Couldn’t help but stop and say, “Wow!” after seeing this latest discovery in Botswana:
Lucara Diamond Corp. has recovered an ultra-rare 9.46 ct. Type II blue diamond at its Karowe mine in Botswana.
The diamond will be sold at the mine’s upcoming tender on Nov. 26.
William Lamb, Lucara’s president and CEO, tells JCK the company believes the stone will polish out to a fancy blue, with VVS1 or better clarity.
Source: JCK
Sofia Vergara stole the show in the heavy bling department at last night’s Emmy awards, wearing 175 carats worth of amazing ice.
Modern Family star Sofia Vergara paired her green beaded mermaid-style Zuhair Murad gown with jewelry, courtesy of Neil Lane, weighing in at more than 175 carats: Vergara’s pear-shaped drop earrings are 45 carats, the marquise cut diamond and platinum bracelet come to 25 carats, a ring with two center stones is 20 carats, her serpent bracelet, 10 carats, and—here’s the keystone piece—a whopping 75-carat cuff bracelet.
At first, I laughed when I saw this product for kids but after some thought, I realized it’s a smart idea. It’s called “chewelry” and its jewelry kids can gnaw on. If you’ve been around any child, you know firsthand how much they love to grab that necklace of yours and pull and bite on it. This has lead to some broken jewelry and upset moms. But chewelry allows kids to safely chew without breaking a real necklace and costing the parents a broken chain or lost stone. And it’s completely safe!
Dr. Gabriel Heaton, Sotheby’s manuscripts specialist had this to say:
“Jane Austen’s simple and modest ring is a wonderfully intimate and evocative possession. The price achieved and the huge level of interest it has generated, is a remarkable testament to the author’s enduring appeal and her place at the heart of our literary and cultural heritage.”
And appeal it had, selling for more than five times the estimated price.
The Pride and Prejudice author’s simple piece of jewelery, featuring an oval turquoise gemstone, was a big draw at the Sotheby’s sale this week and went for £152,450. The winning bidder was an anonymous private collector.
The gold ring (size K½), set with a cabochon blue gemstone.
Gold, Jasper and Carnelian - A box of gold and semiprecious stones by Johann Christian Neuber, from around 1770-75, is in this show at the Frick Collection.
If you need a little box to hide a precious piece of jewelry, you pretty much can’t beat this. (Though it was originally used for snuff.)
Above is one of the gemstone snuffboxes created by the German goldsmith Johann Christian Neuber (1736-1808), working in Dresden, the cosmopolitan capital of Saxony. Nearly 30 of these boxes, generally no larger than the palm of a hand, dominate “Gold, Jasper and Carnelian: Johann Christian Neuber at the Saxon Court,” on view at the Frick Collection.
Reading this over coffee today, I couldn’t help but see how someone with a jewelry background could make the move into the world of psychology. We are our own kind of psychologists. Jewelers don’t just make a product; we create jewelry based on our client’s deepest dreams and wishes surrounding love. You couldn’t ask for a bigger psychological connection than that!
I couldn’t find an image of Cybil’s ring yet but wanted to share this interesting “love found again” story:
CYBILL SHEPHERD will become a therapist’s bride when she’s done playing a politician’s wife. “I’m engaged,” the 62-year-old actress, who is starring in “The Best Man” on Broadway, exclusively told the News’ theater critic Joe Dziemianowicz. “He was a jeweler. Now, he’s a psychologist. He’s Serbian.”
Shepard’s “he” is Andrei Nikolajevic, who still knows his gems, judging by the gorgeous sparkler set in white gold on her left hand. But she said no one has questioned her new jewelry as of yet. “It’s not my job to tell them,” she says. Shepherd, whose ex-husbands include David Ford and Bruce Oppenheim, adds Nikolajevic popped the question a couple weeks ago here in NYC. “It was very romantic and on one knee,” she says of her fiancé, whom she met through friends. “I never thought I’d get married again.”
The Royal Asscher and the British Monarch go way back, starting in 1908 when the Asscher brothers from Amsterdam cut the biggest diamond in the world (the Cullinan). The Cullinan I (530 carats) was mounted in the head of the Scepter with the Cross. And the Cullinan II (317 carats) was mounted in St. Edward’s Crown. Both are part of the Royal Crown Jewels and permanently displayed in the Tower of London.
Now, Royal Asscher allows the public the opportunity to own pieces created especially created for Queen Elizabeth II’s yearlong Diamond Jubilee celebration.
According to Forbes:
The Royal Asscher Diamond Company released a limited edition version of its Stars of Africa jewelry in honor of Queen Elizabeth II’s yearlong Diamond Jubilee celebration.
The “Diamond Jubilee Stars” is based on the same design introduced in 2009 that incorporates a clear half-sphere or full-sphere made of sapphire crystal filled with tiny diamonds. The crystal shells are filled with a clear silicone, which allow the diamonds to float inside the sphere jewelry in the same manner that paper confetti floats inside a snow globe.
The newest collection consists of a ring and pendant made of 18k rose gold. The half-sphere of the ring contains a total of 2.12 carats of white, blue and fancy pink floating diamonds. The full sphere of the pendant contains 4.91 carats of white, blue and fancy pink diamonds. The colors of the diamonds resemble the three colors of The Union Jack, the British National Flag.
The Diamond Jubilee Stars are available in an exclusive edition of six pieces, each with its own serial number and certificate and are only available at Harrods, London.
Read more at Forbes.
“As a designer and a collector of fine jewelry, I have always wanted to offer the same quality of craftsmanship in jewelry as we offer with the Atelier Versace fashion collection,” explained Donatella Versace in a release. “Each individual ring from the collection is a work of art.”
Versace launced a new Atelier Jewelry collection on the first day of Paris Haute Couture Fashion Week, with creative director Donatella Versace citing each piece a “work of art.” The unveiling took placeon July 1, when the Italian house makes its return with a runway presentation at the Ritz Paris. The line is made up of 16 designs of hand-sculpted rings mounted with precious stones such as diamonds, emeralds, sapphires and amethysts, will be custom-made and available for purchase by appointment only.
Here’s a glimpse. Remember, if any piece of jewelery you see on the runway tickles your fancy, we can re-create it, especially for you.
How magnificent is this piece? It’s one of ten in the world. A very expensive wind-up toy whose whiskers move, it is made in gold and decorated with red garnet eyes and pearls. It is thought to be of Swiss origin by Henri Maillardet and dating from around 1810. From The Winterson Journal:
The story of Britain’s history and relationship with this precious metal is told by The Goldsmiths’ Company in a fascinating new exhibition entitled “Gold: Power and Allure”.
Housed in the magnificent surroundings of Goldsmiths’ Hall, London, the story of our love affair with gold starts with a chance discovery of ancient goldwork near Stonehenge. Dating back to 2300BC, it is thought that these ornaments are some of the earliest pieces of worked gold found in the UK. A series of Bronze Age and Early Iron Age torcs and crescent-shaped lanula neck pieces are also really quite beautiful.
Since then, gold has been actively mined throughout England and Wales, with gold for royal wedding rings today traditionally being made from Welsh Gold. In the year of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, the exhibition includes a number of historic and royal items including gold crowns, brooches and a rather ghoulish gold ring, that was taken from the finger of the dead Queen Elizabeth I.
As crowds cheer on the last day of Jubilee celebrations for England’s queen, this Houston jeweler showcases his incredible replica work of the royal family’s finest jewels.
Houston Jewelry has some jubilee-worthy jewels on display and is allowing the public to come in for some fun and a little history lesson.
“All the crowns and the diamonds and the pearls, it’s just spectacular. I’ve never seen anything like it,” Houston Jewelry customer William Hill said.
“This is the Imperial State Crown that Queen Victoria wore,” Houston Jewelry saleswoman Judy Memmel said.
It is a replica, of course, but the real one contains 2,783 diamonds, 277 pearls, 17 sapphires, 11 emeralds and 5 rubies. You’ve seen it on Queen Elizabeth before when she speaks to parliament.
“If you didn’t know, you would think it was the real thing,” customer Rae Engel said.
There are life-size replicas of things like the St. Edward’s Crown, which weighs more than 5 pounds.
“This is only worn during coronation and it was made in 1662 for Charles II. And the only person who didn’t wear it was Queen Victoria; she said it was too heavy,” Memmel said.
Source: HoustonABC13
