The Man Known as JAR

Joel Arthur Rosenthal affects to be known by a single name: JAR (no periods). His shop in Paris’ Place Vendôme has no display window, no regular hours. It does not advertise and opens its doors to only a select few, including Elizabeth Taylor, Elle Macpherson, Barbara Walters, Ann Getty, Mary Pinault and Jo Carole Lauder (and reportedly Marie-Josée Kravis, Marella Agnelli and Princess Firyal of Jordan).

According to a report by Forbes, the craftsmen in Switzerland and France who make is jewelry produce only 70 to 80 pieces a year, each of them one of a kind and many designed with a particular buyer in mind. JAR reserves the right to refuse to sell an item if he doesn’t think it will look good on the intended wearer. His creations often sell for twice what the first buyer paid.

Rosenthal graduated from Harvard in 1966, then moved to Paris. He dabbled first in scriptwriting, then needlepoint, opening a tiny shop where he experimented with unusually colored yarn. Its clientele included designers from Hermès and Valentino. Rosenthal one day was asked if he could design a mount for a gemstone. That sent his career in a new direction. After a brief stint as a salesman at Bulgari in New York he returned to Paris in 1977 and started designing pieces that relied at first on inexpensive stones like coral, moonstone, and minute colored diamonds.

He focused on pavé, a technique for setting small stones so close together that they look paved with jewels. His settings are so finely wrought as to be virtually invisible, and gradations of color progress from subtle to vivid. Unlike other jewelers, he uses a dark metal alloy for the settings to highlight the gems’ color.

Only twice has Rosenthal displayed his jewels to the public, most recently in London in 2002. Four hundred pieces lent by 145 JAR faithful were crowded into small vitrines. He insisted that the lights be dimmed and that flashlights be given to his guests, who groped and gaped their way from case to case.

Considering how hard hit the Beverly Hills community now is by the current economy, you just might find the unthinkable, a JAR piece in a high-end pawn shop. If you do, and happen to have an unusually large amount of money to spare, a JAR piece would certainly be a glamorous piece to add to your investment portfolio.

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If you think we were just joking about finding a piece of JAR jewelry at a Beverly Hills pawn shop, we really weren’t. The pawn shop industry in exclusive California neighborhoods is doing gangbuster business. Read about it at: Beverly Hills Pawn Shop Sees Surge.

Beverly Hills Pawn Shop Sees Surge

This year business is up for California pawn shop owners, an indication of how much tougher this season has become for some. According to the LA Times, Collateral Lender (a well-known Beverly Hills pawn shop) has seen a 20% surge in customers over the last three months or about the same period the stock market tanked. Read more

Your Confidentiality & Security

With increased business being conducted by buyers and loan providers of gold, jewelry, diamonds, and watches, consumer concerns have been raised regarding personal confidentiality, as well as public security. In response to these concerns, and to clear up any potential confusion, we at the San Diego Luxury Pawn Shop Report thought it would be good if we laid down the kinds of security and confidentiality polices that your jewelry buyer or pawn shop should have in place. Read more

Selling Your Diamond Engagement Ring

San Diego Jewelry Buyers has updated its Knowledge section for sellers of fine jewelry, gold, diamonds, and watches with advice for consumers looking to sell their diamond engagement ring. “It is always a difficult and emotional situation when someone is thinking about selling an engagement ring or bridal jewelry,” says Alan Blyler, a spokesperson for San Diego Jewelry Buyers, “so we wanted to lay down some practical and personal things to think about before making a decision.”

On the personal side, San Diego Jewelry Buyers recommends that women who are in the process of getting a divorce should wait until the papers are signed before selling their engagement ring and other bridal related jewelry. Feelings among married couples often change at the last minute, and the prospect of losing an engagement ring and wedding band forever should the couple reconcile is something to remember. Customers in need of money immediately are advised to sell less sentimental diamond jewelry, or use it as collateral for a loan.

On the practical side, San Diego Jewelry Buyers informs potential sellers of diamond engagement rings that bridal jewelry which was appraised in the past for insurance purposes was valued at the estimated retail price. This price is much higher than what a customer can expect on the second-hand (used) jewelry market. Consumers who decide to get their engagement ring appraised before they resell it are advised to tell the appraiser that they would like a resell price estimate.

To read the rest of San Diego Jewelry Buyers’ tips for sellers of diamond engagement rings and bridal jewelry (as well as other timely advice on how to sell your gold, watches, and diamonds) please visit the Knowledge section of their website at:

http://www.sandiegojewelrybuyers.com/knowledge/jewelry/51-sell-your-diamond-engagement-ring.html

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Did you know that Mahama Ghandi had a favorite watch that he carried with him? It was a Zenith pocketwatch, and you can read about it at: Ghandi’s Watch Sold at Auction.

California Auction House Helps You Stretch Your Holiday Dollars

Mindful of tighter budgets for consumers this holiday season, the SCAA (Southern California Auctioneers Association) is encouraging San Diego buyers to stretch their dollars at one of its many live auctions throughout Southern California. Although the SCAA specializes in the Southern California marketplace, public demand for live and online auctions has allowed this 50-member association to expand nationally and internationally. Read more

Stolen Goods Up for Legal Auction!

CBS News is offering a new tip for how San Diego shoppers can save money this holiday season…buy stolen property! Some people are turning to giving hot gifts (as in stolen property from the police). But not to worry; it’s perfectly legal. A bonanza of fenced goods is now available at PropertyRoom.com–an online auction site where you can buy stolen goods without someone calling 911 on you. Read more

Wide Assortment of Unique Items Available at Michigan’s MiBid

Just because you live in San Diego, doesn’t mean you can’t take advantage of MiBid (Michigan State’s Budget Office’s online auction Web site), which is now offering a wide and weird variety of used items to the highest bidder. Read more

iGavel.com Now Auctioning Vintage Jewelry & Watches

San Diego holiday shoppers should take note that iGavel (a leader in online auctions) is currently hosting an online jewelry auction. As we are now in a buyer’s market, iGavel has worked with many of its consigners to lower estimates and reserves in order to have a successful auction. Therefore, this is a great time to purchase jewelry at prices that are more reasonable than have been seen in years.

The auction includes a varied selection of vintage and designer jewelry. Recent highlights have included a 3 carat sapphire and diamond ring, estimated at $1,200-$1,800 with a starting bid of $800; a Diamond, Gold and Pearl Convertible Brooch or Pendant, estimated at $2,500-$3,500, with a starting bid of $1,800; and an Antique 14K White Gold, Emerald and Diamond Pierced Work Horizontal Brooch, with the emerald under 2 carats, and diamonds totaling close to four carats. This piece is estimated at $3,000-$5,000, with a starting bid of $1,995.

The watches included in the iGavel auction are often exceptional. Over the past ten days, items have included a Bovet, Fleurier, Enamel and Gold Open Face Key-wind Watch for the Chinese Market, 19th Century, estimated at $500-$700, with a starting bid of $250; a Gold and Enamel Keywind Watch, Just & Son, London, 19th Century, Estimated at $800-$1,200, with a starting bid of $500. Also included is a Gold Cartier Ladies Watch, Paris, late 20th century, from a private South American collector. This piece is estimated at $2,000-$3,000, with a starting bid of only $900.

Check out iGavel.com to see if these items are still up for auction, and to discover what other new jewelry and watches have been placed up for bidding.

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Shoppers in San Diego take note that a huge stash of gold coins, jewelry, and other gold items are soon going to be up for sale. Read the details about the auction at: Treasure Trove to be Auctioned.

Treasure Trove To Be Auctioned Dec. 16th and 17th

San Diego buyers of precious metals get prepared. Jewelry, stacks of gold and silver coins, and assorted medals are among more than 3,000 lots of unclaimed property treasures the state is auctioning off at James G. Murphy Inc., located at 18226 68th Ave. NE in Kenmore, beginning at 9 a.m. on Dec. 18 and 19.

The auction will continue each day until all lots for that day are auctioned off. Interested parties can preview items between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. on Dec. 16 and 17, or online at www.murphyauction.com. Online bids can be made during the auction.

Pocket watches, bars of silver, and assorted souvenirs are samples of items turned over to the State Department of Revenue after banks and credit unions lost contact with owners who rented safe deposit boxes and held the boxes without rental payment for at least five years. The department has sought out owners of the safe deposit contents, but by law must auction off the property within five years of receipt.

The state now holds $650 million in unclaimed property, belonging to three million people, accumulated since the 1950s. In addition to safe deposit contents, unclaimed property includes uncashed payroll checks, savings and checking accounts, and stocks and bonds. Each year more unclaimed property is turned over to the department. An online searchable database and claims system makes it easy to check for property – a system that has enabled the Department to return more than $112 million to about 240,000 rightful owners over the past three years. The database is available at ClaimYourCash.org.

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For those interested in the fine print regarding the trade of gold and silver jewelry, then we have just what you are looking for. Go to the following article for the details: Essential Guide to Trade in Gold & Silver Jewelry.