Diamonds • Precious Gemstones • Jewelry • Gemology

Before making a poor buying decision, consider an overall strategy for buying jewelry.

Diamonds

• Budget - Establish a range.
• Research - The more you learn, the more likely you are to get exactly what you are looking for.
• Trends - For major purchases, stay with traditional elegance.
• Cut - Understand the best proportions for that shape. Buying "spread" sacrifices brilliance.
• Color - Cognac is for the liquor cabinet. Beautiful diamonds are white.
• Clarity - "V" is your friend. Set your minimum clarity at VSx.
• Carat Weight - Size matters, but not as much as quality. A .49 ct gem will cost less per carat than a .51
• Buy the best quality gem you can afford.
• Pick the right setting
• Get a certificate; GIA or EGL.
• If possible, have a serial number lasered into your gem
• Deal with a trusted source.

Buying colored gemstone jewelery presents an additional set of challenges to your buying strategy. Add the appropriate diamond strategy factors to these.

Precious Colored Gems

• Decide on the gem ... changing your mind is okay too.
• Color. Whaddaya mean there's no such color as pink?.
• Brilliance. Look deeply and the gem will reveal it's characteristics. Study the details, they are important.
• Cut - Jungle cut gemstones sacrifice beauty in favor of weight and spread.
• Durability - Diamonds are 10s but colored gems vary from 9 and below on the Mohs hardness scale. Some gems are hard, others are "tough". Hardness resists scratching. Toughness resists breaking. Consider precious gems of 8 or higher
• Clarity - different families of colored gems tend to be more or less included. But fewer inclusions reveal a gem's beauty.