Silverware Master Maker: Georg Jensen

San Diego owners of sterling silverware often ask just what brands of silver flatware are worth the most money. If you are fortunate enough to have any silver flatware or holloware by Georg Jensen then that is exactly the kind of silverware that second-hand sterling silver buyers are looking for and will bring you very high buying offers.

Take for example the Georg Jensen silver pieces recently sold on auction at Christie’s. A Danish silver six-piece tea and coffee service set went for $27, 500. And a Danish silver flatware set was sold for $50,000.

Jensen’s naturalistic silver designs took their cues from the aesthetics of the Arts & Crafts and Art Nouveau movements, and his stylized fruit and floral motifs reinvented new shapes for established silver forms. The Blossom pattern is one of the most classic examples of the early Jensen style and can be found in the tea and coffee service and Blossom pattern silver flatware.

Georg Jensen also employed several skilled silversmiths and designers to work with him. Among the most celebrated of these designers was Johan Rohde, who joined in 1917 and is perhaps best known today for designing the Acorn pattern flatware. In contrast to Jensen’s work, Rohde’s was more spare in its use of ornament, illustrated by his incredibly sleek silver pitcher designed in 1920 and considered an iconic 20th century silver design. His pieces show less interest in naturalism, instead finding inspiration in historical styles, as demonstrated by the Acanthus pattern flatware which draws upon a classical vocabulary. A classic fish dish, one of few to feature a fish on the mazarine, epitomizes Rohde’s talent for stylized forms.

Remember to always seek out a professional San Diego silver buyer if you ever on the possession of a set of precious silverware like those made by Georg Jensen.

Carl Blackburn & SDJB’s Gold Buying Business

In the following media interview Carl Blackburn, owner of San Diego Jewelry Buyers (SDJB), discusses the ways in which his company’s gold and jewelry impacts the local economy.

San Diego Jewelry Buyers has been in the gold, jewelry, and watch buying business for some thirty years. In these difficult financial times, what role do you see your company fulfilling with regard to the larger San Diego economy?

CB: Every day, San Diegans bring me items which have been lying around in a dresser or safe deposit box, and trade it in for cash. Yesterday a woman in her 80s traded in her scraps of old gold for about $1800, and said she was going straight to Best Buy to get a brand new flat screen TV and home theatre for her apartment. All things considered, I think she’ll get a lot more enjoyment from that TV entertainment center, than she was getting from some old broken gold jewelry that had been lying around in her dresser drawer for 30-40 years. I joked with her that if someone ever breaks into her apartment, the gold would have been a lot easier to make off with than the new giant flat screen TV mounted to her wall!

So you are saying that San Diego Jewelry Buyers helps customers realize wealth they might otherwise have forgotten about?

CB: In many cases, yes. But it also is more than that. When people find out that they have un-tapped wealth sitting in their drawers and cabinets, wealth that can be transferred into quick discretionary income, this feeds the local economy. Money is moved, circulated, spent, and re-generated through all the businesses that the customers patronize with their sudden “windfall”. In addition, taxes are paid on all of these new transactions, thus supporting local, state, and federal government services.

But at some point doesn’t this all run out? I mean, there is only so much of this “untapped” wealth lying around, right?

CB: On the one hand yes, and on the other hand, no. People often ask me “you keep buying all this gold, don’t you think the public will run out of gold soon?” My answer is to point to the whole eBay phenomenon, which turned millions of everyday Americans into moonlighting dealers of second-hand merchandise. That started long before the current gold rush and economic crisis, and people are still selling their unused possessions on eBay, as much if not more so than ever. So do you think that Americans will run out of diamonds, gold, silver, jewelry, and fine watches anytime soon? Sure, the economy is bad now but it will eventually turn around. New precious items will continue to be bought, which eventually become “old” items, and SDJB will be here to turn those items into cash and transfer that wealth back into the economy.

From what I understand, you also see San Diego Jewelry Buyers’ business as contributing to more than just the economy, don’t you?

CB: That’s right. As a professional jeweler and designer, I’ve been a longtime supporter of sustainable luxury. And when it comes to selling your gold to a company like SDJB, people are helping the environment by reducing the need for eco-harmful gold mining activities. The same thing goes for when consumers sell us their pre-owned diamonds and precious gemstones. It’s a win-win situation for our customers, for us, and for the community.

Gold Fuels Pawn Shop Boom

KPLC TV News is reporting that the high price of gold has local pawn shops booming, as more people dig through their jewelry boxes for gold items they can trade or sell for cash. The Lake Charles news team interviewed a local pawn shop owner who says more customers are finding gold and pawn shops a great combination, especially since it’s hard to get fast cash from banks and other lending institutions.

“A lot people have single earrings, broken rings or necklaces that they’re not going to repair,” said the pawnbroker. “With the record price of gold now, a lot of times they’re pleasantly surprise with how much they can get for it.” He also advised customers to go local when you put your gold items on the market.

Many people are also mailing in their gold to companies who advertise frequently on television. Recently several of these businesses have come under intense scrutiny. New York Congressman Anthony Weiner (D-NY) has even called for the Federal Trade Commission to look into one company’s “deceptive practices,” after hearing several complaints from sellers who say the company didn’t give them the promised price for their gold.

And all experts agree (including us at the San Diego Luxury Pawn Shop Report) that before selling or trading to any gold buyer, consumers should get several quotes from different brokers.

Why Gold Remains Hot

San Diego gold investors and gold sellers take note that Business Week has an excellent interview online with commodities guru Jim Rogers, creator of the Rogers International Commodities Index, wherein he talks about gold’s current popularity.

Here is an excerpt:

MARIA BARTIROMO

Gold, as you know, hit an all-time high today, with the Russian central bank buying bullion. How high can gold go?

JIM ROGERS

Well, I own gold and I have for a while. How high can it go? I fully expect it to be over a couple thousand dollars an ounce sometime in the next decade—I didn’t say the next month, I didn’t say the next year, I said the next decade—because paper money around the world is very suspect. But right now everybody’s bullish on it, so I don’t like to buy things when that’s happening. But I’m not selling under any circumstances.

What’s behind the runup? Has buying by the central banks changed the equation here? Or is this still a demand story?

Certainly a demand story because, as I said, everybody’s printing so much money and people around the world are worried about that. But you also have central banks, which five years ago were selling gold, now buying. So that’s a huge shift in the marketplace. Central banks are like lots of other people—they just follow the crowd. There are probably better commodities to buy than gold, but you can’t tell that to central banks because they’ve got gold on the brain.

To read more, go to: Why Gold is Glittering.

Rare Gold Coins at the Long Beach Expo

The folks over at CoinNews.net are reporting that two huge California Gold Rush era assayers’ ingots, recovered from the famous SS Central America and with a combined weight of over 100 pounds of gold, will be exhibited at the next Long Beach Coin, Stamp & Collectibles Expo, September 10 – 12, 2009, in the Long Beach, California Convention Center, 100 S. Pine Ave.

During the three-day Long Beach Expo more than 1,000 dealers will be buying and selling rare coins, paper money, stamps, postcards, historic documents, antiques, estate jewelry and other collectibles. Some dealers will provide free, informal appraisals on gold coins and other items for visitors.

A free gold coin will be awarded daily to a registered visitor. Young numismatists’ activities include a children’s treasure hunt, educational programs, and collectors’ clubs meetings. Heritage Auction Galleries of Dallas, Texas, the world’s largest collectibles auction house, will hold a public sale of U.S. and world coins and paper money.

The public hours of the Long Beach Expo are Thursday and Friday, September 10 and 11, 2009, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., and on Saturday, September 12, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. (The show is closed on Sunday.) A complete Schedule of Events is online at www.LongBeachShow.com.

General admission is $6 (good for all three days); $4 for members of any coin or stamp club who display a valid membership card; and $3 for seniors 65 and older. Free admission for children ages seven and younger. Discount coupons are available online at www.LongBeachShow.com.

New Gold Jewelry & Precious Metals Law

Orange County readers of the San Diego Luxury Pawn Shop report should take note that a new law has been passed. The Shawangunk Journal reports that under this new law, anyone who has a business that buys second-hand jewelry (gemstones and precious metals) would have to have a license from the county and undergo a background check. In addition, two crucial rules apply. To sell gold jewelry to a store, you have to be over the age of 18 and you have to have photo ID for the store owner to see and if they want, to record. Then, the store or pawn shop must hold the items for 15 days before selling them.

The journal interviewed Dan Depew, Country Representative of the 18th District, who put it this way. “You can’t just ride into town, stay in a motel, and announce that you’re buying gold. Because, now you have stay in the county a while, and you have to register and undergo that background check.”

Police Chief McCann believes that the new law can be a win-win for everyone, saying that if pawn shops and jewelry buyers work it into their practices, then they can be sure that the police know they’re on the right side of things. McCann also added that residents can take steps to protect themselves. “Everyone [should maintain] a good record of the piece of jewelry, or property of any sort that has a value, or that they think is important to them. A photo is good, but if there’s some marker on the property that is known only to them, so they can ID that piece of jewelry, then that’s a great help to us in recovering things.”

Worst Ways to Buy Gold

Investor’s Chronicle (IC) has just published an article that San Diegans who are interested in buying gold as an investment. The IC reports that gold’s status as a safe haven in bad times has seen an unprecedented rise in popularity, with the World Gold Council recently reporting a 248 percent increase in the investment demand for gold, compared to the same period last year.

If you are thinking of buying gold in San Diego, experts warn that you must take care because physical gold is not a regulated investment market. So while lots of people think they should be buying gold, they don’t recognize that there are bad ways to buy the metal. According to the IC report, 3 of the worst ways to buy gold are:

1. Online auction sites: While this might seem obvious, eBay has seen a surge in gold-coin auctions as demand for physical metal has grown. The prices on online auction houses often out-strip true gold-market values – known as the “spot” gold price – by 25 per cent even for the plainest coins. Rarer gold coins are often bid up much higher, as new investors lack knowledge about what they are buying.

2. Newly minted “collectible” coins: So-called collectible gold coins can cost significantly more than the actual value of the gold they contain. Mints often charge 40% or more above the gold market value for these gold coins.

3. “Rare” gold coins: US authorities often warn investors against “hard-sell” dealers charging rip-off fees for what turn out to be anything but rare gold coins. Spotting a truly rare coin and knowing how much above the gold-content’s value it should cost takes experience and expertise. Take the time to build your knowledge and understanding before venturing into this market.

Investigating Gold Buyers

San Diego’s most watched news station, KUSI News, has released a special consumer report on selling gold in San Diego County. Conducted by former CNN reporter Sasha Foo, the report reveals that there are both good and questionable gold buyers operating in San Diego.

The special report is titled “Selling your gold? Don’t get scammed!” and includes an interview with Sheryl Bilbry, a staff member of San Diego’s Better Business Bureau (BBB). She tells Sasha Foo that San Diegans need to be smart when selecting a gold buyer for their gold jewelry, since some gold buyers may have file folders full of customer complaints. Cash4Gold, for example, has earned itself a D- minus grade from the BBB.

Bilbry explains that Cash4Gold customers have complained that their gold never got to the company; that they were told that within 10 days they could get their gold back, but then Cash4Gold wouldn’t return it; and that Cash4Gold didn’t pay them as much money as they said they would for their gold. Bilbry adds that citizens can get cash for their gold jewelry in San Diego by “credible” companies. They just need to investigate who they are.

Selling used gold jewelry, gold bullion coins, and other gold objects has become a big business during the past year due to the recession. But Sasha Foo warns San Diegans not to let that “stampede for cash turn into fool’s gold.” To illustrate how “legitimate” gold buyers operate in San Diego, Ms. Foo interviews Carl Blackburn, the founder and co-owner of San Diego Jewelry Buyers (SDJB) and a jewelry industry veteran.

Blackburn explains to Foo how trustworthy gold buyers go about buying used gold rings, gold chains, and other gold jewelry, demonstrating how gold purity and weight is tested. He advises San Diegans to shy away from any gold buyer who guarantees they will beat the price of any other gold buyer, as well as anyone who does not make the customer feel totally comfortable with selling their gold. Blackburn also says that a “red flag” is when a customer calls a San Diego gold buyer for today’s gold price and the buyer doesn’t want give out the information.

SDJB’s website SanDiegoJewelryBuyers.com is filled with articles and tips that can help San Diegans make better selling decisions when selling their gold, diamonds, and fine watches.

To watch KUSI’s full special report on San Diego gold buyers, please go to: Selling Your Gold? Don’t Get Scammed!

New Jersey Jewelers Join Gold Rush

San Diego jewelers take note, your colleagues in New Jersey are taking advantage of the recent popularity in gold buying parties, reports the Ashbury Park Press…

When Thomas Calabro said, “We are at the heart of a gold rush right now,” he was holding up the heart: a mound of gold jewelry on a red velvet display board surrounded by South African Krugerrands.

All told, the assortment was valued at about $250,000. The coins alone were worth almost $40,000, sold to Calabro by a longtime client while gold was spiking at $954 an ounce.

“The last time gold was sky high was around 1979, the year we opened,” said the owner of Twin City Jewelers on Clifton Avenue in Lakewood. “We built this place on the last gold rush.”

In 1980, gold peaked at about $850 per ounce. Last March it broke the $1,000 mark for the first time in history.

Calabro has the current recession to thank.

As trust in traditional money investments erodes, many people are turning to the most reliable of currencies. And that means quadruple the business for Calabro in the gold sector.

The boost in the “scrap metal” trade for jewelers has hedged a slowdown in retail. So now’s the time when jewelers and jewelry owners are perhaps the only people in the country able to bask in this economic climate — indeed, they’re throwing parties.

After spending a while on the sidelines watching their businesses lose to private “gold parties” — the much flashier cousin to the Tupperware affairs — jewelers have started to play a hand.

Earth Treasures in Eatontown is advertising to host “gold-selling” fund raisers for charities, in which partygoers sell unwanted jewelry, silver, coins and scrap gold for cash, with the charity receiving a percentage of each transaction.

Calabro himself has visited many homes, arriving sometimes with $20,000 in cash and leaving after some hors d’oeuvres with a case of jewels.

“It was very frustrating,” Calabro said of the initial competition. “But if you can’t beat them, you have to join them.”

7 Quick Questions to Ask Your Gold Buyer

San Diego Jewelry Buyers has announced the publication of a new education article appearing on their online Knowledge pages for consumers wanting to sell gold, fine jewelry, diamonds, and timepieces. Titled “7 Quick Questions to Ask Your Gold Buyer,” the article intends to help consumers avoid many of the pitfalls that have been recently documented by investigative news programs, where gold buyers have been engaging in dubious practices to buy gold from sellers for far less than what they deserve.

“Over the past year, there have been literally hundreds of new people and companies getting into the gold buying business,” says Alan Blyler, a spokesperson for San Diego Jewelry Buyers. According to Blyler, while some of these gold buyers are upstanding and follow industry accepted practices, many more, especially some of the big online outfits, are engaging in practices that long-time gold buyers do not support.

For example, some gold jewelry buyers immediately offer a customer a higher amount when he or she rejects the company’s first buying offer; and then a higher cash amount again when that person rejects their second offer. “An upstanding gold buyer will give you their best buying offer right from the start. Period,” says Blyler.

One sample from San Diego Jewelry Buyers “7 Quick Questions to Ask Your Gold Buyer” is the following:

How much are you paying per gram today for 14 karat gold (or 10K, or
18K, etc.)?

CORRECT ANSWER: According to today’s market price of gold, we are paying ___ per gram for 14K gold (or 10K, or 18K, etc.).

REASON: Some gold buyers will use deceptive techniques in order to get you into their store. For example, they might say, “Today’s gold price is ___ per gram.” Then when you come in they will explain that the price they quoted you on the phone was what they sell gold for, not what they buy it for. They do this in hopes of capturing a certain number of people who will still go through with the transaction despite the “misunderstanding.”

To read the rest of SDJB’s essential questions to ask a gold buyer, please visit their website at: SanDiegoJewelryBuyers.com

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Looking for more information about people’s personal experiences with gold buyers, and why you should compare before choosing one? Then check out this good news article: It Pays to Compare Gold Buyers.

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