Gemstone Journal

Gemstone knowledge from the source: sourcing insights, care guides, and buying advice to help you choose jewelry and stones with confidence.

Gemstone necklaces and pendants from the Sapphire Row necklaces collection
Jewelry and Gifts
Sapphire Row

Gemstone Pendants: A Buyer's Guide to Choosing the Right Stone for a Necklace

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Gemstone Shapes Explained: oval pink sapphire, cushion bicolor sapphire, pear pink sapphire and emerald-cut purple sapphire in a grid Buying Basics
Sapphire Row

Gemstone Shapes Explained: How to Choose the Right One

A shape-by-shape guide to gemstones: brilliant, step and mixed cuts, and how an outline changes color, size and durability.

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Gemstone Origin: blue sapphire from Sri Lanka, red ruby from Mozambique and green emerald from Zambia in white circles on navy Buying Basics
Sapphire Row

Gemstone Origin: Why Where a Stone Was Mined Changes Its Value

How Burma, Mozambique, Kashmir, Colombia and Zambia shape a gemstone's value, how labs decide origin, and when it should matter to you.

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Gemstone Certification: lab reports for a Paraiba tourmaline, a ruby, an emerald and a peridot fanned out under the title Treatments and Labs
Sapphire Row

Gemstone Certification: How to Read a Gem Lab Report

How to read a gem lab report line by line: identity, treatment and origin, which labs the trade relies on, and the red flags.

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Carat Weight vs Size: 0.64 ct blue sapphire, 0.98 ct blue sapphire, 2.01 ct blue sapphire and 3.45 ct cornflower blue sapphire beside the word Carat on navy Buying Basics
Sapphire Row

Carat Weight vs Size: Why Two One-Carat Gems Look Nothing Alike

Why carat is weight, not size, how density and cut change what a stone looks like, and why you should buy by millimeter.

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Gemstone Clarity Explained: emerald-cut green emerald, blue tanzanite, blue sapphire and rubellite tourmaline beside the word Clarity on navy Buying Basics
Sapphire Row

Gemstone Clarity Explained: Which Inclusions Matter and Which Don't

Which inclusions are normal in which gemstones, what eye-clean really means, and when an inclusion is a sign of origin, not a flaw.

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Gemstone Color Explained: blue sapphire, teal sapphire, yellow sapphire and pink sapphire beside the word Color on navy Buying Basics
Sapphire Row

Gemstone Color Explained: How Hue, Tone, and Saturation Set Value

How hue, tone and saturation work together, why saturation moves the price most, and how to judge color for yourself.

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Gemstone Cut Quality: oval blue sapphire, cushion blue sapphire, pear blue sapphire and emerald-cut blue sapphire beside the word Cut on navy Buying Basics
Sapphire Row

Gemstone Cut Quality: How to Read Light in a Colored Stone

How to judge cut in a colored stone: brilliance, windows, dark areas, depth and the decisions made before the first facet.

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Heated vs. Unheated Sapphires: heated blue sapphire and unheated blue sapphire side by side Treatments and Labs
Sapphire Row

Heated vs. Unheated Sapphires: What Treatment Really Means for Value

What heat does inside a sapphire, why most are heated, why unheated stones cost more, and how to read treatment on a report.

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August Birthstone Guide: green peridot, red spinel, green peridot and vivid pink spinel Birthstones
Sapphire Row

August Birthstone Guide: Peridot, Spinel and Sardonyx

August has three birthstones: peridot, spinel and sardonyx. How each looks, wears and is judged, and which one suits you.

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Lab-Grown vs. Natural Colored Gemstones: blue sapphire and blue sapphire side by side Buying Basics
Sapphire Row

Lab-Grown vs. Natural Colored Gemstones: Value, Beauty, and Authenticity

How lab-grown and natural colored gemstones differ in origin, rarity and value, and how to decide which one is right for you.

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Identifying a Real Pearl: white cultured Akoya pearl in a white circle Gem Guides
Sapphire Row

Identifying a Real Pearl: How to Tell Authentic Pearls from Imitations

Simple ways to tell a real pearl from an imitation, from luster and the tooth test to drill holes, plus what makes a fine pearl.

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Rare by Nature: red spinel, color-change alexandrite, neon blue-green paraiba-type tourmaline and Padparadscha sapphire in white circles on navy Investing
Sapphire Row

Rare by Nature: Why Colored Gemstones Are Emerging as High-Value Collector Investments

Why collectors are turning to spinel, alexandrite and tourmaline, and how rarity and untreated color shape long-term value.

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