Diamond Archives

How do you sparkle?

October 24, 2014

By Amanda L. Colborn How do you sparkle? You’re likely familiar with the 4 C’s of Diamonds: Cut, Clarity, Color and Carat – however, there is another very important aspect of diamonds to keep top of mind: Sparkle! Sparkle, or Scintillation as it is also known, is the play of white and colored flashes of light seen when the diamond is viewed in motion. Viewable with the naked eye, sparkle is the life of the diamond. Sparkle does have two different aspects, flash scintillation and fire scintillation. Flash Flash scintillation is the dynamic pattern of white sparkles observed across a

4 Reasons Diamonds are Not Expensive

May 7, 2014

By Preston Wallace, CGA, K-Jon’s Jewelery Customers walk in my door every day and say “Wow! $8,000 for that? Diamonds are expensive!” But they’re not. I know what you’re thinking: I’m crazy, right? No, I meant what I said, and no, I’m not crazy. If you consider what diamonds are, how we get them, and what their value does over time, I think you’ll agree that diamonds are NOT expensive. Here are 4 reasons why: 1. Diamonds are Rare On average, one million diamonds must be mined to find one 1ct diamond. Think about that! Diamonds are extremely rare, especially

March 2014: Jewelry Social Media Standouts

March 14, 2014

This week has been another outstanding week on social media for the American Gem Society. Our fans have been extremely engaged with our posts and there were a few that have really stood out. First, this yellow diamond pendant from Armadani. Our fans immediately fell in love with it, and rightfully so. It is stunning! Then today, we posted this pink diamond ring from Supreme Jewelry. It has been an instant hit! It has racked up more likes and shares in just a few hours than other posts will get in a week. Obviously, it is a special piece.

Can Crazy be the 5th “C”?

October 10, 2013

By Katie DaCosta, Craig’s Fine Jewelry I remember learning about the 4 “C’s” long before I had any business thinking about diamond rings. Years later, my college roommates and I would spend hours on Tiffany’s website, driving ourselves crazy, creating the perfect ring. At that point, it was so much more about the ring than the guy. Did any of us know what type of Ramen we were eating that night? Nope. But we knew what we wanted our rings to look like and that was enough for us. For centuries, diamonds have been at the very heart of

The American Gem Society

October 3, 2013

by Beau Davis, CSA Shelton Jewelers – ABQ, NM What it is all about – A diamond is the world’s most precious gemstone. Between their unique optic qualities and sheer hardness, these little beauties, though miniscule, have become a valuable part of civilization today. But how do you know that you, as a consumer or buyer of diamonds, are getting what you’re paying for? With such small sizes and high values, there can be much ambiguity and misinformation throughout anyone’s shopping experience. These are some of the primary issues the American Gem Society works tirelessly to prevent. How the AGS

Smart Phones & Diamonds

July 18, 2013

By David C. Rotenberg, Certified Gemologist Appraiser DID YOU KNOW that your smart phone can make your diamond shopping experience easier? Now I don’t mean surfing the net, I mean actually looking at and comparing diamonds. Professional Jewelers like American Gem Society Jewelers have a tool called the ASET (Angular Spectrum Evaluation Tool) which will reveal a well cut diamond, or a not so well cut diamond. What you want to see in a diamond with the ASET device are symmetrical patterns with lots of red which shows brilliance, some blue which is contrast and some green which is light

Famed Diamond Goes on Display in NYC

July 17, 2013

JCK reports that the 55 ct. Kimberley Diamond is debuting at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City starting this month and running through June 2014. The champagne-colored diamond, which is on loan from the Bruce F. Stuart Trust, will be on display in the Morgan Memorial Hall of Gems, a museum spokeswoman says. The exhibit’s curator describes the Kimberly diamond as “virtually flawless,” and is historically important because it was found in the 19th century at the Kimberley Mine in South Africa, also known as “the Big Hole,” one of the first diamond mines of the modern

Jewelry Trend Spotting: Black Rhodium

June 4, 2013

For the last seven days, it has been “Jewelry Week” in Las Vegas. JCK, the largest jewelry show in the US, hosted over 20,000 jewelers and exhibitors, while six other smaller, yet equally fascinating, shows ran up and down the Strip. Though we spotted numerous trends, we want to share one , in particular, that we noticed: black rhodium. This dark metal mixes the edgy with the delicate when married with the right gemstones. Sethi Couture struck on two trends in one ring: black rhodium and mixing black and white diamonds: Black Rhodium takes on a softer tone with this

What Can Pink Floyd Teach Us About Sparkle?

May 25, 2013

By Donna Jolly Deputy Executive Director, American Gem Society We all love diamonds, right? They are a multi-purpose gemstone, filling in the blanks for an array of emotions and symbols. A diamond can represent love when given to someone you want to spend the rest of your life with, or it can be a calling card for status when worn as a big honker on the ring finger of your right hand. Diamonds can be passed down for generations, proving that, well, a diamond really is forever. We know we love them, but what about this romantic gem makes

Emerald: May’s Birthstone

May 17, 2013

By Anna Samsonova, CGA, Ben Bridge Jewelers The Pantone Color of the Year is making a huge comeback! Often imitated, never duplicated. It’s a phrase that describes emeralds, May’s birthstone, very well. Since the beginning of time emeralds have been a hot commodity. Cleopatra is believed to have had a huge love and admiration for the gemstone, although most of her collection turned out to be peridot. Roman Emperor Nero is believed to have had sunglasses made of emeralds, however this is unlikely due to their included and cloudy nature. Nero’s supposed sunglasses were a representation of the stone’s power.

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