If you are thinking about giving someone, or yourself, a piece of jewelry as a gift, take the time to compare prices and the quality of the pieces you are considering.
Many jewelry pieces are an investment; so if you don’t know any trustworthy jewelers in your city, ask your family, friends, or colleagues for advice. Other types, like wholesale jewelry, are much more inexpensive and there are a lot of options to choose from.
If you plan to buy a jewel on the web, make sure you check the seller’s reputation with the Better Business Bureau or with the state attorney general’s office, before making an order. Print out the web pages that contain details about the transaction, including refund and return policies in case you are not happy with the purchase.
When you are looking around, ask the salesperson to write down any information that may be useful to you when making a decision, and check the store’s refund and return policy before buying any piece.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has provided a list of 5 things you have to pay attention to when buying gold, watches, gemstones, pearl, or diamond jewelry:
1.There is an important difference between 14-karat gold and gold-plated jewelry.
Fourteen-karat (14K) jewelry has 14 parts of gold merged with 10 parts of base metal.
Gold-plated jewelry has a layer of no less than 10K gold attached to a base metal. This layer sooner or later will wear out, depending on how often the piece is worn and how thick the layer is.
2.When you buy a watch, define if you want one that runs on a battery or one that has to be wound every day. Always ask if the piece has a warranty, how long it is for, and what parts and problems it covers. Get information as to where and how to get service for the watch.
3.Learn the difference between gemstones created in a lab and the ones that are naturally mined. Both types are identical visually, but their cost is completely different.
The ones created in a lab are less expensive, and they must be labeled as lab-created to differentiate them from the natural ones.
If you are shopping for a natural one, ask if it has been treated with heat, dye or bleach, since these treatments enhance the stone’s appearance or durability. Some are permanent, others may require special care, and in many cases affect the stone’s value.
4.Inquire if the pearls are real or an imitation. Oysters or other mollusks produce real pearls, while man makes imitation pearls. Mollusks produce cultured pearls but with man intervention, since these grow when an irritant is introduced in the shells.
Non-cultured real pearls are very rare and expensive; their cost will depend on the size and the coating.
5.When buying a diamond, you have to take into account 4 things: cut, color, clarity, and weight. These are known as carats, and all of them influence the price.
Sometimes, color is graded on a scale, although it is not uniform. A “D” may be the best on one scale, but not on another, thus, you have to know how colors are graded according to a specific scale.
A diamond is flawless when it has no visible surface cracks or other imperfections when an expert diamond grader observes it under 10-power magnification.
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