Nearly the Largest Rough Diamond Ever Found...Sold!

This rough diamond sold for $53 million.  It weighs 1,109 carats.  It was found in Botswana in November 2105 and remained unsold for almost two years.  The diamond had been up for auction at Southby's, but failed to reach the $70 million reserve last year.

Depending on the reference consulted, this is either the 2nd or 3rd largest rough diamond ever found.  You can find the entire article on about the sale, visit our trade journal's website here.

For more information about diamonds, visit our website, www.krigelmeshdiamonds.com.

How to Make a Big Diamond Look Like a Million

Well, it doesn't hurt to start with a 6 carat diamond that shines like the sun.  The trick for a big diamond is to custom make the mounting.  You can't just take something that you see in a store and make your diamond fit, even if you have a small diamond.  Especially if it is anything but a round diamond.  Rounds are less of a challenge, because they are such and such measurements, etc., but a fancy cut diamond, like the cushion on the left needs a custom mounting.  This diamond is set in platinum with two half moon diamonds, 1/2 carat each on the sides.  The center diamond is surrounded by a halo of micro paved diamonds that are really very small, but very fine quality around the center.  The workmanship is 90% of the battle and the other 10% is the quality of the side diamonds, especially the small diamonds that make up the halo.  The most important thing is that they match perfectly.  They all need to have the exact same diameter, or the mounting looks like junk.  Pay attention to quality.  So many people make the mistake of getting a great center diamond and go for a budget look for the side diamonds.  That's a big mistake.  Spend the extra time and effort to have a great quality mounting.

Selling a Diamond That Nobody Wants

This is what the jeweler says to himself when you show him this ring:

• I don't need a pear shaped diamond.
• I don't need an old fashioned tapered baguette mounting
• I don't need an out-of-date yellow gold ring

Here's what you need to know:  There are jewelers and diamond buyers willing to pay good money for pear shapes.  The retail buyer for pears, for instance, are in Asia, not North America, so the market is soft.  You have to be diligent about finding the right company to buy your ring.  It is true, that it's hard to find a buyer, but you have to know the right guy to buy the ring.  I buy pear shapes all the time.  First of all, the mounting is going to be recycled.  This style was popular in 1975, but certainly not today.  This would be in style today if it were platinum, but not in yellow gold.  As a wholesaler, I would send the diamond to an Asian wholesaler and sell the baguettes as a matched pair back into the diamond industry here in the USA.

When you're trying to sell something nobody wants.......keep looking for a buyer and don't give up.  If you have something like this and can't find someone.....call me and I'll make a bid.

Oval Diamonds are Cheap

This one is 7.00 carats and will cost you over $100,000.00, but if it were round, it would be twice as much for the same quality.  If you are looking for a great deal, consider an oval, pear, or a marquise shaped diamond.  The prices are depressed and now would be the time to buy one, if you like the shape.  Most brides like round diamonds right now, so they bring the most if you're trying to sell it or cost the most if you're trying to buy one.  The term "fancy" shaped diamonds refers to any diamond that is not a round brilliant cut diamond.  Back in the 1980's, ovals and marquise diamonds were much more expensive than round diamonds, but today the market tastes has switched to rounds, rounds, and more rounds.  Princess, radiants and cushion shaped diamonds are a good value and sometimes cost less simply because the rough diamond material usually yields the most weight for those shapes, with less waste of the rough diamond.

Tanzanite can be Special..or Not

Really fine Tanzanite is not only hard to find, but expensive!  Most Tanzanite doesn't really look that special.  It is a pretty violet/blue, but isn't really a rare or expensive stone.  Small, pale tanzanites are plentiful, but very inexpensive.  The Tanzanite on the right is not only large (7.70 carats) but is also a rare quality blue.  If you look closely at the picture, there are a few surface abrasions that pop out when you put the Tanzanite under magnification.  The color, however is gem quality and very rare.  The blue is a deep rich blue with no violet shades at all apparent.  This oval Tanzanite is an older piece, most likely from the 1970's.  Old for Tanzanite is relatively new, since the gem was discovered in 1967 at the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro in the country of Tanzania, hence the name, Tanzanite.  Selling common, low quality Tanzanite is frustrating, since it is available new a relatively low prices.  You can't get much for it since you can buy it new at ever decreasing pricing.  However, rare bluish Tanzanite is very rare and has excellent resale value.  When I sell this Tanzanite, I'll recommend the buyer put it in a pendant, since it is a soft gemstone, not really suitable for rings.

Princess Cuts Everywhere

I see this type of diamond engagement ring come into my office all of the time.  A gob of princess cut diamonds...what a mess!  It might look like a single princess cut from a distance, but this "center" diamond is made up of nine princess cut diamonds all lined up nice and pretty.  When you are buying a diamond ring like this, keep your eyes open that you are spending more on the labor of putting the ring together than the ring will ever be worth.  Small princess cut diamonds are cut by the bucket fulls.  They are neither rare nor valuable.  They are worth about the same as round diamonds when they are cut so small, which means to a used jewelry buyer they are worth practically nothing.  You will be get between $0 and $50 per carat for your mess of princess cuts.  They are usually sold at the chain stores, and they look great, but are not a good value when it comes to resale.  This particular ring has as much value in the 14 Karat white gold mounting as it does with the princess cuts.  It is a JC Penney ring that sells for around $2,000.00.  It might bring $500 as scrap.
Visit our website to make an appointment to sell your diamonds.
Click here >> Sell Diamonds Kansas City

Emeralds

Emeralds

Emeralds are a strange yet beautiful gemstone. First things first… Take care of your emeralds. They are a very soft, porous gemstone. You shouldn't put them in caustic liquids or clean them in a jewelry stores ultrasonic cleaner. You should use a mild soap and warm water and toothbrush that doesn't have toothpaste on it. Emeralds can chip and abrade quite easily. This emerald that I recently purchased is a little over 1 carat, is cut in the traditional emerald cut shape, and is very clear. Most emeralds have a profuse amount of inclusions and don't have a lot of brilliance. The emeralds that usually look too good to be true are not natural emeralds. Starting in the late 1990's man-made created emeralds became very popular and overtook the natural emerald industry by storm. Buying a natural emerald is an expensive proposition and can be very frustrating to find the perfect stone. This emerald, although pretty clean doesn't have great brilliance and is very light in color. This emerald looks like it's from South America, presumably Columbia. Many emeralds that are natural and have a greenish blue book are actually mined in Africa.
Selling your emerald can also be a frustrating experience. Selling any gemstone can be difficult or impossible to get a fair market value for it. Most buyers simply pay you for the gold diamond value and ignore the emerald or other gemstone value. When dealers like me buy emeralds off the street, you really don't know what enhancements may have been done to the emerald and most buyers aren't equipped to give you an accurate description of what enhancements have been perpetrated on your emerald.  Like all other items you were wanting to sell, get three bids from reputable buyers before you sell.

Visit our website to make an appointment to sell your diamonds.
Click here >> Sell Diamonds Kansas City