Mineral Gemstones Organic Gemstones Inclusions Adding to an

Gemstones
Gemstones
Mineral Gemstones
Colours
Organic Gemstones
Gemstones inherit their colour from traces of various chemicals during
their formation. As a result they’re found in every colour of the rainbow
and in every hue, from very pale to the most intense, some evenly see
through, some not. All these variations are what attract customers
to gemstones and you should never second-guess what will appeal
to them.
Most gemstones fall into this category. Millions of years ago mineral
gemstones were formed deep within the earth under intense heat and
pressure. Eventually they’ve ended up close enough to the surface to
be mined. Most mineral gemstones are crystalline, like diamonds, rubies,
sapphire, topaz and onyx.
LMS
These are gemstones that are not minerals, but have their origins
in living organisms.
Amber. P86
Amber
Fossilised tree resin
Ivory
Tusks of elephants etc.
Pearls
Coral
Jet
Come from oysters or mussels Pearls. P88
Skeletons of tiny marine animals
Fossilised wood
Inclusions
These are a visible internal feature of the gemstone. They often look like
a bubble, mark or crack inside the stone. Don’t think of these as flaws but
explain to customers who ask that they’re natural characteristics unique to
that gemstone. Some gemstone are much more prone to inclusions than
others; emeralds often contain inclusions, whereas aquamarines rarely do.
In fact, specific inclusions can add interest and value to some stones like
amber and star rubies.
Adding to an amazing customer experience
They are reassured that inclusions are nothing to worry about.
If anything, they prove the stone is natural rather than imitation.
Virtually no gemstone of any size or cost are free from inclusions.
Inclusions can be so specific that they help identify the
types of gemstone and even the place in the world it
came from, sometimes even the actual mine.
For diamonds, the clarity grade refers to how many
inclusions there are. There is no similar agreed scale
for coloured gemstones.
Dia. P68
Ask
It’s a very personal
purchase, so ask
your customer what
they like about the
stone.
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Tell
If customers refer to
inclusions, tell them that
they occur naturally
and serve to highlight
the stone’s natural and
unique qualities.
Remember
Inclusions show the
long journey of a
stone’s formation all
the way to being set
into a beautiful piece
of jewellery.
In the trade, coloured gemstones are defined by their tone, saturation,
hue and distribution. These qualities vary from family to family, stone to
stone, and are major factors in their desirability and value. However,
there is no internationally agreed system for grading coloured
gemstones, only for the colour of diamonds.
Dia. P71
Treatments & Enhancements
Treatments are applied to a stone, for example laser drilling, fracture
filling using glass or coating, as with ‘mystic’ topaz.
Enhancements are carrying on the work of nature – so heat ‘treating’ is
actually classed as an enhancement because it picks up where nature
left off - and these do not need to be disclosed.
Diamonds. P60
They are a way of improving the colour or appearance of gemstones
to make them more attractive for jewellery use. When treatments are
applied to diamonds the customer must be made aware but for all
other gemstone enhancements it’s normal; or what’s termed Standard
Trade Practice. It’s safe to assume that, apart from diamonds, most
gemstones are enhanced in some way soon after being mined.
Any treatments or enhancements to diamonds have
to be brought to the attention of customers. Signet’s
diamonds are all natural and not treated.
The most common treatments & enhancements are:
Heat Treatment
Actually an enhancement the stone is heated to very high
temperatures which recreate
the natural conditions of its
formation, this will either enhance
or sometimes change the original
colour of the stone. Sapphires &
Rubies – heat treating will improve
the colour.
Amethysts – heat treating can
change their colour from purple
to yellow making them citrines.
Oiling
Placing a stone in a bath of hot oil,
sometimes matching the colour
of the stone. This makes the stone
stronger and improves the way
light passes through it, minimising
the appearance of inclusions and
giving a stronger looking colour.
All emeralds are oiled as standard.
Emeralds. P80
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Gemstones
Gemstones
The Four Cs
To understand the beauty of diamonds you have
to understand the 4Cs. These stand for Carat,
Clarity, Colour and Cut, and they also affect the
value of diamonds. Today’ customers are much
more aware of the 4 Cs so it is important that you
are able to answer any questions they may have.
GIA
Clarity
Grade
GIA definition
All grading done with
x10 magnification.
FL
Flawless diamond
internally and on
the surface of the
stone.
The diamond is perfect in all respects
- it is flawless and it would look flawless inside and
out to a professional diamond grader using a x10
loupe.
IF
Internally flawless
- Diamond is
Internally flawless,
with tiny marks on
the surface.
The surface marks are miniscule, there is no effect
on the look of the diamond and you cannot see
the surface marks – in fact no one but a diamond
grader would be able to see them even with a
loupe! Once worn for a while even an FL diamond
will be IF, as they can pick up tiny ‘percussion’
marks from knocks. In practical terms this grade
should be seen as perfect.
VVS1
to VVS2
Very, Very Small
Inclusions,
graded as 1 or 2,
with VVS1 being
even more hard
to see.
Only a couple of clear pin point marks inside the
diamond mean its graded in the VVS range – even
a diamond grader with a loupe struggles to see
these – you and your customer would never find
them, there is no effect on the beauty, sparkle or
fire of the diamond at all, it still looks flawless.
VS1
to VS2
Very Small
Inclusions, again
graded as 1 or 2
with 1 even more
hard to see.
Only a tiny handful of miniscule inclusions that you
could never ever see without a loupe, and the
diamond is graded as VS1 or 2. To the naked eye
there is no effect on the beauty, sparkle or fire of
the diamond at all, it still appears flawless.
SI1
to SI2
Small Inclusions
graded as 1 or
2 with SI1 even
harder to see.
Unless you know what you are looking for and
unless you have a loupe, your customer still
cannot see the inclusions – even at this grade the
inclusions have no effect on the beauty, sparkle or
fire of the diamond at all & it still appears flawless.
I1
Included, graded
as 1 (You may
sometimes see
the CIBJO grade
P1 used instead of
the GIA grade I1).
Only at this grade do the inclusions become
visible to the naked eye – at I1 they will not be
obvious unless you are looking closely and there is
absolutely NO effect on the diamond’s brilliance,
it still sparkles as much as a flawless diamond
would, but costs significantly less!
I2 & I3
Included, graded
as 2 or 3, with
3 easier to see
than 2. (You may
sometimes see the
CIBJO grade P2 &
P3 used instead of
the GIA grade I2
& 2).
Finally the inclusions are easy to see with the
naked eye close up. Even at I2 the brilliance is
only reduced by half, so the diamond still has
some sparkle. However, at these grades the price
is relatively low, so if size matters, this is a good
buy! Also note, I3 stones are still in the minority of
diamonds mined that are suitable for jewellery
and so still quite rare.
1. Carat
‘Carat’ is the weight of a diamond, not to be confused with
either the size of the stone or gold carats. It’s written as CT
and each carat is divided into 100 points (pts). So, 50 points
= 0.5ct and 25 pts = 0.25 ct.
Jewellers should always refer to the carat weight, for
example: 1.5 ct, not 1ct & 50 pts. One carat weighs
0.2 grams. A 1ct round brilliant cut diamond is about
6mm in diameter at the widest point when perfectly cut.
actual size
of 1ct round
brilliant cut
diamond
Dia cut. P72
The term carat comes from ‘carob’. Carob seeds
always weigh the same and so were used in
ancient times to weigh diamonds, one carob
also being about 0.2 grams. All diamond weights
are calculated before the diamond; is set.
Adding to an amazing customer experience
For some customers size matters! They want as large a stone as
they can get for their budget. By engaging with your customer
you should know what motivates them, size, quality or both.
2. Clarity
Unlike other gemstones diamonds have an agreed scale of clarity;
we usually use the GIA (Gemmological Institute of America) Clarity Grade.
Clarity describes how free the stone is from inclusions, and the type,
position and amount of inclusions. It matters because it can affect the
diamond’s sparkle if there are enough of them. It’s worth repeating that
only a tiny fraction of all the jewellery quality diamonds in the world are
actually free of inclusions. Grading is still done by human eye, using a loupe
which magnifies objects by 10.
Tools. P146
It’s important that you understand what the grading means in practical
term so you can manage your customers expectations.
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What it really means to
you & the customer
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The ins and outs of watches
There are a variety of watch movements available
to the customer. Some have been around in one
form or another since watches were invented like
mechanical movements and some are more recent
innovations such as the Seiko Kinetic.
Ask
Different movements appeal to customers for different
reasons ranging from an appreciation of the workmanship
of a handmade movement (e.g. similar to some people’s
appreciation of the engine of a high performance car!) to
familiarity (e.g. the customer has always had a quartz watch)
to convenience (e.g. the customer wants to put the watch on
and tell the time without having to reset it) and everything else in
between! This is why the older style movements still exist despite
the advances in watch technology.
Many mechanical and automatic watches will say how
many jewels they have… a jewel today is a synthetic piece of
corundum (usually ruby) used to hold a pivot, wheel or cog.
As they are so hard they don’t wear away like metal on metal
would and cause very little friction allowing the movement to
run more smoothly.
GEAR TRAIN
ESCAPEMENT
Even a basic mechanical movement
will have at least 130 working parts,
which is why you need to speak to
customers about regular servicing.
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Remember
If an automatic watch
isn’t worn it will stop,
but all you have to do
is reset the time and
date and put it back
on.
MAINSPRING:
housed inside
the barrel
Though not as accurate as a quartz movement,
mechanical watches have no batteries to run
down or replace, which makes them ecologically
friendly, though you do have to wind them once
a day.
In store watch brands guidelines
Tell
It has a mechanical
movement, like a
wind up watch; the
difference is that it’s self
winding, all you have to
do is wear it.
A typical balance wheel, one of many moving
parts in a mechanical or automatic watch,
oscillates about 250 million times, at ¾ mph,
covering 7,500 miles a year - just one good
reason for a regular service.
Types of watch movements
Mechanical watches are wound by hand using the
button/crown on the side of the case. When you
wind a watch you tighten the main spring which
then slowly unwinds, via the gear train, powering
the mechanism. The escapement mechanism
releases the power in small quantities at exact
intervals; this regularity is controlled by the balance
wheel and the balance spring. The train is the
set of gears that turns the hands and drives the
escapement mechanism.
These are basically mechanical movements but in an automatic watch the
mainspring is wound by movement. As you move a rotor turns and continually
winds the spring. If you take it off it will run for 24-36 hours before stopping,
after which time is just needs to be reset and worn again. If worn regularly the
benefit of an automatic movement is that you never have to wind it.
If you’re asked what
is, or how does, an
automatic watch
work.
Adding to an amazing customer experience
Wind up mechanical movement
Automatic Movements
BALLANCE
WHEEL &
HAIRSPRING
Here’s an example magnified
many, many times – in reality
they are about the size
of a pin head.
Adding to an amazing customer experience
Tell customers buying watches, that servicing every 3 to 4 years is
recommended to maintain the highest standards of timekeeping
and prevent long-term damage.
Remember no one would expect a car, no matter how
expensive or well built, to run everyday for years without giving it
a regular service; watches are no different.
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