Crystal Jewelry Frequently Asked Questions.

• What are the present-day Birthstones?

• What are the present-day Anniversary Stones?

• What is a Karat? Or Is It Carat?

• What is the difference in 14K versus 18 K Gold markings?

• What is Platinum: Cool, Classic, and Contemporary?

• Yellow Gold, White Gold, or Platinum: Which One?

• What is a Pearl?

• Biwa & Other Freshwater Pearls.

What are the present-day Birthstones?

 

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What are the present-day Anniversary Stones?

 

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What is a Karat? Or Is It Carat?

In the jewelry, term carat (or karat) has a double meaning: carat is used as a measurement of weight for gemstones, with one carat weighing 1/5 gram; carat is also used in countries around the world to indicate the amount of pure gold in a piece of gold jewelry. In the United States, however, when the word is used to indicate gold content rather than gemstone weight, it is spelled with a K (hence karat) to avoid confusion. Jewelry should always be marked to indicate how much pure gold it contains.

In the USA, a karat mark, abbreviated to K or KT, indicates the amount of pure gold present in the metal. The word karat (carat) is derived from the word for the fruit of the carob tree. The seeds of the fruit were used in ancient times for weighing gems.

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What is the difference in 14K versus 18 K Gold markings?

 

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What is Platinum: Cool, Classic, and Contemporary?

Nothing is purer than platinum. Platinum is even more rare and valuable than gold.

The platinum family is composed of six elements: platinum, palladium, iridium, osmium, rhodium, and ruthenium.
Platinum is rarer and heavier than other precious metals. As the purest, it’s sometimes referred to as the noblest. Because platinum is so pure, it rarely causes allergic reactions. This is greatly appreciated by sensitive people who experience reactions to, or skin discoloration from, jewelry containing base metals. In addition, platinum is somewhat stronger than other precious metals.

Platinum is not identified by karat marks. In the US, the abbreviations PT or plat indicate platinum. In Europe the numerical marks 950 or PT950 indicate platinum.

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Yellow Gold, White Gold, or Platinum: Which One?

To decide weather or not you want yellow gold, white gold or platinum, you must first decide which colors metal you prefer. This selection usually depends on personal preference, skin tone, and the color of other jewelry you may own. If your choice is yellow gold, keep in mind that it is available in different shades, including pure yellow, a pinkish yellow, and a greenish yellow.

If you decide yellow is the color you want, then you must decide weather to get 14K or 18K. Certainly, 14K is more affordable than 18K; it is also harder. But the yellow won’t be as bright.

If you prefer a white metal, your choice may be more difficult. Even though white gold and platinum may be similar in appearance, they are very different metals. As we mentioned, platinum is much more expensive, so if you’re on a limited budget, white gold may be the sensible choice.

Whichever precious metal you select, there are many beautiful styles and designs from which to choose.

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What is a Pearl?

A pearl is the gem produced by saltwater oysters (the nonedible variety) or by fresh water mollusks. In either case, a small foreign object (such as a tiny parasite from the ocean floor) finds its way into the shell and then into the tissue of the mollusk. If the intruder becomes trapped, and the oyster can’t rid itself of it, the foreign body becomes an irritant. To ease the discomfort of this irritant creates, the mollusk takes defensive action and produces a blackish substance called conchiolin, over which another substance, a whitish substance called “nacre,” is secreted. This is the lustrous pearly coating for which the pearl is prized. The pearl is the result of the buildup of layer after layer of this nacre. The thicker the nacre, the more beautiful the pearl.

Most pearls sold today are cultured pearls. Natural or Oriental pearls, have become one of the rarest of all gems, with prices to match. Cultured pearls are much more affordable.

One way to understand the difference between a natural pearl and a cultured pearl is to think of the natural pearl as a product of the oyster working alone, and the cultured pearl as product of humans “helping” nature. In the natural pearl, the irritant around which the oyster secretes the nacre product and produces the pearl is a foreign object that accidentally finds its way into the oyster tissue. In the culture pearl, humans implant the irritant a mother of pearl bead called the “nucleus.” After the initial implantation, however, the process by which the culture pearl is produce is very similar to that in the natural pearl: the oyster produces nacre to coat the irritant, layer after layer building up and producing the pearl.

The primary physical difference between the resulting products natural and cultured pearls is the thickness of the nacre. Even though it takes several years to raise the oyster and produce a fine cultured pearl, the pearls are harvested much sooner than comparable natural pearls, often when the nacre thickness reaches only ½ millimeter. The nacre on the natural pearl is much thicker because it has taken many more years to produce.

If you are buying a strand of pearls represented to be natural, make sure they are accompanied by an identification report from a reliable lab. Natural pearls must be x-rayed to confirm authenticity. Always be sure to have proper documentation, no matter who the owner, or how wealthy, or how old the piece.

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Biwa & Other Freshwater Pearls:

Biwa pearls are grown in freshwater (lakes and rivers) and derive their name from Lake Biwa in Japan, where very fine pearls are cultivated. Until recently, the term Biwa was often incorrectly used for any freshwater pearl. Today it is used only for those from Lake Biwa.

Freshwater pearls are grown in many countries, including the US, Japan, and Ireland, but China is now the leading producer. The process does not require the insertion of a shell bead, so many pearls are produced within each mussel simultaneously. As a result, most freshwater pearls are much less expensive than their saltwater counterparts.

The most familiar freshwater pearls have long, narrow, rice-shaped outlines, generally with a “wrinkled” surface, although the surface can be smooth. They can also be near round to round, in sizes that can exceed 8-9 mm.
 

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