Non-Traditional - Engagement Rings

You want to propose to your special someone, but the usual diamonds don’t really speak to you or your relationship. If you’re looking for something different in engagement rings, consider non-traditional pieces and unique elements. Rubies, sapphires, or emeralds make stunning pieces that are often overlooked in the wedding jewelry market and multiple stones or bands that have inset stones are designs that can be personalized. Additionally, nontraditional stones, such as blue topaz, opal or tanzanite, will make your dollar go even further. Any combination of these elements will give you a striking piece that is as unique as your relationship.

On the other hand, tradition speaks loudly when it comes to diamond engagement rings.  While the color of a gemstone might do for a moment, the sparkle and brilliance of a solitaire stone casting a prism of color across a sunlight room is entirely another.  Think your decision through, thoroughly.  This ring is the one that will grace the hand of the woman you love.  An engagement ring, no matter the stone, the metal or even the value, remains as the symbol of a love eternal. It is the love that matters, isn't it?  Mmmmm, that diamond engagement ring sure is pretty...

Sneaky Engagement Ring Shopping Tips

You're sure that this is the person with whom you want to spend the rest of your life. However you might not be so sure on her taste in jewelry. How can you suss out your partner's tastes without losing the element of surprise?

Shop for other things Estate sales are a great way to do this. Peruse the jewelry sections, maybe offering the ruse that you're looking for a broach for your aunt Ethel, you know how she loves her themed broaches, and just take a long detour by any vintage engagement rings around. Often times, these are rather quite affordable anyway, and way below a normal market price.

Enlist your friends. Is another friend of yours planning to get married? Have them take your almost-fiance out to help them pick a ring. This can seem a bit transparent, but you'd be surprised what a little confusion can do to make someone open up.

Get something professionally cleaned. Go to a real jeweler and get your broken watch fixed, or borrow your mom's ring to get it cleaned (say she asked you to run the errand) and watch what your partner-to-be looks at.

Well, there's a handful of sneaky tips to help you pick out the perfect ring! Dear readers, did you have to go through any shady lengths when you were trying to find the perfect engagement rings? Let us know in the comments.

Ivory Being Considered the New Blood Diamond

As if we thought things couldn't get any worse for Africa, now a new wicked trade is taking hold of the country’s insurgent operations. We have all heard the stories. Men, women and children forced to work in the diamond mines located within war zones. Profits from stones go to finance militant insurgencies, buy weapons and pay off corrupt officials.

Now, these radical groups are turning to even more evil forms of trafficking. It’s being called the new blood diamond and people across the globe are in an uproar over it. Ivory tusks are being sold on the black market for staggering prices. A kilogram of elephant tusk can be bought for a mere $2,000. That’s nothing compared to what a rhino horn is going for. According to African affairs at the National Security Staff of the White House, a kilogram of rhino horn is priced at $66,000.

Apparently, the demand is coming from the wealthy nations of China and Southeast Asia. Elephant deaths have risen dramatically over the past several years. Increased illegal poaching is driving them even further towards extinction. Wildlife monitoring groups have been recording the astounding developments and warn that if serious action is not taken soon, we could very well see these amazing creatures wiped off the face of the earth.

Fine Silver: An Age Old Tradition

Whenever you watch soap operas, the rich families walk into their candlelit house with no windows and dark wooded furniture and pour themselves a drink from a fancy decanter filled with brown liquid. If not alcohol, they mosey on over to the fine silver and pour a delectable cup of coffee into a china cup.

It’s pretty funny to me. Perhaps I’m just hanging around the wrong group of people, but I don’t know a single soul who keeps their scotch in a decanter or the coffee in a fine silver coffee holder on a silver tray. They may have those things in a curio cabinet, but they’re purely for decorative purposes.

With the exception of church events that I do remember seeing fine silver being used at their appearance is rare. It was usually at Mother/Daughter teas when I was a kid. They really liked to make those fancy and I always got to bring home a bag of mints and a flower.

My grandmother had a very fancy set from Norway that she used periodically. If it was a fancy gathering, that silver came out and itlooked very elegant on her lace tablecloth. It was also from Norway, which made it far cooler than the norm. I inherited that silver when she passed away. I think it’s time I found a place to use it now as this is trend that really should come back into fashion.

Class Rings Keep Precious Memories Alive

There are just some things that never go out of style, especially when it comes to rites of passage type stuff. Bachelor parties will always be celebrated before a man becomes a groom. First Communions, confirmations and Bar and Bat Mitzvahs will continue on forever. In addition, during our high school years, we want to wear our class rings.

There is a reason that everyone says the years you spend in high school are some of the most important years of your life. It is during this period that you start to get a sense of who you are and who you want to be. While the time you spend in college will be more important in defining that future, it is the formative years between the ages of fourteen and eighteen that create the social bonds you will carry forever. Like anytime you break up with someone, times passes, and you find yourself thinking only about the good times that the two of you had together, the same can be said for those years you spent in high school. Time will separate the wheat from the chaff and you will think fondly back on the good stuff and what it taught. That is why class rings still hold a special place, because they serve as a bridge back to those memories.

Why a Gift of Baby Jewelry is a Gift for the Future as Well

It may seem silly that, for all the gifts you could get for a newborn, people will buy them a piece of jewelry. Some of it is just fun, to be sure, some sort of novelty necklace or a tiara that they can wear for their big day out and everyone can say “Oh isn't that cute.” There is actually a practical side to making a gift of baby jewelry, though. It is a gift that is also an investment.

Any other gift that you give a child, especially a baby, runs the risk of not being around by the time they start kindergarten. Even if is something that manages to last that long, like a stuffed animal, it is certainly going to be the worse for wear. Most of the toys that a child receives end up being discarded in the end, anyway. The only toy I have left is a stuffed Curious George. Now, I’m glad I still have it for sentimental reasons, but what is that gift worth now? Unfortunately, not much monetarily.That’s the beauty of a gift of baby jewelry. Not only is it a gift that the child can wear, but once it is out grown and put away, it will continue to get more and more valuable, so that someday in the future it can help that now grown child when they are ready to have children of their own.

Birthstone Jewelry: Good Luck or Pretty?

Birthstone jewelry has been around since ancient times, yet the beginning of the stones is unclear. With meaning and beauty, these stones signify a month in which one is born. The Aztec and Incas believed that birthstones contained curative powers and that they can deliver peace in the afterlife. Many believe the origin of the stones comes from Tibetan culture thousands of years ago and they are known as mythical birthstones. There are many different categories of birthstones.  The modern birthstone was developed in 1912 by jewelers. They felt the need to categorize stones according to months instead of astrological assignment. Astrological assignment was according the signs of the zodiac. It was believed that the signs gave insight into everyone’s daily life. Describing varying qualities and personality according to the day one was born, the Zodiac sign carries with it an astrological symbol and gemstone representing it.  Many people will wear their birthstone in jewelry as a good luck charm. Forms of birthstone jewelry include rings, necklaces and pendants. Charms are also very poplar and many mothers are known to wear a birthstone charm for each of her children.

Each birthstone signifies certain characteristics. They are as follows:

• January: Garnet - safe travel
• February: Amethyst - courage
• March: Aquamarine - health
• April: Diamond - love
• May: Emerald - fertility
• June: Pearl - purity
• July: Ruby - protection against evil
• August: Period - strength
• September: Sapphire - protection against poison
• October: Opal - confidence
• November - Topaz - affection
• December: Turquoise - fortune

Wearing a birthstone is believed to be good luck in many cultures.