Well the oracle of Omaha, Warren Buffet, probably said it best “If you don’t know diamonds, know your jeweler”. In this little blog post we are going to do our best to try to point you in the right direction on both! First for the jeweler part, I am the second generation of J.R.Dunn Jewelers and like my parents, I absolutely love what I do! My parents have been in this business for almost forty years and we would be honored for you to read the history of J.R.Dunn Jewelers to get to know us a little bit better.

As far as the shopping part goes, we are unlike most of the other stores selling engagement rings in South Florida. We want you to shop around and that includes online. In fact I have even written an article and done a podcast on how to buy a diamond made simple to make your comparison shopping a breeze. This should give you a pretty good head start and hopefully show you we are serious about competing on price and earning your business!

If you’d rather cut right to the chase, you can start browsing our huge selection of diamonds and designer engagement rings on J.R.Dunn’s website or just visit either of our two convenient South Florida locations below. We earnestly await you arrival!

LIGHTHOUSE POINT

4210 North Federal Highway
Lighthouse Point, Florida 33064

Open Monday to Saturday
from 10am to 6pm
Sunday from Noon to 5pm

tel: 954-782-5000
fax: 954-782-6904

Take I-95 to Sample Road East
Turn North (left) on Federal Highway US-1
Drive about 1/2 mile, we are on the right.

LAS OLAS BOULEVARD

401 Las Olas Boulevard, Suite 100
Bank of America Plaza
Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33301

Open Tues, Wed, Thurs and Sat.
from 10am to 6pm
Friday from 10am to 8pm
Closed Sunday, Monday

tel: 954-463-1799
fax: 954-463-6355

Take I-95 to Broward Blvd. exit East,
Turn on Andrews Ave South (right)
to Las Olas Blvd East (left), drive 1/2 blocks to the BANK of AMERICA Tower, Across from Timpano’s Restaurant.

South Florida, We’ve got the engagement ring for you!

Best Regards,

Sean

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The term Golconda originates from an historic area in India named the “Golconda kingdom” where diamonds used to be mined. Now the term is used to describe diamonds that are type IIa. Type IIa diamonds are pure diamond crystals with no nitrogen present. (The presence of nitrogen is what gives diamonds a yellowish color.) This lack of nitrogen makes Golconda diamonds pure white and this is extremely rare. These gems makes up less than 1% of all diamonds and they sometimes referred to as “Super D’s.”

So, if you’re searching for a “Super D” prepare to be patient as Golconda’s are few and far between. You can occasionally see them commanding very high premiums at high end auction houses like Sotheby’s and Christies. Once you finally do find the Golconda diamond that strikes your fancy be sure it is accompanied by a Gueblin verification report stating the diamond is in fact type IIa. This report will go along way to protect your investment down the road.

Happy Hunting!

Sean

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It seems like the guys who found this rock might have gotten a little ahead of themselves but it’s easy to see why. Until yesterday, the largest rough diamond found to date was the Cullinan diamond weighing in at 3107 carats and once polished the stone ended up being set in the sceptre of King Edward VII which is now in the Tower of London. Yesterdays unconfirmed diamond find in South Africa weighed in at over 8,000 carats, more than double the Cullinan!

Speculation is abound and I’m sure this will be all put to rest tomorrow. Is it a Diamond or isn’t it? Who know’s but I’m hoping these guys happen to luck out and we’ve got the diamond find of the Century in the making!

Oh and guys, please don’t try that grinder thing on your wife or your mom’s diamonds

Sean

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How to Sell a Diamond

Often times I get asked what is the best way to sell a diamond. The answer depends on many factors, but I can tell you the worst way to sell it is being in a hurry. So, my first bit of advice is take a deep breath and don’t make any quick decisions. Time can be your ally if you are not in dire straits.

The first thing I’d advise you to do is gather all your paperwork on the diamond and look it over. Hopefully the diamond will be accompanied by a grading report from one of the well known independent labs like AGS, GIA or even EGL. If you’ve got one of these certificates, you’re in good shape on your quest to understanding what your diamond is really worth. These reports are far more important than the original “bill of sale” and the “appraisal”. In fact, it’s best not to dwell on what you paid for the diamond and it’s “appraised value” because whoever is going to buy it off of you is going to value it for what it is worth to them. And in some cases, if you tell them what you originally paid and it’s significantly lower than current market value, you will probably hurt your negotiating position.

So, if you do have your lab report handy open it up and “Google” loose diamonds. (If you don’t have a lab report we’ll address it a little later on). The “Google” results should show you many online jewelers selling diamonds. You’ll need to find one with a good diamond search where you can plug in variables like shape, carat weight, color and clarity. Fill out the search fields matching the parameters of your diamond as close as possible. These parameters should all be listed on the lab report. Note: It’s important to put in a range when putting in carat weight. For example if you have a 1.03ct, enter 1.00ct-1.15ct so you don’t limit your results too much. When you get the results try to match up every parameter the best you can including table size, depth, fluorescence, type of certificate etc. When you find a few that match your diamond the best, take the average of the prices shown. We recommend using a couple of different websites to do this. This technique should give you a pretty good idea of what the replacement value, not the appraised value, of what your diamond is.

Now you know what you’re jeweler can probably sell your diamond for. And, don’t forget, he does need to make a profit to stay in business. If the jeweler thinks he has a client for your diamond you may be able to work out a consignment deal with him. This is usually the best way to maximize your sale if your not in a hurry because there is less financial risk for the jeweler. If you need the money right away you have to be prepared to take less. The jeweler has to put out the money for it on the spot and unfortunately it can be difficult for the jeweler to predict when your diamond will actually sell and free up his investment. So decide which option is best for you and then aim for as close to the replacement value as you can.

For those of you who don’t have a diamond accompanied by a lab report don’t despair. The first thing you should do is find the name of an accredited independent appraiser in your town. My definition of an independent appraiser is one who doesn’t sell, broker or buy diamonds. Ask for an appraisal on the diamond and then ask what is it’s replacement value. Once you have the grading you should still double check the value online using a diamond search described in the paragraph above. If you happen to have a large diamond or a very high quality diamond that’s valued at $10,000 or above, it might be worth skipping the appraiser and sending the diamond to GIA to get a lab report. If you don’t have a lab report, the jeweler that is considering buying your diamond will always protect himself by valuing the diamond a grade lower. This is not because he is trying to rip you off, it’s just that it is impossible to predict what grade the GIA will assign the diamond with 100% accuracy. The cost of having a diamond certified is around a hundred dollars a carat and can take about 2-4 weeks.

So, hopefully these tips will help you maximize the amount of money you’ll receive for your diamond. The above techniques are also the safest for you if your using a reputable jeweler. Speaking of safety, whatever you do don’t try to list it in the newspaper and meet with people you don’t know. This is very dangerous and you could be risking your life doing so. Again, the best advice I can give you in selling a diamond is don’t rush, take your time and get to know what your diamond is worth before you start. Happy Selling!

Sincerely,

Sean Dunn

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Shopping for diamonds online can be a daunting task. What I tried to do with this post is explain the process in layman’s terms once you reach the “search for diamond” section on a jewelers website.

First thing you’ll usually see in a diamond search is an area where you can pick the “diamond shape”.

My Suggestion: For those of you who want to live “happily ever after”, pick the one SHE likes..not the one YOU like.

Hint: Happy wife= Happy life!

The second thing you’ll usually see is “price range”. In a retail store you might feel awkward discussing your budget with a sales associate, but on the web it’s completely private, you’re at home, its O.K. if you don’t have a million dollars to spend.

My Suggestion: Select a comfortable price range and don’t mess with exact carat weight, color and clarity until you’ve had a chance to see what you can get for your money. Once you see the results of the query, hopefully the site will allow you to click on the carat weight title on top of the results field. This will sort the list largest to smallest. This shows you the largest diamond you can get for your money and if you click it again it should sort the opposite way so you should see the highest quality diamond you can get for your money.

Hint: Just because she’s got a small hand doesn’t mean she wants a small diamond!

After you do your initial shape and price searches, and you understand what you can get for you money, find the educational section on the jewelers website to learn about the diamond grading system invented by GIA called the four C’S. You’ll need to educate yourself about the 4C’s to help you narrow down the results from all the diamonds shown to the one that’ll make her heart sing. If you don’t want to go hunting around other websites for these slightly boring educational pages I’ve summarized it in “plain speak” below. Hopefully you’ll find this helpful!

The Four C’s and beyond in “Layman”s Terms

Ok, so you’ve learned the first part about searching for diamonds and you know what shape and carat weight you can buy for your money. Now it’s time to learn the meaning of the rest of the clarity, color and cut grades shown on most diamond search results pages.

(Remember please don’t hesitate to call us or use our “Live Chat” to ask questions about how to buy a diamond on www.jrdunn.com. That’s what our Graduate Gemologists are here for).

The Four C’s (This is what determines the price of a diamond)

Carat: is not size its weight. A diamond can weigh 1 carat and be two different sizes. If you want to know the size of a particular diamond, look at the actual millimeter measurements. (We’ll get to what are good or bad measurements in a bit).

Color: D is the best color you can get. It’s pure white. The colors start at D and go to Z alphabetically. To sum it up, if you want a colorless diamond from all angles look at D, E, or F. If you want a diamond that looks very white from top and pretty darn white from the sides against a white background consider G,H, or I. If you think that she’d rather have a larger diamond consider the possibilities of a J or a K which can still face up (look) beautifully. They will have a little color when you look at them from the sides against a white background.

Clarity: This is the point where we tell most people in our store and on our website to pay for what you see. You see size, color and sparkle. Clarity unless it is really, really bad won’t affect any of the above. Most people choose VS1 to SI2 ranges in our store. Good SI2′s do not have imperfections visible to the naked eye (unless it’s maybe an emerald cut). Should you decide on an SI2, confirm with the seller whether the imperfection is eye visible or not before you buy!

Clarity made simple:

IF-VVS2 – Is that a speck of dust or is that the imperfection under the microscope? (The Jeweler thinking out loud).

VS1-VS2 “ The jeweler will show you where the imperfection is so you can see it under the microscope.

SI1-SI2 – Looks clean to the naked eye. You’ll find the inclusions by yourself using the microscope.

Cut is very, very important. It determines how much the diamond will sparkle and greatly affects its cost. This can get very, very complicated but here is a link to suggested ranges and don’t hesitate to use our live chat or call our Graduate Gemologist if you have questions.

Laboratory This field is actually critical when shopping for a diamond. The lab report independently verifies the grade of the diamond and you’re not just taking the jewelers word for it. We default to GIA and AGS labs because we consider them to be the industry standard. They are very strict and consistent when it comes to their grading. When shopping price on a diamond it’s a must to make sure you are comparing GIA to GIA or AGS to AGS. You don’t want to be comparing Joe’s Gem lab to a GIA report.

HINT: Joe just might be your jeweler’s cousin.

So now that you have a handle on the basics you can begin your quest to find just the right diamond! Congrats in advance.

Sincerely,

Sean Dunn
Graduate Gemologist

P.S.For even more information please be sure to visit the sites below and take the tutorial’s from two of the most respected labs in our industry and also feel free to chat with us any time.

GIA’s Four C’s Tutorial, AGS Four C’s, Live Gemologist (click on Chat Live link on left side of page)

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