Fleury Sommers

Learn How to Test Your Precious Metal

If you buy jewelry or make jewelry, you are uncomfortably aware of the soaring prices of precious metals. As of this writing, gold is up over $1600 and Thomson Reuters released a report this week suggesting sterling silver will top $40 per ounce this yea... Read >

New Metals Use Old Favorites to Reduce Cost of Gemstone Settings

In an era where the price of the metal in the setting of a piece of jewelry can meet or exceed the price of the gemstone, some members of the trade are experimenting with new alloys to bring down the cost of the metal. One such alloy is called Platinai... Read >

Using a Mohs Scale to Buy or Make Jewelry

If you buy jewelry or make jewelry for yourself or for others, you want to know about what is called the Mohs scale. This scale, widely used by geologists and gemologists, tells you the relative hardness of a stone. The hardness of a stone, in turn, will ... Read >

Historic Pink Diamond Find Focuses New Attention on Rare and Beautiful Gemstone

The huge new pink diamond recently found at the Argyle Diamond Mine in Australia is sure to bring renewed attention to this rare gemstone. The stone called the “Argyle Pink Jubilee” is 12.76 carats, the largest pink diamond ever discovered in Australia, a... Read >

Picking Hues for You

As we enter 2012, we are told that the color of the year is Tangerine Tango. We are also told that clothes, jewelry and other accessories will reflect this sophisticated, dramatic and seductive color. Leading trade and fashion publications have carried t... Read >

The Jewelry Industry in 2011

From a faltering Kimberley Process for conflict diamonds to the Guinness Book of Records, the jewelry industry saw its share of hits and misses in 2011. Here is my highly subjective pick of notable news and trends from and about the jewelry industry. M... Read >

Antique Jewelry May Be Disappearing

The rise in gold prices, now north of $1600 an ounce and predicted to reach $1900 this fall means that you are seeing less gold in jewelry. Silver has replaced gold as the choice of most consumers and jewelers, especially art jewelers, are turning to new ... Read >

How Bead Stringers can Approach and Work with a Gallery

One of the best ways to earn money and begin to develop a reputation as a jewelry artist is to get your work shown in a local gallery or museum shop. However, many jewelry artists are hesitant about approaching a gallery owner. They shouldn’t be. Here ar... Read >

Jewelry Designers Seeing Blue

JCK, Jewelers Circular Keystone, a jewelry industry publication, recently published a trend-watch article that reminds jewelry designers that not only are fashion trends a great source of ideas, but that many clients see jewelry as wardrobe accessories, a... Read >