April & The Allure of Antique Diamonds

Every time my friend’s son, Camden, walks into our store, he asks me if I know what his birthstone is, and I tease him and say no, and then he happily declares his birthstone is the DIAMOND.

Old European Cut, Early Modern Brilliant Cut & Marquise Cut Diamond Rings

And no wonder he is ecstatic with his birthstone.  Diamonds are amazing.  They are one of the hardest materials in the world, but more than that, they are fantastically beautiful-each filled with its own unique character.

This character is one of the things I talk about frequently with my clients, because often people become so overwhelmed with the facts and “shoulds” about a stone--They should get a diamond worth three months salary for an engagement ring.  They should get a stone graded highly according to the GIA—They forget each diamond is its own, individual, unique, organic thing.

A diamond’s unique qualities come both from the stone’s own individual characteristics as well as the diamond cutter’s art.

I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free. --Micheangelo

And with antique stones you truly see the character of the stone and the stone cutter as cutting the stone in years past, was less about a prescribed formula for brightness, but about one individual looking at a stone and seeing his way to bringing out the stones individual beauty.  Old stone cutters were such artists, which is why I think I find myself drawn to stones from the late 19^th century/ early 20^th century.  Stone cutters had mastered faceting but still really had a hand in determining how they wanted to interpret those concepts.

Because for me, a stones beauty comes from its individual sparkle, its color and its character. --MIKO