ALOHA ESTATE JEWELRY
  • Home
  • See Our Collections
  • Make An Offer
  • Purchasing, etc.
  • Jewelry Blog
  • About Us
  • Contact

ESTATE, VINTAGE, OR ANTIQUE?

12/28/2019

0 Comments

 
At Aloha Estate Jewelry we want our customers to be comfortable with their selections so we are pleased to provide these definitions to prevent any ambiguity of terms.  When we describe jewelry items as Antique we are saying that our estimate of the item's age is approximately 75 years or more.  Where we have a more accurate date, we will provide that date.  When we describe an item as Vintage, we are saying that the item has an approximate age of 30 to 75 years.  Again, if we have a more definitive date, we will provide that date.  When we describe an item as Estate we are placing the item on a timeline of within approximately the last 30 years.  If at any time you have a question about the dating of any piece of jewelry offered by Aloha Estate Jewelry, please do not hesitate to drop us a note.    
0 Comments

What is the best way to clean tarnish from estate jewelry

12/26/2019

0 Comments

 
Before answering, a word of caution.  Collectors of Estate Jewelry very often want the piece left "as-found" with tarnish and all.  Often the tarnish, or patina, lends an effect to a piece of jewelry that is desirable and represents, in part, the character of the item after years and years of wear and ownership.  So before committing to cleaning away the tarnish or patina, ask if that's really what you want to do.  Also, if purchasing an item from us with patina, and that you choose to remove, then the item is considered altered and, therefore, not returnable.
That said, where we find a tarnished piece of jewelry and it is clear to us that removing the tarnish will enhance, not detract from, the beauty of the item, we use a jewelry cleaning cloth.  These cloths are embedded with a cleaning solution that gently removes the tarnish with no or minimal abrasion.  Our choice are the Sunshine Jewelry Polishing Cloths for Sterling, Gold, Brass, Copper, and etc.  These can be inexpensively purchased at Amazon.com.
0 Comments

what is the difference between a pin and a brooch?

12/19/2019

 
A pin is a device used to fasten materials together.  For example, Victorian Bar Pins were used to help hold a lady's collar together and worn at the top of the neck.  A brooch is a decorative jewelry item. A brooch usually has a connotation of being a larger vintage estate piece. A brooch sometimes can be used as a pendant or to hold a scarf or piece of clothing.

Is estate jewelry appropriate for gifting?

12/12/2019

 
We have many, many satisfied clients who are most ardent collectors of fine estate jewelry.  Over and again we hear that they are moved to estate jewelry for the classic styling, design, and expert craftsmanship that is, frankly, no longer found in a mass-production jewelry marketplace.  And yes, estate jewelry is most appropriate for gifting.  Nothing can express your sentiment more than the care and thoughtfulness of searching for and finding a perfect and timeless keepsake celebrating and commemorating life events, special occasions, or holidays.

What Are Lab Created Gems?

12/11/2019

 
First, Some Definitions
  • Synthetic – Synthetic gemstones are gemstones that are man made in a laboratory but have a natural counterpart. They possess the same physical, chemical and optical properties as a natural stone.  In many cases the quality of synthetic gemstones is so very good, that it is impossible outside of a laboratory environment to distinguish between synthetic gems and their natural counterpart.
  • Imitation or Simulant – These are gemstones that try and look like real natural gemstones but are made of an entirely different material.  They do not possess the same physical, chemical, or optical properties as their natural counterpart.  For example, Red Glass is often used as Imitation Ruby.
  • Natural - These are minerals that have been mined from the ground and cut into gemstones.

​Natural Gemstones

Natural gemstones are minerals that have been mined from the ground and cut into gemstones. They can be treated with different techniques to improve the color and clarity such as heating, but the main mineral must come from nature. Natural gemstones can take millions of years to create and people have been mesmerized by their beauty since the beginning of time.

Synthetic Gemstones
Synthetic (opposed to Imitation or Simulant) gemstones are those which exactly mimic and are chemically identical to natural gemstones but are man made in a laboratory.   Gems grown in a lab are identical to naturally occurring stones in every sense: chemically, physically, and optically. Costly and rare natural jewels, such as sapphire, emerald, and ruby, are favorite lab-created stones. 
  • About the Creation Process 
The mineral composition of lab-created stones is created with a process similar to what nature does beneath the earth over millions of years. However, it is done in a lab in a fraction of the time and for a fraction of the cost of mining. 

  • What’s the Benefit? 
The average person would be hard-pressed to tell the difference between most natural and lab-created stone. It takes a trained eye, high magnification, and other instruments. The result is a high-quality, lab-created stone at a price that’s significantly lower than the natural gemstone counterpart.  

Whatever your consideration when buying jewelry, lab-created gems are always an excellent option. 
​
Imitation or Simulant Gemstones
Imitation or simulants are gemstones that attempt to look like the real thing. The most common simulant or imitation gemstone found on the market are those that try to replicate a Diamond. Simulants such as synthetic Rutile or Strontium Titanate have been used for decades to try and replicate the sparkle of Diamond. Even though these gemstones are man made they do not have a natural counterpart and this is why they are not classified as high quality synthetics. Glass and plastic are other common imitations that can be found. Blue glass is often offered as blue Sapphire to unsuspecting buyers while plastic beads can be sold as natural pearls.

Aloha Estate Jewelry Policy
At Aloha Estate Jewelry where diamond is the principal gem, or the jewelry item advertised to be diamond, the piece will include only genuine, natural, earth mined, diamonds.  Never synthetic, simulant, or imitation diamonds.  

Where small "accent" stones, typically 1 millimeter in diameter or less, were used to highlight a colored gem (e.g., Ruby, Emerald, Sapphire, Topaz) and found to be other than natural we will fully disclose this in the item description.

For colored gems (e.g., Ruby, Emerald, Garnet, Citrine, Amethyst, etc.) we test each stone "in the setting" in-house.  Only where we can confirm that the gem is natural and earth mined will we include in the item description that it is natural.  All of our colored gemstones will either be natural, and so described, or true synthetic (chemically and optically identical to natural), and not described as natural.  We do not sell any simulant or imitation colored gemstones.

Our 14 day no-questions-asked return policy assures your complete satisfaction with every selection and acquisition of fine estate jewelry.  
 

what is "karat plumb"

12/11/2019

 
You may come across a piece of jewelry marked 14KP.  At first blush many think this is 14 karat plated.  But this is not the case.  

The KP stands for "Karat Plumb." Obviously the Karat refers to the purity of the gold, while the plumb can be considered to mean 'exact', in the same way that a 'plumb' wall is exactly vertical or a 'plum' surface is exactly horizontal.

In gold bullion terms it means that the gold stamped with the KP is guaranteed to have a gold purity not less than indicated but could possibly be slightly more pure. So, for example, a bracelet stamped 14KP is guaranteed to contain 58.5% gold or more. Another bracelet stamped 585KP is also guaranteed to contain 58.5% pure gold or more. The KP stamp is designed to eliminate the non standard caratage tolerances that some markets allow for. In the USA, for example, gold can be sold at up to 0.5 carat more than it's actual gold content. So, a ring marked 14K can contain just 13.5 carats of gold. Furthermore, even though the USA only allows jewellery to be sold as gold with a minimum of 10 carats purity, the 0.5 carat leeway still applies and 9.5 carat is the actual minimum. So, as a consumer you'd be better off purchasing a ring stamped 10KP than a ring stamped 10K.

purity Markings on gold jewelry

12/11/2019

 
The majority of gold items will be marked with a gold purity stamp.  Typically these will be 10k, 14k, and 18k.  But what do these marks really mean?  Pure gold is 24k.  So if an item is 10k, 14k, or 18k the maker is saying that the gold content is 10/24ths, 14/24ths, or 18/24ths gold, the remaining portion being allow metals.  As fractions 10k gold is .417 or 41.7%; 14k is .585 or 58.5%; 18k is .750 or 75%.  It is also not uncommon, particularly for european made jewelry items, to see the mark represented as 417, 585, or 750.  

Aloha Estate Jewelry Blog

12/10/2019

 
From time to time we will post information about the genre of Estate Jewelry under topics such as gold purity, vintage gemstones, vintage jewelry making techniques, and more.  If there's a topic you would like us to address, please reach out via our 'Contact' page.
    Picture
    Our Jewelry Blog
    Use the Search Box to search our Blog for articles of interest.
    Picture
    Let's Talk Jewelry
    Have a question that you would like us to answer about Estate Jewelry?  Drop us a note using the form on our "Contact" page with your question and we'll do our best to post your question and our answer here.
    Picture

    Archives

    June 2025
    May 2025
    March 2025
    November 2024
    October 2024
    July 2024
    June 2024
    May 2024
    January 2024
    May 2023
    January 2023
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    July 2022
    April 2022
    February 2022
    October 2021
    September 2021
    July 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019

  • Home
  • See Our Collections
  • Make An Offer
  • Purchasing, etc.
  • Jewelry Blog
  • About Us
  • Contact