Kim G

Men, you know you’ve done it. It was the evening of her birthday, Valentine’s Day, your anniversary, Leif Erikson Day, what have you, and you waited until the last minute to buy her a gift.

Your brain searched frantically for an idea…flowers made her sneeze and the last time you gave her a funny card and a teddy bear you slept on the couch for a week. What else is there? Jewelry always works, right? Well, I must admit, yes, but only if you don’t fall into the common pitfalls of the uninformed jewelry buyer.

If you really did wait until the last minute, you have already made the first mistake, and guys are not the only ones guilty of this. A rushed buyer is far more likely to leave the store spending far too much on a less than quality piece of jewelry. The cure for this is simple; plan ahead so you have time to shop around. It will save you headaches in the long run and besides, girls love it when you put some thought into her gift.

“What can I help you find today?” These very words from even the friendliest salesperson can send a customer into a panic because instead of hearing an offer to help, they hear “what can I scam you into buying?” Let’s call this Mistake Number Two. When a salesperson is asking you what they can help you find, they want to know the occasion for which you are considering a jewelry purchase, but they also need to know what she likes, what your budget is, and what her lifestyle is like. Many folks don’t take this highly important factor into consideration when buying a gift for someone. For example; your wife works in a factory where she works with her hands. You’d like to buy her a ring for her birthday and you think that a birthstone would be ideal. Her birthday is in May; the emerald. Have you caught the error yet? Emeralds are beautiful stones but they are also considered somewhat brittle gems. If your wife worked in an office where she didn’t hit her hands as much, there would be little cause for concern. But for someone who works with their hands quite a bit, an emerald may cause trouble because it is more likely to crack or chip, in which case she will soon find herself without a ring. Your salesperson needs to know how ‘hard’ a person wears their jewelry so that they can help you match the right purchase to the right wearer.

Let’s say that you didn’t heed this warning, you bought the emerald ring and the emerald cracked. Now what? Did you look into the warrantee before you bought it? Common Mistake Number Three. A broken piece of jewelry is disappointing, but it happens all the time; the trick is taking care of it. Each jeweler has their own warrantee policy. Some jewelers require you to purchase a separate warrantee; with others you are given a limited warrantee. Some require you to have your jewelry inspected by a salesperson every so often, and even then only certain defects are covered. Buying from a reputable jeweler will not always save you. It is up to you to find out how your purchase will be protected when you leave the store and make sure you get the warrantee in writing.

Have you ever gone into a jewelry store and told the salesperson your budget only to have them smirk and show you an item twice the price? High pressure sales tactics are a huge reason as to why so many customers shy away from jewelry stores. It is also the main reason why so many folks leave the store with a $400 purchase when they can only afford $100. Common Mistake Number Four; folding under pressure. When you are making a jewelry purchase, especially if it is a gift, you want to feel good about what you’ve found; not guilty for having a budget, and certainly not burdened with a huge credit card bill. Stick to your budget, and if you feel that your salesperson is trying to get you to spend out of your comfort zone, walk away.

You’ve done all of your homework and you’ve found just the right gift. You’ve put all of this effort into this great purchase and you feel good about it. Do you know how to care for it so it stays looking great? Common Mistake Number Five; now what? Do you know that an opal should be oiled regularly? Do you know that pearls should not be immersed in jewelry cleaner? Often times, warrantees can be voided if the proper care instructions are not followed. Be sure to ask your jeweler how to care for your new purchase so that it can be enjoyed for years to come.

Buying a piece of jewelry can be a bit intimidating, but if you avoid these common pitfalls, nothing can be more fulfilling than buying the right gift, for the right person, at the right price.

Kim G

There are a few problems with those folks who tell you that the average man will spend two month’s salary on an engagement ring for his fiancé. One; they don’t care if you go into debt, and with that kind of money in mind, you probably will. Two; they are counting on you to believe it is the all-American average thing to do, and it’s not. If an average guy listened to ‘them’, he would spend over $4,000 on at least a 1 carat diamond ring that she would immediately declare her ideal ring, and he would be expected to pull off the perfect surprise proposal no less. Likely? Not hardly. More and more these days, the idea of what is average is being redefined in the engagement department. Men, breathe a sign of relief, you are about to be given a much deserved break.

First of all, not all brides wear diamonds. In fact, only 75% of first time brides sport them, so going to look for diamond may not even be the right first step when considering proposal. Many women prefer other precious gems, semi-precious gems, or no gems at all. If it is determined that a diamond is the way to go, don’t add up two months worth of your salary just yet. The average amount spent is going to vary demographically. What one person would spend in New York is going to be completely different than what someone would spend in Gainsville. On average, an engagement ring purchase has been around $2,000 and has been shown to add up to approximately 12% off the overall cost of the wedding. Weddings in this country have grown into a 50 billion dollar a year industry. Guys, we know that you want to impress your fiancé, but going broke isn’t the way to do it. Remember, your married life together begins after the wedding; everything else is a preamble. Set a realistic budget for your engagement purchase. Spending more doesn’t mean you love her more…it just means you have less money to start out your life together, and what’s more important?

I know you’re thinking “How can I get her that all-important 1 carat ring that all of her friends have, on a budget?” and the answer is this; you don’t have to. The average size diamond engagement ring is not a 1 carat – it’s a 1/3 carat. Keep in mind that a beautifully set 1/3 carat diamond will take her breath away just as much as a larger stone, and besides, bigger isn’t always better. Think quality, not size. Also, it is important to note that most jewelers have a trade-up policy. If you should come into a more comfortable means of income in the future, you can trade-in her stone for a larger one and just pay the difference. It has been my experience, however, that no matter what the size of the original stone, your bride will want to keep the ring you propose with forever.

The surprise proposal has also become a bit of a relic. Men are no longer under such a high degree of pressure to pick out the perfect ring alone. If you have gotten to the point in your relationship that you are thinking of marriage, the odds are that you have already discussed this with your intended. If not, you will shortly, I assure you. More and more, women are heavily involved in the proposal process. Ladies will accompany their gents to the jewelry store. They will be actively involved in the decision of design, size, and yes even cost of their engagement ring. Women of the 21st century are seeing marriage as an equal partnership, one in which they should have a say in all aspects, and this is where men can really be thankful. To maintain a small element of the surprise tradition, men might pick out the final diamond alone after the setting has been agreed upon. Or he might arrange for a formal evening in which he prepares just the right thing to say to officially ask for her hand in marriage. Romance isn’t dead in proposals, after all.

The point is this; forget the idea of what is average, and concentrate on what is right for you and your fiancé. That’s all that really matters.

Click here to browse our large selection of Engagement Rings.

Kim G

A rock is just a rock, unless it’s a diamond. Globally, an estimated 10 million people are supported by the diamond industry, which makes one wonder what is really involved in the journey of a diamond.

Most diamonds are mined in pipe-like bodies of kimberlite rock and it’s not exactly an easy venture. Mined from open pits up to 300 meters deep, an average kimberlite mine contains approximately 25 carats of diamonds for every 100 tons of rock, and of those 25 carats, maybe only 5 carats are usable for gems. The remaining diamonds are used in industrial equipment; the diamond drill bit isn’t just a pretty name.

Diamonds can also be found in river or beach gravels where they have accumulated after erosion of kimberlite pipes. The most notable of this type of deposits can be seen in Namibia, located in South Africa. Here, the beach deposits are so rich with natural diamonds that diamonds are mined in huge open sand pits. This mining operation only yields approximately 5 carats of diamonds per 150 tons of gravel, however almost all of those 5 carats are of gem quality. The diamond rich soil does not end at the water’s edge. Off the coast, large mining ships are equipped with specialized vacuum apparatus that actually collects rough diamonds from the sea floor.

Diamonds are separated from the rock by various means such as passing the sediments through a grease belt to which only diamonds stick and all else is washed away. Another separation method is passing the sediments through an x-ray beam which causes the diamonds to become fluorescent and thereby easily picked out. No matter what method is used, a final check is always done by hand, through each and every ton of rock mined.

From the mine rough diamonds are separated into two classifications; gem or industrial quality. Of the gem quality stones, the rough diamonds are sorted again according to shape, size, color, and inclusions. ‘Inclusions’ can be a vague term, but it is meant to encompass the internal flaws of a diamond such as cracks or internal imperfections such as carbon deposits. These inclusions will determine what special care the diamond cutter will need to consider when preparing the final gem.

A diamond cutter must examine the rough stone in order to determine what shape and size to cut the stone. The round brilliant cut is the most popular cut because it enables the cutter to retain as much of the original stone as possible while giving it the most amount of sparkle. Once determined, the cutter will mark the stone for cutting and the rough diamond will be divided by sawing the stone using a paper-thin metal disc which is coated in diamond dust. A diamond, being the hardest natural element, requires another diamond to cut it. While each facet is carefully cut into the stone, diamond dust is produced which is saved and used for further sawing and faceting. A facet is the tiny surface on a diamond that traps light and makes a diamond sparkle. Most round brilliant cut diamonds have 58 facets, more so if the stone is of exceptional size.

Once the final gem is cut and polished, it is ready to be graded. Diamond grading can be confusing for most people but it needn’t be. The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) was formed in 1931 and is a non-profit institution. They are an educational organization that has a simple and unbiased diamond grading system by which diamonds can be measured. It is important to note that the GIA does not place dollar value on diamonds; it simply reports the weight, proportions, clarity, color and fluorescence of the diamond.

Once graded, the diamonds are purchased by buyers from all over the world to be set into jewelry and sold to the consumer; you. So the next time you peer into a case full of diamonds at the mall and breathe the words ‘what’s the big deal?’, now you’ll have an answer. That little sparking gem had a long journey.