Price of Jewelry

Do you wear a diamond? A ruby? A sapphire? Do you believe precious gems are really worth the price? Or do you think marketing ploys have merely driven the prices up? And do you really think diamonds are as rare as the public has been led to believe? Why is a diamond more expensive than an amethyst?

I'm full of questions.

Well, I believe a lot of so-called precious stones are expensive because of marketing campaigns. However, as a rock collector, I also know that many rocks and crystals are truely rare and hard to find. Furthermore, some are not only hard to find, but they're also sometimes hard to cut and/or polish into useable jewelry pieces.

You can purchase a large rough emerald for a tiny fraction of the price of a small cut emerald for a ring. I love to find rare pieces of rock or crystal at a great price, but like any form of collecting, you have to know what you're doing before you buy anything. Research is necessary. I have a huge piece of rose quartz (about 2 feet by 1 foot by 1 foot) that cost about the same as a small (3 inches by 1 inch) piece of rose quartz. The difference? The big piece is considered a mass (looks like a giant rock) where the small piece is a rare crystal structure. Rarely does the rose quartz form crytalline shapes.

Now, I'm no expert. I'm merely a novice rock collector, but the concept of rocks amazes me. Why? Because the earth beneath our feet seems like a big pile of dirt. And yet, clear quartz crystals grow (it takes a ridiculous amount of time) and form a point. Flourite crystals grow and form cubes - right angles. You can whack open rocks and find incredible structures inside. And, rocks such as the ones pictured here only form in certain parts of the world. The Boulder Matrix Fire Opal can only be found in Australia. And it's very expensive.