How well do you know your jewellery, and what should you look out for when you buy a diamond? Get tips from gemologist Mr Marc Brauner, CEO of the International Gemological Institute on all things bright, shiny and expensive.
Q Hello Marc, tell me about yourself.
I represent IGI (International Gemological Institute). We don't sell gems, we don't manufacture. We are expert gemologists and we certify the quality of gemstones and jewellery. What happens is that companies such as Soo Kee or any jewellery brands will have their gemstones submitted to our laboratories and we will do a very thorough inspection that results in an issue of a quality certificate. We also have courses everywhere in the world, we believe education is important, not only for sales staff but even to consumers and gemstones manufacturer.
Q How do you measure the quality of a diamond?
The 4 main criteria for diamonds are the 4Cs - Colour, Clarity, Cut, Carat - determines the value of the diamond. It is highly important for jewellers to offer a certificate preferably from internationally recognised, independent gemological institutions that does not participate in trading and selling of gemstones.
Q What distinguishes different diamonds? Why is there a difference in pricing?
Like I mentioned, the first thing that determines the value of the diamonds is the criteria. Well on the other hand, it's about the branding. The person who goes to Cartier, for example, knows that they are paying a premium, and for that premium, it comes with a name that is trusted with a quality. The jewellery will be a little finer, a little nicer, but it doesn't mean that the generic jeweller is unable to sell you high quality diamonds. Brand shops have to be careful because they cannot afford to sell low quality gemstones. But for the generic jewellery stores, they can sell both low, medium and high quality range of diamonds.
It's very difficult for the average consumer to distinguish high quality and low quality diamonds without having knowledge of the products. Of course, you can't ask the jeweller whether or not it is a diamond, or if it is a good quality diamond. That's where the certificate comes gives the buyer a peace of mind.
Q So where is the best source for diamonds?
There is no best source for diamonds. A diamond is an international product. You go to New York, Singapore or anywhere in the world, and the polished diamond is the same.
When buying diamonds, it is a good idea to buy as close as possible from home, because you are buying from a reliable jeweller that you know. If there are any problems, you can still go back to the jeweller.
Don't buy expensive jewellery when you're on a trip anywhere and you don't know the place.
Q The movie Blood Diamonds gave an insight on conflict diamonds. What are your takes on that issue?
First of all, the conflict diamonds presented 2 per cent to 3 per cent of the total turnover of diamonds in the industry. Even so, it's too much.
The movie was based on those 2 or 3 per cent, and it's only in certain countries that this happened. Most of the countries where there are diamonds have procedures that are government-controlled with proper procedures. The movie was not really fair because the whole diamond industry has tackled the issue on a great part, and has been implementing proper methodology to prevent conflict diamonds from being manufactured. You can go to www.diamondfacts.org for more details on how the industry has done to remedy the issues.
Q Do you think the declining economy will affect the jewellery business?
It seems that everyone and everywhere is affected, and it is a serious situation that we have to acknowledge. Crisis or no crisis, we always have emotions, feelings and love. As long as these exist, people will continue to buy jewellery. I don't think it will stop, but I think it will decrease as people are perhaps not buying as much as they used to. Buying a diamond is something emotional for some reason, and people, strangely enough, in times of crisis, look to luxury as a dream. And people will always dream.
Most women like to receive flowers, and do you know why? Because it's an unnecessary gift.
Diamonds are not unnecessary gifts, they are gift that a man would give to his wife, or to his girlfriend, that is expensive. It also has value and you don't really need it. It's almost only emotional.
You receive a mobile phone from your boyfriend, and you receive a diamond from your boyfriend. Both of them are presents but one is something that you're going to use it everyday, something that is practical.
And diamonds, we don't know why, are symbolic. In Asia, I see that diamonds have a security aspect and investment aspect. The diamond is both a combination of emotions, and money investment.
Q In the context of the economic crisis, there may be a need for people in possession of family heirlooms to pawn their items to help make ends meet. What should these people look out for so they don't get cheated?
They should get their valuables analysed and certified first, then they can get the current description of what they have. As I said before the value is determined by the quality of the gemstone.
The next step would be to think about where you're going to pawn or sell your jewellery. Go to a jeweller whom you know and trust. If you know that your jewellery is going to be secured in a pawnshop, it's acceptable. There are other opportunities one can explore as well, like having an private auction party. Pawnshops are a fair deal if you don't want to actually get rid of it entirely but you need that extra credit to tide you through. It depends on the market and the culture, and also the individual situation that they are going through.
Q Is there a specific place where locals can get their jewellery tested and certified?
I would recommend an independent gemologist or a lab scientist. They can always ask their jewellers to help send their pieces for a quality test because they are already working together with people in the same industry. If it's a very important piece of jewellery, it's worth taking a plane to go to a nearby country that houses a recognised gemologist institute, for example in Hong Kong. Because you're talking about thousands or millions of dollars.
Q Can a diamond fall off a ring without engaging in rigorous activities?
It's very difficult for us to explain why certain problems like how diamonds can fall off a ring. It may be due to a manufacture, or a design flaw. It could also be because when the person closes the door of a taxi, the ring got hit and the diamond came off. But surely it's not something the jewellers would strive for, especially selling luxury.
Q How do you care for your diamond?
Take off your jewellery when you cook, swim or playing sports. Especially in the case of diamonds, it can accumulate a film of dust and grease. Also, foreign particles can get in the small gaps betweem the metal and the stone. The little particles, overtime, will grow start to glue to the diamond, therefore the stones starts to become dull.
If your diamond is dirty, clean it with warm soapy water and an old, soft toothbrush. The brittles of the toothbrush can reach into the gaps in the jewellery to clean off the dust and grease which are difficult to access.
Even though diamond is the hardest mineral, it can break and chip, or even get scratched or blemished. So from the first day when you receive your diamond, you have to observe your own jewellery. Communicate with it, talk to it. It's an affinity that you develop with your jewellery. Because you observe it, you can immediately spot any flaws. You see, care is first to know, to know is to make a connection.
Q What's your definition of the perfect gemstone?
The ideal gemstone? For me there's no such thing, because it's personal. It's like love at first sight. You go to a jewellery shop, and you look through all those gorgeous jewellery, in the glass case. And a woman, as you often see, goes "Ooooh! Look at this one!". This is when you develop feelings.
So why are you looking at a particular one? Because those stones in there are talking to you, in its way of contrasting the light and the dark shades. And perhaps it is the ideal stone. And maybe there's no one ideal stone. You have to let yourself to be appealing to your feelings when you look at jewellery articles. The ideal stone is when you feel you have an affinity for the stone, and how the design of the jewellery bring out the beauty of the stone. It's really what you are looking for. You look at the stone, you see the glitter, the shape and the way it shines at you.
Of course you cannot buy all the diamonds of your dreams, and there's always a budget in mind. So you look at the 4Cs and judge for yourself what is the best cut, the best colour, the best clarity and carat, according to your budget. Well, the dream, is not the same for everyone.
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