Does the thought of purchasing a diamond ring overwhelm you? Here are some buying tips to help you...

A jeweler tells you, "This is a blue-white diamond."
This is a very old term that is now carefully controlled by the FTC because of misuse and scams in the past. The dealer will probably tell you that it is a better diamond, but actually it is just the opposite. Blue-white refers to the fluorescence that results in natural light, which contains ultraviolet wavelengths. This blue fluorescence actually makes a colorless diamond look a little oily or milky in sunlight and decreases its value. However, for stones with a faint yellow color, a moderate amount of fluorescence can make it look whiter because it cancels some of the yellow.

The tag only states the CTW
Many jewelry tags only list the "carat total weight" of diamonds in a ring and do not list the center stone separately. You can't compare prices with another ring if you don't know the weight and quality of the main diamond. This is crucial because one large diamond is worth much more than 6 small ones that total the same weight. For instance, if you have one G/VS2 diamond weighing 1.00 carat, it might be worth about $5,500. But 10 smaller G/VS2 diamonds totalling 1.00 carats might only be worth about $1,800. Big difference! And normally, smaller diamonds at such stores are much lower quality than this example, so the actual ring would be worth still less.

Huge Sales at Jewelry Stores
If you see a sale price in the newspaper, don't fall for it. You will probably pay much more than the regular price at an honest dealer. We know of a major store in Florida that marked gold chains up from $100 cost to $500 regular price, then marked them half-price during a sale. That means the customer paid $250, thinking it was a great price. This same thing happens with diamonds on sale. Liquidation and "going out of business" sales are usually no different. We heard of one store in New York City that has been going out of business for 15 years.

The advertised diamond is sold when you get there
This is an old trick still used by many stores. Although outlawed by the FTC, it still happens because it is hard to monitor 25,000 stores in the U.S. Bait-and-Switch is when a store advertises a diamond at a great price, but when you arrive to buy it, it's already sold. They usually offer to show you something much more expensive. They bait you with the fake item, then switch you to something at a high profit.

You could avoid all these problems by working with a Diamond Broker. By working through an established broker you are able to make a purchase directly without entailing the significantly increased mark up prices that retailers have to make to cover overheads, staffing costs and profit margins. You either save money or get more for your money!

For more information please check my website on www.diamondsbyappointment.org

Diamonds as Investment

The main reason diamonds are the best investment is that the diamond industry is a monopoly that has controlled the price for the past fifty years. Emeralds used to be controlled to some extent from Columbia but that ended in 1998. In Brazil, you have small, coloured stone mines that will sell their merchandise for the best price they can get if and when they need the money. I’ve seen some coloured stone prices drop by 50% in the past five years. Diamonds, however, are controlled, with the price of “rough uncut diamonds” going up at least 20% per year to site holders. There are fewer than 100 site holders in the world who are allowed to buy diamond rough only 10 times per year. They, in turn, manufacture the rough into cut and polished diamonds that are then sold in your local jewellery stores.

Diamonds, are normally not considered an immediate, short-term investment if you buy them from a retail jewellery store. They are only a good, solid investment if you can buy them directly from the rock-bottom, wholesale source. If you’re looking for an investment in diamonds, this means you will have to deal with a wholesaler who can buy directly from the Diamond Trading Company (DTC). Then you have a controlled investment that will be scheduled to increase on the wholesale level at 20% per year.

If you would like to buy a diamond, wether for investment or a gift, please contact me and I will make it happen. For additional info, please visit my website at www.diamondsbyappointment.org