Like many jewellery trends, the Toi et Moi ring trend (which has now hit South Africa) is a new take on an old-style, made famous again by some in-the-spotlight celebrities. Back in 2018, Emily Ratajkowski set Instagram ablaze when she posted a photo of her Toi et Moi engagement ring, presented to her by long-time [...]
Of all the birthstones, June’s birthstone is perhaps the rarest of all. To many, alexandrite is an enigma; a gem they have heard of, but never seen. A gemstone chameleon, alexandrite has been described as “emerald by day; ruby by night”. Alexandrite is a unique and rare colour-changing variety of the mineral chrysoberyl, and was [...]
If you pay any attention to the diamond industry, you’ll know that one name is synonymous with big diamonds. Graff. Graff Diamonds was founded by Laurence Graff in 1960 and, over the last 59 years, has become the industry leader in the cutting, polishing and marketing of large, exceptional quality diamonds. Notable rough diamond acquisitions [...]
Occasionally, a gemstone is unearthed that makes the world sit up and take notice. This past week was one such an occasion, when a giant emerald discovery in Zambia was announced. Zambia is home to some of the world’s finest emeralds, none more so than the massive 5,655ct crystal that was recently unearthed at Kagem [...]
September is officially considered the start of spring in South Africa. Birds are singing, flowers are blooming and love is certainly in the air as peak engagement and wedding season starts. September's birthstone, sapphire, is a well known gem, but here are 10 things you might not know about this gorgeous gemstone: What is sapphire? [...]
Even at the best of times, jewellery and gemstones are a total mystery to your average man. Add in the pressure of the jewellery in question being a South African engagement ring, and the poor man can’t help but feel over-whelmed. “Do I need permission from her father? What’s her ring size? What does she [...]
Love, success, passion and energy – all are positive qualities associated with the colour red and the gemstone ruby, the most royal of all gems and July's birthstone. Ruby is the most prized gem of them all; after all, in ancient Sanskrit, ruby translated to “Ratnaraj”, which meant “king of precious stones" and, in addition [...]
Everything You Need to Know About Synthetic and Simulant Diamonds [This article originally appeared in the June 2014 issue of JCK Magazine. Published online by Rob Bates, Senior Editor] People in the jewelry trade understand the difference between a diamond simulant and a synthetic diamond. But many consumers do not—and that’s a growing problem. In [...]
As we move into the second half of 2017, we welcome Ruby as the birthstone of July. Not only is ruby a perfect birthday gift for July babies, it also features twice as an anniversary gem, for both the 15th and 40th wedding anniversaries. Although a popular and familiar gemstone, few people know that ruby [...]
When most people think about sapphire, blue is the colour that automatically comes to mind. But did you know that sapphire can be found in virtually every colour of the rainbow? Yes, September’s birthstone truly is a rainbow gemstone. Mineralogically, sapphire is known as corundum (as is ruby) and as the second hardest gemstone on Moh’s Hardness [...]
