My Pink Diamonds

Many people who trade in diamonds do not realize that the manner in which you handle your diamonds and diamond jewelry can actually impact the jewelry business. But there is a very simple and basic reason why this is true.Diamonds whether studded in jewelry or handled loose, have a natural tendency to draw oil and greasy dirt towards it and every time the diamond is handled by bare hands, it tends to pick up some grease from the hand. As we all know, grease attracts dust particles from the air and eventually there is a layer of grease and dust that covers the surface of the diamond. And we all know that when that takes place the light that reflects from the diamond is affected negatively.The property of diamonds to attract grease has not always been seen as a negative property. In the earlier years, this property of diamonds was effectively used by diamond miners to separate diamonds from other minerals in the same ore. This was done by covering a belt in grease and wax and then allowing the crushed ore to run over the belt. As the crushed ore passed over the greasy belt, the uncut diamond rough would stick to the belt as the other minerals remained unaffected.However, these processes have changed over time and there are more sophisticated methods that are now used to separate diamonds. But one thing is for sure, this unique property of diamonds continues to be the bane for those who handle and trade diamonds daily.The scientific reason for why a diamond that is covered with a layer of grease and dust looses its sheen is due to the refractive index. The shine of the diamond is dependant on the light that enters the diamond and the manner in which it moves out of the diamond. When the light passes through a clean diamond the interface is between diamond and air. The refractive index of air is 1.0 but the refractive index of grease is 1.5.In more practical terms what this means is that the diamond’s critical angle increases and the amount of light that reflects from the pavilion reduces significantly. The light does not go through the crown but falls inside and then some of it escapes out of the pavilion. And since the entire light that enters does not move in a focused manner but diffuses in the diamond, the shine, brilliance and glint of the diamond is far lesser than it could be.Now, the customers who buy diamond jewelry do so because of its shine and luster and way it attracts attention too. Therefore, it is very important for one to keep the diamond jewelry shining.Make sure that the diamonds are not handled unnecessarily except when they need to be. Keep the area where the diamond jewelry are displayed completelty clean and tidy. When you are handling the diamonds make sure that you hold it with tweezers, or wear gloves or use any lint/dust free cloth. After your customers handle the diamonds make sure that you wipe them with a soft, clean cloth before you replace them in their safe haven. As your diamonds dazzle your customers, you will realize that the cash registers ring more often and keep you smiling.

Whether you’re looking to purchase wholesale diamonds for investment purposes, for business purposes, or just because you love the idea of owning diamonds on your own, there are some things to look for when it comes to a diamond wholesaler.  Before you run out and start plunking down your investment dollars or jewelry business start-up finances for any loose diamonds, keep in mind that you don’t want to send money to just any diamond wholesaler.  Like any other investment option or business vendor, you need to be choosy and use some discretion.

First, keep in mind that a diamond wholesaler will be offering a large inventory with different cuts, carats, and so on.  It’s up to you to educate yourself about what makes a diamond valuable and why there will no doubt be a wide variety of prices between diamonds of the same carat, and so on.  Your diamond wholesaler may offer some tips and education in this regard but it will be up to you to learn as much as possible about diamonds themselves.

The Gemological Institute of America (GIA), the American Gem Society (AGS), and the International Gemological Institute (IGI) are the three most widely known and respected diamond grading laboratories in the world.  Each of the grading laboratories have developed a very similar nomenclature for identifying the 4 C’s of diamonds.  The 4 C’s stand for Carat, Color, Clarity, and Cut.

You could insist on a certificate from GIA or AGS for each and every diamond you purchase for a wholesaler but bear in mind that this certification process will increase the final price of the diamonds.  A certificate describes the quality of a diamond, but it does not place a monetary value on the gem.  An appraisal places a monetary value on your diamond, but does not certify the quality of the diamond.  After you have been purchasing diamonds for a while you should be able to learn how to certify and appraise the diamond on your own and not rely on any outside sources.

A diamond wholesaler should be a direct importer of diamonds rather than a reseller.  They may cut their own as well; this usually means that you get a better selection when it comes to quality and value, something that will be very good for a startup jewelry business.  When you start to deal with a reseller, the costs go up, so it’s best to look for a wholesaler of diamonds that imports their merchandise directly.

You need to be sure where the wholesaler gets his diamonds from.  There are many gems that have a poor history for how they have been cultivated; many civil wars in Africa and other areas are started and waged over diamond mines.  Diamonds known as conflict diamonds originate from the war zones of Africa. 

In May of 2000 The Kimberly Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) was adopted.  It is a plan that could halt the trade of conflict diamonds by establishing a way that diamond origin could be certified.

On December 1, 2000 the United Nations General Assembly unanimously adopted a resolution defining the role of conflict diamonds with the intent of cutting off the sources of funding for rebel forces and to help shorten the wars and prevent their recurrence.

Among the countries most affected by the terror inflicted by traders in conflict diamonds are Liberia, Sierra Leone and also Angola.  Unscrupulous groups still manage to elude the legal barriers and still find ways of infiltrating the diamond centers of the world.  Insist on a certification before purchasing any diamonds.  It will tell you the stone’s carat weight, its color and clarity, flaws, and its origins.

If you do some research about any potential diamond wholesaler and check their paperwork carefully, you’re sure to make the right decision for your investment or business.

I entered my family jewelry business in 1971 having just graduated from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute with an engineering degree.  I was the fourth generation to enter the business and began working with my father and to a lesser degree with my grandfather who was primarily retired at this time.  My grandfather had joined his father and brother around 1913 in the business they founded in 1910.  As a boy my biggest fascination had been my grandfather’s story  of how the store was held up by the famous ‘gentlemen’ bank robber, Willie Sutton.  When I joined the business in1971 I was attending NYU business school in the evenings studying for my MBA.  I soon began taking courses with the Gemological Institute of America and ended up putting all my efforts into the jewelry business which I guess was in my blood.When I started in the business my father was doing almost all of his diamond buying from just two or three diamond manufacturers.  It was very simple.  We bought only white stones, a color that today would be around a G to H color.  We bought flawless, VS and SI clarity and ordered them in the various sizes as our inventory required.  In those days when we sold or appraised a diamond it would be referred to as fine white, white, light top silver, silver cape and cape. Today’s corresponding GIA color grades would have been D to F, G to H, I to J, K to L and M to P.  At that time diamonds were not sold with any sort of certification, only the jewelers appraisal.  The purchaser had to rely on the integrity of the store selling the diamond or else bring it for an appraisal and hope the appraiser both knew what he was doing and was honest.  It was a common practice in those days that many sellers of diamonds, especially those in the diamond districts, would tell their customers where to go for an appraisal and the appraiser would get a kickback from the seller.  I once got a call from an appraiser on 47th St. in New York,  who I did not know, telling me that someone was in his office with a diamond I had sold. He demanded fifty dollars from me or else said he would give the diamond a bad appraisal.  Today, fortunately, the GIA certification of diamonds has almost entirely eliminated this type of appraiser and practice.One of the firms we purchased our diamonds from in the 60’s and early 70’s  was Harry Winston who had a large wholesale loose diamond division at the time.  Our sales rep from Harry Winston, a gentleman by the name of Murray Stamper, was a good friend of my father.  Around the time I entered the business Mr Stamper was to fly to a jewelry show from what is now JFK airport but was found murdered in his car at the airport and his diamonds stolen.  With the loss of this connection with the Harry Winston firm my father and I made the decision to start buying our diamonds directly overseas in the Israeli cutting center of Ramat Gan outside of Tel Aviv.  Almost all of the buying of better diamonds at the time was done either there or in Antwerp.  India was also a major cutting center at the time but known for lesser quality and smaller diamonds.The diamond exchange in Ramat Gan at the time consisted of two high security connected buildings.  We worked with a diamond broker to whom we paid a 2% commission to handle our transactions.  We would work both in his office in the exchange or on the top floor where, bathed in natural north light, sat rows of long tables where the buyers would sit and the brokers representing the many diamond cutters would circulate and try to negotiate sales.  Diamond parcels typically consisted of many carats of diamonds in various assortments of sizes and sometimes shapes.  We would either make an offer on the entire parcel or a cut of the parcel.  If we wanted to eliminate one or more diamonds from the parcel the price would go up. The qualities of each parcel were usually somewhat similar, within one to two clarity grades.  The asking price was always too high and we would have to make offers and sometimes counter offers in negotiations that could often last a couple of days. The brokers would have to keep going back to the cutters to show them exactly what we were offering on.  There were no cell phones in those days.  We never knew exactly how much we bought until our last day or sometimes not until we got back to New York as some of the cutters reconsidered the offers we made. At the time we were buying for five retail locations and the savings were substantial.By the 90’s things had changed in the diamond industry.  Although the GIA [Gemological Institute of America] had begun issuing diamond grading certificates as early as 1955 they did not catch on as a popular marketing tool until the late 80’s.   At this time we stopped our buying trips overseas and concentrated more on finding the best values in GIA certified diamonds from U.S. cutters and brokers that we could.  We were also doing more buying from the public and able to buy at a discount to what the diamond cutters were charging.  Also, a New York diamond dealer by the name of Martin Rappaport began printing a weekly price list of diamonds which served as a general guide to the diamond industry for diamond prices worldwide.  Profit margins shrank yearly for both diamond cutters and retailers as diamonds were sold more and more as a commodity rather than an object of beauty and romanceToday, although Since1910 operates out of a retail location we also sell a large dollar value of diamonds to other diamond cutters and dealers across the country.  With the Internet we can market our diamonds worldwide through industry restricted web sites.   These same sites also make accessible to us GIA certified diamonds from overseas cutters in Europe, the far east and China, where, when we buy in quantity, it is very cost effective for us.  In the early 2000’s, we tried selling some of the branded diamond lines after going to diamond seminars and conferences where they were being marketed as the solution to the shrinking profit margins jewelers were now making on diamonds.  The premise was that if you had a branded diamond such as Hearts On Fire or one of the many others, had the exclusivity of carrying it in your marketplace and that no one could discount it, you could make a 100% markup instead of one which could be as low as in the single digits.  While the customer had the comfort of knowing he was getting an excellent product, such as buying a diamond from Tiffany & Co., the problem was that the price could be up to double what we knew we could sell an identical unbranded diamond.  Although sales were okay for these product we could not in good conscious continue to sell them.  Instead we took the time to educate our customer to the fact that similar quality was available at substantial savings.Now with my son in the business as the fifth generation and a graduate gemologist, we have added a new dimension with the creation of Since1910.com.  On it, a consumer can search our entire diamond inventory and create your own engagement ring using our selection of designers such as Tacori, Scott Kay, Martin Flyer, Precision Set, Henri Daussi and many others.   It offers our customer the best of both worlds added with the confidence of dealing with a family company in business since 1910.

Wedding ring is a ring, which symbolizes the bond of two souls. There are variations of wedding ring and those are engagement rings, betrothal ring etc. Probably the custom of giving and taking of ring circulated in European countries from roman culture. It was and presently is much hyped only to encourage the jewelry trade. From pre-engagement ring to wedding ring everything is being added in this list of gift. Actually this jewelry business seeks to expand the idea of a series of ring-gifts with the pre-engagement ring, often given when serious courting begins, and the eternity ring, which symbolizes the renewal or ongoing nature of a lasting marriage, sometimes given after the birth of a first child; and a trilogy ring, usually displaying three brilliant-cut round diamonds each, in turn, representing the past, present and future of a relationship. According to European tradition engraving of the name of ones intended spouse and the date of the marriage on the inside surface of the wedding rings is a custom. It strengthens the symbolism and sentimentality of the rings and makes the rings a family property.Wedding ceremony is celebrated differently indifferent countries and like that ring ceremony is also not similar. There are some customs where wedding ring is worn on their right ring finger and there are some countries where wedding ring is worn on their left ring finger. But after wedding groom and bride can wear the rings on different hands as to change the position of the ring. This may prevent the engagement ring from scratching and scuffing. Another option is to have the main bridesmaid keep the ring during the ceremony there are a variety of ways to keep it: in a pouch, on a plate, etc. After the ceremony, the ring can be placed back on either the left or the right hand.Now have a look on the metals used for wedding ring. This is generally made up of precious yellow alloy of gold, hardened with copper and Silver or tin and bismuth. Copper, silver, tin or bismuth is used to make the gold more durable and hard. Now a day a trend is that wedding ring cannot be made with out platinum or titanium. These are more durable and fashionable too. Platinum with white alloys of gold are demanding by the wedding couples. A slightly yellow white gold alloy, which was used with gold, is now replaced with cheaper nickel-gold alloy with a plating of rhodium. This can be cheap than before but it is it is not at all durable and good. As we have said earlier that titanium has become a hot element for making a wedding ring and every couple wants that. The reasons are its durability, affordability, and gunmetal grey color. Tungsten carbide is also another metal, which is gradually picking its name in this list of wedding ring materials. With gold or platinum inlays tungsten carbide is used. The most inexpensive and common ring material is nickel silver. Now the most shocking and striking news in this ground is that couples are also considering stainless steel as the material for their wedding ring.

Diamonds are transparent crystals made entirely out of carbon. They are the second most stable form of carbon and the only type of gemstone that is composed from a single element. They are valuable to the jewelry business and industry practices because of their hardness and their high dispersion of light.
Of all known naturally occurring minerals, diamonds are the hardest. Very few substances are able to make a scratch in the surface of a diamond. Because of this property, diamonds are often used as an abrasive to finish other materials or to polish and cut other diamonds.
Diamonds rate as a 10 on the Mohs Scale of Mineral Hardness. Because of their resistance to scuffs and scratches, they can be polished very finely and retain their shine throughout time which is why so many jewelers offer money back guarantee diamonds. Diamonds are commonly used in wedding rings and engagement rings because they can resist the wear and tear of every day use.
The diamonds that do not meet the aesthetic standards of a jewelry gemstone are usually used in industry. They are especially popular in cutting and grinding tools because they can polish, cut, and abrade any other material, including fellow diamonds.
Compared to other gemstones, diamonds have a high resistance to breakage from impact. However, when compared to other engineering supplies, their toughness is sub par. Because of their makeup, diamonds are more fragile when oriented in certain positions.
Diamonds also possess an extremely high thermal conductivity. Most diamonds are useful as electrical insulators, though research and development is going into their potential as semiconductors. Some diamonds are already being used in this field, and a few blue diamonds act as natural semiconductors.
The diamond’s crystal lattice composition is extremely strong and only allows impurities from certain elements to pass through in small amounts during its creation process. Only impurities from nitrogen, hydrogen, boron, phosphorus, and sometimes beryllium are able to pass through in large enough quantities to change the diamond’s physical appearance.
The most common and best value diamonds are colorless, yellow, or brown. A blue diamond is the most common of the rarer colors, followed by green, black, translucent white, pink, violet, orange, purple, and red, which is the rarest of all of the colors. “Black” diamonds are not actually a pitch black color, they are merely darker. Diamonds can also come in shades of grey.
Colored diamonds contain impurities from other elements as well as structural irregularities, while “pure” diamonds are transparent and colorless. For instance, nitrogen is the smallest impurity in diamonds as well as the most frequent. It causes the yellow or brown color in some diamonds, depending on its amount.
Boron causes the blue grey color in diamonds, and irradiation from alpha particles cause a green hue. Plastic deformation, a physical irregularity in diamonds, can be the cause of brown diamonds or pink and red diamonds on rare occasions.
Coloration can either raise or lower a diamond’s marketable value, regardless of whether it is a non conflict diamond or a blood diamond. It depends on the intensity and aesthetic qualities of the color, as well as the visible defects that the coloring process might have caused. Intense blue or pink diamonds are extremely valuable, though white diamonds may drop in value if they are of a slightly yellow hue.