Jadeite jade is a very porous stone. It comprises of very minute granules of monoclinic crystals inter-locked against each other. This creates a lot of 'spaces' and 'pores' in between the crystals whereby...
Turquoise gemstones are very often enhanced, and good quality natural, untreated stones are no longer the norm. Other types of stone which have been dyed are also frequently seen. The best quality Turquoise...
Appraising the value of a jadeite jade jewelry or a jade carving is one of the most demanding task as there is no international grading system like the 4Cs of diamond. However, among the jade collectors and...
Investment grade natural ruby gemstones. The gem trade has seen a rise in synthetic rubies with flux-induced healed fractures being offered as natural rubies. The synthetic stones, which reportedly come from...
Cubic Zirconia is the most widely used diamond simulant (imitation diamond) in jewelry today. It is very popular because it visually resembles a diamond, is much less expensive than a diamond yet is very...
Equipment, Books, and Courses for Testing Gems. The following courses, books and equipment are useful for testing gems. We give very approximate prices. Courses. GIA course on colored stones, followed by GIA...
Jadeite jade is perhaps one of the most difficult gemstones to identify simply because there are a number of gemstones whose characteristics resemble that of jade and the abundance of imitations in the market....
Microscope slides are a wonderful idea for scrapbook pages as they are very thin and now finally come in unbreakable vinyl/plastic. To decorate them just cut a picture or stamped piece of paper in the size of...
First off, let me start out by listing the most common Sapphire Treatments, and that we will be concentrating on one of the newer treatments, Be Heating.1. Diffusion 2. Heating 3. Be Heating Diffusion it...
Lab created or Synthetic Gemstones are Man made "Duplicates" of a natural gemstone. This is a very popular question asked by many customers. Lab Created/Synthetic Gemstones are done in lab with same...