Sapphire is a gemstone with which many are familiar.  Most admire the rich royal blue that typifies the finest, most desirable sapphires.  Fewer people are aware of another unique attribute of the sapphire.  Sapphire comes in a great array of other colors, with the exception of red.  Sapphire is in the Corundum species of gemstones.  Red Corundum is called ruby.  Any other color of corundum is classified as sapphire.  In fact, jewelers have made sapphire bracelets with all the colors of the rainbow.

Ancient sorcerers used sapphire to foretell the future, cleanse the soul, determine fidelity and even ground it into a powder to stop bleeding.  They believed that a sapphire would not shine if worn by an evil person.

The sapphires that we carry at Pierce Jewelers may not foretell the future, but they will make any recipient proud to wear.  Sapphires are found in many parts of the world, Sri-Lanka,Kashmir,Australia,Africa,Thailand,Burmaand even the United States of America.  The United States sapphires are generally found in Montana.

Come see us and the different and vibrant colors of sapphire that we stock.

First, we can cover natural pearls vs. cultured pearls.  Natural pearls are pearls formed by chance.  Cultured pearls have been given a helping hand by man.  Today, nearly all pearls are cultured.  By inserting a round, clam shell bead, into an oyster, (a process called nucleation), pearl farmers can induce the creation of a pearl.  From there, the same process of natural pearl creation occurs.  The difference is that in this case, the inducement is intentional.

Cultured pearls can only be distinguished from natural pearls through the use of x-rays, which reveal the inner part of the pearl.

This pearl culturing process was invented in Japan in the late 1800’s and was actually patented in 1916.  This first process was done with salt water “Akoya” oysters making what we now call “Akoya Cultured Pearls”.  This process revolutionized the pearl industry.  Now high quality and round pearls can be produced in a quantity that makes them affordable.

The next major development in cultured pearls was the creation of fresh water cultured pearls in china in the 1980-90’s.

Fresh water cultured pearls differ from salt water cultured pearls, in that they are formed in a fresh water mussel.  The other major difference is that the great majority of them are not bead nucleated.  Instead of a round shell bead as the center of the pearl, a 3mm square piece of “mantle” tissue from another mussel is used.  This mantle tissue dissolves away and leaves a pearl that is solid within.

The main advantage of fresh water cultured pearls is that each mussel can produce 24 to 30 pearls, thus making, them much more affordable.

Generally speaking, freshwater cultured pearls are not as round as saltwater pearls, and they may not have the same sharp luster and shine an Akoya cultured pearls.

Here at Pierce Jewelers we carry not only salt water Akoya cultured pearls and freshwater cultured pearls, but also many other styles and types of pearls.  Stop by and we can teach you about our pearls.

Aquamarine is a interesting gemstone. Few people know that its closest cousin (gemologically speaking) is emerald. That’s because both stones are in the beryl family of gemstones. When beryl is green it is called emerald, and when it is blue-green it is called aquamarine. There are other colors of beryl and each has its own name.

Aquamarine is a great stone not only for jewelry but also for gem collectors. Collectors like it because it is available in very large sizes. Ten, twenty even one hundred carats stones.

For jewelry use it is a wonderful stone because of its clarity. It is commonly found flawless even under ten power magnification. In fact, as a rule, any aquamarine used in jewelry will be flawless.

The color range for aquamarine is more narrow than other gemstones. It should be a light blue to a blue-green color and generally light to medium in tone. With the darker colors being more desirable and valuable.

Aquamarine is generally faceted but sometimes cut as a cabachon. Over the last ten years the quality of colored stone cutting has improved greatly. One way to judge the cutting quality is to look through the table (the top) of the stone to judge if you can look through the stone. If it was set in a ring you would see your finger through the stone. Those stones have what we call "see Through ojr Window" and are less desirable.

Aquamarine is commonly cut into rectangular emerald cut or oval shapes. In any shape look for stones that are bright and lively. At Pierce Jewelers we have aquamarines that have been cut by international award winning cutters.

Most aquamarine is mined in Brazil, Nigeria, Zambia and Madagascaar. Most aquamarine is heated in its rough (uncut or polished) state to deepen its color. This enhancement is undetectable and is permendent.

Let’s talk about some of the different species of garnets. Most people are familiar with Pyrope garnets. This is the common medium to dark red garnet that is used in birthstone jewelry, class rings and fashion jewelry. This gemstone is found in Australia, and South Africa.

Another great garnet is Rhodolite garnet. This gemstone has a wonderful and lively medium to dark purplish red color. Rhodolite can be cut into larger sizes, sometimes up to eight carats. These stones are commonly mined from Sri Lanka, Tanzania and Zimbabwe.

Another really awesome garnet is Tsavorite garnet. This garnet often surprises customers. It is a bright medium to dark green color that has the fire and life of a fine diamond. It is truly unique as it does not look like an emerald, tourmaline or jade.

Hessonite garnet is another stone that catches customer attention. It is similar to the tsavorite except is a wonderful yellow-orange to reddish color, that doesn’t look like any other gemstone. Both the Tsavorite and Hessonite garnets are mined from Sri Lanka, Kenya, and Tanzania.

The last garnet we will cover is Spessartite garnet. This stone is a transparent yellowish orange color and is cut in sizes from one carat to eight carats. This is the only garnet where small visible inclusions are typical in gem quality stones. This garnet is found in Brazil, and Sri Lanka.

As you can see, garnets have a great and fun range of colors, from red, purple, green, and yellow. Additionally there is no known color or quality enhancements to garnets, so the color you see in your stone is how the stone looked when it was discovered in the mine. All this and the great value that they command make garnets of any type one of our recommended gemstones.

Fluorescence in diamonds is caused by sub-microscopic particles in the stones that react to ultraviolet light, not only “black lights” but also sunlight. Diamonds can fluoresce bluish-white in color, as well as yellow or even green in color. Fluorescence can be an identifying feature of a stone.

We’re often asked if fluorescence affects the beauty and value of a diamond. The effect is two-fold. Blue fluorescence can help mask the color of a diamond that has yellow body color, however, if it is very strong, or a diamond is very white, fluorescence can make the diamond appear hazy or dirty, as in the case of the diamond above. This can cause a diamond with yellow body color to appear whiter, which enhances the value, while a white diamond which appears hazy or dirty may be considered to have less value.

Come in to Pierce Jewelers and see if any of your diamonds fluoresce!

Jewelry bought in the marketplace is not pure or 24 karat or "fine" gold. The "gold" jewelry you buy is gold mixed, or "alloyed" with other metals to make the jewelry stronger. 24 karat, or fine gold is too soft to be durable for everyday wear. The amount of gold in a piece is determined by its karat number. For example, 18 karat gold is 18 parts or 75% fine gold and 25% other metal or a mixture of other metals.

The alloying process is not only for strength, but it also allows for different colors of gold. For example: platinum, palladium, nickel and zinc in various combinations and quantities are alloys used with fine gold to make "white" gold, while copper and silver are alloys used with fine gold to make "rose" or "pink" gold.

All gold jewelry must be hallmarked, or have the karat number or percent gold stamped on it somewhere. The most common karat weights we see in gold jewelry are 10 karat, 14 karat and 18 karat. Look at your yellow and white gold rings and you should see 14K or 18K stamped on the inside. You may also see "585" which is the percentage for 14 karat gold, or "750" which is the percentage for 18 karat gold.

So, if you have old jewelry you are not wearing, bring it in to Pierce Jewelers. Who knows, it may be more valuable than you think!

Just because you have a Nickel allergy doesn’t mean you have to stop wearing jewelry. Fortunately, in recent years manufactures have come up with alternative alloys for white gold. Palladium is a noble metal from the platinum group, and does not cause allergic reactions. It is blended with Gold to create either 14kPd or 18kPd White Gold. At Pierce Jewelers we use 18k Palladium White Gold for it’s beauty, purity & durability.

If the difference between ones knuckle and finger is too large, we suggest adjustable shanks. Our Finger Fit and Super Fit ring shanks are hinged.

The Finger Fit shank has a hinge on each side of the ring and opens at the back of the ring. The ring can open to three sizes larger than the finger size. For example, if the base of the finger is a size 6 the knuckle can’t be any larger than a size 9.

If the difference between the knuckle and the base of the finger is larger than three sizes, then we recommend the Super Fit ring shank. The Super Fit has a hinge on one side of the ring and opens on the opposite side. Tight tolerances make the hinge mechanism virtually seamless and invisible. An audible snap sound ensures a solid close.

With each product the customer opens the shank of the ring and slips it over the knuckle. When the ring is on, they close it and the ring will be a perfect fit for the base of their finger, and It will not spin.

The pricing on these two items will vary depending upon the type and size of the shank as well as the karatage.

Please stop in, we’d be happy to help you or a loved one with an adjustable shank ring.

Let’s begin with PLATINUM. Platinum is a pure metal. A platinum ring has no alloys added to it except for other metals from the platinum group such as Ruthenium or Iridium. A platinum item of jewelry is stamped "Plat" if it is 95% pure platinum or "900 Plat" if it is 90% pure platinum.

When platinum is scratched none of the metal wears away. A scratch in platinum is like tracing your finger through the sand. The sand parts and all you have to do is rub your hand across it and the sand is smooth again. When platinum scratches the metal does not wear away, it only "moves". After time, when platinum wears and the high polish luster is gone it obtains what I call a "patina". Some people like this look. Platinum is a dense metal and it is 60% heavier than gold. We can polish platinum jewelry to bring back its bright shiny luster without loosing much metal. Platinum/Ruthenium 950 is our platinum metal of choice.

WHITE GOLD on the other hand is yellow gold with alloys, such as Nickel, added that make the yellow gold more white. In its rough state white gold is a soft yellow. Usually a deritive of platinum called "rhodium" is applied to the first layer of a white gold item to make it shiny and bright white. The rhodium layer wears off after time, usually due to the alkinity of the customer’s skin. Believe it of not, eating onions or tomatoes can change the skins alkinity and cause the rhodium to wear away faster. It is not a problem to re-rhodium an item of white gold jewelry, however we don’t want to do it too often because we have to polish the jewelry first. The more we polish a gold item, the faster the gold wears down.

In recent years, PALLADIUM, a sister metal of platinum, has been added to white gold (instead of other alloys such as Nickel). This "new white gold metal" does not need to be rhodium plated. Palladium white gold has a premium white color, has great depth and luster, excellent casting characteristics and under a jeweler’s tool acts more like platinum. It also maintains a bright white finish for a longer time than the old white gold and has a brilliant surface finish. Additionally, palladium has a 15% greater wear resistance over 14 karat white gold. 18k Palladium White gold is our white gold metal of choice.

Many variables in our surrounding can dull the shine of jewelry and precious gems: body lotion, perfume, hairspray, perspiration, or just simply, normal everyday wear.  Lotions and soap film are some of the more difficult materials to remove.

Always remove your jewelry when showering.  Never wear your jewelry in the ocean, pool or hot tub.  Avoid exposing your jewelry to abrasive substances such as household chemicals when cleaning with bleach or ammonia.  Never work in the garden or excersize at the gym with your jewelry.

A convenient way to clean your jewelry is to soak it overnight in a mixture of warm water and mild dishwashing detergent.  This will allow lotions and soap film to loosen.  The next morning, use a soft bristled tooth brush, along with warm water, and brush as well as possible to remove any scum build-up. Then, rinse well in hot water, pat dry with a clean cloth.  When you’re done cleaning your jewelry, be sure to dry it well to keep its brilliant shine.

For a more thourough cleaning, come in and see us.  With our professional Ultra Sonic and high powered Steamer, we can get the hard to reach areas clean that soaking and brushing cannot.  We’ll also polish & inspect your jewelry at no charge.