JEWELRY
NEWS & VIEWS
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 New
For Spring...A Fairyland Of Nature-Inspired Designs
During springtime months,
all nature comes alive with bright colors, cheerful shapes, and
glorious textures. And this year, jewelry designers have let their
imaginations soar with a host of charming and colorful style based
on classic natural themes.
Romantic Art Nouveau
jewelry shines forth with plique-a-jour dragonflies and whimsical
mythical creatures such as delicate feminine nymphs and
butterflies. Jeweled glowers offer some of the most colorful
tributes nature has to offer. While vividly colored birds, bugs,
bees, and butterflies bring a spring-fresh look to virtually any
outfit.
Treasures from the sea
are also popular, including shells, starfish, frogs, sea horses,
dolphins and sailfish. All creatures great and small are available
as pins, pendants, rings, bracelets, and necklaces. And they come
in a choice of karat gold, sterling silver, or platinum set with
colored gems, diamonds, pearls, or inlaid with rich, glowing
enamels.
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Jewelry
Calendar
Birthstone Jewelry: A Gift That Will Be Remembered
The belief that
each month's special gemstone endowed a particular virtue for those born
in that month goes back to the writing of Josephus in the 1st century AD.
These legendary traits are one reason why historic birthstone gems are so
highly prized by both men and women. What's more, they're beautiful,
precious, affordable, and come in many attractive styles to suit any
taste. Stop in soon and see our selection.
Known as the world's hardest substance, diamonds were once believed to
symbolize invincibility, deep love and turn away anger for those of April
birth. Today, diamond's brilliant fire and incomparable rainbow sparkle
make them the most popular gem for engagement and wedding rings.
No gemstone on earth can match the rich, green, velvety glow of a fine
emerald. And no gem has been more popular down through the ages. In
ancient Rome, emerald was sacred to Venus, goddess of love and was once
thought to promise love and success to those of May birth.
According to
myth, the luminous white pearl was said to pledge a happy marriage and the
gift of purity to those born in the month of June. Alexandrite, June's
alternate birthstone, was once thought to promise long life and good luck.
Today it is known for its surprising ability to change color from green in
daylight to wine-red in most artificial lights.
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Did You Know
Fascinating
Facts: Diamonds
 The
World's Largest flawless diamond outside the British Crown Jewels is
called the Centenary Diamond. Perfect in color, it weighed 599 carats in
the rough. The Centenary now weighs 273.85 carats after being cut in a
brilliant modified heart shape over a period of three years
The Youngest
Diamond is about 70 million years old. But most diamonds are believed
to be 3.3 billions years old...even older than the dinosaurs.
A River Of
Diamonds was the legendary source of diamonds coming from ancient
India as early as 800 BC. This diamond river did exist and was reported in
800 AD by the Egyptian geographer Ptolemy. It was probably the river
Krishna in the kingdom of Golconda. Since earliest times, great quantities
of alluvial diamonds were washed down into the great gorge of this famous
river and were recovered from there.
Fancy Colored
Diamonds were created by nature in several unique ways. The presence
of boron makes diamonds blue, and hydrogen produces violet. Yellow and
orange diamonds are caused by nitrogen particles. Diamonds turn green due
to radiation in the ground. Pink, red, purple, and brown diamonds result
from changes in the gems internal structure.
250 Tones Of Ore
must be processed to produce a single 1-carat diamond of gem quality. And
it takes much more than 250 tons to produce diamonds of larger sizes.
Diamonds Are Born
100 to 300 miles under the earth's surface where tremendous heat and
pressure transform ordinary black carbon into diamond crystals. However,
only a few are brought to the surface by volcanic eruptions.
Birthmarks In
Diamonds are very common and are usually invisible to the eye. They
come in various form such as tiny specks, feathery lines, or miniature
bubbles.
Completely
Flawless Diamonds are very rare indeed. They account for only 2% of
all diamonds and are priced accordingly.
Ancient Diamonds were
chiefly cut in the form of a pyramid or "pointe naive." This
shape generally corresponds with the natural octahedron form of a diamond
crystal.
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| Gemstone
Buyer's Guide
Bright
Beautiful Jade: In A Class By Itself
Jade has been
treasured for thousands of years for its beauty and durability. The word
"jade" is a term that describes two completely different
minerals - jadeite and nephrite - which are often hard to tell apart. Both
are among the toughest stones known and are extremely difficult to cut and
carve.  Jadeite, which
is slightly harder than nephrite, comes a splendid rang of colors. These
include green lavender, orange, pink, white, red, black and the glorious
translucent emerald green called "imperial jade."
Nephrite jade is
slightly softer than jadeite and is found almost everywhere in the world.
It is much less expensive but has a more limited range of color. Both
jadeite and nephrite jade are lovely and popular stones used in all kinds
of jewelry.
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| The
Romance of Classic Gemstones |
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The Fabulous
Florentine Diamond And Its Mysterious History |
| The early
history of this famous diamond is veiled in mystery. It probably came from
India originally by way of one of the ancient trade routes overland to
Constantinople and then by sea to Venice.
The 137-carat Florentine is the
most historic of the big yellow diamonds and was for years the largest
diamond in Europe. It is a double-rose-cut gem of pear-shaped outline with
126 facets covering the gem all over on both sides.
The history of the Florentine is
tangled and uncertain. The legends go back to Charles The Bold, 1433-
1477, last Duke of Burgundy who was among the first to emphasize the
prestige of the diamond. His collection included the Sancy, the yellow
diamond later known as the Florentine.
A vigorous warrior, Charles the
bold often wore his diamonds into battle as talismans.
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When he was killed in an attack
on the French city of Nancy in 1477, the Florentine was stripped from his
body by Swiss mercenaries. It was sold successively and at one time was
owned by Pope Julius II. Later it came into the possession of the Medice
family which ruled for centuries in Florence, hence the name.
Jean Baptiste Tavernier, the famous French traveler and
gem merchant saw it in Florence in 1657 and made a detailed illustration
of it. When the Medici reign came to an end in 1738, the Florentine passed
on to the Emperor Francis I of Austria through marriage and was later
listed in a catalog of the Austrian Royal Treasury in 1880. During World
War II, the Nazis took the Austrian Crown Jewels and hid them in a salt
mine near Salzburg. After the war, the jewels were recovered and returned
by American forces but the Florentine was not among them. Nobody knows
where it is today.
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| Springtime Gift Guide |
Focus on
Fashion |
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New Ideas For
Moms, Dads, Grandparents |
New Cuff
Link Designs Brighten Spring Fashions For both Men and Women |
This
season, family motif jewelry takes on a new look with sculptured mother
and child and
father and child gold rings, pendants, bracelets, and men's accessories
set with colorful children's birthstones. Also new are a series of
dramatic jewelry designs for mothers and grandmothers in the form of
heart, teardrop, and braided styles which
 can
be set with versatile add-on children's birthstones. They're available as
rings, pendants, slides, and pins.
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Cuff
links have been a popular men's accessory since the reign of Louis XIV.
But in Victorian times, cuff links became popular with both men and women
for use with the starched shirts favored by both sexes at the time. In
America, use of cuff links peaked in the 1960's, then almost disappeared
as Casual Friday dress took over.
 But
today, there's a general return to elegance, and the French-cuff shirt is
a key item for both men and women.
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 Also,
many cuff link lines are sold as universal jewelry items with designs that
appeal to both men and women. This spring, look for sophisticated styles
in karat gold, sterling silver, or platinum set with diamonds, brightly
colored gemstones, or brilliant emeralds. Modern and classic designs range
from monetary symbols, flags, ladybugs, personal initials, coins,
geometrics, and all kinds of unique conversation markers
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J E W E L R Y |
Spring
Style Update |
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Q & A
What is a
Jeweler's Elephant?
This is a tool that works like a
third hand. It consists of a pair of cross-locking tweezers mounted on a
base. It is used to hold one piece of metal against another during
soldering.
What is a Cluster
Setting?
A setting in which several small
diamonds or colored gemstones are set close together to create the
illusion of one large stone. May also contain one large center gem
surrounded by row of smaller gems.
What is a Spring
Ring?
This is a round clasp made of a
hollow circular tube containing a rounded bar. The bar shoots into the
tube which is kept closed by a coiled spring inside. A small knob opens or
unlocks it. |
Beads Are Back
In Brilliant Colors |
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spring is boom time for beautiful beads in all shapes and sizes, and in
all kinds of jewelry including bracelets, rings, pins, and necklaces.
Look for carved, faceted, and
polished beads in a rainbow of colored gemstones such as tanzanite,
peridot, citrine, ametyst, tourmaline, zircon, jade, spinel, garnet,
iolite, and topaz. Choose form round, oval, elongated, or disk shaped
beads of uniform or varied sizes in single or multiple strands, in mixed
color twisted torsades, or in long swinging ropes.
Many bead jewelry designs
include freshwater and akoya pearls in white or a wide range of pastel
colors. Today's fresh new bead jewelry also features sparkling karat gold
and sterling silver beads in polished or brushed finishes.
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| The
Jewelry Doctor |
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Give Your
Diamonds A Spring Cleaning |
| Did
you know that diamonds are natural magnets for grease? When a greasy
residue from skin oils, hand lotion, and soap builds up on the back of
your diamonds it can significantly reduce their brilliance.
Bracelets, pins, pendants,
necklaces, and especially rings, should be cleaned regularly. The safe,
easy way to clean diamond jewelry is to soak and wash it in warm sudsy
water using a mild, liquid detergent and dry on a soft , lint-free cloth. |
Jewelry
cleaning solutions may also be used. If dirt is crusted, especially around
prongs or mountings, gently use a soft brush or a toothpick to remove it.
Professional cleaning is often the best way to restore diamond jewelry to
its original beauty.
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Stop In With
Your Questions
As members of IJO we are part
of the largest Buying Group in the world, almost 900 jewelers
strong, bringing you exclusive styles and the best values in the
industry. As professional jewelers, we have a responsibility to our
customers and our community...to maintain standards and preserve
your fine jewelry investment. |
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