How do I certify gems and jewelry in a fast, easy, and affordable way? Please read my small paragraph?
Joe asked:
How would I be able to show someone that a diamond is an honest to goodness diamond (not just gems, but jewelry in general)? I have to get it certified right? If so, how would I go about doing that in a fast, easy, and affordable way?
How would I be able to show someone that a diamond is an honest to goodness diamond (not just gems, but jewelry in general)? I have to get it certified right? If so, how would I go about doing that in a fast, easy, and affordable way?
December 19th, 2008 at 12:24 pm
Well about the only way is going to a jewelry store and getting it appraised. They do charge, but hopefully it’s worth it because there is no other way but to have it appraised. If you have quantities you could get a discount per appraisal probably.
December 22nd, 2008 at 7:42 am
I would suggest you find a reputable appraiser in your area that operates independently of a store. The reason I say this is that there are jewelry stores that offer appraisal work but the person appraising might not be fully qualified to give you a proper appraisal report. Therefore an appraiser that has credentials would be more suitable. Ask about the persons resume or credentials and also references.
You can look at the National Association of Jewelry Appraisers (NAJA)
for a professional in your area, and also the American Society of Appraisers (ASA) at for a referral. Most credited appraisers should be able to identify your jewelry as genuine and would also include a report and an estimate value. Depending on your area appraisers will charge anywhere from $75 and up for a piece so it can get costly. Unfortunately that is the range for receiving professional service. Turnaround time for a report is usually fast approx. an hour to a few hours or even more depending on the condition of the piece and other factors i.e. antique, complexity of design etc. also his/her workload.
If the jewelry is a significant piece I would strongly recommend getting an independent report from a reputable lab for the center stone of the jewelry. This would be an important step for validating the jewelry and it will also give piece of mind. However, you would have to remove the stone from the setting to send it to a lab. (if it is an antique piece and fragile this might not be a good choice)
Ultimately it really depends on whether the jewelry is valued enough to go through both an appraisal and an independent lab report for the gemstone. This is something you have to weigh for yourself. I hope this helps!