matter of preference.
Clarity ranges from Perfect to imperfect. Perfect diamond have no flaws and are the most expensive and least available. Imperfect diamonds have eye visable flaws such as black carbon spots, cloudiness, and crystal like imperfections. The in-betweens are VVS1, VVS2, VS1, VS2, SI1, SI2,and SI3. You will most practically and affordably want to stay in-between in the SI range. The diamonds in this range are eye clean and attractive.
Carat weight and cut are a matter of personal preference. The higher the carat weight, the bigger the diamond. And as far as cut,which is the shape of the diamond, there is a variety of shapes available which can be viewed on the education page of this website. Princess cut or square cut is the most popular diamond shape these days.
The different metals you have to choose from for the setting and the band of the ring are white gold, yellow gold and platinum. Platinum is the rarest and most expensive of the precious metals. Some ladies prefer white gold, some prefer platinum and so on. White gold is in highest demand over yellow gold as of recent. Platinum is, of course, the most sought after due to it's rarity but it is not the most affordable due to recent price rises in the platinum market.
There is also the matter of which style...solitaire, solitaire with side diamonds, cluster, 3 stone rings and so on. 3 Stone Diamond Engagement Rings are extremely popular. There is a variety of this type ring in various carat weights, yellow or white gold, platinum and different cuts (shapes) available to choose from here at Ashley Henning Fine Jewelry. Feel free to browse around.
If you have any questions or you are looking for something we don't have listed, please contact us and we will find it for you. We will be happy to help you with such an important purchase.
About Autthor
Mindy Landa Ashley Henning Fine Jewelry 114 Raintree Circle Jacksonville, NC 28540 Mindy@AshleyHenningFineJewelry.com (910)795-4177
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