Deception in the Jewelry Business

Deception in the Jewelry Business

We all want our great grandmother's red stone ring to have a genuine ruby set in it. It is similar emotionally to believing that I am a prince or princess that is not being raised by their real parents. The Kingdom of Zoom is going to find me, and I will be somebody. In the past, when a friend or acquaintance asked me to look at these precious legacies, I was reluctant to tell them that the stone was synthetic. I did not make friends with the truth, but the truth is that the technology of creating synthetics has been here since the 19^th century.

I was breaking a fantasy by being honest. My great grandmother was either coming from Europe on a ship in steerage or crossing the country on a Conestoga wagon depending on the maternal or paternal side. The person requesting the analysis probably did not have great grandparents that were royalty either.

As a professional jeweler or craftsperson, we need to create a well crafted and beautiful piece. Deceiving the recipients of our work by stating that the stone is a smoky topaz instead of a smoky quartz diminishes our credibility. If the customer insists that the stone has been called a smoky topaz by another dealer, I would remark that the term is a nickname. A similar problem that I encounter from the public is alexandrites that are purchased south of the border. These jewelry pieces are sold as alexandrite jewelry and not synthetic alexandrite jewelry. The stones are beautiful, but people are fooled by their own fantasies.

For me, the worst injustices occur in the descriptions about metals. On television, I see coins that are 14K gold filled being sold as if they are 14K gold. I will go into this further in a blog about weights and measurements. As an example, a one ounce 14K gold coin has 5% of 58% of 24 Karat gold (which is pure gold). At $1200 an ounce that coin is worth $34.80 in gold. That is fairly distant from $1200 an ounce. When the customer realizes the deception, he/she feels hurt or angry or both. Another fraudulent practice is the selling of total weight pieces, particularly diamonds, as if the piece has one exceptional stone. In gemstones, size and quality make a huge difference in value.

I think it is very dangerous to sell gemstones and precious metals as investments. Many big name retailers play the deception game. The truth comes out in the pawn shop. The metal is only worth the metal, and diamonds have a standard pawn value, usually a dollar amount by the point. In jewelry as well as any adornment, emphasize the quality of craftsmanship and the beauty of the components. Integrity brings the customer back