A diamond travels through many lands—and many hands—before it ends up on yours.

Mining: Roughly 65 percent of diamonds are mined in Africa, most of them in Botswana. Diamonds are found in a volcanic rock called kimberlite, which is blasted out of the mine walls in large chunks and then dumped into a crusher to be turned into smaller pieces. These are then taken to a sorting house where the diamonds are separated from the rock through a number of processes that range from using old-fashioned screens to X-rays and lasers.

A 136 carat rough diamond

Sorting, Cutting, and Polishing: In their raw state, diamonds are dull and lusterless; cutting and polishing create the fire that bring stones to life. In decades past, cutters might study a diamond for three days before cutting, but today computer scanners indicate how to cut a stone for maximum brilliance. The final step of cutting, called faceting, also polishes the stone.

Grading: Before the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) created a standardized grading scale in 1953, each retailer had his own system, confusing both customers and dealers. Today, most diamonds are sent to a GIA laboratory to be graded according to cut, color, carat, and clarity—also known as the Four C’s.

Wholesale: After they’re cut, diamonds are sold to dealers or to retailers in bourses, or exchanges. Of the 29 bourses worldwide, Antwerp’s is the largest, with half of all polished stones and 60 percent of all rough stones passing through this exchange. The transactions that take place in many of these bourses are governed by a traditional code of conduct dating back hundreds of years. Professional trust is paramount, and deals worth millions of dollars are sealed with only a handshake.

Retail: Once a retailer has purchased a diamond, it can be set into a piece of jewelry or left loose to sell to customers who want to choose or customize a setting. Some $72 billion worth of diamonds are sold in the United States each year, representing half of the world market. Most of these stones pass through New York’s Diamond District.

For a full selection of diamonds please visit our retail site by clicking here.

Article excerpt from:
The Informer: From the Mine to Your Finger
by Erin Lenczycki | Published October 2011 |
http://www.concierge.com/cntraveler/articles/504109

One very important aspect of our business is buying diamonds, gold and silver from the public. We have a very discrete office setting in Chevy Chase, MD where you can sell your jewelry. Regardless of whether or not you decide to sell your items to us we believe strongly in education, as it is one of the most powerful tools for any consumer. Recently, we received this thank you from a client that visited us in Chevy Chase.

I had the opportunity to meet Paul this afternoon and sell two 14k gold pieces. It was a wonderful experience and he was extremely courteous and knowledgeable. He explained many facts about metals and diamonds that I never knew about. The entire appointment was very pleasant and I will now highly recommend Samuelson’s to all my friends!

We love hearing when our customers are having such positive experiences. However, the reason we are sharing this experience with you is to highlight how our family owned and operated business has survived for 90 years. We take a lot of pride in educating our customers. To be honest, we want to close the sale as much as anyone else but we want you to leave with an education as well.  Whether you are buying jewelry or selling jewelry in either of our locations, this is the type of service our customers can expect.

When people visit Samuelson’s, they are often surprised at how much they receive for their gold, silver and diamond jewelry. In fact, we had one Washington, D.C. client visit us numerous times as they were cleaning out their father’s house of inherited diamonds, gold and silver. That particular client received over $25,000 by selling broken gold chains, diamonds and silverware. All of these items were of little use to her and she used the money to pay for a year of her son’s college tuition. She did not expect that her diamond jewelry, gold and silver would amount to anything significant, but they did. Needless to say, she was pleasantly surprised.

By now you may be wondering what the next step is. Click here or call 1-800-374-4367 to schedule your appointment today. Then visit us at either of our convenient locations in Baltimore, MD or Chevy Chase, MD to receive an offer on your gold, silver and diamond jewelry.

A brief notice:

To better serve all of our Washington DC area customers, we are hosting a jewelry buy at White Flint Mall on November 11 & 12 from 12-7pm. We will be at:

The Jewelry Design Company
White Flint Mall
11301 Rockville Pike
North Bethesda, MD 20895
Lower Level Across from Banana Republic

Please call us at 410-837-0290, contact us or email me personally for an appointment. We are buying diamonds, gold, silver flatware and all jewelry. Here are some examples of what we’re buying:

So please make an appointment and I will be happy to help you as always. And, of course, don’t forget to email me with any requests, big or small.

Baltimore–Last year, Ron Samuelson, chief executive of Samuelson’s Diamonds in Baltimore, bought an 8.5-carat brownish-yellow round diamond mounted in a men’s nugget ring from a customer who was seduced by the “sell your jewelry” offer on the store’s Web site.

“It was a big, ugly stone,” Samuelson recalls. “When we showed it to our cutter, he said, ‘Yeah, I could make this into a fancy yellow.’”

The resulting diamond, a 6.86-carat fancy-yellow radiant, is now part of the store’s inventory, and Samuelson is confident that when he eventually sells the stone, it will net him a tidy profit.

“I’ve almost eliminated my need for diamond dealers,” Samuelson says. “For every one person who wants to buy a diamond, 20 want to sell.”

As of this release, the ring is still available:

The 6.86 Carat Fancy Yellow Radiant Ring

Samuelson’s Diamonds continues to offer its customers the best prices for used jewelry, gold, silver and diamonds.

The original article can be found here: ‘Recession brings glut of diamonds, but few buyers.‘