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Gemological Article Of The Month

Starting The Hobby Of Loose Gemstone Collecting

By Lee MacRae

Why collect loose gemstones you ask? Well to begin with gemstones are extremely beautiful. And like their higher counterpart, natural diamonds their value increases over time. Many hobbyists love to collect and show case the nearly 150 types of gemstones found today. Read long as we look at the hobby of collecting loose gemstones.

The first thing you need to do in beginning this hobby the smart way is by acquiring knowledge about them. By taking a quick trip to the library or local bookstore you can locate all you need to know about the subject that will make you an informed buyer.

First on the list to evaluate is gemstone color. It is a fact that gemstones are the most intensely colored natural materials you can find. Gems have become so synonomous with color, they've even become associated with particular ones. You've no doubt heard about emerald green, ruby red, sapphire blue, jade green, turquoise or aquamarine. Gemstones will have a higher value when they are equal in color to the spectral colors of red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and violet. They become less valuable the farther they deviate from the pure natural color.

The cut of the stone is extremely important and factors highly into the appraisal of not only diamonds but along with your gemstones. An excellent cut will highlight the gemstone's color, diminish any inclusions, and highlight the proportions and symmetry of the stone. One excellent way to determine the excellence of its cut is to check how evenly it reflects light throughout the surface of the stone. But if a gem is cut too shallow, much of the light will refract out of the gem rather than reflecting inside. Gemstone color will be washed out.

Next to look at is gemstone clarity. Clarity refers to the the external blemishes or the internal conclusions or flaws of the gemstone. Any large flaws can easily be seen with the unaided eye with others requiring a 10X magnification.

Next up are size and weight. Other than the corals and pearls gemstones are priced by the carat. One carat equals a 0.2 grams. You should know however that weight and size are not always equal and gemstones. The density and specific gravity can differ in stones. If you have a diamond that weighs 1.00 carats, you will find a Sapphire or ruby of the same size would weigh 1.20 carats.

Collecting various gemstones can be a great hobby. And there is a wide range and variety in precious and semi precious stones that you can collect. You can start collecting gemstones like Jade [jadeite and nephrite], Topaz or Bixbite (Red beryl) for example. The opportunities are seemingly endless. And if you like a hands on hobby you can find gemstones for yourself instead of buying. Take the example of the US. In Missouri you can hunt for Pearl, Fluorite, Pyrite and Calcite.

Buy loose quartz gemstones as well as square princess cut loose diamonds as well as radiant natural diamonds today in our store!

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Tips About loose dimonds

Obsidian is natural glass formed by volcanic lava that cooled too quickly. It is
generally black. Other obsidian colors include: brown, gray, red, blue and green
. If there are bubbles or crystal inclusions, it has white or gray marks and is
often named snowflake obsidian. Some obsidian has iridescence: flashes of color.
Obsidian has a hardness rating of 5.
Buy loose Coral gemstones today!

Only three colored gemstones are considered precious. These are the emerald, sapphire and ruby, which have retained their prized positions among jewels due to their extraordinary colors and extreme rarity. Precious gemstones with good color and large size are very hard to come by. Because of their rarity, it is common to use stones with inclusions and blemishes in jewelry
Buy spessartine garnet loose gemstones today!

Crystal Quartz is also found in Tanzania. It is found in Morogoro region, Tanga
Region,Kilimanjaro Region, Iringa,Singida Region, Mererani etc. On the surface,
the quartz found in abundance is milky quartz. You have to mine deeper to get
rid of Milky Quartz before you can reach the Clean Crystal Clear Quartz, making
it a highly costly laborious work. It does also depend upon the vein belt. If
the vein belt shows clarity within few metres of digging, you will reach high
grade quality Crystal quartz. The ground is mostly covered with kind of mud type
sand. If you happen to get a good vein, it can reach up to 300 kilometres
underneath the earth.
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More loose dimonds Info

GemClear Finds Non-Compliant Topaz in US Market - Diamonds.net

Thu, 23 Oct 2008 07:37:08 GMT

GemClear Finds Non-Compliant Topaz in US Market Diamonds.net, NY - 6 hours ago GemClear has developed patent-pending technology that allows for affordable batch testing of both loose and mounted gemstones. ...

Studded Round Pearl Necklace: Navy/ss (n-p115-navy-ss)

Thu, 23 Oct 2008 04:28:49 -0700
Navy round pearl, studded with sterling silver accents. 16'' sterling silver chain and toggle clasp. Also available in gold. Matching earrings available. Please select pearl color: green, navy, white, brown, purple.