FANCY COMPRESSED BLOCKS: THE LATEST TREND We all love using natural untreated gem materials for our lapidary projects and jewelry artwork. We like the organic feel, the symphony of colors, the diversity of textures, the quality…
Featured ArticlesThe Hamlin Necklace is a treasure of the Mineralogical and Geological Museum at Harvard University (MGMH) that was designed and commissioned by Augustus Choate Hamlin in the late nineteenth century. (See cover photo.) Apreeminent piece in…
Featured ArticlesThe spectroscope is a very useful gemological instrument that is underutilized by gemologists worldwide. Learning to master this tool will greatly help in practical gem testing and identification. CORRECT METHODS AND APPROACH IN GEM TESTING Spectroscopy…
Featured ArticlesRough-gem-set jewelry maintains its popularity among entry-level buyers and shrinking violets for its understated glam and one-of-a-kind effects. Offer rough options to clients who have everything or their daughters with tighter budgets; you may be surprised at…
Featured ArticlesThe show featured six halls: Timepieces, Technology & Bijoux, Fine Jewelry, Elegance & Lifestyle, Carat and Contemporary Design, and Vision. The Inhorgenta Show was held February 18-21 at the Messe Munchen Fair Grounds (Munich) Germany. The…
Featured ArticlesFewer exhibitors and a cautious market summed up the show this year. Classic gems garnered the most attention. One-of-a-kind high end items over $1 million dollars could be found on display. While a 13 percent drop…
Featured ArticlesA manufacturing process offered an unexpected surprise to a jeweler and it was not a pleasant surprise at all. This article is a warning that the outside of the jewelry may conceal something in the…
Featured ArticlesIn 2008, the U.S. signed into law the “Tom Lantos Block Burmese Jade Act affecting both rubies and jade from being exported to the U.S. This past October, the ban was lifted. What were the effects of…
Featured ArticlesThink of the beautiful glowing skin of a healthy baby or the dewy complexion of a beautiful young woman. These are excellent analogies because healthy skin has qualities similar to the skin of a pearl…
Featured ArticlesThe first diamond operation in Europe, Russia’s Lomonosov mines near the port of Arkhangelsk is set to double diamond production this year to over four million carats. Little has been written about diamonds from Russia’s European side, but in…
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