How to Spot a Real Precious Stone
Rubellite
When you are buying gemstones whether they are for creating jewelry or your personal collection it is important to know that the gemstones you are buying are natural as opposed to a fake, synthetic or imitation. You don’t want to shell out the cost for a precious stone and end up with an imitation. How are you supposed to know the difference? It is not always easy, since the point of an imitation is to look as similar to the real thing as possible. There are tips and tricks to help you ensure that the gemstones you are using are as precious as they should be.
Vintage Diamond and Ruby Bombe Style Ring, c.1940s
Synthetic gemstones are made from the same basic chemical properties as genuine ones. Most are made in a lab as a synthetic gemstone meaning they are being made to look and feel like the real thing. There are obvious fakes that anyone could tell from a mile away, but the problem is those close matches. One of the biggest things to remember is that gemstones are natural and that means they will have some imperfections, such as an inclusion. They are going to be more worn down from nature than a synthetic counterpart, so even though it may sound backwards the perfect looking sparkly stone will more often be the fake. Price point is another huge giveaway, when dealing with precious stones, if it seems too good to be true it probably is where price is concerned. Precious stones are rare coming from nature compared to synthetics which can be mass produced and the difference in cost will be apparent.
There are ways to tell the authenticity of different precious stones by type. Let’s start with pearls. You may have heard the old tale that to check if a pearl is real you put it in your mouth and scrape it on your teeth. This method actually does work. A real or cultured pearl is going to have a gritty feel since it is in fact a piece of grit and an imitation will be smoother and look more perfect. Temperature is another way to tell with pearls, a real or cultured pearl will be cool to the touch until heated by your body's touch, comparable to marble. While a synthetic pearl will be room temperature when picked up and warm quickly.
Diamonds are a girl's best friend and there are plenty of tests out there to tell whether or not the friend you plan on buying is the real thing. An easy test for diamonds is called a fog test. To do this blow hot air on the diamond, like you would a mirror. If the fog doesn’t stay, the diamond is real, real diamonds can disperse the heat quickly, while fake diamonds will fog for a few seconds. There are so many fakes and synthetic diamonds on the market that even the professionals can miss them if they are not careful. Lately you can find a lot of fake and synthetic diamonds mixed in with genuine diamonds on a piece of jewelry.
Using these tips will help guide that the precious stone you have is indeed precious. Another way to be completely certain you are getting exactly what you thought is by visiting a trusted professional. Take it to Ohio Gem Lab and see what they have to say.
