Right now there are delicious hot-dog, hamburger, steak and brisket barbecues occurring across the USA. There are potato salads, crisps and coleslaw. There's corn on the cob and baked beans. I am inspired to mark America's birthday with the sparkle of three American gemstones, all local to the USA, in her three patriotic colors.
Whether it's imagination, disagreement or politics over rare and expensive objects, or planets aligning poorly - there are a number of gemstones rumored to curse those who own them. Of course, in at least one famous case below, the rumors may have been exaggerated to appeal to a buyer. But whatever the case there's entertainment value in what I'm bringing below.
Just imagine - a humble mapmaker’s son travels the ancient world, discovers fantastic treasures, rescues a damsel and rises to the highest levels of French aristocracy. If you don't know the story, “The French Blue" is a terrific read for true-lovers of diamonds, gemstones, travel, excitement and romance.
Did you know whatever device you're using to read this post - mobile, tablet or desktop - wouldn't exist without lab-grown diamonds? Did you know diamonds are being used for medical imaging, quantum entanglement and (you read it right) teleportation? Read on.
As the world watches the engaging achievements of NASA and SpaceX - and Boeing sits in the wings hungry to make their own space-shots - let's take a fanciful look at the landscape ahead for diamond and jewelry enthusiasts.
What's on your watch-list? Bookmark this post and get some popcorn ready. There are nearly 24 sparkling hours of well-known jewelry themed movies listed below. These 10 cinematic classics span more than 80 years. I'm not going to play favorites (even though I have one), so here they are in alphabetical order.
Did you know that the sparkle of candlelight is actually created by millions of tiny, brightly burning nano-diamonds? In fact, around 1.5 million microscopic diamonds are created per second in the flame of a candle as it burns.
Van Cleef & Arpels' iconic ballerina clips danced onto the American stage in the early 1940s and were immediately embraced by the public, who saw them as refreshing symbols of joy and hope during the uncertain days of World War II. We could all use a bit of joy and hope right now, so let's revisit some of these beautiful jewels.
Much of the 20th century passed by without much attention to men in pearls. Fortunately we have seen a notable uptick in red-carpet sightings of men sporting pearl bracelets, tie-clips, earrings and - with increasing frequency - pearl neckwear.
Are close-ups of gemological inclusions actually works of art, painted by Mother Nature in anticipation of our creative human inspirations? When exploring the mysterious spaces of crystals we must sometimes ask ourselves whether we've stepped into another area, the field of real art.