Hi Everyone,

I’m Ron Samuelson, third generation here at Samuelson’s Diamonds. This is my first post on our company blog. Please check out my personal blog, RambleOnRon, for well, more personal stuff. Anyway, I want to talk about what I look for in a diamond when I’m buying in order to help you when it’s your turn to look at some stones. I was reading a great article about Francois Curiel, head of Christie’s international jewelry division. He talks about how the financial crisis impacts diamonds, large diamonds in particular. What really struck me the most is what he says here:

Question: What makes a stone great?

Answer: “Its ideal proportions, its life and whether it talks to you or not. We had a group of young gemological students come to our New York viewing in October. We sat them behind the showcases, like real professionals, so that they could examine the diamonds. What struck me was that the first thing they did when they picked up a stone was to loupe it. I smiled because this is what I did when I started in the business and this is what all gemological schools teach you to do. When one gets a bit older, the loupe comes second and one first looks at the diamond in one’s hand. Do I like it? Even though the proportions might not be perfect by GIA [Gemological Institute of America] standards, do I want to own this stone? Ten people look at a gem, 11 opinions. So, what makes a stone great? Your eye and appreciation of it.”

This really hits home to me because we have so many customers who are very concerned about what the stone looks like on paper- the depth, table, girdle, culet, since they read so much about these factors online. Well, guess what? They don’t mean anything. You’re buying a diamond, not a piece of laminated paper. Look at the beauty of the stone, how it reflects light, what it says to you. Here at Samuelson’s, we buy diamonds, not paper.

Take a look at this video of Francois Curiel auctioning a massive 100-carat diamond at a Christie’s auction in Hong Kong that sold for a whopping $6 million.

Christie’s Auction 101 Carat Diamond from Samuelson’s Diamonds on Vimeo.