The gem blog

Where do gemstones come from?

We have a huge amount to be grateful for with this amazing planet that we are lucky enough to live on. Amongst all the more obvious things, I’m pretty chuffed that it’s formed us some amazing gemstones! The huge fluctuations in temperature and pressure, and the...

What is an ethical gemstone?

Many companies will describe their gemstone jewellery as "ethical", but have you ever stopped to consider what this really means? The more I find out about gems and gem mining, the more I realise that this is an incredibly complex area. There is an idealistic and...

Will my gemstone last?

One of the mistakes I made when I started making jewellery was not really understanding that different gemstones have very different properties, particularly with respect to durability. This means that some gems are fantastic for using in jewellery as they will...

Can I identify my gemstone by its colour?

I wondered this too, when I was starting out. As far as I was aware, purple meant amethyst. Didn’t it? Well, as ever the answer is that it’s not quite as straightforward as that. Certainly some gems do have characteristic colours, and that can be very helpful in...

Gemstone or crystal?

Many people refer to gemstones as crystals, and when I started learning about gemmology I wasn’t quite sure what was meant by a crystal. During my Foundation course I learnt all about the seven crystal systems that describe how gems grow, and the different forms that...

Using your eyes

When you imagine a gemmologist, you may think of someone peering closely at a gem, trying to uncover its secrets. It’s true that the first tool that most gemmologists turn to is their loupe. An eyeglass that magnifies by a factor...

Setting out

When I began making jewellery I was a bit clueless. I knew that I wanted to make lovely jewellery with gorgeous gemstones, but it was only once I started out that I realised that I knew next to nothing about gemstones. Yes, I...

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One aspect to my work that is really important to $One aspect to my work that is really important to me is cutting all the gemstones I use myself from their rough forms. I love the fact that each one is different, meaning that none of the finished products are quite the same.⁣ ⁣ When I receive the rough gems, the first step is to look at them carefully. I need to know whether there are any inclusions or fractures inside the gemstone, and how to orientate the gem so that there is sufficient space within it to cut the complete design. If the rough form is irregular I will make a preform, which means using a coarse lap (grinding wheel) to take off any irregularities, and form a rough outline of the shape of the gem that I intend to cut.⁣ ⁣ Before starting the cutting proper, I attach the preformed gem to a dop with wax or glue. A dop is a small brass stick which holds the gem in place in the handpiece. The handpiece allows me to adjust the angle at which the gemstone is held against the cutting wheel (lap) so I can place all the facets where they need to be. The first cuts are quite coarse, then I will repeat these with a finer cutting wheel before moving onto polishing. ⁣ ⁣ Polishing is again done by holding the handpiece against a lap to polish each facet in turn, first with a rough polish and then a fine polish. There are many different types of polishing lap, but some of my favourites include copper or tin loaded with diamond paste. The diamond paste is responsible for the fine polish on the stone.⁣ ⁣ Normally I start with the pavilion (base of the gemstone), and then once that is cut and polished I will transfer the stone to a different dop to cut the crown (top part of the gemstone). The transfer is a delicate operation as the stone needs to be orientated perfectly in order for pavilion to match the crown, and at the same time the crown dop needs to be secured as the pavilion dop is released. Once the crown has been cut and polished the gemstone is released from the dop and cleaned with acetone. There is nothing like that initial view of a gemstone held up to the light after coming off a dop, revealing the cumulation of all your efforts!$

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