Quality is a Girl's (and Boy's) Best Friend

Our stone of the month is (drumroll, please): the diamond. Since this is the fourth month let's focus on the four important aspects to consider when buying diamonds, usually called "The Four 'C's": color, clarity, cut, and carat weight.

Let's start with the size of the diamond. Some people think that the biggest diamond is the best--and the stories we read about celebrity engagements feed that belief. But it's not true. The best diamond is the one that's right for you. 
 
Others think all diamonds are really the same, and the work is about finding the best price. Not long ago someone told me that he had been shopping online and at a well-known mall store for diamond earrings. He really liked the prices, especially given the size of the stones he had in mind. And who could blame him?  

Educating the customer, helping people to make sound choices when it comes to jewelry, is part of my job as the Jewelry Doctor.  So I suggested we dig a little deeper.  

I called my appraiser, who is also a gemologist, and we took a look at the gemological certificates (called "certs" in the industry) for the loose diamonds on the dealer website and the earrings on the mall store site. (He mentioned in passing that "off" diamonds--i.e., lower-quality diamonds--that don't sell in the showroom are sometimes unloaded online, as the customer is seeing them from a distance.) 

In both cases, the diamonds were not good choices.  Either the cut was different (a cushion cut "matched" with a princess cut, for example), the color was off--meaning the diamond in one earring didn't match the diamond in the other--or the clarity was different (one was an SI2 and the other an I1. These designations ["slightly included," and "included," respectively] describe inclusions in the stone, which determine how much light passes through the diamond).

"So what?" some might say. "It's on her ear."

Some people see it that way. But even setting aside the question of brilliance (where color, clarity, and cut all come into play, since it's not just a cushion cut, but the way it's cut) that people love in a diamond, don't you think that when you're choosing to buy a gift for someone--especially diamond jewelry--it's a good idea to focus on quality?

We think so, too.  So if diamonds make your heart sing, call us at 415/796-3969, and we'll find something wonderful just for you.  

San Francisco Jewelry Doctor.  The real deal.

©2015 Laynie Tzena.

Such a Deal--Or is It?

New posts on the way.  But in the meantime, here's something to read that never gets old, with tips you can put to use immediately.

http://myjewelrydoctor.blogspot.com/2012/11/white-turquoise-or-whats-big-deal-really.html

And remember:  when you see something that looks fabulous and want to be sure it really is, call the Jewelry Doctor at 415/796-3969.

Happy Holidays!

"White Turquoise," or What's The Big Deal, Really?

Lots of ads this year, as usual, for the Big Sales, the Big Deals. And who doesn’t love saving?

But what exactly do you get?  One of the major retailers has been under fire for selling rubies filled with glass. To the untrained eye, they look absolutely fine.

A customer loved the white gold pendant we designed for her. She thought she’d just get a chain at the mall.

“Why doesn’t it match?” she asked me.

“Do you know where it came from?” I asked.

She didn’t. We just know what’s on the tag, half the time. So I asked one of my team members why she thought white gold didn’t match white gold.

She laughed. “They’re plating everything,” she said, “to make it shinier.”

Nothing wrong with plating, often called “dipping.” I do it all the time for my customers. But here’s the problem when you buy something at that Big Sale, or from someone you don't know. How do you know what the metal is under the plate?

It’s not the fault of the person behind the counter. Those people work really hard, especially this time of year.  But they generally don’t know the details about the jewelry they sell, except what the markdowns are.

“So you’re telling me I have to pass up all those good deals?”

Not at all.  I just want to know that you’re getting a good deal.

One of my customers asked me if I could make something to go with some “white turquoise” she had bought on a trip.

"'White' turquoise? Sounds like howlite.”

Nothing wrong with howlite—I’ve used it in designs. But it’s not turquoise.

“No, no, he said it was turquoise.”

Another customer was going to Morocco. Did I want her to bring something back for me? I usually say no, since I have sources for whatever I need. But I said sure, bring back malachite, if you see it.

She put it out on the table. Fossil.

“But he said it was malachite,” she said. 

 “Why is my gold necklace turning dark on my neck?” my customer asked me. “They told me it was gold.”

Asked one of my team members. “Probably 10 karat, not 14 karat.”

It’s still gold. Nobody lied. But what exactly did you get, and how much did you really save?


©2012, 2013, 2014, 2015 Laynie Tzena.