New Gemstone Line and Men’s Cobalt and Ceramic Rings

We have been working on a brand new line of large gemstone sterling silver pendants, earrings and rings for a few months now. We finally have the first set of new designs available. We are still working on many more new designs to add to this line.

We have a new line of men’s cobalt and ceramic band rings. There are some cool new titanium rings on the way soon, too.

In the works, we have a whole new line of amber sterling silver jewelry.

Here are some of the new pieces:

Padparadscha Sapphire Sterling Silver Pendant

Pink Sapphire Sterling Silver Pendant

Alexandrite Sterling Silver Pendant

Blue Sapphire Gemstone Sterling Silver Ring

Opal Gemstone Sterling Silver Pendant

Opal Sterling Silver Pendant

Opal Sterling Silver Earrings

Opal Sterling Silver Earrings

Men’s Black Ceramic Wedding Band Ring

Men’s Cobalt Wedding Band Ring

Men’s Cobalt Wedding Band Ring

Men’s Cobalt Wedding Band Ring

Men’s Cobalt and Ceramic Wedding Band Ring

Men’s Cobalt and Ceramic Wedding Band Ring

What is a carat? Carat Weight and Millimeter Dimensions of a Gemstone Explained

We get quite a few inquiries from customers asking why the same millimeter size of gemstone has different carat weights from one gemstone to another. We also get customers saying he/she expected the gemstone to be larger/smaller because of the carat weight listed. We thought we should take a few minutes to explain why this is.

Carat is a unit of measurement. It is used to measure mass or weight. You might think of diamonds when you hear the word “carat,” but it is actually used to measure all types of gemstones in jewelry.

A carat is exactly 200 milligrams or 0.2 grams. When referring to diamonds, most jewelers will use the term “point” or “pointer” to describe the size of a specimen. As you may have guessed, a “point” is 0.01 carat or 1/100th of a carat. So a ten “pointer” diamond would be 1/10th of a carat or 0.1 carat.

Now, when we try to equate carat weight to physical dimensions like millimeters, things get a bit tricky. Because diamonds and gemstones come in all sorts of shapes, each shape will convert differently between carats and millimeter size. With diamonds, it is generally accepted that a 1.00 carat round diamond will be 6.5 mm in diameter, but a 1.00 carat princess or square shape diamond will be 5.5 mm in diameter.

Diamonds are more or less the standard comparison for carat weight and millimeter size. However, depending on the type of gemstone, the carats to millimeter difference can vary widely. Each gemstone or mineral type has a different density, which means it will convert from carats to millimeters differently.

Let’s take the diamond’s most commonly used inexpensive stand-in, Cubic Zirconia, as an example. The Cubic Zirconia is actually much denser than diamond, roughly 1.7 times as dense. So a 1.00 carat round CZ would actually be only a 5.3 mm diameter compared to the 6.5 mm of a diamond with the same carat weight. Some other gemstones that are more dense than diamonds include: sapphire, ruby, alexandrite and garnet.

Conversely, let’s take Opal as another example. Opal is significantly less dense than diamond so it will be a much larger size stone with the same carat weight. A 1.00 carat round Opal will be almost 8 mm in diameter compared to the 6.5 mm 1.00 carat diamond. Other gemstones that are less dense than diamonds include: amethyst, tourmaline, aquamarine, emerald and quartz. Topaz and Peridot are fairly close in density to diamond.

So what do we take away from all of this? Basically, if you are searching online for a piece of gemstone jewelry that is not a diamond, you might as well disregard the carat weight altogether. Just look for the millimeter dimensions of the gem and pull out your trusty ruler.

Featured Item – Sterling Silver Princess Cut Blue Sapphire Ring in Sizes 5 to 9

3.5 cts Princess Cut Blue Sapphire Sterling Silver Ring SR10506

ITEM DESCRIPTION

Gemstones: 1 piece Lab Created Blue Sapphire, Princess Cut, 8 mm, 3.50 carats total gem weight, Ceylon Blue Hue with Brilliant Sparkle. Ring: 4.00 grams, Pure Sterling Silver with .925 stamp, Ring features exceptional Design, Craftsmanship and Rhodium finishing. Perfect gift for Mothers Day, Birthdays, Valentines Day, Graduation, Christmas or just about any other occasion. Money Back Guarantee. Includes a Signature Gift Box & Free SHIPPING, SR10506

Thursday Featured Item – Pink Sapphire Sterling Silver Pendant Necklace SP9494

2.5 cts Round Cut Pink Sapphire Sterling Silver Pendant

Gemstone:
Lab Created Pink Sapphire
Round Shape
8 mm diameter
2.50 carats
Rich Powder Pink Hue with Brilliant Sparkle.

Pendant:
1.80 grams
Pure Sterling Silver
.925 stamp

Pendant features exceptional Design, Craftsmanship and Rhodium finishing.

Perfect gift for Mothers Day, Birthdays, Valentines Day, Graduation, Christmas or just about any other occasion.

Money Back Guarantee. Includes a 18 inch Sterling Silver Box Chain and Signature Gift Box.

Peora Style SP9494

Thursday Featured Item – Blue Sapphire Sterling Silver Bracelet SB3740

3 cts Princess Cut Blue Sapphire Sterling Silver Bracelet SB3740

Gemstones:
Lab Created Blue Sapphire
6 pieces
Princess Cut
4.00 mm
Rich Ceylon Blue Hue with Brilliant Sparkle

Bracelet:
11.20 grams
Pure Sterling Silver with .925 stamp

Dimensions:
Length: 7 inches
Width: 1/4 inch

Bracelet features one of a kind design with a beautiful rhodium finish.  
Includes a Signature Gift Box 

Style SB3740

Sapphire – September’s Birthstone

In a set of poems released by Tiffany & Co. in 1870, each month is matched with a gemstone. The poem for September reads:
“A maiden born when September leaves
Are rustling in September’s breeze,
A sapphire on her brow should bind
`Twill cure diseases of the mind.”

Sapphire is also associated with the Zodiac sign of Taurus.

Sapphire is mostly known as a deep blue gemstone. Sapphire is a member of the corundum mineral family along with Ruby. Corundum forms in many different colors in nature. Corundum is made up of the elements Aluminum (Al) and Oxygen (O). Trace amounts of other elements such as Iron (Fe), Titanium (Ti), Chromium (Cr), Copper (Cu), or Magnesium (Mg) can give corundum blue, yellow, pink, purple, orange, or a greenish color. The pinkish red of Ruby comes from Chromium. Iron and Titanium are responsible for creating the brilliant blue Sapphire. Sapphire can also be found colorless.

Sapphire is extremely hard, next in hardness to diamond at 9 on the Mohs scale. Sapphire is extremely scratch and chemical resistant. It is also quite clear and can be used in lasers and for watch crystals, among other industrial purposes.

Madagascar is currently the leading gem quality Sapphire supplier in the world. Other major supplies come from Australia and Sri Lanka. In the USA, Sapphires can be found in certain areas of Montana.

The 423-carat (85 g) Logan sapphire in the National Museum of Natural History, in Washington, D.C., is one of the largest faceted gem-quality blue sapphires in existence.

In 1902 the French chemist Auguste Verneuil developed a process for producing synthetic sapphire crystals. A little over a decade later another process was developed which created better quality gemstones called the Czochralski process. Chemical dopants can be added to create artificial versions of the ruby, and all the other natural colors of sapphire, and in addition, other colors never seen in geological samples. Artificial sapphire material is identical to natural sapphire, except it can be made without the flaws that are found in natural stones. Most of the world’s synthetic sapphire is made in the United States and Russia.

Sapphire can also be enhanced by heat treating. The vast majority of natural sapphire on the market is heat treated to improve color and clarity.

A gift of a sapphire symbolizes a pledge of trust and loyalty. It is from this tradition that sapphire has long been a popular choice for engagement rings. Sapphire is known as a stone of wisdom, a royal stone of learning, mental acuity and psychic activation. As a talisman, Sapphire was thought to preserve chastity, discover fraud and treachery, protect its wearer from poison, plague, fever and skin diseases, and had great power in resisting black magic and ill-wishing. Buddhists believed it brought devotion and spiritual enlightenment, and the Hindus considered Sapphire as one of the “great gems” used in offerings in the temples for worship and to align astrological influences. In Christianity it was used in ecclesiastical rings, and was cherished by kings and nobility for its powers of protection and insight.

Thursday Featured Item – September Birthstone Created Sapphire 7 Stone Sterling Silver Ring

1.75 cts Round Cut Blue Sapphire Sterling Silver Ring SR10094

Available in Sizes 5 to 9

Gemstones:
7 Pieces Lab Created Blue Sapphire
Round Cut
3 mm Diameter
1.75 carats total gem weight
Ceylon Blue Hue with Brilliant Sparkle.

Ring:
2.30 grams
Pure Sterling Silver with .925 stamp
Ring features exceptional Design, Craftsmanship and Rhodium finishing.

Perfect gift for Mothers Day, Birthdays, Valentines Day, Graduation, Christmas or just about any other occasion. Money Back Guarantee. Includes a Signature Gift Box.

Style SR10094

Rubellite, Ruby’s Cousin?

Rubellite: “Ruby” is basically in the name so the two must be related, right? Nope.

Rubellite is actually a Tourmaline. Tourmaline, like Sapphire (corundum), comes in a vast array of colors and even more so than Sapphire with bi-colors and multi-colors but is a completely different mineral. “Tourmaline” actually means “mixed parcel” or “a stone with mixed colors.” Tourmaline is quite hard, just below corundum at 7-7.5 on mohs scale. The trace elements involved in the crystallization process account for the various colors. Aluminium, iron, magnesium, sodium, lithium, or potassium present will affect the color outcome of the final crystal.

The majority of gem quality Tourmaline come from Brazil and several countries in Africa, but at one time California and Maine in the United States were the largest suppliers of Tourmaline. Sri Lanka and Afghanistan also produce gem quality Tourmaline. The world’s largest known cut Tourmaline of 191 carats comes from the Brazilian state of Paraiba.

Tourmaline’s large color variations allow it to mimic many much more expensive gems. In the sixteenth century, the Portuguese even mistook a Brazilian green Tourmaline for an Emerald, but was not discovered until three centuries later. Today, many Tourmaline are falsely sold as other gemstones like Rubies, Sapphires and Emeralds.

Rubellite is a special variety of the Tourmaline species Elbaite. As you may have guessed, Rubellite and Ruby share similar origins of their names meaning “red” or “reddish.” What makes a Rubellite is not only the beautiful red color but a property that few gems have. Most gems’ colors shift depending on the color temperature of the light source, but Rubellite does not; it stays the same rich red in both natural and artificial light. Most pink or red Tourmaline secondary colors shift to a brownish tone under artificial light. They come in variations of purpleish red and red and are notorious for the prevalence of natural inclusions. The manganese that produces the rich red color causes inclusions to be more visible and the more saturated the red, the more inclusions tend to be present.

Tourmaline are known as the most dichoric gems, meaning their crystal structure actually reflects two colors simultaneously. In Rubellite, this is usually red and purple, with red being the main color and purple or pink being the undertone. Of course the more red the higher the value. Because of this dichoric nature and similar color to Ruby, it can be very difficult to distinguish between the two.

Tourmaline, like other gemstones can be treated by irradiation and heat to reduce inclusion visibility, increase color saturation or change colors. Irradiation is quite common and very difficult to detect, thus the treatment generally does not affect the value of the stone. Heat treatment can also be used to enhance the stone. Tourmaline which are strongly included like Rubellite are sometimes enhanced for clarity and this treatment significantly reduces the value of the stone.

Further information on Tourmaline and Rubellite can be found at the links below:
Gemstone.org
Rocks & Co.
Wikipedia