Julian is a graduate gemologist from the GIA (Gemological Institute of America). Founded in 1931, the GIA is a non-profit organization devoted to studying and regulating diamonds and other gemstones. With more than 20 years of experience working in the diamond and fine jewelry market, Julian is well-versed on the intricacies of the industry. Specializing in certified loose diamonds and engagement rings, he enjoys helping Brilliance customers select the perfect stone to meet their preferences and budget. His postings on gemology, various diamond cutting techniques, the mining and processing of precious gemstones, and other world-wide industry news provide consumers with the knowledge they need to make an informed purchase.
At Brilliance, we like to think that we know a thing or two about getting engaged… After all we have helped thousands of couples choose an engagement ring for the past 22 years.
Our new infographic, “How to Pull off the Perfect Marriage Proposal” for the upcoming engagement and wedding season, takes into account our many years of experience on getting engaged and what happens next. To view a large size version of the infograph please go to the Perfect Marriage Proposal guide on Briliance.com, and don’t forget to share with your friends or significant other (“hint, hint”).
We are thrilled to announce that we have added a “Design Your Own Earrings” option to Brilliance.com. Follow the three steps below to begin designing your own custom diamonds earrings online:
1) Choose Your Style – Brilliance offers many different diamond earring settings in yellow gold, white gold, and platinum to compliment your choice of center diamonds. Our team of diamond and jewelry experts can help you select the setting type that is right for you based upon your budget and choice of diamonds.
2) Select Your Loose Diamonds – Shopping for diamonds sight unseen can be difficult, especially when selecting a matching pair of loose diamonds for earrings. Our trained experts and gemologists are always available to help you find the best matching diamond pair. Rest assured, should you decide to select two matching certified diamonds on your own we will inspect them and make sure they in fact match and are brilliant.
3) Complete Your Earrings -Once you add the loose diamonds and earrings to cart and complete your order our master jewelers will set the diamonds in the earring settings and they will be delivered enclosed in our signature jewelry box. As with any Brilliance purchase, we offer free FedEx shipping and no sales tax outside of the state of Florida. In addition, All of our products are backed by a 30 day money back guarantee, and our jewelry is covered under our Brilliance Care and Maintenance Policy. Lastly, we invite you to send your earrings back up to twice a year for a complimentary cleaning and prong inspecting.
Get started designing your own earrings by choosing a diamond earring setting first and adding two loose diamonds from our online diamond search. Custom diamond earrings compliment any look and make a wonderful gift. Should you need further assistance please contact a Brilliance diamond and jewelry expert at 1-866-737-0754
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you probably already know that Kim Kardashian married her beau, professional basketball player Kris Humphries, after nine months of being in a relationship together. The wedding was held in a lavish estate at Montecito, California on August 20th and was attended by 450 (or so) close friends of the couple.
Details of the wedding haven’t been incredibly forthcoming, but the E! special on the event entitled “Kim’s Fairytale Wedding: A Kardashian Event”, airing in October, should give the clamoring public all the specifics they’ll ever need on the reality star’s star-studded event.
For those who can’t wait that long, we at Brilliance have scoured the internet for the lowdown: so far, it has been revealed that the beautiful bride wore not one, not two, but three Vera Wang dresses for her nuptials – one for the traditional Christian ceremony presided over by family pastor Joel Johnson, and two for her reception, where guests were treated to food by acclaimed chef Wolfgang Puck and a six-foot tall black and white wedding cake by Hansen Cakes in Los Angeles. It was reported that the couple wanted it to resemble the cake from the Royal Wedding earlier this year, and it alone cost – get this – $15,000!
Among the celebrities who attended were Demi Lovato, Babyface, Mario Lopez, Ryan Seacrest and Lindsay Lohan.
If you missed the buzz about Kim’s jewelry – really, how can anyone miss it? Her engagement ring is a huge sparkler: an emerald-cut 20.5 carat diamond ring set in platinum valued at a cool 2 million dollars –now paired with a diamond eternity band, also set in platinum, estimated to be worth $60,000. During the ceremony, Kim wore a 65-carat diamond headpiece inspired by Audrey Hepburn worth another $2.5 million, and 28-carat diamond earrings worth $5 million. Altogether, Kim wore close to $15 million in blinding bling – all by jewelry designer Lorraine Schwartz.
The over-the-top ceremony reportedly cost something along the lines of 6 to10 million dollars, as no expense was spared for arguably the most popular Kardashian sister. Among the items included in the swag bag given to guests was a pair of flip-flops emblazoned with the couple’s names, a personalized nail polish set by Nicole from OPI, a bottle of Kim’s new fragrance, a scented Voluspa candle, and a gift certificate to a shoe website that Kim co-founded.
See an idea that you want to snag for your own wedding? Don’t forget to check out Brilliance.com for all of your engagement and wedding jewelry needs! We features a wide array of beautiful diamond jewelry, as well as wholesale loose diamonds you can use to create your own pieces. You don’t have to spend millions of dollars to be brilliant – just visit Brilliance.com.
At Brilliance halo diamond engagement rings have been our most popular and best selling settings this year. Halo, which means a ring or a crown, is an engagement ring style in which diamonds or gems encircle a center loose diamond. Many attribute the halo shape or design to infinite and everlasting love. Halo engagement rings come in many varieties. A popular type of halo setting is where the center stone prongs are raised slightly above the encircled diamonds, which has a more prominent association. Another variation is the bezel-style halo ring setting, where there is no gap between the encrusted diamonds and the center stone. The bezel halo diamond ring is also very popular and elegant.
What draws customers to the halo diamond setting is that it accents your center stone of choice making it appear larger and adds an overall sparkle and fire to the ring. In today’s economy, not many can afford large loose diamonds but with the halo setting you can own a ring that adds the appearance of a large loose diamond without paying thousands of dollars for a larger stone. Another advantage of halo engagement rings is that the diamond’s pavilion, bottom part of the diamond that bridges the girdle to the culet, is visible when viewed from the side. The pavilion is essential to the light performance of the diamond.
Brilliance carries a variety of halo set engagement rings in all types of metals to fit every budget. In addition, we can create any number of settings that feature diamonds or gemstones surrounding the center stone. Round and square are the most popular halo shapes encircling center diamonds, however we can create a Halo engagement ring with any diamond shape. Lastly we can create custom halo engagement rings for those who desire a ring that isn’t found on our website.
The loose diamond certification process is an easy way to boost buyers’ confidence during the shopping process. When diamond certification is conducted by a reputable organization, such as the Gemological Institute of America (GIA), buyers can rest assured that the diamond is a genuine, natural diamond, rather than grown in the lab as a synthetic diamond. It also reveals whether or not a loose diamond has been treated.
Since no two diamonds are alike, the certification process assigns value to each individual stone. For example, the GIA uses an internationally recognized grading system to compare common attributes. This system, known as the “four C’s”, determines each certified diamond’s value by grading its color, clarity, cut, and carat weight.
Diamond Color
To determine the color of a diamond, a gemologist compares the stone to a color classification chart ranging from D (colorless) to Z (light yellow or brown). The loose diamond is compared to a set of master stones representing the colors on the chart.
Certified diamonds classified as “D” are colorless, while those graded “Z” are light yellow or brown. Since truly colorless diamonds are extremely rare, the majority of diamonds used in jewelry are designated as “H” or “I” and have a slightly yellow tint—described by gemologists as “nearly colorless”.
Diamond Clarity
Natural diamonds are formed under considerable heat and pressure, giving most of them internal or external inclusions that can impact diamond clarity. There are eleven grades of diamond clarity, ranging from flawless (no inclusions visible under a magnifying glass) to I3 (inclusions visible to the naked eye).
Much like the human fingerprint, inclusions are markings that distinguish one loose diamond from the next. During certification, gemologists plot a diamond’s inclusions on a diagram to indicate its distinctive features—those that no other diamond has—which then get added to the certification paper. This diagram helps match each diamond to the proper certification, so buyers can be sure the diamond they’re evaluating is the same one on the report.
Clarity tests also reveal authenticity, helping gemologists determine whether a diamond has been treated. Inclusions verify that a diamond is natural, rather than a synthetic look-alike. If it is determined that a diamond has been treated, that will be noted on the certification report.
Diamond Cut
While people often think of cut as indicating the shape of a diamond (i.e. square or round), the term is used during certification to describe the stone’s sparkle and brilliance on a range from “Excellent” to “Poor”. To assist with cut grading, gemologists place each loose diamond in a machine, rotating the stone 360 degrees and capturing every one of its facets to generate a sophisticated 3D model. Many factors are considered to determine the stone’s grade, including proportions, girdle thickness, culet size, polish, and symmetry.
Diamond Carat Weight
As counter-intuitive as it might seem, bigger isn’t always better when it comes to diamonds. Value is determined by all four of the “C’s”, not just its weight.
To determine carat size, certified diamonds are placed in high-tech, sealed-chamber electronic scales. The weights, which measure how close a diamond is to one carat (200 milligrams), round each stone to a second decimal place to arrive at a standard carat size measurement.
Upon completion of the rigorous certification process, a certified diamond is given a report indicating its grading for each of the four C’s, along with other pertinent information. Buyers can ask to see this report before purchasing a certified diamond; some grading agencies also allow them to check the information online.
Want to learn more about how to certify diamonds? Watch the video below, which chronicles one diamond’s certification journey at the Gemological Institute of America (GIA).
Thirty nine round cut diamonds are pave set in this white gold diamond engagement ring setting, accenting your choice of center diamond. 3/8 carat total diamond weight.
No comments | Leave a comment