Category Archives: Gemstones

Opals, opals, opals and more opals!

JOIN US FOR THE ANNUAL OPAL SHOW AT ARONSTOM The opal show is 10/3 10am-8pm, 10/4 10am-6pm, 10/5 10am-2pm. Guess what’s happening at Aronstam Fine Jewelers in October. You guessed, our annual opal show direct from Australia! I can guarantee that we can show you the unbelievable beauty of opals that you have never seen…

Continue Reading »

Marc Aronstam on color-change gem stones

Gem stones are amazing things. The science and nature-loving geek in me loves to study each gem before I ever consider how it might look housed in a ring or a necklace. Particularly fascinating to me are the gems that change from one color to another depending on the type of light, from red to…

Continue Reading »

Ethical gemstone buying at Aronstam Fine Jewelers

There is significant buzz and a fair amount of contention right now in the jewelry industry about the term ‘fair trade’ as it pertains to gem stone purchase. Does fair trade actually mean something or is it simply a tag for marketing? As an American jeweler for over four decades now, I have watched interest…

Continue Reading »

Marc Aronstam on: gemstone hardness versus toughness

The more you know about gemstones, the better you understand and appreciate the gem stones in your personal jewelry collection. That’s why I’d like to blog about two properties of gem stones you often hear about: hardness and toughness. Although they sound similar, hardness and toughness of a gem are two separate, unrelated physical characteristics…

Continue Reading »