September 29, 2010
House of Blues
The Smithsonian has a new guest – the Cullinan Blue Diamond Necklace. This dazzling necklace – centered around 9 natural blue diamonds – was given by Thomas Cullinan to his wife, Annie (lucky lady). Thomas Cullinan was the owner of the mine which discovered the Cullinan diamond, the largest colorless gem rough diamond (3106.75 carats) ever found. It was fashioned into 9 large diamonds and several smaller diamonds. The largest, the Star of Africa, is 545.67 carats and part of the Crown Jewels in Great Britain.
A while back, I had the pleasure of wearing this necklace – for only a few moments in time. Unfortunately, there was no available camera to document my thrill, but the memory lives on! …Dii
September 27, 2010
Autumn is in the Air
It’s difficult to recognize Autumn in Nevada – our temps are still in the triple digits! But, it’s time for a change – and what better way to do it than with color. Pantone publishes the “in” colors, so wanted to share a few with gemstones in mind…
Flirtatious Honeysuckle — topaz
Spicy Coral Rose — coral
Romantic Lavender – umm Amethyst
Alluring Blue Curacao — turquoise
It’s looking like a fun Fall!! …Dii
September 24, 2010
Size Matters
VERY small diamonds, known as nanodiamonds, were recently found in Greenland. This picture, by James C. Weaver, gives you a clear understanding of why we won’t be setting these in any ring! These similar nanodiamonds were discovered on Santa Rosa Island last year. Scientists believe they are evidence of a “cosmic impact event”. Ummmmmm. Have a great weekend…. Dii
For $12 million, you can name this pink diamond after yourself
This is fun!
For $12 million, you can name this pink diamond after yourself.
September 22, 2010
Lucy in the Sky (with diamonds)
This cosmic diamond is a chunk of crystallised carbon. Actually, it’s a crystallised white dwarf. A white dwarf is the hot core of a star, left over after the star uses up its nuclear fuel and dies. It’s 10 billion trillion trillion carats! Dwarf???
“You would need a jeweller’s loupe the size of the Sun to grade this diamond,” says astronomer Travis Metcalfe, of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, who led the team of researchers that discovered it. Her name is Lucy… Dii
September 21, 2010
Two is Better than One
One diamond is beautiful – two are outstanding! The Bulgari Blue is beautifully contrasted against its colorless diamond partner. Christie’s in New York is offering this ring at their auction next month. It’s estimated to go for more than $12 million. The blue diamond is 10.95 carat; the colorless diamond is 9.87 carat. I could wear that… Dii
September 17, 2010
Greener Pastures
Things are supposed to be greener on the other side. Trouble is, when you get there, they might not be green at all. Those greener pastures can be filled with… well, let’s just say the color brown.
With emeralds, green is VERY important. A light green color isn’t what we think of, and it certainly shouldn’t be what you pay emerald prices for. Remember species and varieties?
Beryl is the species and emerald is the variety name, based on the color green. But – and this is a big but – it has to be green enough! A light green beryl is not an emerald – it’s a green beryl. So what color do we need to get to emerald? It can come down to the buyer and the seller again. For those borderline calls, you could find the seller looking to greener pastures…
Many emeralds form with natural inclusions (various minerals and breaks) inside the gem – inclusions that resemble an entire garden. And, many emeralds are treated with some type of near colorless oil to make those inclusions less noticeable. This requires full disclosure and accurate advice on the care of your emerald. You need an expert advisor; not a green one!
Emeralds, just as most all color gemstones, increase in rarity and price when the color takes your breath away. Just breathe and enjoy the last weekend of your green summer. Until Monday…Dii
September 15, 2010
What You See is What You Get
When you see red, you’re mad; when you’re in the pink, you’re tickled! What a difference tone makes…
In the gemstone world, the difference between pink and red can cost quite a few dollars. For example, the difference between pink and red corundum is the difference between pink sapphire and ruby. (Remember those species and varieties?) Corundum is the species and ruby and sapphire are varieties, dependent on color.
Who makes the call? Usually the buyer and the seller. When it’s a borderline call, the seller usually goes for the ruby and the buyer is thinking pink sapphire! In a two-carat gemstone, the ruby might be twice the price of a pink sapphire. Whoa……
If I paid for a ruby and got a pink sapphire, I wouldn’t be too tickled – I’d be seeing red! Better to see a credentialed jeweler/gemologist who can show you the difference!! …Dii
September 13, 2010
A Tour of Tourmaline
Courtesy of The Mineralogical Society
Tourmaline is a mineral that occurs in various colors. Red tourmaline is known as rubellite. Blue tourmaline is known as indicolite. A fine green tourmaline might be called chrome tourmaline. There’s even a tourmaline that is red and green – it’s called watermelon tourmaline if the red is in the center and the green is around the edge – and cut in a slice – just like watermelon. How fun is that?
There is a very rare color of blue tourmaline that was discovered in South America in an area of Brazil called Paraiba. (pronounced pair a EE ba). This electric greenish blue instantly became popular and commanded some very high prices since it was only found in one location and usually only found in smaller sizes.
Then came Africa – and another location for this electric color. Nigeria and Mozambique gained a reputation for this and the controversy began. Should it be called Paraiba if it wasn’t found in Paraiba?
The same argument can be had about Colombian emeralds. Gemstones that take their variety names from the location where they are found are subject to other locations stealing their thunder. Mother Nature’s like that… Dii
