Hello, my name is Judy Kiriazis at Heart of Stone Studio and I’d like to talk to you about how to buy quality gemstones for the jewelry that you design or wear.
I’ve been trained as a jeweler and have purchased gem cabochons for both my own jewelry designs as well as for my company Heart of Stone Studio, for more than 25 years, and I want to share what I’ve learned, with you.
While buying gemstones can be an exciting and fun experience, it also has a tremendous importance when it comes to enhancing the marketability and reputation of your own jewelry designs. The size, pattern, color, and shape of the stones you select will play an important role in helping you to create your brand, or signature look, as an artist.
There's a lot of jewelry being sold out there, and it's important that your work stand out. Beautiful gemstones not only attract the eye of the buyer, they also help to convey a level of quality that enhances your design and allows you to command a higher price point for your work.
As a metalsmith, I've learned that the investment of time and effort in making a stunning piece of jewelry calls for a beautiful stone to be its centerpiece. Otherwise, why waste your time with an inferior gemstone?
So here are my insider tips on what to look for when buying quality cabs. I’ll illustrate how characteristics such as color, pattern, and cut can make one piece well worth your investment, while other pieces—often from the same mine—are only worth passing up.
First, look at color.
The color has to be rich and vibrant, and not dull.
Here’s a common Chrysocolla cabochon on the right. It’s has a nice triangular shape, but doesn’t have much of the characteristic Chrysocolla aqua blue color.
On the other hand, this high-quality Chrysocolla cab on the left features rich, saturated shades of blue throughout the stone. You have to keep in mind that the miner is pulling tens to hundreds of pounds of rough material out of the ground, and only a relatively small fraction of it contains these colors. This is what you want to hold out for if you want to feature Chrysocolla in your jewelry.
Next, look at pattern.
The pattern has to be pleasing and interesting.
The stone on the right has a jumbled and muddy pattern, while the stone on the left has a well-defined pattern that is pleasing to the eye and stands out as something that is interesting and will catch people's attention.
Sometimes the pattern of a stone can be enhanced or diminished by its shape—A talented cutter can make a stone a winner by choosing a shape that enhances the pattern within. However, since many wholesale dealers base their prices on weight, the cutters who work for them need to cut the most stones they can out of a slab, to minimize waste.
Finally, look at types of cuts.
If you went to a gem show, you could immediately pick out the lesser-valued stones because they are either lopsided in shape or awkwardly cut. You want to look for pleasing, symmetrical cuts.
Ovals are usually a beginner’s cut, but it actually takes quite a bit of skill to cut this stunning, elongated oval of Sonoran Sunrise Jasper on the left. On the other hand, the stone on the right is an awkward shape that will not enhance a jewelry design.
Our Heart of Stone Studio website deals with the top cutters in the country, so we have a great selection of one-of-a-kind, artistic cuts like this.
In conclusion, it’s clear that there are several main characteristics to keep in mind when shopping for gemstones to set in jewelry.
They must have excellent color and pattern, good cuts, and must also be free of structural defects. And, they should contain the best characteristics for which that species of gemstone is known.
But, if you don’t know the top characteristics of a particular type of gemstone, how would you know what to look for? How do you know you’ll be getting your money’s worth?
Well there are two ways: One approach is to attend a lot of gem shows and be willing to risk making mistakes. Sometimes you'll find great deals, and sometimes you'll get taken. But after years of looking at hundreds, even thousands of stones, you'll get a good idea of exactly what characteristics to look for in each kind of stone you buy.
Or, the other approach is to find a trustworthy dealer, someone who does the hard work of sorting through thousands of gemstones and cherry-picking the absolute best of each type for you to select from. Someone with integrity, who can tell you what to look for and be upfront about the intrinsic value of each stone. Someone who guarantees your satisfaction with what you buy.
Where can you find a dealer like that? Well, at Heart of Stone Studio, we’ve done all the work for you. Stop by our website at www.heartofstonestudio.com and see our collection of top-quality cabochons for sale.
For more information, check out our YouTube video on this subject .
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