GETTING WHAT YOU PAY FOR

Emeralds, rubies, and sapphires are not the only gems for which you should insist on a guarantee of authenticity. You also want one ;or smoky and yellow topaz, since too much quartz and citrine is sold is the more valuable topaz. The same verification should be a condition of your buying rhodolite or grossular garnets. Both gems are farrarer and more expensive than ordinary garnets.In buying any jewelry, you need to consider what care you should take with it once you purchase it.

You want to check the prices of colored gems. Too low a price, the range of a couple of hundred dollars, is one indication that one of the above gems is what it is supposed to be. Don't be so eager for a bargain that you forget your common sense. No jeweler 7o knows what he is doing is going to offer a gem worth $1,000 - much more than that for a few hundred dollars or less. So, listen carefully to the terms being used and insist on certification of authenticity when you have any doubts.

Star and eye gems require other precautions. You want to be sure the star and eye are centered. To do so, hold the gem under a -v and move the gem from side to side. Part of the value lies in centering of the eye or star, and any jewel that is off center is worth a top price. If the gem is inexpensive enough, it may be to and set but you will be adding to the original price.

All jewelry needs to t~ stored. How should you store it? Will any of the gems fade in light, as some topazes or amber may? jewelry needs to be cleaned, too. Although ammonia, soap, and water is safe for most jewelry, it is not safe for all jewelry. In addition if the jewelry is strung, special care may be needed to keep the string dry since wet string can affect the gems.

You also want to know whether the gem will chip, break or scratch easily-how hard it is and how fragile. This is particularly important for rings, which take the most punishment. You may able to wear some gems almost all the time, while other gems may have to be removed even when you're washing your hands and though all of these questions are answered in other chapters of this book, you should ask the questions and be told the answers you are looking at jewelry.