Buyers Information

GEMSTONES

Each gemstone can be described by the Mohs Scale Ranking, a simple scale developed by Austrian mineralogist, Friedrich Mohs. This scale is used internationally to classify all minerals in terms of hardness. The scale ranks from softest (#1-talc) to hardest (#10-diamond).

1. Hardness is the resistance to scratching. You can scratch various minerals against each other and any mineral with a higher hardness ranking will mark any mineral with a lower ranking.   Testing hardness should only be done by a gemologist as the gems can be damaged.  

DIAMONDS

Diamonds are the most valued and treasured of all gemstones.  A diamond is harder than any other material on earth, earning it a 10 on the Mohs Scale Ranking for hardness.  They can only be cut by other diamonds. Their hardness and other special qualities, such as how they refract light, allow them to be cut into the amazing gems we know today

Diamonds are most popular as a colorless, brilliant, light reflecting gemstone.  They come in many colors, including pale yellow, black, blue, brown, green, pink, purple, or red.

For all the beauty and complexity of a well-cut diamond, they are the simplest of gemstones in the chemical sense: pure carbon, the same as the graphite in a pencil. The carbon crystals are formed under intense heat and pressure deep within the earth, and are forced to the surface by geological events.

Gem-quality diamonds are mined around the world, but the largest producers are South Africa and its neighbors. Russia, Australia and Brazil are also major producers. Diamonds come from the mines in crystals, often with eight sides. As much as 60 percent of the original crystal is cut away to create a round brilliant diamond.

Diamonds have been at the heart of myth and legend since their discovery. Medieval knights wore them uncut on their armor in the belief that they could make a person invincible, a myth no doubt related to the stone's hardness. There are legends of a diamond that could reveal the guilt or innocence of a person. Diamonds could also drive away the devil, and in the days when gems were believed to cure disease and ill fortune, diamonds were thought to amplify the magical powers of other stones a person wore.

Almost universally, diamonds have been associated with virtue, purity, strength, wealth, power, and love - and, not surprisingly, it was a small jump for diamonds to become the modern symbol of love - diamond wedding rings have been popular for hundreds of years. They were believed to ensure fidelity and strengthen emotional bonds. Today, they are the preferred gift for all manner of romantic occasions.

Conflict diamonds

Conflict diamonds are diamonds mined in African combat zones that have funded civil war and abuses against the civilian population. Such diamonds are estimated to account for less than 1% of the world diamond production.

All of the nations with involvement in the diamond trade and the leading industry and jewelry associations have cooperated in creating a global certification system to prevent criminals from placing these conflict diamonds into the legitimate diamond supply chain. To supplement this government effort, leading organizations in the jewelry industry have created a voluntary program of self-regulation.  JL Jewelers is a part of this legitimate diamond supply chain.

SELECTING YOUR DIAMOND  

GIA, The Gemological Institute of America, has created internationally recognized criteria for diamond grading.  A brief description of these follows. This information can be helpful while making this decision, especially one that carries couples forward in their journey together.

The FOUR C's - Diamonds are graded using a system that defines their color, clarity, cut, and carat weight.  These terms are known collectively as The Four C's.  When shopping for diamonds a basic understanding of these terms is useful in selecting the best stone for the best price.

COLOR - Most diamonds appear colorless, but actually have slight tones of yellow or brown.  The more colorless the stone, the more valuable it is.  The GIA Color Scale classifies diamond color using a letter from the alphabet:

D, E, F - colorless, with D being at the top of the "colorless" scale. 

G, H, I, J - are near colorless.

K, L, M - are faint Yellow.

N through R - are very light Yellow.

S through Z - are light yellow.

Z+ -  these Diamonds are called fancy diamonds and these gems come in a wide range of color with red being the most rare.

CLARITY - Most diamonds have naturally occurring internal characteristics called inclusions.  These occur when a diamond is formed deep within the earth during the crystal formation and make each diamond unique from another diamond.  The fewer and smaller the inclusion, the rarer the stone.  A diamond should be clean to the naked eye.

GIA Clarity Scale

CUT - A diamond cutter considers symmetry, shape and facet design before choosing the best cut for each stone.  Diamonds are cut to exact, mathematically proven proportions to ensure all of the light entering from any direction is reflected through the top of the diamond.  A diamond's symmetrically placed facets produce the ultimate in brilliance and beauty.

The process of cutting a diamond is an art form and famous diamond cutters are highly respected for their talents.

Some popular shapes are:

Round Cut	Pear Cut	Heart Cut	Oval Cut
Emerald Cut	Marquise Cut	Princess Cut

CARAT- (CT.) Carat weight is how gemologists measure a diamond's size. Carat weights are traditionally measured in 1/4 carat increments.  Most jewelers carry stones ranging from 1/4 to a 1/2 ct up to several carats in size. If a diamond is of good quality, its size does increase its value since larger stones are rarer.

Australia outranks all other countries in the annual production of natural diamonds. Congo ranks second. Other leading producers include Botswana, Russia, and South Africa.

COLOR GEMSTONES

Color gemstones are graded for value using the same diamond GIA standards of the "Four C's".  Color gemstones are evaluated for hardness using the Moh's Scale Ranking.  Color gems have varied chemical composition, and are created in the earth under conditions of heat and pressure similar to the way a diamond is created.  The same gemstone can come from several different places of the world yet may vary in value because of slight variations in the Four C's color, cut, clarity and carat weight.  All gems possess some degree of beauty, durability and rarity.  These 3 factors also influence a color gemstone's value. 

BEAUTY - A gem's color is important in determining its beauty.  Intense bright colors have more value in the jewelry market than a grayish or washed out color.  Like the expression, "beauty is in the eye of the beholder" a color preference is an individual matter.  Beauty can be enhanced by the symmetry and balance of how the gem is cut.  The cut needs to capture the best color and light reflection.  Surface polish influences beauty, as does luster.  Luster is the gem's ability to reflect light, brightness and fire.  Some gems are transparent allowing light to pass through (an amethyst), other gems can be opaque with no light that passes (a pearl, turquoise or jadeite).  A gem can also be translucent with light being changed or diffused as it passes through the stone (a fire opal or opalucite).   There are "phenomenal" gems that possess special optical affects with glints or glows (opals, star rubies and star sapphires, cat's and tiger eyes, moonstone).  Gemstones exist that also change color in different lighting (alexandrite, certain types of garnets and labradorite).

DURABILITY - A gem's durability is its ability to withstand wear, heat and chemicals.   Some gems can be worn 24/7 and can be worn for active work and play; these include most diamonds, sapphires, rubies, topaz, alexandrite and aquamarine.  Other gems are more suited for dress occasions and more passive activity; these can include emerald, citrine, garnet, tanzanite, amethyst, quartz, iolite, pearls and peridot.  There are some gems that require gentler wearing; these may include opal, moonstone, jade, agate, turquoise, carnelian, coral, cameo, labradorite and chalcedony.  All gems should be protected from harsh bumps, extremes of heat/sunlight and cleaning products.  Chemicals in creams, cosmetics, and hair products should also be avoided; it's a good rule of thumb to put jewelry on after applying these.

RARITY - Rarity has a great influence on the value of a gem.  Public demand and yearly fashion can be unpredictable.  A gem must be available in large enough quantity to be marketable for sales.  War, political unrest and access to a gem's source create rarity; if any of these halt the ability to reach a gem's source location the gem becomes not only more rare, but may disappear from the jewelry marketplace.

In the long haul a gemstone must still be beautiful, durable and available in sufficient quantity in the public arena. 

BIRTHSTONES

                          Traditional                 Modern

            January:     garnet                    garnet

            February:   amethyst               amethyst

            March:       aquamarine            bloodstone     

            April:         diamond                diamond

            May:          emerald                 emerald

            June:          alexandrite            pearl, moonstone

            July:           ruby                       ruby

            August:      peridot                  sardonyx

            September: sapphire                sapphire

            October:     tourmaline            opal

            November: citrine                   yellow topaz

            December: blue zircon            turquoise, blue topaz, tanzanite         

PRECIOUS METALS - These metals of gold, silver and platinum have been labeled precious for their remarkable ability to hold their shape, resist tarnish and damage from chemicals.

GOLD - Gold has a long and exotic history. It was one of the first metals discovered and put to use by the human species.  Through the centuries people have used it for both jewelry and money. Today gold mining is an important industry in many parts of the world.

The yellow or white  metal is rarely used in its pure form. It is usually combined with one or more metals to form a harder alloy. This makes it more durable in jewelry and other objects of beauty.

Gold jewelry should be stamped with a karat mark; a karat is 1/24 of the total weight of the alloy. Pure gold is 24 karats.  For example, an 18-karat gold ring has 18 parts gold and six parts alloy. Karat gold jewelry should be stamped with a karat mark. Oftentimes it is also stamped with the manufacturer's registered trademark and the country of origin.

Gold is a metal prized for its beauty, usefulness, and scarcity. It is one of the easiest metals to shape and can be beaten into thin sheets, more so than any other metal. More functionally, it won't rust or tarnish. Gold's chemical symbol, Au, comes from aurum, the Latin word for shining dawn.

PLATINUM  - Platinum is the most valuable and rare of the three precious metals.  It is silver-white in color. Platinum weighs about 21 times as much as an equal quantity of water, so it is also one of the heaviest substances known.

Its strength, hardness, color, and freedom from tarnish make it ideal for gem settings, especially fine colorless and near-colorless diamonds.

The Italian scientist Julius Scaliger discovered platinum in 1557. The ore usually occurs in beds of gold-bearing sand.  South Africa is the leading platinum producing country. Other producers include Canada, Colombia, Russia, and the United States

SILVER - Is the third of the three precious metals.  It is white in color.  The standard for sterling silver has remained unchanged since 1300 when Edward I of England established an early trade practice rule for silversmiths. He decreed that sterling silver must consist of 92.5 percent pure silver alloyed with 7.6 percent copper. The term "sterling" refers to the composition of the metal, never to the weight of a finished item.

Silver is much more plentiful than gold; however, silver tends to tarnish, making it less popular in some forms of jewelry. Like gold, silver is too soft for use in its pure state and must be combined with other metals for durability. Jewelry made of silver parts and gold parts must carry dual designations such as "Sterling and 10K."

WATCHES

The following is a brief description of the types of watches that are available in the marketplace.  Included is a list of the names of watch parts and watch terminology.

Watch Movements: The majority of the watches sold today have quartz movements. The best way to explain the differences between watch movements available is to compare them to mechanical watches, which were the first wrist watches introduced in 1910.

PARTS OF A WATCH and related terminology

• Bezel: The upper portion of the watch that encircles the face and holds the crystal. In some cases it contains an extra ring to beautify the case or a rotating ring with a special function.
• Crown: Small round serrated cylinder usually located at the 3 o'clock position. Some people refer to it as a winder, as it once was used to wind the spring in mechanical watches. The crown is used to set the time/date when pulled outward and rotated.
• Crystal: The transparent protective covering fitted tightly over the face of the watch. It is held in place by the bezel. May be made from plastic, glass or synthetic sapphire.

• Gasket: A rubber or plastic ring that seals the internal works of the watch against dust and moisture.
• Gold Plating: An application of gold over the surface of another metal.  It's used in the manufacture of watches that have the look of gold at a fraction of the price.
• Stainless Steel Case and Bracelet: This is the metal of choice used to make high quality watches because it is durable and can withstand more wear and tear than a similar watch in brass or gold. It is also hypoallergenic because it doesn't contain nickel.
• Titanium Case and Bracelet: Titanium is one of the lightest and strongest metals on earth. It is extremely durable and is hypoallergenic.
• Water Resistant: For a watch to be water resistant the seal should be changed regularly and the back needs to fit tight.  This term describes a watch that should keep moisture out with regular wear.  For swimming the watch should be water resistant and water proof to at least 50 meters. For snorkeling the watch should have a 100-meter rating and diving ratings should be 150 meters or more. Professional divers' watches should be listed to at least 200 meters.