5 Essential Characteristics of Gemstones:

Color

The color of a gemstone is its most significant characteristic, and many jewelers consider it to be the most vital evaluation criterion. Gemstones are found in all the colors, one can imagine, Color of a gemstone depends on the following three characteristics: hue, saturation, and tone.

Hue

Hue is the basic or unique color of the gemstone. In other words, hue is described as the shade, tint or sensation of a color. While almost all gemstones have some shades of other colors, the most valuable gemstones are those that exhibit a pure color and only ‘slight’ hues of other colors in addition to their primary color.

Saturation

Saturation is a measure of the intensity or purity of a gem's hue or color. A gemstone that is free of gray or brown hues is considered to be strongly saturated and is more valuable than a gemstone with lower saturation. Saturation often decides the cut of a gemstone. A high-quality gemstone cut delivers an even color throughout the stone and exposes the fewest inclusions.

Tone

Tone represents the depth of a gemstone color, ranging from colorless to black. In other words, tone is described as the relative lightness or darkness of a Hue. Gemstone tone is described as ‘light’, ‘medium-light’, ‘medium’, ‘medium-dark’, and ‘dark’. Medium-light to medium-dark tone is considered as the most valuable range.

All the above three characteristics are associated with each other and play a very crucial role in determining the gemstone’s color. The more intense the color, more is the value. This does not mean darker, but intense.

Clarity

Clarity is a term used to describe the absence or presence of flaws inside or on the surface of a gemstone. A flawless gemstone is rare and usually expensively priced. Most gemstones have inclusions, or tiny mineral flaws, that can be seen under magnification or by the careful eye. A gemstone may have inclusions, cracks, spots, clouds, or any other blemish or imperfection.

Clarity is a key factor in determining the quality and the value of a gemstone. Inclusions not only distract the eye but interfere with the behavior of light in the gem and have a significant effect on brilliance or sparkle. Generally, most minerals contain inclusions and spots but if they do not affect the durability of colored gems then these inclusions or spots will not devalue much for the gems except diamond. 

For diamonds, Clarity Grade Scale from F (flawless) to I3 (included 3) is used whereas for other colored gemstones a different grading scale is used. Colored stones have different habits of clarity so that they are classified into three ‘Types’, which are defined as under:

GEMSTONE CARE:

Care

Gemstones are generally hard and durable in nature but due to our day-to-day activities, it is expected that our gemstone jewelry get dirty and soiled. Even gems can be scratched, chipped or dulled if not handled correctly. With proper care, they can last a lifetime and can even be handed down as heirlooms to future generations without losing their shine and sparkle. Organic gems like pearls, amber, and coral require special care because they are porous.

Caring For your Diamonds:

Diamonds are remarkably durable, resist scratching (except by other diamonds) and maintain their brilliance over time. But diamonds aren’t indestructible. They can be chipped by a sharp blow, become loose or lost in a weakened setting, or be damaged by contact with other diamonds. Wear diamond jewelry with care. Store it in padded boxes or soft bags separate from other jewelry. Clean your jewelry by wiping it with a lint-free cloth or with warm water, mild soap and a soft toothbrush, or by dipping it briefly in a commercial cleaning solution. Have your diamond jewelry periodically cleaned and its setting examined by a professional jeweler to maintain its beauty and integrity over time.

Here are some tips that will help you to preserve the life and beauty of your gemstone Jewelry: 

Cleaning of Colored Gemstone Jewelry

Regular cleaning of Gemstone Jewelry is essential to maintain shine and brilliance of gems. On wearing them, they get dirty as you use various skin and body care regimens such as soaps, lotions, and even our skin's natural oils. Even when you are not wearing them, they collect dust. If you are cleaning your gemstone jewelry by your own then it will take few minutes to clean the same but before cleaning, you must be aware of the cleaning at home and cleaning by a professional jeweler:

To clean gemstone jewelry, first, wipe it with a soft cloth to remove any dirt. You can use a small soft brush such as an eyebrow or lip stick brush, soap, and water to clean your gemstone jewelry. Do not use toothpaste or any other abrasive cleaner on stones or mounting. Simply make a bowl of warm sudsy water with a mild detergent and gently place your jewelry pieces in the mixture. Never use boiling or hot water to clean gems. Then brush the gemstones with the soft bristles of the brush while they are in the suds. You will need to make certain that you rinse them clear of the suds after cleaning them. After this process, use a soft cloth or a jewelry polish cloth to pat them dry.

You can also use liquid jewelry cleaners which are sold by many department stores. You can find these liquid jewelry cleaners in kit form. You just need to follow all the written precautions and instructions of cleaning. But a Home Ultrasonic Cleaner should be used with extreme caution. It can be used to clean ruby, sapphire, diamond, iolite, amethyst, citrine, garnets, iolite, chrysoberyl, and unadorned gold jewelry but it may damage gems like emerald, pink tourmaline, peridot, pearls, coral, lapis lazuli, malachite, turquoise, and any gem that has many inclusions. When in doubt, don’t use it.

It is also a good idea to have them cleaned once a year by a professional jeweler, where he will check the security of the settings. He will also give advice for repair of loose or bent prongs which hold your gemstones in place. This will prevent your gem from falling out of its setting and becoming lost. The jeweler will usually give your gemstone a professional ‘shine and polish’. 

Nowadays ultrasonic cleaning machines are available to clean jewelry by bombarding it with sound waves. This vibration shakes off dirt, but the vibrations can also cause damage to the gemstone, especially brittle stones like emeralds. Any stone inclusions can be greatly enlarged by the shaking, making the gem less attractive and valuable. For the gemstones, caution is recommended when using the ultrasonic cleaners. 

Storing of Colored Gemstone Jewelry

Storing of gemstone jewelry is also important as a gem can scratch another gem, as well as other jewelry pieces. Storage of gemstone jewelry needs following precautions:

Gemstone jewelry should be stored individually in a soft cloth pouch to ensure that a gem should not scratch other gems or other jewelry.

Gemstone jewelry pieces are best stored in a fabric-lined jewel case or in a box with compartments or dividers. 

Wearing Precautions for Colored Gemstone Jewelry

You should not wear gemstone jewelry while playing sports, working on heavy equipment or relaxing in a pool or spa (especially if you are in chlorine regularly). The gemstone can be chipped by a hard blow, and even everyday activity can loosen jewelry setting.

The 4 C's of The Diamond

After the mid-20^th Century, the 4C’s of Diamond Quality envisaged by the GIA, Gemological Institute of America became the universal method for assessing the quality of any diamond, anywhere in the world. The creation of the Diamond 4Cs meant two very important things: diamond quality could be communicated in a universal language, and diamond customers could now know exactly what they were about to purchase. Here is how it works:

Diamond Cut:
A Diamond Cut varies from a diamond to diamond and how cutters choose to shape, facet and polish the diamond. Experts consider cut to be the most important out of the 4Cs because the brilliance and fire of a diamond depend greatly on its cut. For example, an ideal cut diamond is a round, brilliant, or princess cut diamond that is cut to ideal proportions and angles and has excellent polish and symmetry. An ideal cut diamond reflects almost all the light that enters it and is among the rarest cuts.

Diamond Color:
The highest quality diamonds are colorless, while those of lower quality have noticeable color, which manifests as pale yellow in diamonds. The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) grades diamond color on a scale of D (colorless) to Z (light yellow or brown).

Diamond Clarity:
Diamond clarity is the quality of diamonds that relates to the existence and visual appearance of internal characteristics of a diamond called inclusions, and surface defects, called blemishes. Diamonds with higher clarity grades are more valued, with the exceedingly rare "Flawless" graded diamond fetching the highest price. Minor inclusions or blemishes are useful, as they can be used as unique identifying marks analogous to fingerprints. Clarity Grades are from F (Flawless) to I3 (Included)

Ring Size Guide:

Turn this twine or rope piece or a thread around your ring finger, or the finger of which you want to measure the ring size of. Then, place the measured twine length against a measuring scale as shown in the image below. Check out to ascertain your ring size for the finger that you want. 



A Simple Ring Sizing Guide Design to figure out your Ring Size!

Free Shipping

We offer fast and free shipping on every order. Please see below for more info on Priority Orders, etc.

Insured Packaging

Our insured shipping box won't give away what's inside.

Shipping and Delivery Information

Shipping Methods 

Shipping times are subject to unforeseen circumstances, such as weather delays.

Shipping Service

Normal Shipping  -  Delivery time; 10 to 15 days

DHL 4-Day Delivery  -  FREE for orders above $500, $25 for orders below $500

FedEx 2-Day   -  $50 For Orders Under $499
                          FREE for orders $500 and above

Packaging Details

Each jewelry item will arrive in a soft fabric bag or a box inside a VanityVibe gift box. For Clothing and accessories, it will be packaged in secure packaging, mostly with branded packaging.