Tom B

I was fascinated while watching the Oscars recently by the diamond jewelry, such as the 40-carat diamond necklace from The House of Winston worn by Gwyneth Paltrow. Many of the glitterati were festooned with pieces on loan from various jewelers hoping to curry favor with the beautiful people and their fans, enormously expensive pieces that set the cameras on fire every time they caught the light.

I’ve never had the nerve to borrow anyone’s diamonds, but then again, the most formal event I attend these days is a basketball game. Even there, though, many in the stands (and some on the floor) glitter with diamond simulants.
Glitter, from diamonds and their simulants, I think, is a 20th century contribution to common man. In fact, the notion that the average person could even wear a diamond is recent. For thousands of years, the stone’s primary role was to provide a currency for commerce between rulers, a way of paying favor to military victors, and a method of bartering for fertile daughters. In the 13th century, for example, France’s King Louis IX restricted diamond jewelry to the aristocracy. The stone was worn only by men until 1477, when the Archduke Maximilian of Austria gave a diamond ring to Mary of Burgandy.

The word diamond derives from the Greek adamao, meaning, “I subdue”. Since the diamond is the world’s hardest known substance, it truly does subdue all others. Personally, I favor the Sanskrit name for diamond — ‘varja’, meaning thunderbolt. I like the idea of wearing a thunderbolt on my finger.

In the last hundred years, though, many simulants have been developed that allow any of us, regardless of income, to shine like a movie star.

The first commonly used diamond substitute was glass. Jewelers found that adding lead oxide to the glass made it shine more brightly. Adding foil to the back of these glass gems gave us the popular rhinestone. They didn’t match diamond’s fire or durability, but were cheap enough to use in profusion.

Then, late in the 19th century, the French learned to grow clear spinel and sapphire crystals. These could be faceted like diamonds, wore better than glass, and soon found their place as substitutes in better-quality jewelry. Neither, however, had nearly the light-refracting properties of diamond.

In the 20th century, more sophisticated substitutes were discovered. The most widely known is that star of cable television, the cubic zirconia. CZs are very inexpensive and wonderfully bright stones, used in profusion in faux- bling (the word gaudy no longer has any meaning). However, CZs are not very durable, especially in rings, and the least amount of dirt dulls them.

In the past ten years, an excellent diamond stimulant,the Moissanite, has come into common use. The gem, silicon carbide, was first discovered in the remnants of the meteor that formed Diablo Canyon in California. Over 100 years passed before man learned to grow the crystal commercially.

Moissanite has a number of advantages over other diamond simulants. It is very hard (92% that of diamond), clear, colorless, and approximates diamond’s sparkle. It is also a tenth the price.

So today there is glitter available at any price point, allowing us to indulge our urge to sparkle. That’s a good thing.
In fact, my wife recently asked me, why, if she could get almost as much sparkle from diamond substitutes as diamonds, we should buy a diamond? As I thought about her question, a scenario kept replaying in my head. I saw a young girl opening her mother’s jewelry box, picking up her mother’s engagement ring, or her grandmother’s. The thing aboutdiamonds is, as the hardest substance on earth, they are as near eternal as anything we can ever hold. In the movie playing in my head, I couldn’t envision the girl putting her mother’s ring on her finger and saying to herself, ‘this was my Mom’s Moissanite.”

A diamond is many things; currency, love, glamour, bling. But other stones can stand in for a diamond in those roles. To hold precious memories, though, a diamond is truly matchless.
So shine on, any way you wish. You deserve to sparkle.

Tom B

Of the classic four C’s of diamond grading (cut, clarity, color and carat weight) the hardest for buyers to get their minds around is cut. The weight of a diamond is a simple matter for a scale. Color becomes apparent when the gem in question is set alongside a grading set that shows the range of hues commonly found in diamonds; lighter than that one, darker than this one. Under a microscope, the tiny inclusions that interfere with a stone’s clarity stand out like a blond hair on the suit coat of a man with a red-headed wife.

Cut is much more complex. A modern round brilliant diamond has 58 separate surfaces or facets, each of which has an ideal proportion and orientation to the others. Because of this complexity, there is not a clear-cut rating of cut to match that of color and clarity.

However, the ideal of a well-cut diamond is simple- One cut to guide light through it that produces the most brilliance and fire possible.

Think of this analogy. Suppose you lived in the desert and wanted to heat a tank of water to do laundry. If you had a bunch of mirrors, you could set them around the tank, arranging them so that sunlight was reflected directly on the tank. Enough beams of light and you could have that water boiling merrily away.

If, however, some of the mirrors slipped, sent light into a sandstone rock face or into the sand underfoot, the water may remain tepid. There are a lot of ‘tepid’ diamonds on the market, flat and lifeless.

To continue with the mirror analogy, the ideal cut for a brilliant diamond arranges those mirrors perfectly to bounce light from facet to facet and produce flashes of light as the stone is rotated.

A round brilliant that is cut to ill proportions might show a fish-eye-like ring inside, or a dark spot in the center of the stone, or other detracting flaws.

You might ask, if a diamond cut to modern proportions is so appealing, why aren’t all diamonds cut this way? The answer is cost. When the cutter sizes up a rough diamond, he is looking to get as much value from it as possible. Often, the crystal will have inclusions (carbon spots, crystal feathers, and the like,) that would end up in the middle of a standard-cut brilliant, ruining the fire of the stone. To cut around these to reach the clear areas from which a brilliant cut can be made could require wasting a large portion of the stone. However, by fudging on the proportions, by, for example, cutting the gems a little wider and a little shorter, two or three so-so stones can be produced. As long as customers are willing to pay for such stones, and aren’t willing to pay the difference to buy a diamond with ideal proportions, this method maximizes producer profit.

There are dozens of other ‘fancy’ cuts of diamonds, such as the rectangular emerald, the marquise (like a cat’s eye), the pear and the oval, all of which also have ideal proportions for maximum fire. However, larger stones in these styles are less popular and therefore not as prevalent in your local jewelry store.

So what can you do to assure the diamond you’re considering is well cut? Ask your jeweler to show you a well-cut stone. Note how the facets are symmetrical, the girdle (the outside edge) is neither fat nor knife-thin and uniform, how the proportion between the upper part and lower part of the diamond is roughly one to three. Most importantly, though, look at it face on. Does it fire?

For my money, I’d rather buy a smaller stone with excellent conformation than a larger one with goofy proportions. Regardless of what some in our bling bling world would have you believe, size and beauty are not the same thing. And proportion is the key.

Tom B

What do you associate with the color pink? Femininity? Tenderness? The fist of a baby? A mohair sweater? If you’re like me, like most Americans, pink is the color of love. And since love and jewelry are so inexorably intertwined, we’re fortunate to have so many pink gemstones from which to choose.

The queen of the pinks is the diamond, unmatched for fire and durability. However, the color of most colored diamonds, including pink, yellow, brown, orange, blue, and green, aren’t pure. Only the rarest are free of hints of gray or brown that muddles the hue. Diamonds with any amount of red are the rarest of all diamonds, so a fine pink is among the priciest stones in the world. If you find a pink diamond at a reasonable price, be very wary. It could have been be treated, or even coated to produce the color.

Happily, there other great gems with more satisfying color at a more reasonable price. One of the prettiest is the little-known kunzite, a pink gem with a hint of violet. Kinzite wasn’t discovered until 1912, but quickly became popular when Tiffany & Co. began using it in art deco pieces. With kunzite, the depth of color changes depending on the viewing angle. In a well-cut stone, the deepest saturation appears with the stone face-up. The jewel is, however, somewhat fragile, and its nickname, "The Evening Stone", refers to its propensity to fade if exposed to strong sunlight.

Another popular choice is the pink sapphire. While we usually associate sapphires with the color blue, the gem takes on a rainbow of colors, including the red that we call rubies. While natural pinks are uncommon, man-made pink sapphires with deeply saturated color are readily available. This is a great choice if durability is an issue for you, as sapphires are second only to diamonds in hardness.

Morganite is a member of the beryl family, which also includes emeralds and aquamarines. The pink stone was named after tycoon J.P. Morgan. Perhaps because of this, it never caught on with the American public, although the price, durability, and beauty of the stone suggests it deserves more recognition. Morganite is now being marketed under the name ‘Pink Emerald’. Time will tell if this increases its appeal.

‘The great imposter’ is the nickname give to spinel because it comes in a variety of lovely colors that mimic more expensive gems. Natural pink spinel is rare, though, and priced accordingly. However, man-made spinel is readily available, inexpensive, and durable. If you’re looking for great color without a great price tag, a pink spinel could suit the bill nicely.

My favorite pink stone, though, is the tourmaline. This gem comes in a full spectrum of deeply saturated colors, including a lovely pink. Pieces of excellent clarity are reasonably priced, and the gem is hard enough to stand up to daily wear. My wife sports a beautiful 5-carat oval that I mounted for her 10 years ago, and it still looks like new. If you want a large, durable pink, tourmaline is your best bet.

There are still more choices for pink stones; pink topaz, rose quartz and pink cubic zirconium, however, are all on the fragile side for rings.

The color of love makes a great choice for fine jewelry, and the variety of stones available puts a fine pink in almost anyone’s price range. So think pink!

Kim G

Ask the average jewelry buyer who Friedrich Mohs is, and they will quickly rack their brain trying to remember the name of their salesperson. Not to worry, you have not made a social faux pas. Friedrich Mohs was a German mineralogist who devised a method of comparing the scratch resistance of minerals back in the 1800’s. Why is that important you, the average buyer? Well, gemstones are minerals and therefore ranked on this scale according to durability. Keeping in mind that when you are buying a gift for someone (or even a little something for yourself), you want to buy something that not only looks nice, but something that will last a long time. A basic understanding of the hardness of minerals will save you headaches in the long run.

First of all, Friedrich Mohs devised this scale based upon a very basic test. He took ten easily found minerals and arranged them in order of what will and what won’t scratch each other. It is as simple as that. If a mineral can be scratched, it is softer; if it cannot, it’s harder. And so the rank of 1-10 was developed; ten listed as the hardest mineral, the diamond, and one listed the softest, talc. Does that mean that a diamond is ten times more durable than talc? Surprisingly, no. The scale is less of a scale and more of a table. Meaning, the durability difference between a ranking of a 8 compared to a 9 is different than a ranking of a 9 compared to a 10. Simply put, the diamond (a 10) is not harder than a ruby (a 9) by a difference of one; a diamond is many times harder than a ruby, there is simply no mineral that ranks in between them.

Where do your favorite gems rank? If you have ever wondered what the big deal was surrounding the importance of diamonds, it will be no surprise to you to find out that diamonds rank at the top of the hardness scale. A great number of factors figure in to why diamonds are the ultimate symbol of love and beauty, one of which is the symbolism of the hardest naturally occurring substance in the world interlaced with the idea of one’s devotion possessing the same unyielding properties.

A number nine on Mohs scale is corundum, more commonly known as sapphire and ruby. Many are surprised to find out that these two different gems have the same mineral properties. Sapphires are not just blue; in fact, corundum is found in a wide variety of colors, most of which are referred to as sapphire, while only red corundum is called ruby.

Another gem available in a wide variety of colors is topaz, number 8 on Mohs scale. Commonly available in yellow-brown and blue, topaz can also be green, pink, orange, and even colorless. In fact, there is no such thing as naturally occurring blue topaz. What you see as blue topaz in the stores is actually topaz which has been heat treated to turn them blue.

Another common precious gem, the emerald, has a unique place on Mohs scale at a 7.5 to 8 hardness level. As you look around a jewelry store, you may begin to wonder why an emerald is more expensive than a topaz, a gem that is more durable. The answer is simple; the highest naturally occurring emerald will be more expensive than a diamond because of its rarity, which is why more affordable synthetic emeralds are being developed. Emeralds are considered high on the hardness scale because of their resistance to scratching; however, natural emeralds are in fact brittle stones and should be treated more gingerly.

There are innumerable amounts of quartz varieties which fall at a level 7 on the scale. Common gems included in this group are amethyst and citrine. Opal is also a variety of quartz, but it is a hydrated, solidified quartz gel, which is why it is not faceted for jewelry purposes, but appears domed in shape.

When buying a gem, consider the Mohs scale as a great reference tool. Does it mean that you should shy away from a gem based upon it’s placement on the scale? Certainly not. But understanding the scale will help you make an educated decision about what to buy based upon how you wear and how you care for your jewelry.

Sheri L

Half Of A Diamond’s Worth Is Based On Its Cut

Although all of the ‘4 C’s – carats, clarity, color and cut – are important when choosing a quality diamond, cut is considered the most crucial characteristic.

Without a good cut, a diamond will not be as brilliant and sparkle as much as it could. This is why half the worth of a diamond is based on its cut.

The less symmetrically proportioned a diamond is, the less fire and brilliance it will have no matter what shape it is cut into. The jeweler chooses the shape such as round, marquise, heart, pear, emerald, princess, radiant or oval based on how well the light will be refracted in the cut diamond. Placement of the facets is very important to allow for the brightest shine. Most diamonds are cut to have 58 facets.

These Seven Main Considerations Of A Diamond’s Cut Determine Its Brilliance:

1. Table Percent – the measurement of the flat topped, biggest facet of the diamond
2. Crown Angle – the angled upper part of a diamond that connects the table and the girdle
3. Girdle – the part of the diamond that attaches to the setting and forms the diamond’s perimeter, connects the crown and the pavillion
4. Pavillion Percent – the angled lower part of a diamond that connects the girdle and the cutlet
5. Cutlet Size – the faceted tip of the diamond, has to be the correct size to avoid chipping
6. Symmetry – refers to how well the facets are created and connected geometrically, if the facets are not well-aligned, the light can not refract well and the, diamond will not be as brilliant as it could be
7. Polish – refers to how smooth the diamond’s facets are on the surface, if the facets are not smooth, the stone may look dark or blurry rather than clear and sparkly

The diamond must not be too shallowly cut or the light will not be refracted to its optimum level as some of the light will be directed to the base of the stone. If the diamond is cut too deeply, the light will also be redirected, but through the sides of the gem. A diamond that is cut too shallowly or deeply might even look dull. The cut that allows for the maximum light refraction and brilliance in a diamond is called a “fine cut” or “ideal cut.”

The cut measurements of a diamond must be mathematically precise for maximum brilliance as the geometric proportions form a prism. The cuts are angled to refract the maximum amount of light to allow for the full color spectrum of the prism to be present. The color spectrum refraction adds to the “fire” of a diamond.

A Diamond’s Cut Also Relates To Its Durability

The cutlet, or bottom tip of the diamond, has to be cut to the right size in order to deter chipping. The girdle is the part of the diamond that is attached to the setting and if the girdle is cut too thin, the diamond may chip or may not set properly. Diamonds should also be cut so that any feathery cracks are below the surface of the diamond. If these cracks are on the top of the diamond, the diamond will not be as durable as it could break more easily.

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.

Sheri L

“Diamonds Are Forever” is the seventh in the series of James Bond spy movies, as well as Shirley Bassey’s title song, inspired by Ian Fleming’s novel of the same name. The song emphasizes that diamonds last “forever and ever” and “when love is gone, they’ll luster on.” Diamond is the world’s hardest natural material and diamonds are the most durable and ever-lasting material on Earth, so, yes, diamonds really are forever thanks to their durability. .

Durability is stability, hardness and toughness

A gemstone’s durability is its degree of stability, hardness and toughness. Toughness relates to chipping and breaking, while hardness has to do with scratching. Stability refers to how well the gemstone resists light, chemicals and heat. Diamonds have excellent stability and hardness as well as good toughness so this all adds up to incredible durability.
Stability – Diamond is used in the electrical industry and in engineering drill bits because of its high resistance to heat, light and chemicals. Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) is technology that allows synthetic diamond to be fabricated, either in thin or thick sheets, due to a gaseous chemical reaction.
Although diamonds are highly resistant to most chemicals, bleach should not be used to clean diamonds. Diamonds are often cleaned with a mixture of ammonia and water or a diamond cleaner and soft-bristled brush. Diamond has an extremely high melting point of 3,820 degrees Kelvin. It is the best heat conductor of all natural elements, due to its high lattice density. Lattice density refers to the amount of atoms per unit of volume. As atoms are denser in diamond than in any other natural material, diamond is also the hardest of all natural materials.

Hardness – Diamond measures a perfect ten on the Mohs
scale. The Mohs scale is named after Friedrich Mohs, a German mineralogist, and it tests hardness by how easily a mineral can be scratched. Talc has a score of only one to diamond’s ten.
Softer minerals cannot scratch harder minerals. Diamond is so hard that the next hardest mineral on the Mohs scale, corundum – which is sapphire and ruby, is four times softer than diamond. The hardness of diamonds makes them perfect for wearing as jewelry as they are not easily scratched. Since diamonds can scratch other diamonds, however, diamond jewelry pieces should be kept separate in a jewelry box.

Toughness – Ruby, sapphire and alexandrite are all tougher gemstones than diamond, but diamond is still very tough. A diamond will usually only break if it is dropped on a hard surface or hit with a blow that splits its four-way cleavage. Cleavage is a straight, clean crack in a gemstone.
Feathery cracks on the top of a diamond may cause easier breakage and diamonds with these types of surface cracks are not very durable. A good quality cut diamond has its girdle, or outer rim, left thick enough to prevent chipping. The pointed end of a diamond is called a cutlet and if the cutlet is too pointed, breakage could occur during the setting process.