October 2015
Earrings from ancient times
Any Jewellery designer looking into the history of earrings for inspiration will discover a richly chequered cultural past spanning thousands of years. Since 500BC when ancient Persian wall carvings depicted soldiers wearing earrings, they have been worn by men, women and children of different cultures. Earrings have been worn by the rich to demonstrate wealth and by slaves to signify ownership. They have been worn as a good luck charm to protect health and as a handy form of funeral [...]
Opal -October birthstone
Opals are the birthstone for the month of October and can be found in Australia, Brazil, the US and West Africa. It is said that opal is the luckiest gemstone of all because it contains the colour of every other gemstone. Currently Australia provides more than 95 per cent of the world's opal supply. A German geologist by the name of Johannes Menge discovered opals in 1849 in South Australia. Opals are mined today in three states along the Great [...]
September 2015
Fluorescence
According to the GIA laboratory fluorescence is the visible light some diamonds emit when they are exposed to invisible ultraviolet rays. On the GIA diamond grading report, fluorescence refers to the strength, or intensity of the diamond reaction to long wave UV, which is an essential component of daylight. Fluorescence is very common, according to GIA over the last decade 25% to 35% of all the diamonds they graded exhibit some degree of fluorescence and only 10% of those shows [...]
An inclusion is not a flaw
Have you ever shown a coloured gemstone to someone, only to have them look at it and say, "I don't want that one, it has a flaw in it". How did we ever get into the position of thinking an inclusion is a flaw. It possibly may be due to our use of the term flawless for a diamond of purest white or colourless tone, without any inclusion visible under a ten-power loop , and with no internal or external [...]
August 2015
The History and Folklore of Gemstones
There are numerous myths and legends associated with gems. Some tell of cursed stones; others of stones with special healing powers, or that protect or give good luck to the wearer. Some of the the largest known diamonds have legends associated with them that have been told and re-told over centuries, and many now lost, are surrounded by tales of intrigue and murder. Some mines are thought to be cursed - probably a rumour spread by the mine-owners to keep [...]
What are Gemstones
Gemstones are generally minerals that have been, or may be fashioned to use for personal adornment. As a rule, they are beautiful, rare and durable. Minerals are inorganic materials with a fixed chemical composition and regular internal structure. A few gems, like amber and pearl, come from plants or animals and are known as organics. Others, called synthetics, do have a natural origin, but are made in laboratories. They have very similar physical properties to natural gems and may be [...]