Do You Know How to Tell Real Jewelry From Imitation?

Buying fine jewelry nowadays can be tricky if you don’t know what to look for in a real diamond or gemstone. With technological advances in glass filling and chemical treatments it can be difficult to tell when diamond or gemstone jewelry is in it’s natural state unless you just happen to have a professional jeweler’s loupe that magnifies the gem. Since April Fool’s Day is coming up we want to help you avoid being duped into buying fake jewelry, which can be a costly mistake. So here we offer a jeweler’s perspective on what to look for to tell if the jewelry you are wanting to buy is genuine!

Does the Jewelry or Diamond Have Certification?

When buying diamond jewelry, it is customary that the seller provide a grading certificate to ensure the 4 C’s (cut, color, clarity and carat weight) are properly disclosed to the buyer. Grading certificates from the GIA (Gemological Institute of America) are the most highly esteemed in the jewelry world so always ask to see the grading report. If the diamond seller can’t provide the grading report they may be trying to sell you a look-a-like diamond such as cubic zirconia or moissanite which can look almost identical to diamonds but are worth far less. There is nothing wrong with either of these types of stones but when you purchase a real diamond as a wonderful investment, you don’t want to find out down the road that you actually don’t have a real diamond. If a grading report doesn’t come with the diamond jewelry we suggest moving on!

Has the Gemstone or Diamond Jewelry Been Treated?

This is THE question you should ask the jeweler! It is fully legal to treat gemstones and diamonds to enhance color and clarity as long as the seller discloses these facts. To the naked eye these treatments might make the stone dazzle a bit more because the vibrant color is what people desire and with diamonds, inclusions or flaws can be minimized with procedures like laser drilling or fracture filling. This is all well and good if you like the look of the jewelry, it’s a bit more reasonably priced and you’re not concerned with buying treated gemstones. However, please beware of two things! One, buying a treated gemstone means that the integrity of the stone is not as strong as it’s natural state. This means that any type of work that needs done to it could ruin the entire stone. During ring sizing, mounting and professional jewelry cleaning there is heat and pressure that natural gems and diamonds can withstand but that will fracture treated ones. Two, if you are buying jewelry as a good investment please note that treated gemstones are not worth as much as their real counterparts and they probably won’t appreciate in value.

What is The Refund or Return Policy for Jewelry?

Here’s another good question to ask when you are looking to buy fine jewelry. Most reputable jewelers will offer a return policy in the form of a full refund or at least store credit. You’ll especially want to find out the return details if you are trying to buy jewelry online. Credible online shops should have a return policy stated on their website but if not, be sure to contact them to confirm how the return process works for diamond or gemstone jewelry.

As mentioned above, we feel that purchases and investments in fine jewelry are worth it when it’s from a reputable jeweler that can give you a grading report, disclosures of treatment and offer a solid return policy. If there is no return policy then it’s not worth the risk! As a trusted Gilbert jeweler, we offer all of the above and more with over 90 years of combined expertise so please call or come by our showroom if you have any questions.