The goal of La Boîte à Bijoux:Save jewelry by giving it a second life. Mission accomplished! When La Boîte à Bijoux opened its doors in June 2000, buying pre-owned jewelry wasn’t universally viewed as a good idea… Interest in buying jewelry has grown considerably since then! It is with pleasure that I share with you
Category: The magnifying glass
Cessation of jewelry appraisal and purchasing activities
DEAR JEWELRY ENTHUSIASTS, It is with a heavy heart that I announce the end of a magnificent adventure. Gemologist for 32 years, I founded La Boîte à Bijoux in 2000. Retirement age has already been around for a while, and despite many efforts to find new talent, I regret to note that gemologists
The Tanzanite
Since 2002, tanzanite has been added as a birthstone of December. It sits with two other more traditional blue stones: turquoise and zircon. Discovered in 1967 near Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, to date, it is rarer than diamonds. The geological conditions are so unique in this East African country that the chances of finding another
Citrine
Citrine is the stone of the November natives. It is part of the great family of quartz, as well as amethyst, tiger’s eye, agate, onyx, etc. The name, from the Latin citrus, refers to lemon.
Opal, the queen of gems
Birthstone of the October natives, the opal is a unique and mysterious stone characterized by the play of colors with iridescence.
Sapphire
Natives’ stone of September, sapphire remains the most affordable gems. From Antiquity to the Middle Ages, the term sapphire (from Hebrew sappîr) meant various blue stones, but especially lapis lazuli.
Peridot
Cleopatra’s favorite stone, we know the Egyptians used it in the ornamentation of jewelery.
Ruby
Birthstone of the native of July, the word ruby comes from the Latin “ruber” which means red. The redness of the ruby represents the inner flame and the eternal love.
The emerald : the stone that makes dream even more than the natives of May!
How to buy an emerald?
Sell your diamond: The reality of the secondary market
You need a professionnal to get an evaluation of you diamond. He will need to have the knowledge, the equipments and the willingness to accompany you in this important step.
Aquamarine – Birthstone of March
Birthstone of March, its color is reminiscent of the ocean and goes from blue to blue-green.
Eternal diamonds!
Along the long road of knowledge, the diamond accompanies the history of science at the same time as that of men. A Hindu manuscript of the fourth century BC mentions the characteristics of a gem that can be said to relate to the diamond. In the first century CE, Pliny the Elder calls it adamas, which means indomitable, indestructible. Formed of carbon that crystallizes with particularities called inclusions, the diamond is sometimes colorless, sometimes colored. The unit of weight is the carat, equivalent to 0.20 grams. Once cut, it shines and fascinates for centuries.
Estate jewelry – How to determine fair market value
Second Hand Jewelry – How to Determine Fair Market Value A second-hand jewel is a jewel that has already had an owner. Knowledge of the used jewelry market requires state-of-the-art training and expertise. Several criteria are to be analyzed. Here are a few : Metal and manufacturing What type of metal was used for manufacturing?
Rubies, sapphires, emeralds : the colors of your dreams
On the market, there are natural stones (found in nature) or synthetic stones (made in the laboratory). When making a purchase, the main selection criterion is color. The rubies, sapphires and emeralds are very often treated to improve this famous color and also the transparency … The intensity of the treatments (heating, irradiation, filling) comes
Discover, choose and cherish cultured pearls
It is a pearl whose formation has been caused by man. In salt water, an incision is made in the flesh of the oyster and then introduced a single core of mother of pearl accompanied by a piece of epithelial tissue. In freshwater, several pieces of epithelial tissue are deposited on the flesh of the mussel. Regardless of the type of mollusc, it secretes a material composed of aragonite and chonchyelin that deposits in concentric layers to create a pearl.