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For jewelry artists, it iss an opportunity to sell work that has become difficult to place at price-conscious mainstream jewelry stores. For the public, it iss a chance to buy innovative jewelry that they might otherwise never have seen. And for the savvy retailer -- be it a gallery owner or just an independent jeweler looking for something to set her store apart from the crowd -- it iss a great place to find new sources.... (2005) Complete Story
Ginseng, green tea, and herb and oil extracts are just a few of the main ingredients in millions of cosmetics on the market today. And now pearls have entered the picture in a bigger way, hoping to take the cosmetics industry by storm. But the use of pearls in cosmetics is not a new concept. For thousands of years, people in Asia, especially in China and Japan, have been using pearl powder as a natural remedy to maintain the appearance of youthful skin. It has also been used in traditional Chinese medicine as a dietary supplement, usually in capsule form, to supply the body with amino acids and minerals.... (2005) Complete Story
This is an exciting era for gemologists. High-tech analytical techniques now make it possible to identify trace elements, treatments, and origins of colored stones that could only be guessed at decades ago. For example, when the gem world was rocked last fall by mysterious, processed orange sapphires coming out of Chanthaburi, the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) relied on two of these high-tech procedures - Laser Ablation Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) and Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (SIMS) - to discover what elements could be causing the surface color.... (2002) Complete Story
From early history through modern times, gemstones and jewelry have played a vital role in India's culture. Forget diamonds. An Indian woman's best friend is most likely to be her ruby ring, or the string of pearls her mother gave her for her tenth birthday, or perhaps the giant garnet earrings that have been family heirlooms for over six generations. India's love affair with precious gems dates back thousands of years. It could be said to have reached its peak in the Mughal era.... (2004) Complete Story
The most widely-used gemstone exploration techniques today are ground-penetrating radar, known as GPR; trace-element analysis, which involves seeking signature elements as clues to where gems may lie; and use of a device called a 'terra thumper,' which identifies differences in the structure of the host rock through seismic analysis. GPR has proven useful in providing subsurface mapping of potential gem-bearing pockets, or 'vugs,' but the readings can be confused by moisture in the ground, and they can't separate gem-bearing pockets from the non-gem-bearing ones.... (2002) Complete Story
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