Larger Amounts of "Russian" Demantoid Garnet Being Seen in the Market

In perusing the internet, there are many more Russian Demantoid Garnets than usual being offered. We believe we know why - it is not because they are finding or mining more in Russia, but it is due to a fairly new strike of this mineral from Madagascar. The color being found ranges from green, blue green, yellow green, yellow and other colors associated with this variety (Andradite). As to be expected, the average faceted gemstones are not large and can be quite included.

The interesting thing about this new find is that the gemstones are appearing on the market as having come from Russia. Why? Because many people who have heard of this rare garnet associate the fine material as coming from Russia - therefore, higher prices are to be expected from the Russian material. The sellers, either out of lack of knowledge or blatantly attempting to deceive, are marketing this as Russian vs. Madagascar Demantoid. Of course, there is still Russian material being mined and on the market, but most of the newer material for sale is coming from Thailand and it would typcially be from the Madagascar find.

This story is similar to Emeralds which are found in Africa, Brasil and other places of the world. They may sometimes be sold as Columbian, because of Columbia's reputation as being an Emerald producer and many fine ones have come from there, specifically the Muzo Mine.

Sign Up for Adult Ed Class for The World of Gemstones!

The World of Gemstones - Discussion by the owner of All That Glitters

Mr. Brown has taught similar classes in New England. Now, with the opening of the All That Glitters West Coast Office in 2009, Mr. Brown will be teaching the class at Sierra Community College in Grass Valley, CA. Sign Up Now while space is available!

< Adult Education Class Description >

Orangy Topaz that Fades Dramatically on Exposure to Light

L. Allen Brown of All That Glitters had seen large Orangy Topaz online back in 2005 that was said to originate in Brasil and was supposedly untreated. Upon seeing this material in Chantaburi, Thailand in November of 2006, two parcels were purchased. One parcel was placed into the sun where it proceeded to fade quickly to a beige color - very attractive, bright sparkly and brilliant gemstones, but no longer the color that had been originally purchased.


In contacting GIA in California, the other parcel was sent to the GIA office in Thailand where it was studied in their lab. To read this story, you may visit the following link:
http://www.gia.edu/research-resources/gems-gemology/issues/fall2009-contents/fall-2009-featured-gni.html


Thanks to GIA for providing the above link so the trade and public could learn more about this material.

Ametrine is Not What it Used to Be!...

In looking at some gemstones for sale recently online, it reminded me that I haven't brought up a conversation with anyone in the trade regarding what many (outside the US) are calling Ametrine. These "gemstones" are bright blue and green, yellow and green, orange and blue, yellow and blue, orange and green and even what one expects of Ametrine - Purple and Yellow.

The word/term Ametrine is a contraction of Amethyst-Citrine, where Amethyst is purple and Citrine is a gold or yellow. The material comes from only one place in the world - Bolivia, not far from the Brasilian border. The material coming out of this one mine (Anahi), can be just Citrine, just Amethyst or a combination of the two - Ametrine. Cutting a gemstone with the two colors will produce a gem that one can call Ametrine.

There are various grades of this material also, just like all gemstones. We still have some incredible material purchased in the very early 1980s while on a gemstone purchasing trip in Brasil. These gems are a deep purple and deep yellow. This is in keeping with what All That Glitters seeks to place into inventory - gems that are unique, rare or unusual for that species, in this case, a nice deep rich color for both the purple and the yellow. The typical Ametrine that one usually sees on the market, especially on tv, is the very pale material - so pale at times, that one must hold it against a white background to observe the color. This more common material is the cheapest material in Ametrine.

Some people/businesses selling the 'off' color "Ametrine" are also indicating that it is from Bolivia and natural. A few have stated that it has been irradiated or at least treated in some way. One thing that we can say for sure is that this is NOT Ametrine, and it is not natural color. It could be natural Quartz, but some process has been applied to create two distinct colors - so all this being said, the color is not natural. The sad thing about this is that the term Ametrine is being applied to these 'gems'. This helps to confuse the retail customer only more with confusing terminology, various treatments, synthetics and simulants! The only way that anyone should be selling it as naturally coming from Bolivia, is that the quartz was mined in Bolivia (and then it was treated). That would be the closest one can come to natural Bolivian origin!

I am also afraid that these same dealers who have these off color Ametrines, also has some deeper colored purple and yellow faceted gemstones, (and this can certainly be called Ametrine). Is it natural color or perhaps even lab grown or irradiated material? Having been familiar with these material for over 30 years and knowing about the saturation of color, I would say that these too have been treated.

For those purchasing the off color Ametrines, be aware - this is not Ametrine and the color is highly suspicious. I would also caution those purchasing fine colored Ametrine (or even a medium color or perhaps even any color of purple/yellow Ametrine), that the gemstone might not be a true Ametrine from the Anahi Mine in Bolivia. I would feel far more comfortable in purchasing from dealers I know, have known for decades, as well as those that I know purchase rough directly from the mine owners, versus these companies (mostly outside of the U.S.) that have an Ametrine of even the expected color, but who also sell the blue/green, yellow/blue, orange/blue and all the other variations.

Since our material was purchased decades ago, we at least know that there is nothing unusual with the color and that it is natural. Enjoy the World of Gemstones and gemstone buying, but be suspicious at times when something very unusual comes along AND one is seeing it in quantity - a similar situation to the recent diffused Andesine Feldspar story....

http://www.atggems.com/Photos_Ametrine.htm

All That Glitters Back in Full Swing!

With internet access (via satellite) coming on line Dec 9th, All That Glitters is back up and running in all aspects - and in time to continue shipping items for the holiday season!

Check with us to insure that the items you wish to purchase are available in our West Coast office.

For those who are new to All That Glitters and have made a purchase this year, thank you for your purchase and Welcome to the All That Glitters Family where we have been providing unique, distinctive, exclusive fine quality colored gemstones to the public, trade, investors and collectors for almost 30 years. (And at much lower than expected prices!)

Wishing everyone, whether customers or not, Happy and Healthy Holidays!

All That Glitters Website and Info Changes for December 2009

Late October and all of November has been challenging for us as we are in transition setting up our West Coast Office. Our inventory arrived
a few weeks after we did but is now available. A number of items may
be in our East Coast Office and not available for some time, but most
of our inventory is available and can be shipped within 24 hours after
payment is received. As of late November, we still do not have
internet access. Our normal few hours response time is being delayed
by a few days until we have access to the internet to respond. Any
phone messages we receive are also delayed to some extent. Please
bare with us as we settle into our other office. We anticipate normal
operation in the not too distant future.


Here are the changes to look for on the All That Glitters website for
December 2009:


This Months Special: Custom Hand Made Sterling Silver Agate Druzy Pendant
http://www.atggems.com/Monthly_Special.htm
A Wonderful Gift for the Holiday Season!...


This Months Gem News: AGTA Announces Closing of Gemological Testing Center
http://www.atggems.com/Monthly_News.htm


Newly Faceted or Photographed Gemstones:
http://www.atggems.com/Photos_New.htm
Two Natural Oregon Sunstones back from our Master Cutter! Incredible
pieces in size, color and cutting and a must see...

All That Glitters Website and Info Changes for November 2009

Due to our transition to our West Coast office during the winter season, there were no changes to our website for the month of November.

All That Glitters Website and Info Changes for October 2009

Here are the changes to look for on the All That Glitters website for October 2009:

This Months Special: 1.10ct Certed Demantoid Garnet

At only $375 for this gem, one cannot go wrong for a Certed 1+ct Demantoid!

This Months Gem News: Hope Diamond Mounting to be Re-Designed!

The famous Hope Diamond will undergo a re-design to honor the 50th Anniversary of its donation to the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History.

Newly Faceted or Photographed Gemstones:

Three fairly large Zircons are available - 1 red and two pinks; all color shift to some extent. This color pink is being wholesaled by

some companies at about $150+/ct in the sizes we have. Our price is currently only $100/ct. The red one is somewhat rare in color.

A wonderful 2.22ct Oval Blue Tanzanian Spinel is up for grabs - a great piece rarely seen in the color and size.

740ct Light Yellow Green Spodumene crystal for the collector or cutter!

Three Natural Oregon Sunstones found in 2008 have been faceted - two can be described as an apricot or light orangey Topaz color, and the other is more saturated and is a nice reddish orange.

A 1.68ct Pear Aussie Multi-Colored Sapphire, also known as a parti-colored Sapphire (and very collectible) has just come back from the cutter.

Two very fine Natural Oregon Sunstones are in the possession of our Master Cutter - one has been completed and is just under 10cts; the other we are awaiting more information on. Visit the link above often to see if the photos have been posted; our goal is to have them up for viewing and sale prior to our departure.

All That Glitters Fighting SPAMMERS:

In order to fight spam, All That Glitters has removed our email address from appearing on our website. Our Intent to Purchase Form, being added to our Monthly Email List and anyone interested in sending email directly to us from our website, will be offered an image of alpha-numeric characters. Entry of the correct characters in the image will then send the Intent to Purchase Form, add the visitor to our Monthly Email list, or display our email address allowing the visitor to send us an email directly. For those on our email list, you already have our email address and this would only affect you should you wish to use the Intent to Purchase Form. Using PayPal directly on our site remains unaffected.

Customer Questions Regarding Payment by Credit Card:

We used to accept all credit cards directly even though our 85% wholesale/trade base paid by check or cash. Credit cards were very easy to accept when we had our TV Show and exhibited at shows that were open to the public. Due to the monthly costs and other associated fees with credit cards/bank charges, we stopped accepting credit cards directly to save money and not have to increase our prices. Our goal has always been to sell items below retail and provide our customers with fine quality at wonderfully affordable prices. We understand that one does not require a PayPal account in order to send funds via a credit card. We have been told by PayPal, that we can send an invoice (via PayPal) to a customers email address and the customer can then use their credit card to make the purchase. Simple and Easy! So if you do not have a PayPal account, do not be discouraged, as you can contact us and we can send you an invoice as described above.

All That Glitters Gemstones in GIA's Gems and Gemology Magazine Once Again:

An article on fading orangey Topaz will be in the next upcoming issue of Gems and Gemology Magazine, (published by GIA). This is one of several articles that has been written on unique gemstones that have passed through the All That Glitters inventory. Though the article is yet to be published, you can see some photos of the actual parcel that was studied by the Bangkok office of GIA, as well as a similar parcel whose color faded on exposure to light.

http://www.atggems.com/Photos_Misc2.htm#Color_Fading_Topaz

Though a very different color now, these beige colored gemstones are very brilliant and would make wonderful pieces of jewelry. The interesting story behind them, as well as the photos before/after along with the G&G article make these very collectible!

America to Vote on New Setting for the Hope Diamond

Winning design to be revealed as part of Smithsonian Channel (TM) documentary to air in 2010


NEW YORK, Aug. 19 /PRNewswire/ --
The world's most famous diamond, the HOPE DIAMOND, will undergo a special re-design to honor the 50th Anniversary of its donation to the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History. Given to the Institution as a "gift to the American people" by legendary American jeweler Harry Winston, the Smithsonian Institution and Smithsonian Channel(TM) will celebrate the diamond's legacy by inviting the American public to vote on a new design for the stunning 45.52-carat blue diamond.

The voting will take place online from August 19 - September 7 at
http://www.smithsonianchannel.com/site/smithsonian/hope.html. The House of Harry Winston has designed three possible settings -- each symbolizing modern Hope in America. The winning setting will be revealed during a press conference in Washington, D.C. this Fall. The Hope Diamond will be put on display in its new setting at the National Museum of Natural History, and
televised nationally as part of the world premiere of the Smithsonian Channel's "Mystery of the Hope Diamond" in March of 2010. The Hope Diamond will be returned to its permanent setting before the close of 2010.

Click the following link to view the sketch and design inspiration.
http://www.st-photoservices.com/blasts/HopeDiamondSettings.jpg

At 45.52 carats, the Hope is the largest deep blue diamond in the world. More than 50 years ago, jeweler to the stars, Harry Winston, purchased it from the estate of the deceased American socialite Evalyn Walsh McLean. After touring the gem around the country as part of his famous Court of Jewels, Harry Winston donated the Hope to the Smithsonian Institution, sending it to
Washington, D.C. through the U.S. postal service.

In the Smithsonian Institution's world-class gem collection -- which includes diamonds worn by Marie Antoinette, an immense emerald owned by the Turkish Sultan Abdual Hamid II, and some of the world's largest rubies and sapphires -- the Hope is the most famous jewel.

The Hope has many unique properties that have puzzled experts since its discovery, and its extraordinary history gave birth to the alleged curse -- that all who owned or touched it met great tragedy.

The voting starts Wednesday, August 19 and runs through Monday, September 7 at http://www.smithsonianchannel.com/site/smithsonian/hope.html

ABOUT SMITHSONIAN NETWORKS
Smithsonian Networks (SN) is a joint venture between Showtime Networks, Inc. and the Smithsonian Institution. It was formed to create new channels to showcase scientific, cultural and historical programming based largely upon the assets of the Smithsonian Institution, the world's largest museum complex. Smithsonian Channel features original documentaries, short-subject
explorations and innovative and groundbreaking programs highlighting America's historical, cultural and scientific heritage. Visit Smithsonian Networks on
the Internet at www.smithsonianchannel.com.

ABOUT HARRY WINSTON, INC
Since 1932, Harry Winston's exquisite jewelry and diamond designs have inspired customers and connoisseurs. The history of The House of Harry Winston includes some of the most famous jewels in the world, including the Hope Diamond, the Lesotho, and the Jonker. With 19 retail salons worldwide salons in key locations, including New York, Beverly Hills, Paris, London, Tokyo and Hong Kong, Harry Winston jewels are an enduring icon of international glamour.
For more information on Harry Winston, please visit our website at www.harrywinston.com.

SOURCE Smithsonian Networks