Celebrating a Special Occasion with Jewelry

Jewelry and Gems; The Buying Guide

Colored Gemstones

When you go to buy colored gemstones, you will find yourself immersed in color; every hue, every shade of the spectrum. There has never been a more exciting time to search for a colored gem because there have never been so many alternatives. Whatever color you prefer, and whatever your budget, there is a sparkling natural gem waiting your discovery. You will see new gems only newly discovered; emerald green garnet (tsavorite), blue and green tanzanite (technically, the green variety should be called green zoisite, since blue zoisite is what we know as tanzanite, neon tourmaline from Brazil (Paraiba, also called Hetorite) in blue and shades never seen before. Sapphires abound in virtually every color, as do tourmaline. Even diamond can now been seen in a wide variety of natural fancy colors (some at very fancy prices). The new colors are exciting, but so are the new cuts; there are unusual shapes in both faceted and cabochon (or non-faceted cuts) cuts, fancy and fantasy cuts, sculpted cuts. In the following we will present some of the most popular gemstones alternatives, by color, and guide to how they compare in terms of availability and wear-ability. Then the gems will we discussed individually.

Guides to popular gems

The following charts show what gemstones are available in various colors, as well as their wear-ability, price, and availability. In coming articles we will describe the gemstones; beginning with precious and followed alphabetically by the other popular gems families, and provide important information particular to each. It should be noted that the terms precious and semi-precious are discouraged today since they can be misleading; rubies, sapphires, and emeralds are only precious in rare qualities, and there are many semi-precious gemstone today that are rarer and more valuable than so-called precious gems. Cabochon cut gemstones often cost less than faceted gemstones. Gems used in mass-produced jewelry sold in many jewelry stores (including online stores) are often commercial quality and may cost significantly less. Rare gems in exceptionally fine quality and rare gemstones of unusual size can sell for much more. If the price of a gem you are considering is usually high, it is strongly recommended to take extra steps to confirm its exceptional quality prior to purchase; including obtaining a quality grading report from the American Gemological Laboratory. The guides purpose is twofold: to help you understand how prices for different gems in a given color compare with on another; and to demonstrate how significant the price range might be for a given type of stone, so that you will have a clearer understanding of the importance of quality differences.

How to use the following guides

The guides can be especially useful; and help you avoid mistakes, if you follow these steps:

- Decide what color you want in a gem and then make a list of the gems available in that color. If you want an emerald green gem, for example, and cannot afford emerald itself, you would use the guide to see what other similarly colored emerald green gems are available; tsavorite garnet, chrome tourmaline, or green tourmaline, green sapphire.

- Compare their prices to get a sense of the relative cost of each. In comparing prices for these green gems, you would immediately see that tsavorite garnet is the most expensive (but still much more affordable than emerald), chrome tourmaline is next in cost, then green tourmaline, and finally, the most affordable, green sapphire.

- Note availability to determine how easy or difficult it might be to locate the particular gem you think you want. In this example, you would see that of the choices, and might be difficult to find.

- Note the range in price for the gemstones that interest you. The larger the price range in a given gemstone, the more critical any differences in quality becomes. A wide price variance would indicate that you must be especially careful to spend time comparing and learning about the stone, developing an eye to spot subtle quality differences.

- Read about each gem individually. Now turn to the next articles (or click on each gems to link) and read about each (or particular gems) of the gems youre considering individually. You may find there is something about the stone, its history, mythology, or wear-ability, that makes it an even more interesting choice for you. Here you will also learn if there is anything special you need to know, to look for or look out for, as you shop.

Now, you are ready to embark o a sparkling search. But always remember: being genuine does not mean a stone is gem or that it is valuable. A gem must be beautiful and rare, attributes that are related to quality. The finer the quality, the more beautiful, and the more rare. The quality of an individual stone is what determines whether or not it is a gem, and it is the quality that determines its value. The range in price for any colored gemstone is directly related to quality differences; and it can be enormous. Be sure you have read the previous articles carefully, and understand the factor that determine quality before making any decision. After reading these articles you will know what to ask the jeweler to show you. But do not forget to a lot shopping and asking questions until you really have developed a feel for that particular stone and its market.