DIAMOND
JEWELERS
Centereach, NY (631) 467-0603 Port Jefferson Station, NY (631) 331-3301 Selden, NY (631) 698-0343
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DIAMOND
Centereach, NY (631) 467-0603 Port Jefferson Station, NY (631) 331-3301 Selden, NY (631) 698-0343 |
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Glossary Page 3 NATURAL Used to describe a gemstone which is Mined from the earth or a pearl that is created without the assistance of man. Lab created gems may be considered real or genuine because they are of the same chemical composition as their natural counterparts, they are however created by the hands of man rather than those of mother nature.
NICKEL SILVER Not actually silver, also known as German Silver - made of mostly copper with nickel and zinc.
OILING A form of gemstone enhancement used for centuries to improve the appearance and or color of a gemstone. Emeralds are frequently treated in this manner to hide inclusions. Unfortunately this is not a permanent treatment and can be removed by heating or intensive cleaning.
OLD EUROPEAN CUT A round cutting style, the forerunner of the modern Brilliant Cut. An Old European cut, round gemstone is rounder in outline than an Old Mine Cut, but a large culet, small table and high crown distinguish this cut from a modern cut.
OLD MINE CUT Commonly called Old Miners, the Old Mine Cut has a large culet, a high crown, a small table and is somewhat square, with rounded corners, in outline. This cutting style emerged after the industrial revolution and yielded more brilliance and fire than was previously possible to achieve in Diamond cutting. The small table and large crown facets produce more dispersion of white light coming out of a Diamond, resulting in many colors of the rainbow being seen.
OMEGA CLIP A type of earring back with a hinge that flips over a post to provide additional security.
OVAL CUT
OXIDATION A film or coating that forms, like a skin on the exterior of metal resulting from a reaction with oxygen. Antiquing is a chemical process used to create an oxidized look.
OPAQUE A solid or non-transparent gemstone such as Onyx or Jade. If some light passes through the stone it would be translucent, not opaque.
OPERA LENGTH A single strand of pearls 30" to 35" in length.
OXIDATION A chemical process which tarnishes the surface of a metal leaving a "patina" or film/finish. Copper oxidizes to green (verdis), Silver oxidizes to black, Gold dulls but doesn't really change color. Expose to air alone caused this process over time.
PALLADIUM A member of the Platinum group. Palladium is lighter and less expensive than platinum and is mixed with yellow gold to create white gold.
PASTE Glass which is used to imitate gemstones. Can be very expensive reproductions of fine jewelry, sometimes worn by the wealthy when traveling.
PATINA A film or finish on a metal caused by oxidation.
PAVÉ (Pronounced Pa Vay) A method of bead setting gemstones, usually Diamonds, next to each other so that an entire metal surface is covered, or paved, with gems.
PEAR SHAPE
PENDANT A charm or other item worn on a chain that swings freely.
PENNYWEIGHT A unit of weight equal to 1/20th of an ounce. DWT is the abbreviation for Pennyweight..
PERIOD JEWELRY Articles of jewelry that exemplify the design style of the times in which they were created. Examples of well know periods are Victorian, Edwardian and Art Deco.
PINK GOLD Also called rose gold because of its soft pink tones. Pink gold is made by adding enough copper to a gold alloy so it turns pink.
PINK ICE Pink colored Cubic Zirconia, popularized by television shopping networks
PLATINUM The noblest of the noble metals, Platinum is a white, hard and very dense metal. Platinum is usually alloyed with Iridium (90% Plat. 10% Iridium) and more recently Cobalt is being used in Platinum alloys.
PLATINUM GROUP A category of five noble metals including Platinum, Palladium, Iridium, Rhodium, and Ruthenium
PLUMB GOLD A term used to describe gold jewelry that contains the precise amount of gold in the alloy that the Karat mark indicates. In the past an item marked 14Kt could legally have been 13.5 karat and still considered 14K. Today an item marked 14k must be at least 14 of 24 parts fine gold and is considered plumb gold. In some instances manufacturers have marked their jewelry 14KP meaning plumb, but inadvertently have confused the public that believed the 14KP mark meant gold plated.
POINT A unit of weight equal to 1/100th of a carat. One hundred points equal one carat, fifty points equal a half carat and so on. A point is an extremely accurate unit of measure used to weigh gemstones. One point is equal to about 1/14,000 of an ounce.
PRECIOUS METALS Gold, Silver, Platinum and the other members of the Platinum group.
PRE-ENGAGEMENT RING An engagement style ring set with a very small diamond, given in lieu of an engagement ring or as a prelude to an engagement ring. Also called a promise ring.
PRINCESS CUT
PRINCESS LENGTH A single strand of pearls 18" in length.
PROMISE RING A pre-engagement ring offered with the promise of ones heart. Typically similar to an engagement ring with a very small diamond, maybe 5 points in size.
REFRACTION: When a single beam of light passes from one substance to another (air into water) it bends or changes direction. The angle or number of degrees which light bends can be measured and this is known as s substances Refractive Index (RI). Some substances can split light into two beams and are known as doubly refractive (DR) and will have two Refractive Indexes. If the light beam does not split a substance is Singly refractive (SR).
REPOUSSE A raised design on metal created by punching or hammering the back of the metal.
RETRO A style common in the 1940's exemplified by chunky styles, geometric designs and pink gold.
RHINESTONES Glass gemstones with foil backings which enhance the reflective nature of the material. Rhinestones are generally glued, but may be set and are used extensively in costume and fashion jewelry as well as other accessories.
RHODIUM A member of the platinum group of metals commonly used for plating gold, sterling and other metals. Rhodium is white and will make yellow gold white in appearance or can add a two-tone effect to a jewelry finish. Rhodium prevents tarnishing of sterling silver and adds a brighter, mirror like finish.
ROPE LENGTH A single strand of pearls which is 40" in length.
ROSE CUT
SANDBLAST FINISH A dull matte looking finish applied to the surface of metal using sand and air to blast the surface and create the finish.
SATIN FINISH A dull matte finish created with fine emery sand paper, sandblasting, wire brushing, stone finishing, or using acid.
SAUTOIR A long necklace, usually about 40" with a pendant or ornament at the bottom.
SCATTER PINS A grouping of several small pins worn together
SEMI-MOUNT A mounting, generally a ring, designed to hold a large or primary gemstone and smaller accent gemstones in which only the accent gemstones have already been set.
SEMI-PRECIOUS A term that formerly was used to describe colored gemstones other than Ruby, Sapphire and Emerald. In fact many of the gemstones called semi-precious could be quite valuable, costing several thousands of dollars and more. For this reason the term is really not appropriate and its use has been discontinued by most people in the jewelry industry.
SHANK The bottom of a ring set with gemstones into which you insert your finger . The shank is the part of the ring which is cut when sized and can be replaced when worn thin.
SIGNET
SINGLE CUT A cutting style for a round gemstone with 18 facets: 8 crown, 8 pavilion, a table and a culet which is sometimes omitted. Single cut Diamonds are common in sizes up to about 10 points..
SIMULANT A material used to mimic or resemble another. Plastics are commonly used to simulate the look of genuine gemstones.
SOLITAIRE
SPECIFIC GRAVITY A unit of measure which compares a materials weight with that of an equal volume of water with water being equal to one as a value. An item with a specific gravity of less than one would be lighter than water and Sapphire which has a specific gravity of about 4 would be 4 times heavier than water when compared in equal volumes.
SPECTROSCOPE An instrument that measure the absorption of light in a material and is commonly used to identify gemstones.
SPRING RING
STAMPING A jewelry manufacturing process used to make ultra light weight jewelry. Gold sheets not much heavier than thick paper or as thin as foil are stamped with dies to produce cookie like cut outs that are assembled into jewelry. Lightweight earrings and charms are often made in this manner.
STERLING SILVER An alloy of 92.5 percent silver and other metal, usually copper used for strength.
STICK PIN
STUD EARRINGS Also called studs, small post style pierced earrings, sometimes set with gemstones. Diamond studs are probably the most popular type of Diamond earrings.
STUDS Worn on men's tuxedo shirts instead of buttons. Also, a term used to describe stud earrings.
SUITE A matched set of gemstones or jewelry.
SYNTHETIC A man-made material.
TAPERED BAGUETTE A baguette in which the two short edges are unequal in length causing the longer sides to taper in towards the short edge. Tapered baguettes are very popular as accents in the settings of engagement rings.
TIE BAR
TIE TAC An ornament pinned through a tie and secured with a clutch. Some styles of tie tacs have a small piece of chain attached to the clutch with a tiny bar at the end to connect to a button hole in a shirt .
TIFFANY SETTING A solitaire style setting, usually a ring, with a four or six prong head or setting.
TOTAL WEIGHT The sum of the carat weight of all of the gemstones in a piece of jewelry.
TRANSLUCENT A substance which allows light to pass through it but in neither opaque or transparent. Frosted glass is translucent.
TRANSPARENT A substance which allows light to pass thru it completely allowing you to see thru it such as clear glass.
TRILLION
TRIPLET A gemstone made of three pieces. A common example is an Opal triplet which is made by placing a very thin layer of Opal between an Onyx or dark material background which provides rigidity and enhances the thin materials color and a covering layer of clear quartz or other gem material to protect the Opal from damage.
TROY OUNCE A unit of measure used to weigh metals. There are 31.08 grams in a troy ounce, not to be confused with the 28 grams in an avoir ounce used to weigh food and other materials.
TUBE SET Also known as a bezel setting. A gemstone that is set in a gold, tube like setting.
VERMEIL An article of Sterling Silver jewelry that has been plated in 14Kt Gold.
WEDDING SET A woman's wedding and engagement ring designed to be worn together. Sometimes the wedding ring is shaped so that it fits around the solitaire engagement ring, making the set look like a single piece.
WEDDING TRIO A three piece wedding ring set consisting of his and her matching wedding rings and a matching engagement ring
WHITE GOLD An alloy of gold made by mixing yellow gold with a combination of nickel, zinc, or palladium.
ZIRCON A genuine and natural gemstone not to be confused with Cubic Zirconia which is a synthetic. Zircon is common in colorless, blue and pink or rose varieties. Colorless Zircon was used as a Diamond simulant until Cubic Zirconia came along and natural colorless Zircon has all but disappeared from the marketplace..
Amethyst
Bracelet, Amethyst Earrings, Amethyst Necklace, Anklet, Appraisal, Aquamarine
Bracelet, Aquamarine Earrings, Aquamarine Necklace, Aquamarine Ring, Amethyst
Ring, Watch Battery, Bead Bracelet, Baby Beaded
Bracelet, Bead Earrings, Bead Necklace, Birthstone Charm, Birthstone Earrings ,
Gift Basket, Birthstone Necklace, Birthstone Ring, Blue Topaz Bracelet, Blue
Topaz Earrings, Blue Topaz Necklace, Blue Topaz
Ring, Children’s
Bracelet, Baby Necklace, Children’s Ring, Cameo Earrings, Cameo Pendant, Cameo
Ring, Claddaugh Ring, Collectable, Cultured Pearl Bracelet, Cultured Pearl
Earrings, Cultured Pearl Necklace, Cultured Pearl Ring, Colored Stone
Bracelet, Colored Stone Earrings, Colored Stone Necklace, Colored Stone Ring,
Citrine Bracelet, Citrine Earrings, Citrine Necklace, Citrine Ring, Cubic
Zirconia Bracelet, Cubic Zirconia Earrings , Cubic Zirconia Necklace , Cubic
Zirconia Ring, Diamond Anniversary Band, Diamond Bracelet, Diamond Earrings,
Diamond Engagement Ring, Diamond Engagement Setting, Custom Diamond Ring, Double
Heart Ring, Diamond, Diamond Initial Necklace,
Diamond Initial Ring, Diamond Necklace, Diamond Name Bracelet, Nameplate With
Diamonds, Diamond Pin, Diamond Ring, Emerald Bracelet, Ear Care Solution,
Emerald Earrings, Emerald Necklace, Engraving, Ear Piercing,
Emerald Ring, Estate Bracelet, Estate Pendant, Estate Earring, Estate Necklace,
Estate Pin, Estate Ring, Estate Jewelry, Estate Watch, Faberge Style Eggs,
Fashion Watch, Garnet Bracelet, Garnet Earrings, Gold Filled Jewelry, Gold
Filled Earrings, Golf Accessories, Garnet Necklace, Garnet Ring, Giftware, Gold
Filled Y Necklace, Speidel I.
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A gemstone in the shape of an oval, faceted similar
to a round brilliant cut.
A gemstone shape rounded at one end and pointed
at the other. The facet arrangements are similar to those of the round
brilliant cut.
A
square cut, which is facetted similar to an
Emerald Cut above the girdle and facetted like a Round Brilliant Cut below the
girdle.
A method of cutting a gemstone in which the bottom
of the stone is flat and the top is faceted. The rose cut was phased out
as more modern cutting techniques evolved during the industrial
revolution. Rose cut gemstones give a jeweler or an appraiser clues as to
the age of a piece of jewelry.
Typically used to
describe a ring or pendant set
with a single gemstone.
An ornamental item on a long rigid wire that is
pinned through fabric. A clutch is fastened at the bottom to prevent loss.
A clip worn on a tie as an accessory, secured
by an alligator clip or spring tension in the metal. Sometimes referred
to as a tie clip.
A
triangular shaped gemstone. The three sides of the triangle typically have
a slight bow in them as opposed to straight edges.