what are gemstones

Gemstones

A gemstone is the name given to a piece of mineral (or other rock or organic material) that after it has been cut and polished has been made into a piece of jewellery or another accessory. Although gemstones are commonly made from minerals, material such as jet or amber or rocks like lapis lazuli can also be utilised in the creation of gemstones. The majority of gemstones will be hard to the touch but depending on the piece of jewellery that is being created, some soft minerals are also utilised. Take a look at Moh’s Scale of Hardness to find out more about this.

Value of Gemstones

Much the same as you would expect from any other major industry, the price of gemstones is largely influenced by supply and demand.

One of the most important things for people when considering gemstones is the value and price for them but like in many industries, the laws of supply and demand are very much in place. This means that rare gems will carry a higher price tag.

For instance, a garnet is extremely stylish and attractive but it is not that rare, which means that its price tag is not too high. If you compared a garnet to a ruby of a similar size and condition, the ruby would always hold a higher price, simply because of the fact that it is a rare stone.

It is often difficult to place a true value on any particular gemstone because there is no uniform classification or measurement system in place. This is where gemstones differ from diamonds, which have been subject to a uniform measurement system since the 1950s. Traditionally, gemstones have been examined and evaluated by eye. When examining a gemstone, the four most important factors can be summed up in the four C’s, which are; colour, clarity, cut and carat

Drilling, Cutting, Polishing and Carving Gemstones

For further tutorials and information, you might be interested to take a look at our easy step by step guide on How to Drill Gemstones.

To polish, carve, slice, cut and file your gemstones you will need to use diamond tools. We have a wide range of wheels, burrs, files, pastes, drill bits and laps, come and have a look at Eternal Tools Diamond Tools

Whether you’re looking to carve, wire wrap, set or drill your gemstones we hope here at Eternal Tools we can help you with the precision tools you’ll need.