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Fine Jewelry University Articles matching: “Loose gems”
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Gem in the Spotlight: Sapphire
Few gems capture the imagination as does sapphire. Sapphire’s beauty inspired people to wonder. Ancient cultures had many … a giant sapphire whose reflection gave the sky its color. Ancient priests and sorcerers honored sapphire above all gems, for this stone enabled them to interpret oracles and foretell the future. Symbolizing truth, sincerity and tradition… her spouse had been unfaithful. Sapphire refused to shine when worn by the wicked or impure. Known as the celestial gemstone, the sapphire has been treasured for thousands of years. Known as the celestial gemstone, the sapphire has been …
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The Birthstones
… midst of cold, white (valley fog) and at times stark surroundings are rewarded with one of the most varying birth gemstones, Garnet. Garnet’s pizzazz energizes the gloomiest day. Garnet varieties brighten the world in colors of yellow to…was considered to be a strong antidote against drunkenness, which is why wine goblets were often carved from it! The gemstone still symbolizes sobriety. The Amethyst was credited with many other extraordinary attributes. Among its reputed…
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Gem in the Spotlight: Garnet
… midst of cold, white (valley fog) and at times stark surroundings are rewarded with one of the most varying birth gemstones…Garnet. Garnet’s pizzazz energizes the gloomiest day. Garnet varieties brighten the world in colors of yellow … garnet lantern to navigate the Ark at night. The ancient world is full of praise for the carbuncle, the glowing red gemstone we now know as garnet. Early scientists named garnet from the Latin granatus, which means ‘seedlike’ because …
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Is a Lab Grown Diamond Right for Me?
Picking a diamond for your engagement ring is a big decision. For most of us, buying a diamond is a significant financial undertaking, and we want to get it right. Unfortunately, understanding diamonds takes a lot of specialized knowledge that most people don’t have (anyone remember their refractive indexes from high school physics?). Even more unfortunately, the diamond industry suffers from a lot of misinformation and paranoia both from inside the trade and from outside observers. I have heard people say that natural diamonds come with a 400% mark up,
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Gem in the Spotlight: Aquamarine
…, aquamarine was believed to guarantee a happy marriage and inspire mutual fidelity in newlyweds. Notable Aquamarine Gemstones The largest gem-quality aquamarine gemstone ever mined was 19 inches long. The largest cut aquamarine is named … that the stone is not damaged. Caring For and Cleaning Aquamarine To maintain the brilliance of this beautiful gemstone, it should be immersed in jewelry cleaner or in lukewarm soapy water and cleaned with a small bristle brush. Don’t …
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Gem in the Spotlight: Topaz
… variety, while colorless topaz is often the least expensive. The modern era has given us many new advances in gems. One of the biggest is blue topaz. Gem suppliers use a neutron bombardment method in a nuclear reactor to produce the …, to violet, to green. These coatings can allow topaz to be any color of your preference. Topaz itself is a hard gemstone with a Mohs hardness of 8. Mohs hardness is a standardized metric of how difficult it is to scratch something. For …
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Gem in the Spotlight: Iolite
… was once known as a “water sapphire”. Dichroite is another synonym for iolite. Dichroite is a Greek word which loosely translates as two-colored rock. This refers to iolite’s pleochroic nature. iolite cannot be heat treated to enhance its…Iolite is maybe not the first gemstone people think of for their blue-violet jewelry, but it should be near the top of the list. Iolite’s color range …’s name comes from its violet color. It is from the Greek word “ios” meaning violet. Unlike many other popular gems, iolite cannot be heat treated to enhance its color. The color you see is the natural color of the stone when it was first…
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Fake Diamonds: The Great Diamond Attack
… and major diamond suppliers have sophisticated equipment in place to help them catch these impostors before they reach the marketplace. If you’re interested you can learn more about how to tell if a diamond is lab grown . Synthetic gems are not new to the jewelry profession. Synthetic colored stones have been around for over a 100 years. The impact was dramatic in the beginning then adjustments were made and the new gem found it place. Lab grown diamonds are now …
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Gem in the Spotlight: Morganite
Morganite is a beautiful, soft pink gemstone and a graceful expression of elegance. It is not a very well-known gem, but it definitely should be. It is …salmon. It is the subtle, understated nature of Morganite’s color that sets it apart from many of the more popular gemstones. Morganite has an impressive family tree. It is a beryl gem which puts it in the same family as emerald and … pink variety of beryl “Morganite”. It has good hardness, durability, luster, and brilliance which make it a great gemstone for jewelry. For the gem nerds out there, here are a few of the gemological properties of Morganite. Its …
