Category Archives: Style

Blue diamonds are the rarest kind. Roughly one in every 200,000 diamonds has the tint that makes the Hope Diamond so magical and made us swoon over Kate Winslet in Titanic. A new study in the journal Nature gives us the best idea yet how it happens, and how they got here. Researchers analyzed 46 blue diamonds (including one that sold for $25 million a couple of years ago) and concluded that the gemstones originated up to 400 miles below the Earth’s surface, as much as four times the depth of a clear diamond. Diamonds get their blue color from boron, a chemical element mostly found on the Earth’s surface, when it combines with tiny mineral impurities in the diamond. But diamonds are formed deep underground, which has kept scientists wondering just how the boron got there. Research coordinated by the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) led to the conclusion that tectonic plates collided eons ago and one slid below the other, carrying boron far deeper under the surface than normal. “Blue diamonds like the famous Hope Diamond have intrigued scientists for decades,” said Evan Smith, a GIA research scientist and the study’s lead author. “The opportunity to study these rare diamonds at GIA gave us insight into their incredible origin.” Jeffrey Post, curator of the mineral collection at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History, called the Nature study a “very compelling argument” that blue diamonds come from so deep in the Earth. You can thank volcanic flows, by the way, for bringing them up to where we can get at them. “We always knew there was something special about these diamonds,” Post said.

Most jewelry stores, including Dallas Gold & Silver Exchange, have friendly but efficient security measures in place. The better we protect our beautiful merchandise, the more we can offer amazing deals, and we do. But maybe we need to focus on pest control as well. That’s the lesson from the current viral video of an ant brazenly staging a diamond heist at a jewelry store. There aren’t many details, although one report places it in Italy. Nor do we know whether the culprit made off with the jewel or faced swift justice at the bottom of a shoe. Perhaps it’s a publicity stunt teasing the romantic possibilities in the current movie Ant-Man and The Wasp. But it’s well known that ants can haul many times their own body weight, so be sure your jewelry box is secure. And whatever the circumstances, it’s an irresistible video, and it’s here.

There’s a term in the precious metals business that you may be hearing a lot more of in the coming weeks and months: peak gold. That means that the world’s gold production has hit its highest level and has begun to level off or decline. Some experts say peak gold is already here. “Gold produced from mines has gone up pretty steadily for 40 years,” Ian Telfer, the chairman of Goldcorp, a Canadian gold production company, told a newspaper. “Well, either this year it starts to go down, or next year it starts to go down, or it’s already going down.” The reasons that he and others cite include aging mines with dwindling reserves, the lack of major new discoveries, and the current lagging gold price that inhibits new exploration. Some investors believe that peak gold will drive up gold prices in accordance with the basic economics of supply and demand. Others point out that previous declarations that the world reached peak gold turned out not to be true as new mines and better technology turned the tide. At Dallas Gold & Silver Exchange, we don’t offer predictions. But whatever your conclusion, we offer more than four decades of experience, integrity and transparency in buying and selling precious metals. There’s another side of the gold coin as well. According to the World Gold Council, gold mining meets about 75 percent of the world’s needs each year, with the rest coming from recycled gold. Although recycling industries are getting better at recovering precious metals used in products such as computers and cellphones, about 90 percent of recycled gold still comes from old jewelry that is re-refined. So whether or not the world is at peak gold, recycled gold will remain a crucial part of the world’s supply. And Dallas Gold & Silver Exchange will continue to offer great service and excellent prices for any jewelry you no longer want, from big pieces to broken remnants. And however the world gets its gold, we’ll show you how it becomes beautiful jewelry, fine watches and compelling collectibles – all at amazing prices. In this case, “peak gold” is what the other guys charge.

You’re looking at the new Guinness World Record holder for most cut diamonds in a single ring. Vishal Agarwal and Khushbu Agarwal, two jewelers in Surat, India, seized the honor by designing and creating an 18 karat rose gold ring composed of 48 petals embedded with a total of 6,690 cut diamonds. It took them six months, but they shattered the previous record of a mere 3,827 cut diamonds. The ring weighs about 2 ounces (about a half-ounce more than a golf ball) and is said to be worth $4.1 million. The design, the men said in a joint statement, is inspired by the lotus flower, which grows on water, because it is India’s national flower and depicts “the beauty growing in the water world.” They added, “As fame is so much attached to a Guinness World Records title, we can put it to good use by bringing together like-minded people to work towards a beautiful world.” Congratulations to the Agarwals from Dallas Gold & Silver Exchange, which also works toward a beautiful world with our amazing selection of diamonds, jewelry and fine watches. But we admit that the new world champion ring also inspires us to work toward ordering a certain delicious, high-fat appetizer at our local Australian-themed steakhouse.

Two months after the royal wedding, the Meghan Markle Effect is still in full swing. That means that whenever royal watchers figure out where she bought today’s outfit, it sells out in a flash. But it’s not just clothes. Princess wannabes are tattooing freckles on their faces in tribute to their new role model, and Valspar is even introducing a line of Meghan-inspired house paints. Really. House Beautiful magazine reports that the shades inspired by her fashion are ideal “for anyone wanting to give their home a touch of the royal treatment.” And of course, the impact of the American-born actress, who became the Duchess of Sussex when she married Prince Harry, extends to jewelry as well. After Meghan wore a pair of rose gold and diamond earrings to Prince Charles’ 70th birthday party, the Paris jeweler who made them reported she sold out the entire stock – at $2,900 a pair – in 10 minutes. But there are broader lessons for people who want to hop aboard the Markle Express. Good Housekeeping magazine points out these elements of Meghan’s style: She favors yellow gold, which has sparked sales of that shade, she likes thumb rings and stacking rings on her other fingers, and she makes mismatched earrings look cool. And Professional Jeweller, a British publication, discerns that the new princess’ general look is classic, personal and sentimental. She leans toward an understated look during the day, but boldly makes statements at night. “Whether mixing and matching jewels from the same brand, but different ranges, or wearing a variety of designers at once, jewelry forms part of her overall look,” the magazine concludes. “What matters is that it goes with what she is wearing, rather than forming part of a commercial set.” At Dallas Gold & Silver Exchange, we’re ready to adorn you in the style of Meghan, or any other princess. Best of all, you’ll feel like royalty, but you’ll spend like a commoner.

Fix Your Jewelry With Us – Except If It Belonged To Elvis If your jewelry breaks, you should fix it, and the repair experts at Dallas Gold & Silver Exchange are your best bet. But here’s one case when leaving it broken might have been the right call. Last weekend an auction house in England sold a gold lion-head ring, with little diamonds for eyes, in not the greatest condition, for just over $44,000. Why was it worth so much? Because it belonged to Elvis Presley, the King of Rock and Roll who loved the King of the Beasts. The ring was accompanied by a certificate of authenticity signed by Elvis pal Jimmy Velvet, who noted that the legendary singer was wearing the 14k ring at his Graceland home in 1972. “One night at Graceland, Elvis dropped the ring on the floor and one of his Memphis Mafia members accidentally stepped on it and smashed it,” he wrote. “Elvis handed the ring to his cousin and told her to have the ring fixed. He told her that she could keep the ring if it couldn’t be fixed.” Without explaining why, he added, “The ring was never repaired.” So she kept it. The British seller and the American buyer weren’t identified. To mark the occasion, here’s a clip of Elvis singing, of course, “Wear My Ring Around Your Neck.” Here’s the link in case it didn’t embed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxaW9WZwXjs

Looking For Trends? Try These On  Should be you getting into ear stacks? Talismans? Opals and emeralds?  JCK, a leading jewelry industry magazine, convened its annual trade show in Las Vegas last week, billed as the country’s largest exposition of what’s hot and what’s new.  For a panel discussion on those subjects, the magazine convened three fashion forecasters, Shane Clark, Kareem Rashed and Lauren Eggertsen, along with its own editors. The full report is here, but in case you just want the highlights:  Younger buyers are embracing fine jewelry and popular designers more than ever, and pairing those choices with fancy couture.  When new princess Meghan Markle flashed a big aquamarine ring that once belonged to Harry’s mom Diana, she probably set off a stampede to beautiful blue stones.  Current buzzwords you need to work into the conversation include shell-motif earrings and necklaces, bypass rings (that don’t close in a circle), rainbow palettes (jewelry with stones of many colors) and edgy pearls, a modern version of grandma’s favorite.  There are lots of ways to stack jewelry – earrings that climb up your ear, side-by-side-by-side diamonds in an engagement ring (which Meghan is bringing back into style), and layers of necklaces with pendants displaying monograms, zodiac signs or amulets.  Look out for Lucite, the translucent material that’s been around since the ‘30s but still trendy, because it can be molded and colored in endless ways.  Trendy or classic, vintage or cutting edge, you’ll find it at Dallas Gold & Silver Exchange. And you’ll save enough to be ready for the next trend as well.   

An Intoxicating Way to Think About Gold        There are many ways to assess the worth of gold, including its dollar value, comparison to the stock market, or whether it beats the inflation rate.         Since 1950, a Liechtenstein-based asset management company called Incrementum has another method: how much beer will it buy?         And in that measurement, gold is down slightly, but still solid in the long term.  Incrementum just released its 12th annual “In Gold We Trust” report, declaring that the precious metal is in the early stages of a new bull market.         “From our point of view, stronger inflation tendencies or the abandoning of the rate-hike cycle in the US could trigger an increase in momentum of the gold price,” the authors declare.         The 230-page report, available here, is full of charts and graphs and analyses that probably require a finance degree to fully understand.          But one of its elements, the gold/beer calculation, goes down easy. For 68 years, the company has tracked the price of a liter of beer at the famed Munich Oktoberfest alongside the price of an ounce of gold.         The all-time high, if you’re keeping score, was in 1980, when an ounce of gold bought you 227 German brews. Only nine years earlier it had hit the all-time low of just 48.        The total for 2017 was 99, down a few liters from the previous year but still well above the historical median of 87.        Reaction to the golden update was mixed. “I have no idea what I just read,” wrote one commenter on mining.com, which reported the news. “But now I want some gold and a beer.”