Jewellery World Magazine - June 2022

JUNE 2022
AUSTRALIA AND NEW
ZEALAND’S PROFESSIONAL JEWELLERY MAGAZINE
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Jewellery World Magazine
ABN: 82 637 204 454
ISSN: 2207-6751
PO Box 54, Camden NSW 2570
P: 0431 844 903
Subscription: www.jewelleryworld.net.au
Enquiries: info@jewelleryworld.net.au
Web: www.jewelleryworld.net.au
managing director
Jeremy Keight 0431 844 903
jeremy@jewelleryworld.net.au
editor
editor@jewelleryworld.net.au
contributing writers
Kirsten Ehrlich Davies
Stefan Juengling
Cynthia Unninayer
Cheryl D Harty
art
design@jewelleryworld.net.au
advertising sales
sales@jewelleryworld.net.au
REGULARS
6 News
12 Palloy's Points
14 Trade Well with Rami Baron
16 JAA News
42 Birthstone - Ruby
44 Lab-grown Diamond News
48 New Products
50 Directory
FEATURES
20 Intense and rare
Coloured diamonds rising in appeal amid
a world shifting between sanctions and laboratories.
28 More science than art
Inside the Australian jewellery techspace.
20
34 My life in jewellery
Award-winning designer Leone Meatchem shares
her story of her life in the jewellery industry.
DISCLAIMER:
38 Profile: Smales Jewellers
Tony Smales seen coloured diamonds
gaining ground as milestone gifts.
This publication may not be reproduced
in whole or part without the written
permission of the Publisher.
AUSTRALIA AND NEW
JUNE 2022
ZEALAND’S PROFESSIONAL JEWELLERY MAGAZINE
Articles express the opinions of the
authors and are not necessarily those of the
Publisher or Editor. Mention of a product or
service in this magazine does not indicate the
Publisher’s endorsement.
The Publisher excludes all liability for
loss resulting from any inaccuracies or false
or misleading statements that may appear
in this publication.
All information is copyright.
Pindan Dreaming
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All Silver is Rhodium Plated
All Silver is Rhodium Plated
• Sydney AGHA Gift Fair - February 21-24, 2020 (Homebush)
• International • Sydney AGHA Jewellery Gift Fair -September - February 21-24, 12-14, 2020 (Homebush)
(Darling Harbour)
• International Jewellery Fair -September 12-14, 2020 (Darling Harbour)
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News
Queen Elizabeth II Platinum
Jubilee Crown
Royal Canadian Mint releases limited edition coins
with Argyle pink diamonds
The Royal Canadian Mint has released an exclusive range of coins featuring some
of the world’s rarest precious stones: pink diamonds from the famed
A jewelled “Commonwealth of Nations” globe has
been created to commemorate the Queen’s Platinum
Jubilee. The globe features platinum, diamond, gold
and silver elements, representing the Queen’s four
jubilees, along with stones collected from YrWyddfa/
Snowdon in Wales, Ben Nevis in Scotland, Slieve
Donard in Northern Ireland and Scafell Pike in England.
Argyle mine. The jewels are the crowning element in a collection of pure gold
and platinum coins that truly redefine rare. This new collection – the Opulence
Collection – is headlined by the one-of-a-kind Ultimate, a
one-kilo pure platinum pink diamond coin, which was unveiled at the Ottawa Art
Gallery in Canada.
“The Royal Canadian Mint’s reputation for crafting
coins of exceptional sophistication and artistry
is known to collectors around the world,”
Marie Lemay, President and CEO of the
Royal Canadian Mint.
To premiere the exclusive collection, the
Mint has partnered with Heffel Fine Art
Auction House to sell The Ultimate, the
collection’s most prestigious showpiece.
The Opulence Collection, featuring
pink diamond coins in its inaugural year,
is the result of an exciting collaboration
with the Royal Canadian Mint and Crossworks
Manufacturing, a Canadian company and Authorised
Partner of Argyle Pink Diamonds.
With Rio Tinto’s Argyle mine closing in 2020, the pink diamonds adorning the
pure gold and platinum coins are among the rarest in the world, making the
pieces truly unique.
Released in very low mintages, the Pink Diamond coins consist of:
The Ultimate: One-kilo $2,500 99.95% Pure Platinum Coin - Worldwide mintage
of one
Splendour: 10 oz. $1,250 99.95% Pure Platinum Coin - Worldwide mintage of five
Grandeur: 2 oz. $350 99.95% Pure Platinum Coin - Worldwide mintage of 30
Treasure: 1 oz. $200 Pure Gold Coin – Worldwide mintage of 400
Mounted on a silver crown which rests on a blue and
gold cushion, the globe was unveiled at the Tower of
London, where it remained on display until featuring
in the lighting of the Principal Beacon at Buckingham
Palace on June 2.
The Queen’s pageant master Bruno Peek, who
designed the globe, said that he wanted it to serve
as a tribute to the Queen’s 70 years as head of the 54
Commonwealth nations.
"It's a unique piece of art made by British craftsmen
for a unique Queen, made through a lot of love,
dedication and skill," Mr Peek said.
Indian farmer strikes it rich
A farmer in India has become an overnight millionaire
(in rupees) after stumbling upon a 11.88 carat
diamond at the country’s leading mine.
Pratap Singh Yadav, 58, found the stone while mining
in the Madhya Pradesh region in May. The stone is the
one of the largest found in the area and is worth about
seven million rupees (around AUD $120,000.)
Yadav, an impoverished farmer, had taken a shallow
mine on lease for three months and worked day and
night to try his luck.
“I had never seen a diamond before,” he said.
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jewellery world - June 2022

We know
Brilliance
LOOSE DIAMONDS
DIAMOND & COLOURED
STONE ENGAGEMENT RINGS
COLOURED GEMSTONES
WEDDING & DRESS RINGS
CAD DESIGN
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News
De Beers Blue breaks records
The Rock and The Red Cross
The latest Geneva auction featured two spectacular diamonds, The Rock and
The Red Cross, which are some of the largest ever seen in auction market
history.
The egg sized white diamond known as The Rock, has sold for more than 21.6
million Swiss francs (AU$31.5 million). With a gross weight of 61.3 grams and
dimensions of 5.4 centimetres by 3.1 centimetres, the 228-carat pear-shaped
G-colour stone is roughly the size and shape of a hen’s egg.
The Red Cross, a fancy intense
yellow, cushion shaped 205.07
carat diamond, sold for nearly 14.2
million francs (AUD$20.7 million)
to an anonymous buyer, who paid
double the pre-sale estimate.
According to Max Fawcett, head
of jewellery at Christie’s Geneva,
an unspecified seven-figure amount from the sale of the yellow diamond was
donated to the international Red Cross Movement.
24-carat pasties at the Billboards
The dress theme for the 2022 Billboard Music Awards
seemed to be “plenty of flesh” but R&B artist Doja Catt
managed to balance her bare skin with some unique and
surreal jewellery into the look.
Catt, who won two awards that night, wore a pair of
enormous jeweled Schiaparelli earrings, along with gold
nail rings on her fingertips. One nail ring was connected to
a gold leaf bag, shaped like a planet, as a nod to her recent
album Planet Her.
She also added some 24-carat modesty to her look, by
wearing gold Agent Provocateur nipple pasties under the
sheer bandeau fitted under her sculpted black gown.
The “De Beers Cullinan Blue” diamond achieved a
record-breaking price of US$57.47 million at Sotheby’s
Hong Kong auction last month, far above the pre-auction
estimate of $48 million.
The internally flawless step-cut fancy vivid blue diamond
weighting 15.10 carats was cut from a Type IIb 39.34 carat
rough stone unearthed by Petra Mines at the Cullinan
mine in April 2021. Of the five blue diamonds weighing
over 10 carats that have ever gone to auction, this is the
first to exceed 15 carats.
Popular American brands turn to
lab-grown diamonds
Popular American jewellery brand Kendra Scott has
expanded its jewellery range into lab-grown diamond
engagement rings. The Texan-based brand includes a
customisation system that
allows customers to select
the band material, setting and
diamond sizes. Since launching
its fine jewellery range in 2016,
the brand has extended to 20
retail stores in America and a
strong online presence.
Christopher Slowinski,
the designer behind New
York-based Christopher Designs, is best known for his
proprietary Crisscut diamond cut — which he has now
applied to lab-grown diamonds across his range.
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jewellery world - June 2022

LET'S TALK
WEBINAR SERIES
N e x t G e n A r t i s a n s
7pm AEST
Tuesday | July
5
Both socially and environmentally aware, the next generation of jewellers, designers, traders and
everything in between are responsible sources. They are focused, forward thinking in their
approach to business and clients. Brand focused, technology and social media savvy, this new
generation of the jewellery industry are cutting edge and Avant-garde. Join us as we hear from the
risk takers, creative and expansive minded individuals that are not afraid to change the dynamics.
We welcome all members of the trade, young and old, to join us.
REGISTER TODAY | JAA.COM.AU/TALK
Proudly brought to you by the Jewellers Association of Australia

News
Popcorn diamond for popping the
question
Luxury jewellery designer Stephanie Gottlieb has
created a range of unusual diamond shapes for
clients over the years – from dogs to horses. So
when popcorn brand Angie’s Boomchickapop
asked her to create a popcorn-shaped diamond
ring, she naturally said Yes!
Museum could violate sanctions if it returns a Fabergé egg
Britain’s Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A) is currently in possession of a Fabergé Egg
which was loaned to it for an exhibition. Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg acquired the
bejewelled egg some time ago but has passed the ownership on to a company in Panama.
But the museum has been cautioned by experts that it could violate government sanctions
against Russia if it gave the egg back.
Tom Keatinge, Director of Centre for Financial Crime and Security Studies at defence and
security thinktank RUSI, said that as Vekselberg had personally been sanctioned and the
egg is a financial asset, the conditions of the sanction are fairly clear. “If you break it down,
whether it’s an egg or a yacht or a house, it can be an asset of a sanctioned person. Be it a
port, estate agent or museum, [everyone has] the same obligations,” he said.
According to the
designer, she started
with an 11-carat
yellow diamond – to
match the light,
buttery colour
people associate
with popcorn. Then she worked with diamond
cutters in Israel to facet and finish the diamond
to its final shape, a 3.66-carat popcorn-shaped
sparkler.
The stone is set in a simple rounded gold band so
the focus is on the uniquely-shaped diamond. The
Angie’s Boomchickapop popcorn diamond ring
is available on Stephanie Gottlieb’s website for a
limited time, with a retail price starting from USD
$50,000.
The egg is made of solid gold and enamel,
and stands just over two inches tall. Its two
halves can be opened to reveal a golden
yolk. Inside the golden yolk is a golden hen
with ruby eyes. The egg was the first in a
series of more than 50 such jewelled eggs
made under the supervision of Peter Carl
Fabergé for the Russian Imperial family. It
was delivered to Tsar Alexander III and given
to his wife Maria Feodorovna in 1885. The
tsarina enjoyed the egg so much that Alexander III quickly placed a standing order with Fabergé to
create a new egg for his wife every Easter thereafter, requiring only that each egg be unique and
that it contain some kind of surprise within it.
UK sanctions against the oligarchs are set to remain in place until “the last Russian tank has left
Ukraine,” according to Liz Truss, the UK Foreign Secretary. V&A may be holding the egg for a long
time.
Even if the museum decides to risk returning the egg to the Fabergé museum, it may run into
further obstacles with transportation, as there are no direct flights from the UK
to Russia.
Vekselberg, an oil and gas tycoon with a fortune estimated at $18 billion, owns
nine Fabergé eggs. He’s paid over $100 million for them since beginning his
collection in 2004.
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jewellery world - June 2022
Vekselberg and other eggs in his basket.

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KX3096 : Purple Sapphire 8.8x6.6mm Oval 2.08cts
GSX3007 : Spessartite “Fanta” Garnet 6.2x4.85mm Oval 1.19cts
TUX3246 : Blue Green Tourmaline 23.5x18.8mm Fancy Emereld Cut 12.67cts
TUX3273 : Watermelon Tourmaline 15x5.1mm Baguette 3.31cts
SPAX3697 : Teal Green Sapphire 7.2x7mm Square Cushion 2.22cts
SPINX3229 : Orange-Red Spinel 8.3mm Round 2.79cts

PALLOYS POINTS
Dean Li
Production lead, Print
Palloys
CAM AND 3D PRINTING
Palloys stands out in the jewellery industry for our ability to provide an end-to-end,
streamlined and time-efficient jewellery manufacturing service. With our very own CAD,
CAM, casting and finishing departments, we can take a client’s concept to real-life creation
– but it is our CAM team and their services that elevate this ability to the next level.
CAM, or Computer-Aided Manufacturing,
is the process by which a CAD file,
such as an STL file, is translated into
a physical rendering of the design through
3D-printing technology. This rendering can
be done in resin or in wax and serves as an
intermediary stage between a design and a
cast object. It enables both parties to have
a physical representation of what the design
will look like once cast in precious metal.
Our team receives these files from clients via
our website-based uploader, email, and our
dedicated plugin in Rhino, where the client can
be quoted right in their software, and submit
the job directly into our system, speeding up
the administration function significantly.
As the CAM team leader, my team ensures
the highest quality from start to finish. With
a refined, skilled
team of CAM
experts, the aim
is to provide
premium results.
All digital files are
filtered to ensure
the file is printable
and meets
certain casting
specifications
before it is printed.
These criteria
are essential for
successful printing,
casting and thus ensuring client satisfaction –
fortunately, our team is meticulous in making
sure every file is printable, especially those
supplied by the client. Printability of an STL
file hinges on aspects such as wall thicknesses,
depth of engravings, and cleaning up any
‘floating’ or unattached components within
the file. It is vital to have a team proficient
in assessing printability; pieces that have
engravings, our CAM team is careful to
identify those engraving depths should not
be greater than their width, to reduce the
incidence of breakaways and therefore delays.
Similarly, with components that are very
fine are susceptible to issues such as infill
and breakaways, therefore we ensure that
all designs adhere to minimum thicknesses.
Another measure Palloys’ CAM team take to
reduce porosity and breakaways is to draw
sprues close to the densest areas.
Moreover, a consistent question the CAM
team receives from clients is regarding resin
and wax, and which of the two is ‘better’. The
simple answer is: it depends on the design.
Wax has the highest resolution, printing at
12
jewellery world - June 2022

only 16um, but the extrusion process in wax means that every surface in
every direction has a slightly rough looking texture.The resin process allows
for the part to aliased very well in the XY direction, and while technically a
lower resolution, appears to be smoother, and is often mistaken for higher
resolution.
Resin is popular, as its surface can blend better than wax.However, resin in
very large parts can leave more residue or ash during the casting process,
and if it does not burn out, it can cause porosity. Thus, for larger parts,
Palloys’ CAM team recommends wax, or where very high detail is required
in items like signet rings – but for smaller, more ornate pieces, resin can be
the better option.
CAM functions have become more consumer friendly, with far better
software and hardware solutions available to consumers, even castable
resins becoming more accessible. This means we have seen some
percentage of the CAM business now becoming customer supplied
goods, however, the skill and experience required to perform the tasks of
supporting goods and determining sprue placement to ensure good casting
are not available in the consumer realm yet, with many of these clients
reverting to using their equipment to prototype in durable and tough resins
inhouse, but then still send us the product for production via our CAM
team.We find these relationships to be the most successful as both teams
understand the nature of the technology.
This increased access and hobbyist use of CAM technology has allowed our
clients to become more informed about the process, such as understanding
acceptable file types and viable designs – we welcome all our clients to
become more familiar with our equipment and technology, as when coupled
with our professional equipment and expertise, the turnaround from a
design to a finished piece is much quicker, resulting in a decreased chance of
breakaways and porosity.
We are a big advocate on quality assurance – we strive to provide our clients
with the best casting quality and aim to deliver the products in the fastest
time possible. With our top-of-the-line equipment, eco-friendlier resins and
innovative team, we can be a support to anyone seeking professional CAM
services irrespective of their experience.
Swarovski names
Bella Hadid as
brand ambassador
Jewellery house Swarovski have present their new
collection with a campaign staring supermodel Bella
Hadid. The new campaign celebrates the brand’s codes
— bold colours and the octagon. It pays tribute to a new
era and self-expression.
“Bella Hadid sums up
the individualistic and
transformative attitude of
a new global generation.
She is a multifaceted
character who evades
the boxes of rules and
conformity. She goes
from sporty to glamorous
while remaining the
same girl – the same
Bella – with confidence
and authority. In that
sense, she conveys the
values of Swarovski to
perfection. Today, crystals
are a dynamic part of
our everyday wardrobe:
a way of accentuating
your individual style in a
way that can be as casual
as it can be elaborate.
Bella is the poster girl
for this state of mind,”
said Giovanna Engelbert,
creative director of
Swarovski.
The 25-year-old catwalk
star took to Instagram to
share the news with her
51.7 million followers,
writing: “Extremely
honoured and excited to
be the new face of the
iconic Swarovski.”
June 2022 13

DDCA NEWS
Rami Baron
President, Diamond Dealers Club of Australia
rami@ddca.org.au
TODAY IS GREAT,
BUT ARE YOU PREPARED
FOR TOMORROW?
The number one reason small businesses in Australia fail today is
financial mismanagement.
Some of you will have this in the bag.
Probably because somewhere down
the road you made a bunch of mistakes,
found yourself in a very tight situation and
through a combination of luck, tightening the
belt and stretching out suppliers (which acted
like an unsecured bank), you survived and
learnt some hard lessons.
This article is for the rest of you who think you
have it under control, and then suddenly it’s
like, WTF! A couple of invoices you weren’t
expecting come in and that customer who left
a deposit is in no hurry to collect that big ring
but the supplier is still expecting to get paid.
A bill from home for a repair maintenance on
your car, the final holiday payment, and the list
is endless.
Bottom line, sh!t happens.
Let’s assume you’re on top of these things,
but now you want to grow your business.
Nothing major, only the space next door
became vacant and will give you that extra
room. You really want to invest in a laser
machine, or you’ve met someone who would
be an amazing addition to your team and
give you the chance to focus on some new
ideas. So much of what happens in a small
business evolves due to circumstance and the
entrepreneurial spirit. Everything inevitably
costs money that you didn’t budget for. So, as
they say in economics, you have to look at the
“opportunity costs”, which are defined as what
you spend your money on at the expense of
something else.
Ok, so what do you spend your money on?
Wrong question. Have you prepared a budget?
Have you looked at all of your expenses over
the year and actually know how much money
you need to generate each month? This,
of course, should include paying yourself
a decent wage, which is separate from the
business making a profit.
Your personal expenses and living expenses
can’t be tied into the business. Pull them
apart. There is you and the business; it is not
one entity, even if you are a sole operator.
Let’s assume you have a lot of these things
covered. What percentage of profit do you
need to leave in your business for expansion
or, as we often say, “for a rainy day”? How
much do you put aside for new projects?
When I had a retail store many years ago,
I would put half the profit from Christmas
aside, which would be my seed capital for new
ideas or expansion.
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jewellery world - June 2022

Let’s go back a step. We start as a small business, but we all want to
grow. So start to ask yourself how much money you would need to
expand and what would that look like? Make some notes on your
phone or in a notebook, and then meet with either someone more
experienced in business or, best case scenario, book an hour with
your accountant. If you don’t have one that you speak to three-to-four
times a year, you are leaving yourself very exposed to mistakes and
missing out on opportunities relating to what you might be able to
claim before the end of the financial year.
Successful businesses are rarely (if ever) the result of some brilliant
idea. Success comes from how these ideas are executed and your
ability to make decisions based on logic, not emotion. You need to
crunch the numbers. Emotion is the passion and energy that drives
you – don’t let it blind you. It is wonderful to be positive, and it’s a
huge tool for getting through difficult situations.
Let’s keep going.
Do you have the people to bring the new idea to fruition? Do you
have the time needed to solve the problems? How much planning
did you do? And the three most important questions are what does
success look like? How much money can you realistically invest into
the new venture without putting pressure on your existing business? Is
your decision based on a vision moving forward or because of fear of
competition or missing out? This last one is very common in business.
When people see their competition launching a new website, they get
all antsy and FOMO kicks in.
I could go on and on about things you could do, but let me end with a
few pointers I learned along the way.
1. Get a bookkeeper if you’re not good at organising bills and accounts.
Prepare some simple budgets. You need to have a number as to how
much you need to generate every week, month etc. If you’re short
one month, you need to catch up the next.
2. 5% of your turnover gets squirrelled away into a separate bank
account for emergencies.
3. Never make a decision based on fear. If you stick to making a good
profit, then you will never be fearful of saying no to a customer who
is either super difficult or just leaving you with little to no margin
4. Ask your accountant what you should be paying yourself. Too many
self-employed people work insane hours, subject themselves to
huge stress levels and earn less than they would if they had a job.
5. When you plan to grow your business, remember to write the plan
down on paper so that you can reflect on it, fill in what you missed,
estimate the costs, set a timeline, and then double it because that,
my friends, is reality.
Trade well,,, Rami Baron.

PRESIDENT'S
MESSAGE
Karen Denaro
As we draw close to the end of the financial year, I reflect on the year we have left behind.
Faced with numerous challenges,
including two years in and out of
lockdowns, amidst much uncertainty and
an international crisis grossly impacting both
our emotional and physical commodities,
the Australian jewellery industry continues
to strive ahead – we forge the future of our
industry despite the evolving circumstances in
how we network and serve our clients across
our respective businesses.
Amid all of this unexpected change comes an
entirely new generation of jewellery artisans
– one I am particularly proud of. The Jewellers
Association of Australia highlights the new
generation of Millennial and Gen Y jewellery
industry experts, (in the making), in the
JAA’s up and coming July webinar, Next Gen
Jewellery Artisans.
Socially and environmentally aware, the
next or new generation of bespoke jewellery
designers, fine jewellery manufacturers,
gem and diamond traders, retailers, artisans,
crafters, master jewellers and jewellery
industry affiliates are responsible sources.
They are focused and forward thinking in
the way they approach their businesses and
clients alike. Brand focused, technology and
social media savvy, this new generation of the
jewellery industry, currently taking all sectors
of our industry by storm, are cutting edge
and avant garde. They are risk takers, creative
and expansive minded individuals who are
not afraid to change the dynamics of how
our industry operates and they are absolutely
advantageous in their approach.
What can we learn from them?
The way we do business has transitioned to
support contactless sales experiences and/or
purchasing. This is an area that Millennials and
Gen Y are particularly proficient in – having
grown up in a world of social media and
technological advancement, that generations
before them never would ever have dreamt
of, they understand the importance of
connection and creating online presence.
Their social pages and websites are often
their showrooms, if not a preface to their
showrooms, and they create ambience and
engagement with every single post, like and
comment. They understand the importance
of diversification. They are nurturing of their
audience – they know exactly who their client/
audience is, what their client needs/wants
and aim to deliver an overall experience that
commences from the conception of their
online presence right through to the delivery
of their products/services. This generation
aims to please and make no mistake, they
know exactly how to deliver the goods.
The JAA invites all sectors of the Australian
jewellery industry to an evening dedicated
to the future of our industry. Join us, 7pm
Tuesday, 5 July, 2022 to hear this vivacious
panel of new generation jewellery industry
experts discuss what makes them tick, how
they operate, how they market to Millennials
and Gen Y clients, what we can learn from
them and a myriad of other topics that are all
Next Gen Jewellery related.
The time is NOW.
16
jewellery world - June 2022

YOU ARE
MY
ROCK.
Becoming a member of the Jewellers
Association of Australia has a comprehensive
range of benefits.
We are here to help support, protect, guide
and grow your business, whilst being a voice
for the Australian Jewellery Industry.
The 2022 Member Prospectus details the
benefits available to members and we
welcome you to contact us with any questions
or feedback you may have about the JAA.
INSPIRING CONFIDENCE. SINCE 1931.
view the
MEMBER
BENEFITS
jaa.com.au/benefits

RUSSIAN DIAMONDS VERSUS THE WORLD
The war in Ukraine has shut down a third of the world’s natural diamond industry. What has
been happening with Russian diamonds since the February invasion?
Ukraine wants Russian diamonds
labelled ‘conflict’
The State Gemmological Centre of Ukraine
wrote to the chair of the Kimberley Process
(KP) in late May asking that it redefine conflict
diamonds in a way that would label Russian
diamonds as such.
The current definition of conflict diamonds
includes diamonds “where violence is used”
in their mining and excavation. The Ukraine
petition asks that the definition be extended
to include “even if they are not associated
with any rebel movement, but there are
armed conflicts in violation of international
humanitarian law, the funding of which
involved diamonds mined by the aggressor
country.”
It appears to be a reference to the two main
Russian diamond mining companies — Alrosa
and Grib — which are both partly owned by
the Russian government.
If accepted, the new language would suspend
Russia from the KP and effectively ban Russian
diamonds from the world market.
The changes would require absolute
consensus from the 82 participating
governments.
Surat polishers struggling with
sanctions against Russia
Diamond polishing hub, Surat, in the west of
India, has over 4,000 small and large diamond
polish businesses and employs nearly 500,000
workers. At least 30 per cent of the diamonds
cut in Surat are sourced directly from Alrosa,
so US sanctions against Russian diamonds are
hurting the industry there.
Diamond polishers in Surat are
typically paid on the basis of
raw diamonds they polish per
day. With sanctions cutting
into the diamond source, some
workers have been put on a four
day week, and have had working
hours cut from ten per day to eight per
day. The sanctions have put pressure on
many workers leaving thousands struggling
to pay rents and education fees for their
children.
Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion
Council’s (GJEPC) Gujarat chairman Dinesh
Navadia explained that in addition to
diamonds coming directly from Russia, many
Russian gems travel the world via other
countries before ending up in Surat for cutting
and polishing, meaning that the majority of
gems cut in Surat are Russian.
The US sanctions require that all diamonds
entering the US be certified that their origin
is not Russian. Other countries, such as China
and the Gulf countries, do not mandate this
condition, so some work remains.
The polishing industry in India was also
faced difficulties in the height of the Covid
lockdowns.
Will the Russian diamond ban
raise the profile of lab-grown
diamonds?
Lab-grown diamonds were on the rise
before the outbreak of war in Ukraine. New
York-based diamond analyst Paul Zimnisky
estimated global sales of lab-grown diamond
jewellery increased by 40 per cent last year —
a figure now representing 10 per cent of total
diamond jewellery sales.
With the war dragging on,
Zimnisky is now forecasting
a 20 per cent annual growth
in lab-grown jewellery sales
through to 2027. He calculated
the global output of lab-grown
diamonds was close to 3 million carats
last year. That figure represents incredible
growth, but it’s still nothing compared to the
116 million carats of natural diamonds mined
in 2021.
Major jewellery and watch brands that have
previously sourced from Russia have bowed
to social pressure and switched to Rio Tinto
and De Beers for their diamonds. It is likely to
mean a hike in natural diamond prices as so
many compete for a limited stock.
Erwan Rambourge is head of consumer and
retail research at HSBC and is confident that
sales of lab-grown diamond jewellery will
increase with even brands such as Cartier
and Bulgari likely to use lab-grown stones for
entry-level pieces in the near future. Already
Tag Heuer has released a product featuring
lab-grown stones.
The gap that is left by keeping Russian stones
out of the market is so large it’s not likely to
be completely filled by lab-grown diamonds
any time soon, despite their continual and
ever-increasing success.
18
jewellery world - June 2022

Africa’s biggest diamond producer stuck between a
rock and an even harder one
Botswana is Africa’s biggest diamond producing nation. At a mining
conference there in May, the major players spoke of their concerns
that a prolonged ban on Russian diamond would allow synthetic
gems to expand their market share.
Debswana is a joint venture between Anglo American/De Beers and
the Botswana government. It accounts for almost all of Botswana’s
diamond exports. This year that stood at USD $3.4 billion, up from
$2.2 billion in 2020.
But Jacob Thamage, head of
Botswana's Diamond Hub, isn’t
convinced Botswana can fill the
gap left by the Russian diamond
ban.
"You don't want to invest a lot of
money to up-scale and then the
war ends the next day," Thamage
said. "We also see the higher
prices pushing consumers to
substitutes such as the synthetics
and this can cause problems for us if we cede the market to unnatural
stones."
Thamage also fears that consumers might start to shun natural
diamonds due to traceability issues.
"There is an increased fear that buyers of diamonds will begin to
treat all natural diamonds as conflict diamonds and therefore shift to
unnatural diamonds," he said.
Meanwhile, in Russia
On home soil, Alrosa has noted a significant increase in interest
among domestic customers looking to invest in Russian diamond
amid hard currency restrictions.
Alrosa has a Diamond Exclusive program under which it can sell
diamonds to certain private investors via its regular auctions but,
being that the company is government-owned, a series of legislation
must be altered in order to open up diamond investing opportunities
to more Russian investors. The Russian Deputy Finance Minister says
proposals for such changes have already been put to the government.
The scheme would see ordinary Russians being able to invest in
diamonds in a similar way to investing in gold in order to help support
Alrosa under sanctions from the West.
Alrosa provides up to 90 percent of diamond production in Russia
employing more than 20 000 people. At the end of 2021, the
company netted 332 billion rubles of revenue, which is a 50-percent
increase compared with 2020.
Luxury Pearl & Opal Jewellery
Tel: (02) 9266 0636 | enquiries@ikecho.com.au
www.ikecho.com.au

Red Argyle diamonds, Rio Tinto
INTENSE AND RARE:
THE CHANGING APPEAL AND
ATTRACTION OF COLOURED DIAMONDS
Fancy coloured diamonds are not as common as white diamonds, which adds to their appeal and
their value. But there's a big difference between a diamond that is slightly discoloured and one that is
'fancy' coloured. Here we look at what makes coloured diamonds so coveted and so unique.
Coloured diamonds are ranked on a
different scale to white diamonds –
they reach 'coloured' status if they
are found to be more intense in hue. The
scale for coloured diamonds even sounds like
something from a fairytale with grades such as
'fancy intense', 'fancy vivid' and 'fancy deep.'
But beauty is always in the eye of the beholder
and while the fancy colours are considered
the epitome, the lighter shades can be just
as stunning and form a way for consumers
achieve their natural diamond dreams at an
entry level.
There are many factors effecting the diamond
sector at the moment. Lab-grown diamonds
have risen from being mere industrial tools
to becoming strong competition for natural
stones. The situation in Ukraine has led to
many governments around the world banning
Russian diamonds. An ever-increasing demand
from consumers for responsibly sourced
jewellery, both environmentally and socially,
has deepened both of these issues. It would
be easy to think that the rare, smaller market
share coloured diamonds might lose out in
the face of all of this but that might not be the
case.
Fancy diamonds come from a wide number of
mines scattered around the world. Australia's
Ellendale mine, previously and hopefully
again a strong source of yellow diamonds, has
recently re-commenced operations. South
Africa, India, Brazil, Venezuela, Guyana and
Indonesia all produce fancy colour diamonds.
A Russian ban creates opportunities for these
mines, especially if consumers are educated
about these other sources.
Lab-grown diamonds also produce coloured
stones and, at the moment, trends have
focussed that production on the perennially
popular colours of blue, pink and yellow. It
wouldn't be unreasonable to assume that
lab-grown versions of fancy stones will raise
the profile of coloured diamonds as a whole
in the same way as they have for colourless
natural diamonds. That is, a cheaper product
encourages more consumers into the market
– those who dream of owning the natural
20
jewellery world - June 2022

To schedule an appointment, please contact us:
L. J. WEST DIAMONDS INC. | 589 5th Ave, Suite 1102 | New York, NY 10017, U.S.A. | T +1 212 997 0940
L. J. WEST AU PTY LTD | Level 9, 225 St Georges Terrace | Perth, WA 6000, Australia | T +61 40 997 6981

Info@LJWestDiamonds.com | www.LJWestDiamonds.com | www.ScottWestDiamonds.com

product will always graduate there in the end,
but the wider field enables trends to grow and
flourish.
The setting of a coloured stone is just as
important as the stone itself.
With coloured diamonds ranging in hue from
very subtle pastel tones through to intense
and vivid fancy colours, the choice of setting
becomes crucial. Metal colours and the
shades of accompanying stones must be made
to compliment the centre piece. Contrasting
a fancy stone with pure white diamonds is
always a striking look, or a harmonious blend
can be achieved by pairing the stone with
others sharing the same gentle nuance of
colour. Designers can celebrate the jewel in a
way that can be difficult to achieve with white
diamonds.
Colour is naturally very evocative. A coloured
diamond can carry emotional, imaginative
and poetic qualities for the designer and the
wearer. Colours can symbolise many things –
softness, love, strength, sophistication, royalty,
power. For a designer, this can be an exciting
palette. For the consumer, it can be very a
personal form of expression.
But they should certainly be worn to be seen.
Fancy that!
Like everything in life, coloured diamonds
cross an entire spectrum, and devising a
precise grading system is a challenging
business. Several systems are currently in
A purple diamond from the Argyle mine, Rio Tinto
use — the GIA
system being
the most wellknown.
CIBJO
recommends
another
schema, while
AGS claims to
have a ‘new
approach’ they
describe as
‘insanely easy’
to use.
Laboratories
grade against
a set of
master stones covering hue and intensity.
The Gemmological Institute of America (GIA)
developed a uniform list of 12 main colours,
90 secondary hues, 9 different intensity levels,
and over 230 colour combinations
Try singing this to
the rainbow song:
Red, Orangish-
Red, Reddish-
Orange, Orange,
Yellowish-Orange,
Yellow-Orange,
Orange-Yellow,
Orangish-Yellow,
Yellow, Greenish-
Yellow,
Green-Yellow,
Yellow-Green,
Yellowish-Green,
Green, Bluish-
Green, Blue-
Green, Green-
Blue, Greenish-Blue, Blue, Violetish-Blue,
Bluish-Violet, Violet, Purple, Reddish-Purple,
Red-Purple, Purple-Red, Purplish-Red.
There’s also White (which are actually milky
rather than colourless), Black (which are
opaque), Gray, Pink and Brown.
On top of those are the ‘decorative’ terms,
such as 'canary' for certain shades of yellow,
and ‘cognac’, ‘champagne’ and sometimes
‘coffee’ for various brown diamonds because
the marketing world considers the word
‘brown’ to be a value-killer.
Above: A brown rough diamond crystal from the
Argyle mine showing the tetrahedral shape.
The Hope Diamond.
Once the hue has been established, the colour
saturation is then labelled with one of nine
descriptors: Faint, Very Light, Light, Fancy
Light, Fancy, Fancy Dark, Fancy Intense, Fancy
Deep, Fancy Vivid.
How do diamonds get their colour?
And what’s so special about the pink ones?
All diamonds are made up of carbon atoms
arranged in rigid tetrahedrons – a shape
that can be seen at the macroscopic level in
natural rough diamonds. Pure diamonds are
transparent and colourless. They’re very rare
and so very valuable.
Most naturally-coloured diamonds are
formed with trace elements react with
the carbon atoms during the diamond’s
creation. Chemical elements such as nitrogen,
sulphur and boron are trapped during the
crystallisation process resulting in shades of
yellow, green and blue.
Blue, Gray and Green
Boron is the element responsible for tingeing a
diamond blue. When this impurity is present,
it bonds to carbon in the crystal structure,
absorbing the red, yellow and green areas of
the colour spectrum leaving our eye to see
blue reflected. Blue diamonds are extremely
rare. The generally have a hint of grey so rarely
get that highly saturated ‘sapphire’ colour.
Fancy green diamonds are most often light in
24
jewellery world - June 2022

The Okavango Blue – the largest blue diamond ever discovered in
Botswana, it caught media attention because its original size, 41.11 carats,
was comparable to that of the famous Hope Diamond, whose clarity and
purity this newly discovered diamond exceeded. Its weight reduced to
20.46 carats after cutting and polishing.
tone and low in saturation, and often muted
in colour, affected by grey hints. In most green
diamonds, the hue is strongest at the surface
of the stone and rarely extends through the
diamond. This leaves cutters with interesting
challenges.
Green diamonds occur when a diamond
makes its journey to the earth’s surface and
spends a few million years in close contact
with radioactive rocks. The radioactivity
displaces the carbon atoms from their normal
positions in the crystal structure. Since
green diamonds can be created artificially by
exposing a low-grade blue or grey diamond to
irradiation, greens are typically viewed with
suspicion.
Orange and Yellow
Yellow and orange diamonds owe their hue to
the element nitrogen. Nitrogen atoms in the
crystal arrange in such a way that blue light
is absorbed, leaving a yellow colour visible to
the human eye. Yellow diamonds are more
common amid the fancy colours and are
sometimes described as ‘canary’ despite that
not being a proper grading term.
Orange coloured diamonds arise when
nitrogen within the crystal groups in a specific
way that absorbs light in both the blue and
yellow spectrums.
Brown and Black
Brown is the most common colour and brown
diamonds also the earliest diamonds to be
used in jewellery, having been set into rings by
the Romans in the second century. The colour
didn’t stay popular though and spent a long
time only being considered worthy enough for
industrial use.
It wasn’t until the Argyle mine commenced
operation in the 1980s and abundant
quantities of brown diamonds became
available. Clever Australian jewellers and
marketers used these brown diamonds in
jewellery and gave them new names —
cognac and champagne — and the stones are
once again in favour.
Brown diamonds can range in tone from very
pale to very dark and the market seems to
prefer browns in medium to dark tones with a
warm to reddish modifying colour.
Black diamonds didn’t begin to achieve favour
until the 1990s when designers began using
them in jewellery contrasting tiny colourless
stones in pave settings.
Pink and Red
While other colours
are due to the
presence of trace
elements, pinks are
a different story. No
trace elements have
ever been found
in pink diamonds.
Instead, the colour is
formed by a distortion
in the diamond’s crystal lattice, caused by
intense heat and pressure from all directions
after the stone’s formation. This distortion
alters the position of the carbon atoms which
in turn changes the qualities of light reflected
by the diamond.
The 5.03-carat DeYoung Red is an
exceptionally rare coloured diamond.
Smithsonian Institution, National
Museum of Natural History.
Pinks are found around the world but those
from Australia’s Argyle mine are said to have
the finest colour of fancy, intense pink. This
is because a set of geological circumstances,
millions of year ago, resulted in Argyle
diamonds possessing densely-packed graining
planes that emanate pink colour. This graining
is sometimes so pronounced it is visible to the
naked eye. By contrast, non-Argyle pinks have
few and less distinct graining planes and are
therefore lighter in colour.
Red diamonds are ultra-rare and are
essentially just very deeply coloured pink
diamonds, following the same formation
causes as pinks.
Violet and Purple
Even less is known about the formation of
violet and purple diamonds. It believed that
hydrogen is present during their formation
as well distortion due to extreme heat and
pressure.
Treating stones
As recent years have seen a rise in popularity
and demand for natural coloured diamonds,
and as that demand has lead to a rise in
their prices, the market for treated and
colour-enhanced diamonds has evolved
tremendously.
Colour-treated diamonds are not lab-grown
diamonds – they are natural mined diamonds
that have been colour-enhanced. Their price
is higher than the low colour quality stone
they were before treatment, and depending
on inclusions etc, they may rival lab-grown
coloured stones in price.
The main methodology is called HPHT - High
Pressure High Temperature. This procedure
can shift pale yellows to Fancy Vivid or change
them altogether to form Fancy blues, purples
or red.
Interestingly, this is the same procedure that
can convert cheap very light brown diamonds
and turn them into colourless diamonds.
Science becomes art.
The largest pink diamond ever found in Australia is the Argyle Pink Jubilee
diamond (8.01 carats). It was donated to Museums Victoria by Rio Tinto.
June 2022 25

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A division of the CPG Group of companies

By Stefan Juengling
Chemgold
MORE SCIENCE THAN ART:
INSIDE THE AUSTRALIAN JEWELLERY TECHSPACE
Each year, developments in CAD, CAM, and 3D printing push the boundaries of what can be
designed, cast and printed. The ability to design with CAD has become quite affordable, as increasing
automation in jewellery continues to push its uptake among modern jewellers. Here we spoke to four
major players in the Australian jewellery tech scene to see how improvements to jewellery design and
manufacture is positively affecting the Australian jewellery industry.
We are all privileged to live in
interesting times for jewellery
design and manufacture: a digital
age where fine jewellery becomes more
science than art. In recent years CAD/CAM
and 3D printing has seen tremendous growth
as an accepted technology in the Australian
jewellery industry. The design freedom
afforded by these digital tools and the speed
with which a precise and repeatable 3D model
can be produced is truly a revolution in our
industry. Current and emerging jewellery tech
frees our designers from the constraints of
conventional manufacturing processes and
allows them to create complex and beautiful
pieces that are ready to finish in a matter of
hours.
The state of the jewellery tech scene
All our contributors lauded the design
and manufacturing potential that modern
jewellery tech affords them. Evotech Pacific
are the distributors of Gemvision and Asiga
products in Australia and New Zealand, and its
Director Anthony Nowlan said he’s seen some
pretty big leaps forward in terms of jewellery
design software capabilities.
“Gemvision (creators of the Matrix and
CounterSketch software), acquired TDM
(creators of the RhinoGold software), and have
combined the best parts of all three software
applications into the one – MatrixGold,” he
said.
He said that with MatrixGold jewellery design
software, jewellers can quickly and efficiently
design pieces and utilise parametric history to
easier adjust models if required.
“Rendering capability is also vastly improved
enabling designers to create photorealistic
images of their designs.”
Chemgold is a family owned and run business
with a proven track record of supplying the
Australian jewellery industry with precious
metal products and services for more
than 30years. Its director Darren Sher said
that their jewellery clients are becoming
increasingly aware of the quality Chemgold
can produce from CAD.
28
jewellery world - June 2022

“Improved
technology in
printing allows
finer and more
intricate pieces
to be printed
and cast easily,
when using
the correct
software and machine,” he said.
DesignDrawCAD
“The trend has continued with more lower
priced point 3D printers entering the market
which are suited to some businesses that want
to view the prototype before production or
being able to print the wax/resin themselves
and send to us for casting.”
Production Manager Desmond Ambagtsheer
at well-known jewellery supplier Peter W Beck
said their company have always been at the
forefront of jewellery tech.
“60 per cent of ‘retail ready’ products we
produce would in some way employ CAD/CAM
technology: CAD to develop new products or
revamp old, CAM for product manufacturing
using machines such as 3D printers, mills,
lathes, and faceting machines,” he said.
DesignDrawCAD is a Sydney-based CAD
jewellery design service headed up by CAD
Jewellery Designer Helen Pusenjak who acts
as a single, client-focused CAD designer. Helen
said more and more jewellers are looking to
take additional advantage of CAD’s potential
to improve their business.
“This may be to create the new stock pieces,
produce bespoke pieces more suited to the
CAD/casting process or at a certain price
point, set up a range of jewellery for ready
modification or to simply increase output,”
she said.
Huge uptake in CAD/CAM
Darren said that attitudes toward the
technology has improved and become more
positive as it continues to become more
mainstream.
“I would estimate a huge percentage of
jewellers and jewellery retailers now use
CAD/CAM as an additional tool to design and
manufacture jewellery.
“It has continued to increase with more
jewellers and retailers purchasing CAD
software for in-house use and our customers
taking advantage of CAD-based libraries
they can order from such as our JewelMount
collection.”
In addition, Darren reported that an increasing
number of jewellers have invested in the CAD
software themselves.
“This has been
an incredibly
helpful tool
to show their
customers
how the new
technology
provides them
with their
desired piece of
jewellery.
“Jewellers benefit
by viewing
CAD/CAM as
another tool at
their disposal to
save time, money and simplify the process in
manufacturing, not replacing their skill but
rather assisting where possible.”
Anthony reported that the COVID-19
pandemic led to an increase in software
uptake from clients who were previously
undecided.
DesignDrawCAD
“The ability to continue working and designing
with efficiency whilst in lockdown has been
very appealing to many of these new clients. “
Desmond said that Peter W Beck customers
use CAD/CAM to produce their own products
on their own 3D printers and mills for casting
and/or engraving.
Chemgold
Pushing boundaries with cuttingedge
design and manufacture
Advances in new software or updates in
existing software means that for Chemgold
and their clients it has become increasingly
more efficient to design and offer their clients
designs that were previously not possible or
unaffordable. Darren said the latest software
releases have made the design process
smoother, sometimes easier, that still requires
some skill to master, but now cuts design time
in half compared to five years ago.
“We have also found that with the
introduction of 3D scanning items, that the
June 2022 29

possibility of replicating pieces become much
faster, and creating fitted wedding bands is no
longer a headache to the designer, as we can
scan the engagement ring and simply build
around it.
“…organic designs have also been more
popular in the past few years, and we have
advanced our team with the software and
knowledge required to assist with the growing
demand for these.”
Anthony said that jewellery design software’s
potential to design delicate, complex, and/
or organic shapes has always been a major
drawcard for many designers and jewellers,
and it’s for these reasons that jewellers and
designers have invested in the tech. However,
he said he felt that the ability to adjust those
designs easily has at times been difficult and
cumbersome, sometimes causing the designer
to completely re-design those parts.
“The latest version of MatrixGold makes this
task easier and less likely that a part will need
to be completely re-designed from scratch.”
Desmond said that CAD/CAM has opened
many new opportunities in product design
and the services they supply to their
customers.
“Customers want the freedom
to design their own individual
pieces: CAD/CAM allows us
to communicate precisely with the
client and then produce the part
to their tolerances.”
Chemgold
3D printer go brrr!
Improvements in printer
resin and wax qualities has
also improved the quality
of pieces for CAM users
and their clients. Anthony
said that printing resins
have advanced greatly
and produced pieces with
better surface finish and
quicker build times.
“Better formulas with resins and investment
powders used within the casting process have
also lessened the likelihood of a negative
reaction with the investments used within the
casting process, improving the result greatly.”
He also lauded modern printing technology’s
ability to reduce turnaround time.
Evotech Asiga MAX X 3D Printer
Evotech Pacific
“…it depends greatly
on both the resin and
the geometry being
printed…but we have
seen the latest Asiga
Resin (SuperCast X)
create a full build plate
of standard height rings
in around 2 hours.”
Desmond said their company is always
investing in the latest technology and the
newest software.
“Keeping up to date allows us to push the
limits on design and increase our capabilities
and efficiencies,” he said.
“Our latest innovation would be
the use CAD/CAM to directly
machine metallic
components,
lasering and
milling
products
and
having the
ability and
flexibility
to use multiple CAD/CAM platforms to create
a single product.”
Darren said that Chemgold’s leading
technology and wax printers ensure customers
receive the absolute best surface finish from
their CAD files, along with the highest quality
castings.
Jewellery tech helps keep it
Australian made
Matrix Gold Rendering
Evotech Pacific
In an
increasingly
globalist scene,
the trend for
some major
jewellery
companies
over the past
few decades is
to outsource
manufacturing
to countries
with low
labour costs and operations such as China
and India. This helps the companies from
domestic economic downturns, but at the
expense of potential local manufacturing
jobs. Fortunately, from Helen’s point of view,
an increasing number of jewellers are opting
to advance jewellery wholly produced in
Australia, bringing work back from overseas.
Evolight2
Evotech Pacific
“They (the jewellers) profit from improved
communication resulting in an accelerated
process and superior models.”
ProLaser Easy Laser Welder
by Evotech Pacific
30
jewellery world - June 2022

DesignDrawCAD
Darren said that with the COVID-19 pandemic
and its subsequent issues with freight, a lot
of manufacturers and retail stores opted for
Australian-made.
“Not only is it a great selling point for most of
the market, it also reduced their turnaround
time greatly by having something made locally
and delivered much quicker than any overseas
competitor.”
Evotech Pacific L3 Magic Laser
Engraver Photo Engraving
He said this has had the flow-on effect of
manufacturing roles opening en masse
throughout the industry over the past
few years with jewellers, setters and CAD
designers being in high demand across the
country.
“This shows that there is a lot more interest
in bringing manufacturing back to Australian
shores and keeping it here.”
Anthony said
that due to
the increased
pricing in
outsourcing
work overseas
combined with
their inherent
communication
breakdowns
and their
subsequent
blowout in
design time,
Evotech Pacific
have had quite
a few clients who have recently purchased
their own licenses of MatrixGold.
“For many of these particular clients, it has
been more economic (financially and in time),
to learn the software/hardware and keep
everything in house.”
The revolutions of tomorrow
When asked to speculate on what
the future holds in the jewellery
tech scene, our contributors
predicted improvements in
software design capabilities,
faster job turnaround times,
and greater uptake in the
technology. Darren believes that
CAD programs will become more
user-friendly, printers will print
faster and in higher resolutions,
and developments in job-tracking
technology will aid Chemgold’s
customers with up-to-date
information on where their jobs are in
the system.
“If the past has taught us anything it is
that it will be developing at a rapid pace and
changing in ways we cannot yet foresee.”
Helen predicts that use of the CAD/casting
process will expand because it boosts output
for business, helps to produce pieces that can
be offered at competitive prices, and expands
the styles a business can offer.
“Given the scarcity of apprenticeships being
offered and the resulting decrease in qualified
jewellers coming up, this process will become
a necessary option.
“With the exponential advances in
technological innovation, opportunities for
cross-over items of jewellery will also grow.”
Anthony foresees an increasing uptake in
Direct Manufacturing 3D Printing, as research
and development in the field has produced
far better quality metal powders and thus a
better surface finish.
“…whilst I don’t think Direct Manufacture 3D
Printing will replace any sector of existing
jewellery manufacturing, it will certainly add
a new dimension for those designers who
create pieces and parts that are not possible
to create with current tech and processes.
“It is certainly an exciting time to be a
jeweller!”
DesignDrawCAD
Oval Trilogy render
32
jewellery world - June 2022

WD Lab Grown Diamonds
signs deal with JC Jewels
WD Lab Grown Diamonds (WD), the first diamond company in the world to be thirdparty
sustainability certified and to achieve 100 per cent climate neutrality, has named
Australia-based JC Jewels Pty Ltd their Authorised Distribution Partner in the Australia
and New Zealand markets.
WD is a pioneering technology company
and market leader in Chemical Vapor
Deposition (CVD) diamonds, with laboratory
headquarters in the Washington, D.C. area.
Each WD diamond is certified 100 per cent
climate neutral and is backed by a full U.S.
origin traceability guarantee.
“This critical partnership with JC Jewels
enables us to further scale WD’s footprint
in-step with the rapidly expanding global
market for lab grown diamonds,” said Sue
Rechner, CEO of WD Lab Grown Diamonds.
“We are pleased to have a partner that shares
our commitment to leading with integrity,
innovation and a focus on sustainability —
their well-earned and trusted reputation in
the Australia and New Zealand markets will
help fuel our growth in this region.”
JC Jewels was the first diamond wholesaler
to launch laboratory grown diamonds in
Australia and New Zealand, and today is the
largest supplier and importer in this region.
Through this agreement, JC Jewels will
employ its sales, marketing and technology
expertise to distribute WD’s Certified Climate
Neutral and Sustainability Rated diamonds to
their expansive customer network, thereby
expanding consumer access to high-quality,
‘As Grown’, and third-party certified laboratory
grown diamonds. JC Jewels has become
accredited by SCS Global Services, enabling a
closed and verified chain of custody on all fully
traceable WD diamonds.
“Our principles and shared values are the
cornerstone of our partnership with WD Lab
Grown Diamonds,” said Craig Miller, CEO of
JC Jewels. “Together with their team, we look
forward to defining a new industry standard
for sustainability and transparency within our
market.”
In the lab grown diamond space, specifically
at the independent jeweller, retail training
and education is paramount to success. In
addition to access to WD’s industry-leading
lab grown diamonds, JC Jewels customers
will benefit from the team’s best-in-class
custom training programs, as well as 24/7
access to the newly unveiled WD Resource
Center, an exclusive online learning and
marketing portal. WD will be touring the
platform to partners and distributors for the
first time at JCK Las Vegas this June, where
they are exhibiting within The Plumb Club.
wdlabgrowndiamonds.com
latitudediamonds.com
jcjewels.com.au

MY LIFE IN JEWELLERY
Leone Meatchem entered Australia's jewellery industry in 1949 and enjoyed a long,
fulfilling and award-winning career in the trade. It is often said that life goes in
circles, but Leone says hers runs in rings. This is her tale of her life in jewellery.
My life was set on the jewellery
path one night just before my
fifteenth birthday when my mother
informed me I was tell the teacher I would
be leaving school on the day of my birthday.
It was a Friday and I was to start work on the
following Monday. I had been about to sit for
the Leaving Certificate and I enjoyed school.
I'd hoped to go on to Art School and I had
dreams of using skills gained there to support
me through a future in ballet.
Needless to say, I didn't sleep much that
night, mostly crying tears of disappointment.
In earlier school holidays, my mother had
taken me to the Angus & Coote building
George Street, Sydney where I had been
introduced to Mr James Byrne and shown
the factory. I'd seen a long table with rows
of young women on each side, meticulously
filling metal badge castings with enamel. I
imagined that this was work I was to do and
it looked like it could be fun. Mr Byrne asked
to see some of my artwork and I left some
drawings with him. In the past, I'd hoped this
might lead to some work for the Christmas
school holidays – but I'd hoped to be back at
school afterwards.
But on Monday 24 October, 1949, I dutifully
travelled alone to George Street, feeling
very shy. I met again with Mr Byrne and
was surprised to be asked to look at some
sketches. He called me “Miss Rush” which
had a pleasing, grown-up ring to it and he
mentioned that he admired the drawings that
I'd left with him on my first visit.
The sketches that he showed me were of a
cricketer – a figure possibly to use on a trophy.
Mr Byrne asked if I could see anything wrong
with the sketch and I meekly pointed out that
one arm was wrong. He handed me a pencil
and asked me to correct it.
Imagine my surprise when he
looked at my alterations to the
drawing and asked me, right then
and there, if I'd like to become
a designer and learn from the
present designer, Joyce Caldicott.
Of course, I said yes!
He led me into a room where two
desks were positioned – one, the
larger, Miss Caldicott's, the other
slightly smaller one, already set
up with a drawing board, would
be mine.
I was absolutely so happy. I
started that day and loved every
minute of what was, for me, one
big art lesson. The office staff
christened me 'Blossom' and
my training began. I took to the
role very quickly and was soon
designing badges, trophies and,
as the large jeweller's section was
on the same floor, jewellery too.
Mr Roy Coote was a regular visitor to our
office. He was a softly spoken man who
perused our
designs and
watched us
work. The
jewellery
manager, Mr
Eric Davies,
34
jewellery world - June 2022

sometimes allowed me to watch how the
pieces were made, quite often asking me to
sketch a shoulder design or side view of a ring
etc.
Three happy years later and I was a fully
trained “Angus & Coote Designer.”
An unexpected retrenchment of staff meant
that all married women employees were to
leave and as Joyce had married the previous
year that meant the loss of the office's senior
designer. I was called to Mr Byrne's office too.
Joyce had dropped the hint that if I was to
leave I might join a ballet company. I couldn't
deny that if such an opportunity arose I would
certainly take it and so, I was asked to leave as
well. I left Angus & Coote just before turning
eighteen with all good wishes, chocolates and
flowers and beautiful references too.
I had thought I might have a holiday, but no,
Mother marched me off to an employment
agency where a kind lady mentioned she
had a nephew, a jeweller, working for a small
manufacturing company, which also made
badges. She made enquiries and I was soon
having an interview (with my mother in
attendance!) at Messrs. Denham, Neal and
Treloar, Pitt St. Sydney.
I started the very next week and spent much
of the remainder of my working life there
designing badges, trophies and of course,
rings for these three wonderful bosses who
looked after me like three fathers!
The new job had a room for jewellers with
Mr. Les Denham in charge. In this room
also I met Rex and Ray Merton, Rex Steele
Merten's father and uncle. In another room,
Mr.Norm Neal looked after the engravers.
One, a particularly nice young man, Howard
Meatchem, already through his apprenticeship
and an expert hand engraver, became my
husband two years later.
A few more years on and our first little one
was expected. The three bosses began to
panic – no designer! – but I quickly pointed
out I could easily work at home. Howard
still worked in the city – he could take work
in and pick it up, easy! (Who needed Zoom
Leone Meatchem and Rex Merten in an early
issue of Jewellery World magazine.
meetings?) By 1956, we were living in
Lindfield, and by a lovely coincidence, James
Byrne lived opposite.
Award-winning pearl necklet
was displayed in Japan and Broome.
Working from home was an excellent
arrangement that allowed me to pursue my
career and raise our five children, including a
beautiful surprise set of twins. My husband,
Howard, began his own business, taking rooms
in Sydney's Dymocks Building and, later, the
Saunders Building in King Street.
In 1970, I noticed a jewellery design
competition in an early Jewellery Magazine.
On a whim, I sent in a design. I was delighted
to win a prize in the AJA's first competition.
[The AJA was the precursor to the JAA.] Rex
Steele Merten also won a prize and Howard
and I celebrated the award evening with Rex
and Gabrielle.
Although still designing for DNT, I read about
the De Beers Diamonds International Awards
in 1972. This award was to be judged on
June 2022 35

the drawn design, so I sat down
at home and fiddled with a
design and dared to send it
to USA. It had been a misty
morning that day and I had
taken a walk along the creek
near our home. I stood for
a moment admiring the
dew drops on a cobweb and
knew immediately
that I had found
inspiration for my
design. I named it
Morning Dew and it
featured 49 diamonds hanging on delicate threads from a
golden branch.
To receive news by telegram that I had won was a huge,
unexpected surprise. Not only was I the only Australian
to win that year; but the first Australian woman to win
(not in the name of a company.) After meeting with the
representatives, I realised that I had to have the design
made up. Of course, I had used lots of diamonds and a tricky
design.
By now, Angus & Coote had taken over the big corner shop in
the Saunders Building (Howard came with the building!) and the
company was really keen to make up the design.
And, in a delightful circle, I agreed to design exclusively for them for
the following four years.
Amazingly, after more than two decades, I was once again an “Angus &
Coote Designer.” My life had travelled a full circle.
I needed to know
more about the
stones I was using,
so I graduated
from a gemmology
course in 1977
and continued on
with the Valuation
Certificate and
Diamond grading
with Geoff Toombs.
Now I could supply
the right stones,
value the finished
piece and as a
JP, sort out some
probate valuations
too if needed.
The next years brought another fifteen design awards, including De
Beers Diamonds Today, Australian Jewellery Awards, also taking part
in pearl design exhibitions in Japan and Broome. Of course, all my
designs were created in a world pre-computer aided design. I used
pencil and paint and I share some with you here. I loved taking part in
the recent JAA Design Sketch Draw competition.
During those years, I designed many interesting trophies, the World
Gold Cricket Cup, several Mayoral chains including the ones for
Katherine NT, Wollongong and
one for the City of Gosford. The
Gosford chain saw me chatting
to the then mayor about the
design, never imagining that
not only would we be living
on the beautiful NSW Central
Coast years later but that our
daughter would marry that
mayor's young cousin! Life.
Circles. And wedding rings.
Now, more than 70 years
on from the day that I first
tip-toed nervously into the
jewellery industry, I have
just designed my grandson's
engagement ring.
Leone featured in an
Australian Women's Weekly article in 1972.
36
jewellery world - June 2022

IGJS 2022 Jaipur caters to rising
global demand
The Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) of India
recently concluded the exclusive B2B jewellery show the IGJS
in association with Gemfields, at JECC, Jaipur, India’s coloured
gemstone capital, from 10th to 12th May, 2022.
The three-day show saw more than 200 leading exhibitors
showcasing their gems and designer jewellery to 650 international
buyers from 48 countries.
It was the first physical event hosted exclusively for global buyers
in India to increase exports and to exemplify India’s strong hold
on the gem and jewellery industry. The exclusive show catered
to all product segments of gem and jewellery such as coloured
gemstones, loose diamonds, plain gold jewellery, diamond studded
jewellery, gemstone studded jewellery and silver jewellery.
India is a world leader in cut and polished diamonds, the coloured
gemstones capital of the world, and the fastest growing gold
jewellery exporter and the IGJS show catered to every sourcing
need of the global market.
India’s gem and jewellery industry exports nearly USD 40 billion
annually. Top markets are the USA accounting for 37 percent of
India’s G&J exports, Hong Kong (24%), UAE (14.5%), Belgium (5%)
and Israel (4%).
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By Cheryl D. Harty
COLOURED DIAMONDS FIND FAVOUR
AS JEWELLERY MILESTONE GIFT
Coloured diamonds are gaining in popularity and are increasingly purchased as a jewel to mark
life’s milestones, according to Tony Smales, owner and manager of Smales Jewellers.
With five watch and jewellery stores
in Western Australia, Smales has
the exclusive agency for Hearts on
Fire Diamonds in the state and also includes
Argyle Pink, champagne and cognac coloured
diamonds in its offer.
A family run business, Smales Jewellers has
a long history in WA. “Our original store
commenced in Kalgoorlie just after the 2nd
World War some 70 years ago,” Mr Smales
pointed out. The head office is based in
Subiaco, where the busiest Smales store is
located, followed by Bunbury while three
other outlets are located in Kalgoorlie,
Geraldton and Karratha. All stores have onsite
jewellery workrooms.
The high end stores specialise in handmade
jewellery and luxury watches. Smales’
comprehensive diamond offer includes a wide
selection of engagement, wedding, eternity
dress rings, pendants, earrings, bangles and
tennis bracelets.
“Our diamonds are sourced from our
Australian supplier who we have dealt with for
many years. In regard to the pink diamonds,
we will always offer a certified stone. This
gives our customers the guarantee that
it is Argyle and peace of mind that their
purchase has the heritage and identification.
In addition, we also produce Ellendale Yellow
diamonds for some of our products. These
diamonds also come with identification,” Mr
Smales explained.
Demand for coloured diamonds has increased
dramatically since the announcement of
the closure of Argyle Diamond mine and
he attributes this to growing consumer
awareness that the rare stones have the
potential to grow in value. In his opinion,
however, coloured diamonds should be set
and worn in jewellery. “I think they should be
incorporated into a ring, pendant or earrings
– pieces made to be enjoyed rather than have
them sit inside a safe for pure investment that
may take years to realise.”
Mr Smales has observed a recent trend where
coloured diamonds are being used to mark
important life
occasions.
“We have
seen this a
lot with the
‘push present’
and partners
giving pink or
blue diamonds
to reflect
gender at the
birth of their
children. Other
customers love
the contrast
38
jewellery world - June 2022

etween coloured and
white diamonds.
When you set a
white diamond
next to a coloured
diamond, it really
enhances the
colour and makes
it pop,” he said.
Only natural
diamonds are
carried in Smales
Jewellers.
“Our stores have received a few
requests for lab grown diamonds and while
I can see some advantages, normally price, I
still prefer to only deal in natural diamonds.
I suppose it’s a personal thing for jewellery
retailers and to a degree I think it is where
you sit in the jewellery market. I would say
that the majority of our diamond sales are
in engagement rings and customers are still
seeking that very special piece and do tend to
hold into the tradition of choosing a natural
diamond.”
Overall sales of white and coloured diamonds
through Smales WA outlets are dominated
by the Round Brilliant Cut but there are
exceptions.
“We purchased a radiant cut Pink Argyle
diamond for a customer recently and they
had a specific request that required us to
incorporate the pink diamond into a design.
The stone was purchased for a long-term
investment, but they wanted to wear it in a
ring. The radiant cut and colour of the stone
was perfect and the ring looked fantastic. It
was so good to see the customer’s excitement
when we presented her with her custom
made completed design,” Mr Smales said.
He believes the demand for
fancy coloured diamonds
will continue, especially
since the Argyle
Diamond Mine closure,
noting “there is something extra
special about choosing a unique
colour diamond.”
Coloured diamonds, however,
have started to become
more difficult to purchase,
he conceded. “Prices have
increased and choices are
reduced, however, there
is still availability. A good
relationship with your
suppliers is essential,” Mr
Smales said.
Gold nuggets, pearl and
gemstone jewellery pieces
are also carried by Smales
stores which sell select graded
natural stones like sapphire, ruby and
emerald among others. “What determines
the price of these stones is the quality of
each and we rely on our suppliers to only
send high grade stones for us to use in our
manufacturing.”
Smales Jewellers manufacture jewellery in
18 karat yellow gold, white gold and pink
gold but will often use platinum. “This metal
is slightly harder to work with but has
some advantages for
the wearer and
is quite popular
with customers
now. We often
use platinum for the ring with white
diamonds and we use rose or pink gold
for the setting of the pink diamonds.
This allows for the pink stone to show its
beauty with less interference of the setting
that holds the diamonds securely in place,” Mr
Smales explained.
He pointed out that Smales prides itself on
attention to detail and customer satisfaction
when someone is looking to purchase an
engagement ring. “Some people choose a
ring from our stock while others like parts
of one ring and parts of another. If
this is the case where they like
different parts of different
designs, we have the customer
sit down with the store’s designer
and come up with a new design with the
customer. The item is then hand-made by
our precision jeweller.
“We generally do not use casting. Smales
is perhaps a little more traditional than
many but that doesn’t mean that we are
old fashioned in manufacturing. In fact we
use some of the latest tools, machines and
techniques in the industry. We want to
achieve a structurally sound piece that offers
the customer excellence and satisfaction.
“Gold and platinum metals are extremely
durable, However from someone who has
knowledge about the settings, claws, shank –
they will wear over time. It’s much better and
cheaper for the customer to have new claws
fitted for example rather that losing their
precious stone,” Mr Smales said.
“On most occasions and especially when we
use pink diamonds, we send the item on to
an independent jewellery valuer. That ensures
the value of the piece and that the price paid
gives satisfaction to the customer. They know
what they have purchased meets the industry
standard and have received value for money.
It also gives the customer the history of the
stone on many occasions,” he explained.
Smales generally draws
its diamond stock
from Australia but
sources many items
such as chains, earrings and pendants
from Italy or Germany. “I have always
travelled overseas to purchase but the
Covid situation has limited those trips,” Mr
Smales said.
Smales Jewellers always advise their
customers to bring their jewellery items in to
be checked every 6 to 12 months. This service
is provided free of charge and the item is
cleaned at the same time.
Over the years, Mr Smales has observed that
like everything else, the jewellery industry has
changed and manufacturers have improved.
The stores in his family business are in the
higher end of the market, he affirmed.
“I am all about traditional jewellery stores not
chain stores. Higher end jewellers value their
reputation, they employ people that care and
generally offer a high standard of product
knowledge,” he said.
June 2022 39

JEWELLERY IN THE
METAVERSE
CIBJO’s Jewellery Industry Voices webinar considers the effect and
significance of the metaverse on jewellery and gemstone business.
The world stands on the cusp of the next
technological revolution, which will
permanently affect the way in which
we live, interact, recreate and do business.
Popularly referred to as the metaverse, it
will develop not as the result of a single
scientific or engineering breakthrough, but
rather because of a series of simultaneous
and interconnected advances, among them
virtual and augmented reality, the Internet of
Things, artificial intelligence, 5G, blockchain,
and the growing trade in cryptocurrencies and
non-fungible tokens (NFTs).
The metaverse that is being created is a shared
3-D virtual environment that people access
via the internet. Wearable devices facilitating
virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality
(AR) create a sense of physical presence in a
digitally-generated world, which increasingly
feels like it is real. Unencumbered by their
physical location, time zone and even the
languages they speak and understand,
individuals operating in the metaverse can
meet, play with and compete with one
another, collaborate, create and trade.
As was the case earlier with the introduction
of the computer, the internet and the
smartphone, no sector of the business
community will not be affected or changed
by the metaverse. And like those previous
technological revolutions, the change will
not just be adaptive, but fundamental –
transforming the way in which businesses
are structured, how their supply chains are
monitored and managed, and how and what
they design, manufacture, market and sell.
CIBJO's Jewellery Industry Voices webinar on
May 26, 2022, focussed on the approaching
technological revolution, considering its
elements, impacts and overall significance. It
is entitled “Jewellery in the metaverse: virtual,
augmented and real.”
The webinar panel includes Mahiar Borhanjoo,
CEO of UNI Diamonds, a data and technology
company serving the
international diamond
industry. Elle Hill, the
founder and CEO of
Hill & Co., a diamond,
gemstone and jewellery
launch and growth
consultancy firm, and
Laura Inghirami, the
founder of Donna
Jewel, a firm providing
consulting services to
jewellery companies in
the digital, marketing
and creative fields, and who was named by
Forbes Italia earlier this year as one of the
top Under-30 leaders of the future also took
part in the webinar. Erik Jens, the founder and
CEO of LuxuryFintech.com, which focuses on
blockchain and cryptocurrencies, examined
reengineering banking and finance models
for the luxury industry sector, and more
particularly the jewellery and art worlds.
The webinar can be replayed from the CIBJO
website, as can the many other Jewellery
Industry Voices seminars. You can stay up to
date with upcoming free online events with
CIBJO by signing up on their website.
www.cibjo.org
40
jewellery world - June 2022

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According to legend and lore, the idea of a birthstone chart goes back to Biblical times and the
Breastplate of Aaron, which was set with twelve gemstones. A writer in the first century postulated
that these gems directly correlated with the twelve astrological signs of the Zodiac and that these
stones were beneficial to the health of the wearer. While the perception of the 12-stone birthstone
chart has changed over the centuries, it still implies “to each her stone.”
By Cynthia Unninayar
RESPLENDENT R UBIES
The Birthstone of July
Rubies have been admired and coveted for millennia. While its
name is derived from the Latin word rubeus—meaning red—ruby
was translated as ratnaraj in ancient Sanskrit, signifying the king
of precious stones.
And precious these red gems have been throughout history. In Asia,
they were reportedly traded as early as 200 BCE along China’s North
Silk Road, where they were treasured for their supposed power to
convey wisdom, promote health and protect their wearer.
Several centuries later in Europe, rubies became the highly prized gems
of royalty, adorning royal crowns and jewellery. Rubies were also the
jewels in early timepieces (and even some current watches), while
today they are used to make lasers and medical instruments. And who
doesn’t remember Dorothy’s Ruby Slippers from The Wizard of Oz?
The popularity of ruby continues today. As the birthstone
of July, the stone’s red colour aptly symbolises romance,
love and passion. The stone is also often seen as a
symbol of success and wealth because of its high value.
In fact, rubies command higher prices per carat than all
other coloured gemstones, except for some fancy colour
diamonds. This is especially true of the so-called Pigeon’s
Blood rubies, a type that exhibits a saturated fiery red
colour. And, nowhere are these high prices more evident
than at the world’s most prestigious auctions where
spectacular rubies are reaching great heights.
Above: The ‘Sunrise Ruby’, a
25.59-ct Burmese ‘Pigeon’s
Blood’ ruby set three auction
records in 2015: the world’s
most expensive ruby, the
highest price per carat, and
a record price for a Cartier
jewel. It sold at Sotheby’s
for US$30.3 million or nearly
US$1.2 million per carat.
(Photo: Sotheby’s)
One of these rubies is the Graff Ruby, an 8.62-ct Burmese Pigeon’s
Blood stone, which broke the record for price per carat when it was
sold at Sotheby’s in 2014. The buyer was luxury jeweller Laurence
Graff who paid US$8.6 million (US$997,727 per carat). Interestingly,
this same stone had been purchased by Graff for half the price eight
years earlier, when he renamed it the Graff Ruby before reselling it.
Helen Molesworth, gem expert, historian and senior curator of the
Jewellery Collection at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London,
explains: “In 2006, when Laurence Graff purchased the ruby the first
time, it was in a Bulgari mount. He reset it and then sold it, but when
it came up again for sale in 2014, he repurchased it.” Molesworth has
personally viewed and handled many of the world’s most spectacular
gemstones and jewels, including the Graff Ruby. “It is one of the most
spectacular stones I have ever held,” she adds. “It was a market maker,
visibly showing, in the same stone, a huge jump in
value in just eight years.”
More price records were set in 2015 by the 25.59-ct
Burmese Sunrise Ruby, which fetched US$30.3 million
at Sotheby’s, or nearly US$1.2 million per carat. “This
ruby is one of the most phenomenal stones ever to be
sold at auction,” adds Molesworth. “So little has come
out of Myanmar in recent years that these unique
stones have become truly rare and collectible.”
The 15.99-ct ‘Jubilee Ruby’
ring by Verdura continued the
upward momentum in ruby
prices at auction. It sold at
Christie’s in 2016 for US$14.2
million, or US$904,534 per
carat. (Photo: Christie’s)
The ‘Graff Ruby’, an 8.62-ct
Burmese ‘Pigeon’s Blood’
ruby, broke the records
for overall price and price
per carat in 2014. (Photo:
Sotheby’s)
42
jewellery world - June 2022

Selection of rubies from Hamid Bros.
Left to right: 1.09 cts, 1.08 cts, 2.81 cts,
and 2.09 cts. (Photos: Hamid Bros.)
Yet, it is not only the most spectacular rubies at auction that demand
attention. “Ruby is a historically significant and popular stone, and the
rarity factor is quite enticing,” explains Grant Hamid, of Melbournebased
Hamid Bros. “The rich and various tones of ruby are highly prized,
and being the gemstone for the 40th wedding anniversary and July
birthstone also add to its desirability.”
Susie Robson, director of Sydney-based Sovereign Gems, agrees, noting
that the red stone “has always been one of our bestsellers. We also sell
a lot for ruby anniversary presents.” She adds that “the rich red
colour of ruby has an innate glow thanks to the presence
of chromium, and its hardness of 9 makes it a durable
stone for jewellery.”
“Ruby is simply one of the most beautiful of
all gemstones,” concurs Brendan McCreesh
of Melbourne-based OAGems. “It is widely
considered it to be the best of the best in the
coloured gemstone world. Australian buyers
are far more attracted to the good, strong red
end of the ruby spectrum, whereas most ruby
production has pink tones, which is favoured in
Asian markets.”
Found around the world, the earliest sources of ruby
date back to 2500 BCE in the Mogok region of Myanmar
(Burma). Gems recovered were delivered to the Burmese ruler and
became his property. The red gems are also found in other parts of the
world, most notably in Mozambique, but also in smaller quantities in
Australia, Madagascar, Malawi, Sri Lanka and Vietnam, among other
areas. Mogok has historically produced the finest Pigeon’s Blood rubies.
Selection of rubies from OAGems.
Left to right: Round pair Burmese
rubies, 1.34 cts; Pear-shaped 1.01-ct
Mozambique ruby; Oval 1.15-ct
Mozambique ruby.
(Photos: OAGems)
Rubies come in a range of colour tones, from
deep red to more pinkish hues. Shown here
is a selection of rubies from Sovereign Gems.
Heart: 0.70-ct, Burmese; Pinkish oval: 1.12-
ct, Mozambique; Red oval: 1.03-ct, Burmese.
(Photos: Sovereign Gems)
Burmese star ruby (13.5 cts) accented by black and white
diamonds set in 18K gold by Switzerland-based Elke Berr.
(Photo: Berr & Partners)
“We have always sourced Burmese ruby for most of our ruby stock,”
explains McCreesh, “however, with the political unrest in Myanmar
and the effects of Covid, there has been zero ruby mining in that
country for two and a half years. Premium stones are becoming scarce
and prices are high. For larger stones, Mozambique currently presents
more reasonable pricing than Burmese stones.” He adds that the
“deep red Mozambique rubies are fast becoming familiar in the trade
and the buying public.”
“Provenance of any gemstone does not guarantee quality,” insists
Hamid. “There has been a misconception that Myanmar supplies
only the finest rubies as they have also supplied a huge number of
low-quality stones. As Burma provides very few quality stones today,
the desirability of the beautiful Mozambique rubies—including a
percentage of unheated stones—has gained momentum as they have
achieved greater recognition.”
Whether rubies come from Myanmar or Mozambique or any other
location around the world, whether their colours are Pigeon’s Blood
red or tend towards more pinkish shades, their popularity continues
to rise. Beautiful and unique, rubies are indeed resplendent in all their
glory as the birthstone for July. ■
June 2022 43

LAB-GROWN DIAMONDS
Craig Miller
CEO, JC Jewels
www.jcjewels.com.au
FROM CURIOSITIES
TO ESSENTIALS
The lab-grown category is constantly developing, at a rate faster than most may think. What does
this mean to your business and what does this mean for your customers?
The diamond industry has been dominated
by the mining giants for decades. Lab-grown
diamonds arrived on the scene only recently
with very strong appeal to 20-35 year-old
consumers, a generation less connected to
the vintage slogan ''a diamond is forever''.
This new generation brings with it different
priorities and value propositions. Their focus
is more across sustainability, climate change,
conflict free diamonds and more. Is this new
choice of diamond the perfect fit for the next
generation? Is this going to create the perfect
storm for mined goods? And how will that
impact your mined diamond business in time
to come? Perhaps you might chose to stay out
of the lab-grown field all together, but if you're
on the fence or ready to jump in, how you
plan around this now will defiantly affect your
business going forward.
One year ago, I asked readers Are you selling
lab-grown diamonds? This year I can
ask How many are you selling
each week?
Who could have imagined the
natural diamond business
being disrupted in this
way? Being a first mover in
the LGD market and having
a large footprint in the wholesale space from
day one, I find myself perfectly positioned to
watch the growth. JC Jewels data is in real
time and looking across both natural and labgrown
diamonds, lab-grown is gaining ground
at an astronomical pace.
Some retailers have been natural all the way
and are choosing not to give in to the labgrown
'trend'. Others have embraced LGDs as
another product the consumer is looking to
purchase. I would like to ask readers, have you
engaged this new norm, are you seeing the
benefits of this new choice of diamond and if
you are not participating in this new consumer
choice of diamond what are you doing to
promote and elevate your natural diamond
offering?
America has placed sanctions on Russian
diamonds, in support of Ukraine. With
Russia producing around 30 per
cent of global mined diamonds,
this brings with it global the
possibilities of shortages in
mined diamonds, especially
in smalls and melee goods. In
addition to this, some are looking at
Russian diamonds as potentially being
conflict diamonds due to Alrosa being 30
per cent owned by the Russian government.
This gives some consumers more reasons to
turn to lab-grown.
Companies like WD Lab Grown Diamonds in
America grow their goods in America with
full chain of custody, Sustainability, Climate
Neutrality, As Grown certification and more.
WD Lab Grown could not be positioned better
and report seeing astronomical growth as new
consumers enjoy the story and newness that
comes with lab-grown.
So I ask everyone in retail to consider where
it's all heading. Think carefully about how
much emphasis you should be placing on this
new norm and what your offerings present for
today, tomorrow and the future consumer.
44
jewellery world - June 2022

JC Jewels Pty LTD adheres to following quality assurance principles consistent with the SCS
SCS-007 Jewelry Sustainability Standard Series -
Sustainability Rated Diamond (Standard for Trial Use)
Accredited Wholesaler
AWARDED TO
JC Jewels Pty LTD
Stanley Mathuram, PE,
Executive Vice President
SCS Global Services
2000 Powell Street, Suite 600
Emeryville, CA 94608 USA
-007 Jewelry Sustainability Standard – Sustainability Rated Diamond.
• Confirms that claims made in connection with the SCS-007 Standard pertain only to
Certified Diamonds.
• Accurately and fully represents a Certified Diamond’s source, physical characteristics and
other attributes.
• Uses only approved certification marks, program trademarks and descriptions.
• Does not make untruthful, misleading or deceptive representation with respect to Certified
Diamonds.
• Does not represent a non-certified diamond as Certified.
• Provides transparency around Certified Diamonds as to whether they are: rough or cut;
composite; reconstructed; laboratory grown or natural.
Issuance Date: 9/24/2021
Accreditation Expiration: 9/23/2022
Accreditation Number: SCS-007-10020-WS

EMERALDS AND DIAMONDS
IN DUBAI
This May, Jewellery World magazine attended the International Colombian Emerald
Conference at the DMCC in Dubai which discussed market trends and the future of emerald
certification. We caught up with London DE, a British company that presented at the
conference and which trades in Colombian emeralds and natural coloured diamonds.
Based in London’s Hatton Garden,
London DE is the UK’s leading supplier
of certified diamonds, emeralds, rubies,
sapphires and other coloured gemstones. The
company only deals in ethically sourced gems,
and supplies loose stones and creates bespoke
jewellery utilising local businesses in order to
maintain a low carbon footprint and support
the local community.
Please tell us the story and aims of
the London DE company, why it
was formed and where you hope
the journey will take you?
Philip Spencer founded London DE in
2013 with a desire to build an ethical and
sustainable business revolving around his
love for gemstones and jewellery. Since then,
his team has expanded significantly both
internationally
and in terms
of third-party
delivery partners.
In 2020, we
opened our
Colombian
subsidiary, London
DE SAS, in the heart of the emerald district of
Bogota to ensure we’re buying our stones and
materials from the top of the supply chain and
that we know exactly where our materials are
sourced from. This provides transparency of
our mine-to-market chain and cuts out any
middlemen.
In January 2022,
we opened
our DMCC
(Dubai Multi-
Commodities
Centre) office in
the United Arab
Emirates, giving
us direct access and insight into one of the
fastest growing luxury retail markets in the
world. We hope to become a renown trader in
Colombian emeralds
and luxury fine
jewellery, providing
exquisite pieces for
close to trade value;
both ethically and
responsibly, always.
Since the founding
of the company,
Phil has strived
for a clean and
responsible
business. He
ensures all of our
stones are supplied
from trustworthy
sources, high up in
the supply chain,
which are within
our small circle
of handpicked
suppliers.
Throughout the
whole pipeline, Phil
inspects the working
environments to ensure every employer who
works under us is being paid and treated
fairly, along with the correct health and safety
standards. He ensures we give back to the
communities which we work in or alongside,
and only picks the finest stones to include in
our collections of jewellery which we can trace
directly back to source. Where possible we
remain environmentally conscious by using
a paper-less office and keeping our carbon
footprint to a minimum.
46
jewellery world - June 2022

How important is traceability and sustainability in
your business model?
Traceability and sustainability is at the heart of all we do. Due to our lean
business model, our Colombian emeralds can be traced back directly
to their source. We visit the mines we source from yearly to check on
our miners, as well as our suppliers who work directly with these mines
and its owners. From here we source our stones which we pass through
CDTEC gemmological laboratories to be certified, and then those stones
are set into our jewellery. A clean and lean supply chain.
Not all jewellery and
gemstone traders go
to physically see the
mines they are sourcing
from. Here at LDE we
think it’s important
that we understand
the heritage and
environments of where
our stones come from,
get to know the miners
and their families,
see Colombia and its
beauty for what it
really is.
We work with one of the only government regulated Colombian Emerald
mines in Muzo and within the country, alongside the only government
regulated gemmological laboratory in Colombia; this means that we can
100 per cent guarantee the authenticity of our stones and their origin,
providing transparent sourcing and proof of its responsible extraction.
Colombian emeralds can be difficult to pinpoint – they’re not readily
available within the market unlike other gemstones and when they are it
isn’t very clear as to where they have come from or how they have been
extracted. LDE chooses
the finest stones which
come direct from our
mines, those which
have no oil or minor oil,
with the most vibrant of
colours. We also stock
trapiche emeralds, a
rarity on the market
which can be difficult
to come by within fine
jewellery, found only
within the Colombian
mines. We strive for
transparency with our
customers and business partners, ensuring that our stones are those
which have a short supply chain and certified within Colombia itself. It’s a
unique business model that we believe is important within the industry.
Pandora plans
new factory in
Vietnam
Global jewellery giant Pandora has announced its plans to
open its third manufacturing site, this time in Vietnam. The
$100 million facility will the first of the company’s jewellery
plants outside of Thailand.
Pandora announced that the move will create jobs of more
than 6,000 craftspeople and have an annual capacity of 60
million pieces of jewellery.
The factory will be located in Binh Duong Province, near
Ho Chi Minh City. Construction is set to begin in early 2023
and production is due to start by the end of 2024. It will be
built according to the LEED Gold standard, a green building
certification, and be powered by 100 per cent renewable
energy.
Pandora will also expand its current site in Lamphun,
Thailand, bringing the total investment to $160 million over
the next four years. This will allow Pandora to grow its total
crafting capacity by around 60 percent “and support the
company’s long-term growth ambitions,” according to a
press release.
“By diversifying
its geographical
footprint,
Pandora will
also become
more resilient to
potential supply
disruptions,” the
company stated.
In 2021,
Pandora sold
102 million
pieces of
jewellery, hand-finished at the company’s two crafting
facilities in Thailand. Both facilities operate on 100 per cent
renewable energy and are on track to use only recycled silver
and gold by 2025, according to the release.
June 2022 47

NEW PRODUCTS
Bianc | +61 413 872 810
The Lumière Collection by Bianc.
Handcrafted and finished with exquisite Labradorite, Green Onyx
and freshwater pearls, you are sure to find something to love.
These stunning pieces range from RRP$169-$199.
info@bianc.com.au
@bianc_jewellery
www.bianc.com.au
Jewellery Centre | +61 7 3221 3838
Jewellery Centre’s new range of huggies in sterling silver / gold plate
- JTH335 – Plain polished, 10mm inside diameter with 1.5mm tube
- JTH560 – Double cut-out tube, 9mm inside diameter with 6mm tube
- JTH564 – Two-tone, 9.5mm inside diameter with 2.0mm tube
- JTH937CZ – Elongated with CZ, 5.5mm inside diameter with 3mm tube
Visit our website for other latest arrivals.
www.jewellerycentreaustralia.com
Stones and Silver | +61 3 9587 1215
.925 sterling silver birthstone necklaces featuring Preciosa
Crystals. Purchase as a set or individually they can also be
engraved for that personal touch.
stonesandsilver.com.au
Worth & Douglas | +64 9 303 4666
New natural ruby designs in time for the birthstone of July.
The featured new designs include a 9ct yellow gold ruby signet
ring, 9ct yellow gold tear drop ruby and diamond pendant, and
a new ruby and diamond ring available in 9ct or 18ct
worthdouglas.com
@wdrings
@ziro_wd
48
jewellery world - June 2022

Zahar | +61 413 872 810
Featuring a wide range of new statement and dainty pieces, this
collection can be made both formal and fun!
The collection ranges from RRP$59-$149. Everything is available
now and ready for order
info@zahar.com.au
@zahar.collection
www.zahar.com.au
Luna Rae
Luna Rae is an Australian designed brand crafted from solid
gold and features ethically sourced diamonds.
New items have dropped showcasing Australian Opals and
Eternity pieces.
www.lunarae.com.au
Ellani Collections | +61 2 9899 1525
Another beautiful addition from the new Ellani Collections
AW22 release.
www.ellanicollections.com.au
Ellendale Diamonds Australia | Desert Rose
Jewellery | +61 8 6180 1562
Be seduced by the charms of this delightful solitaire ring in 18K
white/rose gold. Featuring a round diamond D SI1 0.50ct and
6 round Argyle pink diamonds 6/7PP SIAV 0.087ct. 16 tapering
round diamonds G+ SI 0.21 ct.
www.ellendalediamonds.com.au
June 2022 49

chain
PO Box 112
Toronto NSW 2283
P: 02 9380 4742 ∙ F: 02 8580 6168
E: sales@adelaimports.com
Adela Imports offer over 180
designs of sterling silver chain,
with up to 20 lengths available
in each from stock.
Also offering a range of
uniquely designed silver
jewellery.
Catalogue available.
www.adelaimports.com
services
diamonds and coloured stones
for sale
AUSTRALIAN
JEWELLERY TOOLS
WHOLESALER
SPECIALISING IN QUALITY
JEWELLERY TOOLS & EQUIPMENT
WITH EXCEPTIONAL SERVICE
(07) 3876 7481
sales@labanda.com.au
FAX: (07) 3368 3100
ADELAIDE (08) 7221 2202
MELBOURNE (03) 9038 8545
PERTH (08) 6363 5517
SYDNEY (02) 8004 1626
www.labanda.com.au
Fantastic Sea Change Opportunity
Jewellery and Giftware Business in Nelson Bay, NSW
Established 21 years ago in coastal area of Port Stephens.
Only 2.5 hours drive north of Sydney. Only one other manufacturing competitor.
Swim software for POS and Stock management, including price tickets. Retail has large
Chubb safe and alarm systems in both locations. Great retail location in Main Street and
workshop located separately 85 meters away in arcade.
Low rent $42K annual for both shops. Both leases negotiable. Large marketable client list.
W.I.W.O $450,000 ONO [Current stock $178K at cost ($501K retail), fittings and equipment
$61K]. Workshop includes display windows, 2 x work benches, Ratner safe and office
fittings only, not tools. Take without stock at $275,000.
Contact Roger 0414 821 931
Glues
services
Chris O’Neill
Piecemaker
2015 YJG Bench Challenge
Hand Engraving Champion.
Also specialising in quality
Handmakes, Repairs and
Antique restorations in the
Sydney CBD.
0405 689 834
MILN & CO. Pty Ltd
Ph: 02 4655 7707 M: 0412 702 834
E:stuart.miln@milnco.com.au
Lancier Watch Bands - Leather, metal, sports.
Watchglasses. Seals. Batteries. Quartz Movements.
Pins/tools. Jewellery findings. J C Hurst Bangles.
Fischer Barometers and Tide Clocks
for sale
Retail Jewellery Business for Sale
Established 35 years ago in
busy Gold Coast street location.
Includes retail fit out, fully
equipped jewellery, valuation and
watchmaking workshops. Would
suit a manufacturing jeweller
specialising in design and makes
and/or watchmaker.
Owners seeking to retire
$75,000 plus stock at cost.
Contact Norm on 0450 903 325.
Relaxing ...
Unwanted Bulldozer - selling for scrap
Negotiable
Canberra, ACT
Business
For Sale
Showcase Jewellers
- Camperdown
A fine jewellery and
giftware store that has been
operating successfully for
70 years with solid six-figure
returns. Proudly associated
with Showcase Jewellers, a
premier buying group with
around 250 stores, allowing
the business to access the
best diamonds and jewellery
from around the world, at
locally competitive prices.
$300,000
Secrets Shhh –
Melbourne CBD
A rare opportunity to buy
into this exclusive growing
national retailer, located in
the prestigious Royal Arcade
run under management.
The best thing about this
franchise business is that
you don’t need to be a
jeweller, and all items are
sourced centrally and
delivered, then the team of
staff help customers choose
what they love.
$200,000
GEELONG & SW VICTORIA
(03) 5259 9970
GREATER MELBOURNE
(03) 9372 0243
MORNINGTON PENINSULA
(03) 5986 3348

Calling all Suppliers
Calling all Suppliers
Calling all Suppliers

SPECIALISING IN ITALIAN MADE
TENNIS MOUNTS AND GOLD CHAINS