Archive for Gemstones
Jade jewellery
Posted by: | CommentsJade is a lovely gemstone which is not as appreciated here in the west as it is in China and other Asian countries.
Jade is a very hard stone and comes in shades of green ranging from emerald green to quite a pale colour. Other colours are occasionally seen including lavender, orange, pink, black, and blue. Many of the colours you see these days are a pale jade enhanced chemically by man. The stone is hard enough to have been used in the past for weapons but most often these days we see it in jewellery.
Jade pendant
There are two forms of Jade, the most sought after jade is called Jadite , this is harder than the other form of Jade which is also known as Nephrite. The most valuable form of Jadite is a bright emerald green often known as Imperial Jade.
Jade can be polished into beads or cabochons or it can be shaped into ornaments and amulets. During the art deco era strings of jade beads were very popular as it matched the colour palate of the time. Look out for vintage jewellery strings of jade beads.
Jade can be imitated by several other materials including glass, plastics, serpentine and chalcedony. Jade is harder than all of these imitations and so with a gemstone testing machine it is quite easy to distinguish real Jade from its imitations.
If you are looking to buy jade jewellery you can find new Nephrite pieces form just a few pounds. If you are looking for antique or vintage imperial jade you will need to pay a hundred pounds or more.
Reverse of Jade pendant
AntiquesAvenue has a selection of Jade jewellery in shades of green and lavender.
Designer Costume Jewellery Pearls
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Haskel Pearls
The designer vintage pearls jewellery I have found ranges through famous stars with their own jewellery ranges like Joan Collins, through the costume jewellery names of Ciro, Mazler, Yves St Laurent and Ciner to the great Miriam Haskell.
Haskel Logo
Of course faux pearls have been used in costume jewellery for more than a hundreds of years and like most things in life the quality of the pearls is variable. There are the rally high quality ones made in Majorca which come with a 10 year guarantee right through to cheap plastic ones which do not wear well and the surface fakes away easily. I recommend that you look for costume jewellery pearls made with a glass center as this gives the piece of jewllery more weight.
Possibly the first great name in Costume Jewellery pearls was Coco Chanel who layers multiple strings of pearls over her outfits.
Dior Brooch
Similar to real or cultured pearls there are several characteristics to look out for when buying costume pearls as your chosen piece of vintage jewellery:
Iridescence – the rainbow effect which should be present in a good pearl finish
Luster – the satin shimmer on the surface
Texture – Flaws are not seen as good in a pearl finish so the smoother the better
Colour – This can be to suit you, your skin tone or your outfit. Costume jewellery pearls range from white and cream through more exotic colours not seen naturally such as blue. Grey and black pearls are quite popular
Iris or Rainbow Diamante Rhinestones
Posted by: | CommentsThe little pretties I would like to show you today go under a few different names. They can be called Iris or Rainbow and Diamante or Rhinestones. Normally I refer to them as Iris Diamante, if I was American I would call them Iris Rhinestones. Whatever we call these stones they are made of clear glass and have a streak of blue, green and pink or red inside. This gives a rainbow type appearance .
Iris Butterfly
Iris diamante come in all shapes and size as you can see in the pictures. I have seen them prong get and glued into place in the jewellery. Set into gold tone, silver tone metal and on one occasion into sterling silver.
I’ve been trying to find out the date these special pieces of vintage jewellery were first made – I have examples dating from the 1930s but they could have been around before that time. Some of the pieces of vitnage jewellery I have here set with Iris Diamante date from the 1960s and I think they are still being made today. Some of the new Iris Diamante are made by Swarovski and so are of high quality.
Expanding Bracelet
Genuine vintage pieces of jewellery set with Iris Diamante are now most collectible. Want to buy some vintage jewellery set with Iris Diamante? AntiquesAvenue has an excellent selection at the moment including an amazing Czechoslovakian butterfly, a stretch bracelet, brooches and necklaces.
Garnet Jewellery
Posted by: | CommentsThe Garnet was once a very popular gemstone with the deep ref variety being one of the main gemstones used during the Victorian era. Its blood red colour could be worn when a lady was first coming out of a period of deep mourning when black only was worn. The Victorians were not the first people to wear Garnets, it is believes that the Egyptians has Garnet beads.
Garnet Ring
Whilst we normally think of the Garnet as being red, the term actually refers to a whole family of Gemstones which vary in color from Black, through green, purple, yellow, orange to differing shades of red.
The Garnet is the birthstone for January and has also been used to signify Friendship improving personal relationships when worn.
Due to the popularity of the Garnet during the Victorian era imitation Garnets were introduced and many pieces of antique jewellery which appear to be set with red Garnets are actually set with red glass or other man made stones. You will need to take care when buying antique garnet jewellery that you know if you are buying real garnet gemstones or costume jewellery. Ask the Jewellery you are buying from, the can either test the stones for you. A clue for you, are the stones set into real gold? if so they may well be real. Stones set in base metal are more likely to be costume jewellery.
Garnet Earrings
Care of Garnet Jewellery
Garnets are quite resilient and can be cleaned in an ultrasonic machine or in a gentle liquid jewellery cleaner . A word of caution you will need to ensure which other materials the garnets are set with. If its gold then go ahead and clean you garnet jewellery as mentioned here. If other materials are used then you will need to ensure that your cleaning technique is appropriate to those materials too.
Emerald Jewellery
Posted by: | CommentsEmeralds are one of the loveliest gemstones, their green colour is reminiscent of spring and gardens. The emerald is a rare and valuable form of the Beryl family. They come in a range of shades of green from pale to dark velvet green with the darkest green being the most valuable.
Used in jewellery since ancient times the emerald is normally seen these days cut in a rectangular step cut shape ( Think Art Deco)/. You can also find emeralds as beads and cameos. The emerald has been made synthetically since the 1930s and it is also imitated by green glass.
emerald necklace
Natural emeralds normally have flaws and fissures which give a cloudy appearance to the stone. To improve the look of the emerald these fissures are filled with oil . You must take care when cleaning emerald jewellery or this oil can leak out of the stone ruining its appearance. For this reason you should never clean emerald jewellery in an ultrasoinic jewellery cleaner.
The emerald is the Birthstone for May and has traditionally been associated with Loyalty, faithfulness and friendship.
Not all emerald jewellery has to be expensive. Small emeralds can provide a beautiful flash of green and look great set into yellow gold Or how about an emerald gemstone chip necklace. You still have real emeralds but at a bargain price.
AntiquesAvenue normally has a selection of vintage and antique jewellery set with emeralds . Take a look at these emerald earrings for example:
These earrings are set with really nice Emeralds. Each emerald is faceted and measures about 6mm long. The emeralds are set into fully hallmarked nine carat gold. These emerald earrings are for pierced ears and are in excellent clean condition.
Affordable Antique and Vintage Diamond Jewellery
Posted by: | CommentsStrangely there is only one entry for AntiquesAvenue A-Z of Vintage and Antique Jewellery materials. It seems that D has been reserved for possible the most sought after material of all Diamonds.
Being one of the most popular and expensive gemstones you can read all about diamonds all over the Internet but most are promoting large and very expensive diamonds from several hundred pounds up to a few million for the very largest diamonds. Look carefully and there is some super antique and vintage jewellery about set with smaller diamonds which can be found much more affordable prices. Changing from my normal format of discussing the material , Here is AntiquesAvenue’s guide to buying affordable Antique and Vintage diamond jewellery.
Diamond Locket
A little bit of Diamond Jewellery History
In ancient times all Diamonds came from India and this was the major source of diamonds until the 1720s when diamonds were found in Brazil followed by discoveries in South Africa in the 1860s. All sorts of mystical and magical properties have been attributed to diamonds at different times including plague prevention. Diamonds being the hardest gemstone were difficult to cut and polish and so older diamonds are not as heavily faceted as they are today. Simpler cuts were used and looking at the way a diamond is cut can help tell us the earliest date that it could have been mounted and faceted. The Georgians tried several techniques to make diamonds appear whiter and more brilliant for example setting them into silver and giving them a white foil backing. Of course as with much antique jewellery, diamonds can be re-worked at various stages in their lives so that an ancient diamond could have been re cut in the Victorian ear to bring the shape more up to date. For example the Rose cut diamond popular in the 18th and 19th centuries appear quite grey next to a similar diamond which has been given a more modern cut such as the brilliant.
Diamond and lapis ring
Affordable Antique diamond jewellery dating from before the late 1880s is not really available in any quantity as it is at that time when it when it became available to those with a little disposable income. Simple antique diamond jewellery set with small diamonds such as brooches, bangles and earrings started to be mass produced and it is these that we can now find affordable today. Look out for diamonds which are used as an accent to other stones as in this lapis ring. A sparkle of diamond can go a long was an smaller diamonds are relatively cheap in price.
Looking to but a genuine piece of antique jewellery set with diamonds? I suggest that you consider and antique brooch. Antique gold brooches from the Victorian and Edwardian eras and set with small diamonds can be bought for under £100. You may also be able to find a 9 carat gold ring with other gemstones and diamond points for around this sort of price too. I’ve just checked the antiquesavenue.co.uk website and I even have one antique stick pin with a real diamond point ( a tiny diamond) for £25, now that has got to be a bargain.
As the 20th century progressed diamond cutting was improved and new shapes were introduced. Just take a look at some expensive diamond jewellery from the art deco era to see the range of shapes and sizes available by that time. These include Baguettes and Marquise shapes.
The other technical innovation of the 20th century which improved diamond jewellery was the ability use Platinum to set the diamonds into giving a real white colour to show them off to their best advantage.
Looking for affordable vintage diamond jewellery? The best bargains to be had at the moment are in pieces of 9 carat jewellery from the second half of the last century. For example you can get rings set with smaller diamonds from about £50. I’ve just checked the antiquesavenue.co.uk website and see I have rings with diamonds in from £45 upwards.
If you want the look of diamond but cant afford a single large gem then I suggest taking a look at jewellery with clusters of diamonds. The reason is that several small diamonds adding up to one carat in diamond size will be the fraction of the cost of a one carat diamond.
Amber brooches
Posted by: | Comments Amber Brooches
Popular nowadays, Amber is one of the materials used in brooches which has been used since the earliest prehistoric times. Our ancestors in the Bronze age or possibly before, The Greeks, Romans and ancient Celts all treasured amber set jewellery. More recently into Victorian Jewellery, in the Art Deco era and of course the amber brooch is very popular nowadays. Amber tumbled into beads or as a cabochon is how we normally see this sort of jewellery.
A bit about Amber
Amber, the fossilized resin of pine trees, in the main it has been under the sea for 60 million years. It is found in a range of colours, normally we see it in honey shades but it can vary from a pale whitish or lemon colour through to almost black. Cherry red amber is very sought after and a natural amber in shades of blue is most rare. Natural amber is cut, carved and polished into the required shape. As it is very soft for a gemstone is is possible to carve it quite intricately or alternatively it can be faceted. Most often we see amber polished smooth. If you find a piece of antique jewellery set with amber you will sometimes find that it has become opaque a sort of butterscotch colour . Modern amber tends to be more translucent often with imperfections inside.
Here is a super Amber brooch, modern but still very attractive, you can see the imperfections. These may be remnants of prehistoric petals and seeds:
Care of Amber Brooches
Take a look at the material the amber is set in. Often this is silver but look for hallmarks to be sure of this or ask your jeweller.
As Amber is quite soft it needs to be handled with some care, store it separately or protected from other brooches so that it does not scratch. Also avoid leaving your amber brooch in direct sunlight for a long time. Solvents in perfume and hairspray can damage your amber, the best thing to do is to use these first and put your amber jewellery on after. Perhaps clean it as soon as practicable after wearing.
When cleaning your amber please do not use an ultra sonic cleaner or harsh chemicals and do not use a jewellery dip or a silver dip. A soft cloth and a very tiny drop of pure olive oil are often recommended. If the jewellery is set into gold or silver you could try and clean the metal without touching the amber.
How to tell an Amber brooch from costume jewellery Faux Amber
As Amber is so popular these days the price is rising and so fake or faux amber brooches are being produced. How can you tell a real piece of amber from a piece of plastic or resin jewellery? The traditional method was to make a saturated salt solution, amber will float in this where as glass or plastic would sink. This method does not work on pieces of amber which are set into metal as they would sink with the weight of the metal. I have heard that if you stick a hot needle into amber that it smells of pine trees. I am not going to try this on a piece of amber jewellery as it would be damaged.
Here are two tests that you can try on your jewellery. Rub it against a piece of wool, its electrostatic properties produce static electricity which will attract dust. Secondly amber can glow a greenish yellow under an ultraviolet lamp
Valuing an Amber Brooch
Amber brooches can be purchased from about £30 upwards depending on the age, setting, size of the piece and craftsmanship. Very occasionally a piece of amber is found with an insect trapped into it and such pieces if genuine would fetch a few hundred pounds or more. Beware of fakes if the amber is set with an insect though and only buy from a very trusted source. Please pop over to my vintage jewellery shop at www.antiquesavenue.co.uk where I like to have one or two pieces of amber in stock.
As hard as Diamonds
Posted by: | CommentsDiamonds are cherished not only because of their beauty but also for their long lasting durable qualities. They are used in Jewellery such as engagement rings as they do not wear away and will last a life time. Unfortunately these sparkling beauties are expensive and so other clear diamond like materials have been developed to look like diamonds.
Diamond brooch
The first of these diamond imitations was probably glass, Clear quarts has been used for centuries and during the Georgian era paste a high lead content glass was developed. Other imitation diamonds include Cubic zirconia and recently Moissanite.
These diamond imitations can be very attractive and are often set into jewellery. The main problem with them is that when we are looking to buy a piece of vintage jewellery we need to know if the piece is set with a diamond or an imitation. Traditionally it was easy for a jeweller to tell the difference between a real diamond and any of the imitations as an electronic diamond tester could be used. nowadays we need to be a little more careful as Moissanite test the same as diamonds on traditional diamond testers.
Today I was looking at a ring prior to adding it to the shop. Hallmarked as 9 carat gold and with crystal clear diamond looking stones and it tested as diamonds. But to me something seemed wrong. The stones were just a bit to sparkly so I looked at them even more closely than normal and had to come to the unfortunate ( for me) conclusion that these stones are Moissanite.
Moissanite Ring
How did I come to this conclusion? Diamonds and Moissanite deflect light differently and if you shine a bright light into a Mossanite stone you can see a rainbow like effect as the light plays across the facets. This effect is not seen with real diamonds.
Moissanite is largely a man made material which has only been available in commercial quantities since the 1990s . We must still check our antique and vintage diamond like jewellery in case one of the stones has been replaced with Moissanite which has a much lower value.