Posts from — July 2009

Silver jewelry is not only beautiful, it is very much in
style these days. Silver jewelry compliments
anything you wear, and it is usually less expensive
than gold jewelry. There are many sources from
which you can buy silver jewelry wholesale, but the
Internet will offer you the biggest selection possible.
After all – you will have the whole world at your feet
– or fingertips.

As with any other jewelry, begin your search online.
There are countless jewelry wholesalers online, and
many of them specialize in silver jewelry. When you
buy your jewelry from jewelry wholesale sources,
you will pay a fraction of the cost that you would
pay at a retailer’s place of business, such as a
jewelry store.

When you purchase silver jewelry wholesale, make
sure that you are purchasing sterling silver jewelry.
Sterling silver is almost always marked with the
numbers ‘925.’ This is the highest quality of silver
that you can buy – wholesale or retail. Note that
there is no such thing as ‘high quality sterling
silver’ and ‘lower quality sterling silver.’ Sterling
silver comes in one quality – sterling silver. The
weight of the sterling silver used in the piece should
be the determining factor in the cost, unless the
item was hand-made, in which case it will cost
considerably more than similar pieces that were
not hand made.

Silver jewelry tarnishes – whether it is sterling silver
or not. You must clean and polish your silver
jewelry on a regular basis to help it keep its shine.
There are many different brands of silver polish on
the market that can be used to accomplish this.
You should plan to clean your silver jewelry on a
weekly basis.

Buying silver jewelry wholesale is the best way to
go. Silver is already relatively inexpensive – even at
wholesale prices. When purchasing such jewelry,
the silver or quality of the silver is not what you
need to concern yourself with – again, silver is
silver, just make sure it is sterling silver. The
settings and stones that are used in the piece
should be your concern.

You need to insure that the piece is solidly
constructed, and you need to make sure that the
gems used are not simulated gems – unless that is
what you want. Of course, when real gems are used,
such as diamonds, the cost of the jewelry will rise
considerably. But as long as you are buying jewelry
wholesale, the price will still be the lowest price you
will find.

Fancy colored diamonds are all the rage
these days.  Gemologists have developed
new ways to create versions that are
affordable for the average person - by
treating less desirable diamonds. These
less desirable diamonds are treated with
irradiation followed by intense heat.  This
turns brown and yellowish diamonds into
beautifully colored diamonds that you can
afford.  This produces stunning greens,
blues, yellows, reds, purples and other
colors.  These colors are considered
permanent, but there is a possibility
they could change during repairs if a high
heat is used.

Treatments like irradiation make it possible
for more people to own these vividly colored
diamonds. Most natural colored diamonds
are rare and also extremely expensive. When
shopping for colored diamonds you need to
assume that any affordable fancy color
diamond has been treated.  Ask about the
stones origin and request to view a lab
certificate to verify authenticity.

Synthetic colored diamonds are another
option if owning a colored diamond is
something you desire but cannot quite afford.
They are real diamonds, but they are created
in a lab.

Natural fancy color diamonds get their
coloring from different trace elements present
in the stones, such as nitrogen, which
produces a yellow diamond.  Diamonds can
be colored by exposure to radiation during its
creation.  An example of a diamond affected
by radiation is a Green diamond.

Another way that a natural colored diamond
gets color is by its inclusions.  Regarded as
flaws and undesirable in a colorless diamond,
inclusions give unique tones and brilliant
flashes of color in a fancy color diamond. 
Remember that Natural fancy colored
diamonds are very expensive, any colored
diamond labeled to be sold as natural should
be accompanied by a certificate from a
respected grading lab.

A “fancy” diamond is a natural diamond that
has color.  These colors vary from red, green,
purple, violet, orange, blue and pink – and
most shades between.  Fancy color shades
vary from faint to intense.

The most famous diamonds in the world are
Color diamonds.  The Tiffany Diamond,
which is yellow and the Hope Diamond which
is blue are colored diamonds.    Color
diamonds have an amazing financial track
record.  The value has never decreased on
wholesale level in more than 30 years.  Blue
and pink diamonds have doubled every 5
years of a strong economy.   In the 1970’s
you could have bought a very high quality
blue diamond for about 50K and today the
very same stone would be worth between
2 and 3 million.