A Cut Above

As most people are now aware, diamonds are graded with 4 C’s.  Those being Cut, Colour, Clarity and Carat weight.  Some stores now wrongly say you have 5 C’s with the fifth being a Certificate.  To be honest, if you buy a stone from a long established and reputable jeweller, you should not have any problems. This does not make a certificate redundant, but lessens the need for one.  Many of the diamond dealers that we deal with have supplied Dipples for many many years. Quite often we know them not just as business associates, but as friends as well.  Like us many manufacturers are family businesses  and are often based in the UK.

In this post, I am going to start elaborating on the 4 C’s, saying what they are, and what makes each ‘C’ important.

Before I go any further in these blog posts, I am going to write a disclaimer.  These are what I consider to be the best way to view the 4 C’s, and when buying a diamond you should not just look at the certificate.  You are not buying a piece of paper you are buying an object of hand crafted beauty.  This is what we look for when buying diamonds from our suppliers.

Cut: – This is the most important aspect especially in a brilliant cut diamond, however it is slightly less so in other cuts as many of the fancier cuts do not have a definitive scale written down.  You will probably have heard of Hearts and Arrows, XXX (X stands for eXcellant) and Excellent as ways of describing a very well cut diamond.  The first too notions refer to a brilliant cut, with Hearts and Arrows describing a pattern within the diamond that is visible through a light filtered viewer, Hearts and Fireburst is the highest grade available.  To obtain this grade you need to have perfect symmetry with all the facets on the diamond.  Triple X refers to the highest grade available for Polish, Symmetry and Proportions.  In short that means each facet on the diamond is polished very well, all the facets line up closely and each facet is the appropriate size.  Please bear with me as this is where it gets complicated! Just because a diamond has a XXX grade, this does not mean that it will automatically get a Hearts and Fireburst grade.  You need to be right at the top of the scale for proportions and symmetry to be awarded a Hearts and Fireburst grade. Just as the polish would not affect the pattern seen in a Hearts and Fireburst stone which could mean it is not a XXX stone. However it would have X grades for symmetry and proportions. Phew, I hope that is clear!!

So why is this all important?  The way that diamonds are graded varies from Gem lab to Gem lab e.g. GIA use a scale of 5 grades from Excellent to Poor, AGS use a numerical scale from 0 – 10 (0 being highest) This leaves us as consumers with a very complicated system that is not standardised over all laboratories.  The grade that is assigned to the stone is a combination of factors, Brilliance, graded against the amount of light reflected out of a diamond, Fire, graded against the splitting of light in the colours of the spectrum and finally the Scintillation, this is the prettiest as it is graded by the amount of sparkle, life and fire within the stone when it is moved. Once these have been graded the overall quality of the cut dependant on the polish, symmetry and proportions are all factored together to produce a final grade(s).So what can happen if the stone is not the highest grade?  Well a few things can happen….  Firstly it would be cheaper, as the saying goes you get what you pay for, although ironically often a worse cut stone would be a larger carat weight, however I’ll cover that later.  So with diamonds I can say the size does not matter!  The perfect proportions for a diamond actually tend to make the stone look larger as the stone is not as deep but is approximately the same width at the girdle.  A stone that is too deep would tend to loose light from the pavillion facets (these are the facets at the back of the diamond).  The cut has a direct affect on the return of light and thus the brilliance of the stone.  Hearts on Fire have an image on their website that shows this perfectly.

Why have I covered the Cut first?  Quite simply this is what a diamond is all about, especially if it is a brilliant cut.  A diamond, cut depending, should be bright, sparkly and full of life.  This is why I said earlier that you should not buy a piece of paper, you need to visit a jeweller as diamonds have the ability to ‘speak’ to the wearer.  This is probably why they have been so popular as tokens of love and used in bridal jewellery for many years.  Every hand cut diamond is unique, the overriding vast majority of stones cut today are still hand cut, no two stones will ever be exactly the same.  This adds to the intrinsic beauty of a diamond.

At Dipples we are proud to deal with many diamond dealers, who I am sure would favour the quality of cut over the other C’s.  Please visit either store to see our large selection of diamonds!  Oh and did I mention we have the world’s most perfectly cut diamonds in store?  Hearts on Fire!  These are the benchmark that we use to help us choose the brightest and prettiest diamonds in Norfolk! !

GPS Timekeeping from Seiko

A first in watches!  This year at the Basel Watch and Jewellery fair, Seiko showed something that has never been seen before.  If you  want really precise timekeeping, wherever you are on the planet, this is the only watch for you. Introducing the Seiko GPS Solar powered Astron watch, it doesn’t even need a battery.

There are already various types of watch that receive time information from external sources: Radio-controlled, Digital GPS and others, but… 

Only the new Seiko ASTRON delivers what  everyone really wants: A self-powering watch that is accurate in every time zone.

To make a GPS watch, Seiko devised a system that breaks the planet up into 1 million squares and, from this database, it is able to calculate the time zone of the watch.  Unlike some other watches, in particular Radio controlled ones, the Astron is able to be ajusted on the move wherever you are.  It can update the time in 6 seconds and in ideal conditions will adjust the time zone in 30 seconds, a Radio controlled watch can take up to 120 seconds.  It does however share the same accuracy as a radio controlled watch which is to 1 second every 100,000 years

So what does it do?  Well, the Astron recognises 39 different time zones It has a perpetual calendar so the date is always accurate, even in leap years, up to February 2100.  For ‘Summer Time’ or ‘Daylight Saving Time’ you only need to press a button.  Whilst travelling on planes Seiko added a ‘Flight Mode’ switch, so it can’t interrupt any of a planes systems.

 A few facts and figures about GPS and more….
 
The current GPS network is composed of 24 satellites in earth orbit at a height of 20,000 km.  Four satellites orbit in each of six orbital planes.  There are about eight other satellites orbiting as ‘reserves’.  Each GPS satellite contains an atomic clock. By sending the signal that contains both its orbit position and the time, the satellite allows the receiver to pinpoint its position.

UTC (Coordinated Universal Time) was established in 1972. It is the world’s agreed standard of time, and replaced GMT.  UTC’s accuracy is guaranteed by a time standard called International Atomic Time which is calculated as a weighted average of time signals from about 300 atomic clocks around the world.

As international travel and communication developed in the 19th century, 24 time zones were agreed, each representing 15 degrees of the earth’s surface.  Today, national governments decide the time zone that best suits them, so the number of time zones in the world is not fixed. And not all time zones are one hour; Kathmandu is five hours and forty five minutes ahead of UTC. Delhi is five and a half hours ahead.  The 39 zones in the database of Astron offer the fullest coverage in any watch today.

The Seiko Astron watches will be available in late 2012.

Pearls of wisdom

Pearls – Up until fairly recently only Royalty and the rich and famous were able to wear them. However this all changed when it was discovered how to culture pearls.

Pearls are the oldest of the known gems, the oldest being the Jomon Pearl  (at approximately 5,500 years old). This pearl was named after the Jomon era in ancient Japanese history (10,000 – 300BC).  More recently pearls have been drunk after being crushed into a glass of wine by Thomas Gresham, to win a bet with the Spanish Ambassodor.  He hosted the costlier feast in honour of Queen Elizabeth.This pearl was valued at around £15,000!

Although most people believe that Mikimoto developed the cultured pearl, it was in fact initially developed by British biologist William Saville-Kent who later shared his ideas with the Japenese.  I have to thank my father for this titbit of information as it was mentioned in a book he read. ‘Kate Summerscale‘s book The Suspicions of Mr Whicher‘  Something that we had not been aware of before!

Today, most pearls are farmed rather than caught in the wild.  They can be classed into two different categories; firstly, Akoya, South Sea and Tahitian, which are all beaded cultured pearls.  Beaded means that a bead, often of Mother-of-pearl, is inserted into  the oyster.  It is then left for varying lengths of time, depending on the size of pearl that you wish to achieve. The second group are non-beaded, freshwater pearls and, for this method of cultivating pearls, a small piece of organic material is implanted into the mantle (the inside edge of the oyster or mussel).  These are often called Biwa or Chinese pearls.

Today, primarily, we deal with a London based pearl company that has some of the highest grade,  quality pearls you can find.  I remember a few years ago I was told about a fantastic pearl necklace that took years to assemble as this company wanted each pearl to be a perfect match for shape, colour and size yet still have brilliant lustre.  We now have a selection of pearls from both the Takara and Yoko ranges.  You can find out a little bit on these pearls on our website. Click here for Yoko pearls and here for Takara.

Choosing the pearls that we stock can be very challenging for us not to mention when our extensive range is viewed.  To choose pearls for necklaces, we look at bundles of 10 or more in 16″ lengths.  All the lengths of a bundle are of similar quality.  The main qualities we look for when choosing round pearls (of which these form the main part of our selection), are the shape and lustre of the pearls.  The overall finish is also important but pearls take on a ‘life of their own’ when they have great lustre.  This sheen is what makes pearls famous.

When choosing pearls – especially white/cream pearls – it is important to have a white background that you can place them on.  This helps you to see the differing colours and hues, that all pearls have.  It is also important to try the pearls on, or at least hold them to your skin, as the pearls may need to have whiter or creamier/yellower tones so as to be complimentary.

If you already have pearl jewellery in your collection, remember that it is often possible to match the quality and colour of pearls to the ones you have.  Although it can take time to find the right colour and, if the pearls are old or have been well worn, it may be that it is almost impossible to find exactly the same colour.

Freshwater pearls originally had a bad press because of the poor general shape and lustre.  This has now largely been overcome and due to the way they are produced has allowed a large selection of pearls at prices that would have been unbelievable, only 10 years ago.

Finally, when wearing pearls remember the mantra, ‘last items on, first items off’.  Pearls will naturally absorb perfumes etc. and, to keep them in best condition, they should be wiped with a very slightly damp and soft cloth when being stored after wearing.

We have a large range of pearl jewellery in both stores.

In another blog post, I shall be looking into the differing types of pearls.

Thanks for reading!

Diamonds – are they a girl’s best friend?

Diamonds….. are a girl’s best friend, or so the saying goes!  However they really should be as they can be one of the prettiest gemstones and generally are hard wearing.

Diamonds are one of the oldest gemstones on the planet, formed between 900 million and 4.25 billion years ago!  Diamonds can be said to last forever, formed at temperatures of around 1000 °C, a pressure of 50,000 bar and about 100 miles beneath the surface!  They are then carried to the surface in volcanic eruptions in Kimberlite magmas. Kimberlite was named after the town of Kimberley in South Africa where a large 83 carat diamond was discovered in 1871.

For over 3000 years, we have come to see a diamond as an item that is to be treasured.  In India, where they were first discovered it is thought that they had uses for both decoration and also for protection from evil spirits.  Diamonds have even been used in medicine. During the middle ages diamonds were believed to change colour in the presence of poisons and they were even eaten!  Pope Clement was given diamond dust to help cure him of his illness although, surprisingly, this did not work and in 1534 he died.

India was the main diamond producer in the world for many years and, when it became harder to find diamonds, small deposits were found in Brazil and a few other locations these, however, were barely able to keep up with demand.  Then in the mid 1800’s a diamond was found in South Africa and the world’s biggest diamond rush started.  India, although no longer the world’s largest diamond producer, has over ½ a million people employed in diamond cutting and connected jobs. They primarily  cut only small stones, with diamond cutters, leaving Isreal, Russia and Amsterdam to cut the better and generally larger diamonds.

It has been known, for many years, that diamonds are very hard wearing.  The old fashioned test, that was used to see if a stone was a diamond, was to hit it with a hammer. Unfortunately, people did not realise that diamonds can be cleaved which means that, at a certain point, the stone can split into two parts.  Many good diamonds were smashed and thrown away because of this.  Cleaving a diamond was pretty much the best way to facet a diamond as it only required a chisel and hammer.  Being able to hit it in the right spot, meant that the diamond would then only need rudimentary polishing of facets.  For the first two hundred years of diamond cutting, up until the 1400’s, fairly simple cuts were made which left the stone rather dark and dull.  During this time, coloured stones were still the most popular, because they looked prettier.  From the 1400’s to the early 1900’s improvements in the tools used to cut diamonds, meant that cutting became better and more complicated, improving the look of the stone.

At Dipples, we have sold diamonds for over 100 years on the Swan Lane site. We have seen the industry through its high’s and low’s.  Over the last 100 years, diamond cutting has changed considerably as science and machinery now work together.  In 1919 Marcel Tolkowsky developed the American Standard cut. At the time, this was the benchmark cut in North America. Later, versions on this cut would be developed although they all benefited from Marcel’s original discovery that if a diamond was cut too deep or too shallow, the light could escape from the sides or bottom of the diamond. This would then result in a loss of brilliance and fire from the top of the diamond.  The modern brilliant cut is a derivative of this cut.  We are proud to deal with the Hearts on Fire Diamond Company who cut the world’s most perfectly cut diamonds.  Without Marcel, however, who knows what shape we would be cutting diamonds in today.  Hearts on Fire takes Marcel’s original design and using the latest technology, releases the brilliance that all their diamonds can have.

Later on, we will focus on the grading of Diamonds, and hopefully make it all easier to understand.  But we’d also like to point out that grading is only subjective and it is always best to view a diamond, rather than just see it on a piece of paper.

Valuations – Why do you need one?

This is a question that many of our customers ask us.  Well, the simplest answer is that an up to date valuation lets you know what the current cost to, replace an item, is.  This is the one area that is hardest for any consumer to know definitively. It is however what we handle everyday – gems and jewellery etc!  By handling such items, every day, we are able to keep up with price changes, which can sometimes be quite extreme.   The price of gold is still at near record highs, whilst the price of platinum is also above its long term average.  The price increases have been most extreme over the last 6+ years.  It does mean that your items will be correctly valued at current market price, which will also ensure you are not under or over insured.  The overwhelming majority of valuations are carried out assuming that the valuation is required for Insurance of items which would be covered under a household insurance policy on a new for old basis, either as listed items or just for your own piece of mind.  Valuations can be carried out for Probate, Second Hand Replacement Value, Sale Between Parties, Auction Sale and other less used reasons.

This is one of the reasons why we run valuation days.  We get external experts to visit our Norwich store and carry out independent appraisals, of your item(s), on the spot, so that you do not have to send them away.

Secondly, if an item is appraised, the condition of it is noted.  If you wear a ring every day, for years, and the claws are starting to show signs of wearing thin, would you notice it?  When an item is brought in for appraisal, one of the first checks is its condition.  If a claw is worn or missing, and you lost a diamond because of it, will you be able to claim for a new one?  When an item is valued, points like these would be noted on the schedule.  We always like to carry out repairs prior to the valuation, so the item(s) are in as good a condition as possible.

Thirdly, do you remember what the item looks like if you lost it?  An item of jewellery that you wear every day may be a one off piece or something that we may have in stock. But, if it has stones in it, do you know what the difference is between a ¼, ⅓ and a ½ carat?  What about the weight of metal in a 9ct bracelet? Was the piece hollow or solid?  Facts like these and many besides help us to ensure we get the right item, for a quote, for you, if  something was  ever to happen to your jewellery, if it was damaged, lost, or worse.  We often have items in stock that look very similar and yet are slightly different.  This can make a huge difference to the price we give you, for a claim.  When a valuation is carried out, it should give a detailed and full description of the item(s) and show qualities, sizes and types of metal, along with any distinguishing features.  The more information that can be supplied by the valuer, the easier this is.

Fourthly, do you own the item? A valuer has to be able to inspect the item to give a detailed description of it. All of our valuations now have at least one colour photograph of each item attached to them (this also helps with the third point above).  If you have an heirloom that has been passed down your family for 2, 3 or more generations, you are highly unlikely to have a receipt, and, although we keep extensive records, we are not always able to trace back that far! 

Finally, if you are able to, you should keep copies of all documentation, receipts and certificates that come with anything you buy.  Quite often, Insurance companies give a single item limit below which you may not have to have everything listed.  I would suggest checking this with your insurers, and if there is any doubt, get them valued.  For everything else you should take lots of photos!

Barring exceptional circumstances a valuation should be carried out approximately every five years.

If you have any further questions please contact us!

Dipples

Tivon Fine Jewellery

In what I hope is going to be a regular feature within this blog, I have asked one of the companies we deal with to tell us a bit about themselves….

 

TIVON FINE JEWELLERY

A FAMILY COMPANY WITH OVER 45 YEARS OF EXCELLENCE!

With uncompromising standards, the beauty of TIVON’s creations radiates PURE LUXURY. Using only the finest gems with the finest life, lustre and purity, TIVON’s gems are specially faceted to ensure their beauty speaks volumes. Many designs are unique and hand-crafted by master craftsmen.

TIVON often features ‘Limited Edition’ pieces or ‘One-off’ creations, as the gemstones used are often so unique and so rare, this alone increases the value and exclusivity of the pieces.

A speciality of TIVON is their TIVON TANZANITE ROYALE ® collection.

Tanzanite – an intense violet-blue gemstone of unparalleled beauty and rarity – is only found in one place in the world – Tanzania. Since its launch in 1967 by Manhattan’s Tiffany & Company, it has become one of the world’s most popular and most sought-after coloured gemstones but by avid fans as well as investors and collectors. With an estimated 10-12 years left of mining until the main Tanzanite mine is completely exhausted, Tanzanite has been dubbed the HEIRLOOM GEMSTONE.

It has also been named as the NEWDECEMBER BIRTHSTONE.

TIVON selects only the finest specimens of Tanzanite ensuring that the quality is truly GEM QUALITY!

Tanzanite selected by TIVON is all specially faceted and cut to ensure maximum life, beauty and richness of the gemstone. Designs are kept exclusive and with only the best materials and gemstones being used, TIVON has ensured that our customers’ purchases measures up to its mantra –

FINE QUALITY, ENDURING VALUE!

Dipples in 2012

So Dipples blog!…..  In this post I am going to say a little about where we are now as a fifth generation business.  I (Chris) am the manager of the Norwich store, my step-mother Angela runs the Dereham store and my father, Rodney (fourth generation) owns the business.

We have 2 stores, one in Norwich city centre and the other in Dereham.  As the locations are so different so are the ranges that we carry.  My father has always had the mantra, that he tried to stock whatever was the ‘best in class’.  Thirty years ago when the Dereham store (which at that time was trading under his name, R Ellis) we became the first stockist of Swarovski crystal (now widely regarded as one of the best crystals in the world) in Norfolk.  Now many jewellers would not have considered a brand such as Swarovski as ‘suitable’ for a ‘proper’ jewellery store, but when you look at quantities sold, I am sure they would have re-considered!!!  Coming back to the present we stock Pandora charms in our Dereham store.  Over the last few years prior to the recession and trouble times most jewellers tried to introduce more upmarket items while stopping the starting prices…. So who would’ve wanted a silver bead company to be in store….  Well the answer to that is now MOST jewellers.  How times have changed.  We also stock Chamiliacharms in both the Norwich and Dereham stores, Pandora is only available in the Dereham branch.

In the Norwich store, we have been working hard to establish ourselves as the pre-eminent Diamond store in the East of England.  We have the world’s most Perfectly cut diamonds (Hearts on Fire), Perfect Colour D diamonds (CanDour) and probably the prettiest fancy diamonds (Mastercut), these sit alongside our large range of diamond jewellery that we source from the UK and beyond.  Hearts on Fire diamonds are also available from the Dereham store. Hearts on Fire and Mastercut are exlcusive to us in Norfolk, and CanDour is exclusive to us in Norwich.

Thanks for reading

Chris

Welcome!

Welcome to Dipples blog!  The main aim of this blog is to showcase what we do, the history of Dipples and the brands that we deal with.  I am also hoping to be able to add much more information on the watches, jewellery, gemstones and other items we have to aid purchases…. Hopefully with us.

Here’s hoping you enjoy what gets added.

Dipples