Picture yourself sitting in a deck chair on a cruise ship, or settling in for a long plane ride to some foreign destination. As part of your trip, you plan to buy a gemstone or piece of jewelry, so you are reading up on the subject. You would have a difficult time finding a better general reference on the subject than this book.
The author draws from her extensive experience as a gemologist, tour director, world traveler and author of numerous other gem-and jewelry-buying guides to produce a concise, detailed and interesting guide. Through the use of over 100 color photographs, numerous black and white photos, line drawings, and charts, she features dozens of different varieties of gemstones… For those interested in purchasing a finished piece of jewelry, there are chapters on gold and platinum jewelry, jewelry craftsmanship, and how to have jewelry customs made. Metals, fineness markings, types of mountings and care and cleaning tips are included.
A subject that is not often covered in books on gemstones and jewelry is the set of factors that a buyer should know to make a smart and safe purchase decision.....This book goes a long way in helping gem and jewelry consumers make better buying decisions. The size and readability of this book make it a “perfect” fit for its intended use, and you’re likely to see it being put to use in just about any part of the world.
Every once in awhile a book comes along that really makes you appreciate the effort that went into it. This is such a book….It was brilliantly planned, painstakingly researched, and beautifully produced, yet it is small enough that it fits easily into a purse, pocket, or palm, where its presence is hardly noticeable. No guide of this size, priced as low as this one, can cover everything that a novice gem or jewelry purchaser might want to know, but this handy little book comes closer to covering all of the important bases than any similar guides have managed to do. From good descriptions of the most popular gem materials (plus gold and platinum), to jewelry craftsmanship, treatments, gem sources and jewelry suppliers,appraisals, documentation and even information about U.S. customs for foreign travelers – it is all here.
Supplementing the text are 108 color photographs, mostly taken by the author, which effectively relate to the subject matter and are uniformly excellent. One feature of Newman’s book is that it is always thoroughly and conscientiously researched. She seeks expertise from all quarters until she is satisfied with the accuracy of her text…I heartily endorse this wonderful pocket guide.
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Lapidary Journal
This book measures 18 – 11 cm and will fit into a bag or pocket. As always with this author, the presentation is immaculate and each opening displays high-class pictures of gemstones and jewellery. This book opens with a succinct account of how items are priced, this including a note on how to make the best use of lighting conditions prevailing when a stone is examined. Treatments, synthetic and imitation stones are described next, before the books largest section in which the major gemstones are discussed, followed by a consideration of gold and platinum jewelry.
An excellent chapter lists and comments on marketing terms and euphemisms. The reader can learn how to buy, how to choose an appraiser, scrutinize laboratory reports, deal with customs, consult a list of useful websites – and much much more. Short guides don’t come better than this.
Profusely illustrated in full color, Renee Newman's Gem & Jewelry Pocket Guide: A Traveler's Guide To Buying Diamonds, Colored Gems, Pearls, Gold And Platinum Jewelry is the most concise, definitive, informative, authoritative, portable, and "user friendly" guide for travelers seeking to buy gems and jewelry while on their travels. This little pocket-sized compendium offers invaluable tips for the non-specialist general reader on quality evaluation, fake and lab-grown gems, custom-made jewelry, customs regulations, gem treatment, and geographic gem sources. Whether acquiring gems and jewelry for personal use, commercial resale, or as a collectible, first read through Renee Newman's Gem & Jewelry Pocket Guide.
