Illinois to Auction $125,000 of Unclaimed Jewelry on Ebay

Are you looking for some great deals on second-hand fine jewelry? Doesn’t matter if you are from San Diego, you can still take part in the Illinois jewelry auction on Ebay. Illinois State Treasurer Alexi Giuannoulias’ office has begun auctioning the contents of abandoned safety deposit boxes on eBay to holiday shoppers. Read more

How San Diego Pawn Shops Work

Featured at the website HowStuffWorks.com is a good article about How Pawn Shops Work. The article rightly points out that pawn shops don’t really deserve the “shady” image that many people hold of them–often due to the way Hollywood depicts them as fence operations for stolen goods. For centuries, pawn shops have been the quick and convenient way for people to borrow money. Read more

Look for Colored Diamonds at San Diego Pawn Shops

According to a recent article in Forbes, the poor economic outlook is causing many people to invest in tangible goods like jewelry and diamonds. They cite a recent auction conducted by Chicago auctioneers Leslie Hindman, which attracted buyers from around the world and sparked bidding wars on several items that ended up being sold for around $100,000. Also mentioned was Sotheby’s recent September jewelry auction which broke all expectations—and included items from Van Cleef & Arpels and Harry Winston which sold for more than double their pre-sale valuations.

According to the article, what really is becoming popular are colored diamonds. These diamonds are much more rare that colorless diamonds. How rare? Well the ratio of one carat colored diamonds to one carat colorless diamonds is 1 in 100,000. It is because of this rarity that high quality colored diamonds are said to double in value around every 4 years! Thus it is no surprise why diamond buyers seek them out.

That’s something to keep in mind if you come across some fine quality jewelry set with colored diamonds at an area San Diego pawn shop. After all, if you have money to invest, why not put it into something that you can wear and enjoy every day?

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Of course, diamonds and diamond jewelry are not the only things to be looking for in San Diego pawn shops. Gold coins and gold bars are also items to keep an eye out for. Read more: Buying and Selling Gold Bullion Coins at Pawn Shops.

San Diego Jewelry Buyers Publishes Brief History of Pawn Shops

San Diego Jewelry Buyers (SDJB) has announced this week’s addition to its Knowledge pages for consumers interested in selling or collateralizing their fine jewelry, diamonds, watches, and gold. The article is titled “A Brief History of Pawn Shops,” and it adds to SDJB’s growing list of helpful information, facts, and tips involving jewelry, precious metals, timepieces, and luxury brands. Read more

7 Tips For Selling Diamonds & Diamond Rings in San Diego

Walking into a San Diego pawn shop or jewelery buyer’s office can be an intimidating experience if you have a diamond ring, earring, necklace, or bracelet that your looking to get a cash loan on or sell outright. You might be shocked by the amount of cash that is offered you. Before you walk through those doors, here are some things to keep in mind:

1) Understand that the price a San Diego buyer offers you will be substantially less than the retail price, because the buyer has to assume a great deal of added risk in buying your diamond or diamond ring. In other words, buyers have no assurance of the money they will receive when they try to resell your item, or how long they will have to hold onto your item before selling it at an acceptable profit.

2) The shape of your diamond will affect the price. For example, a round Brilliant cut diamond is often much easier to sell than a fancy shaped diamond like a Marquise, Heart, Trilliant, or Victorian cut. The more confident the buyer is that they have a ready buyer for your diamond the easier it is for them to assess the price. If there isn’t sufficient demand for the shape of your diamond in the current market that will lower their buying offer.

3) When a diamond is accompanied by certification this assists the buyer in pricing that item because this eliminates the need for them to grade the diamond themselves, the results of which may or may not perfectly match the findings on the certificate.

4) Keep in mind that the appraisal value of your diamond is the retail replacement cost. This figure has no bearing on the price which you will be offered should you decide to sell a diamond ring.

5) San Diego Pawn shops in general operate a business that requires greater liquidity. That is, they often need to turn around items much quicker than an established jewelry or diamond buyer. Thus the offer you might receive for a loan on a diamond at a pawn shop is likely to be lower than if you were to sell the item outright to a jewelry or diamond buyer.

6) Be wary of those San Diego diamond buyers who say that it is only the diamond that holds high value and that they just sell the ring for the scrap value of the precious metal. While mass market rings are valued at scrap value, branded fine jewelry that bears handcraftsmanship often holds substantial value and should not be chopped apart and melted down.

7) If possible, look for opportunities to sell your diamonds or diamond ring to a relative, friend, or friend of a friend in San Diego, as you may receive a higher price for your item by selling it privately in this manner.

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San Diego jewelry lovers probably know that Burma rubies are among the most coveted gemstones around. These gems now will become even more rare in the States with the start of the: Burma Ruby Ban.

Sotheby’s Magnificent Jewels Auction Expects $64 M

Rapaport reports that Sotheby’s Hong Kong will conduct its Magnificent Jewels and Jadeite 2008 Autumn Sale at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre on October 7, 2008. Some 320 lots will be offered with an estimated total value of HKD500 million ($64 million.)

The highlight of the sale is a fancy vivid yellow diamond necklace with an estimated value of $7.4 million to $9.5 million, featuring a 102.56-carat fancy vivid yellow diamond (pictured.) It has a flower pendant that can be detached from the necklace and worn as a brooch.

Quek Chin Yeow, deputy chairman and head of jewelry at Sotheby’s Asia, said, “The diamond is the largest fancy vivid yellow diamond ever to be offered at auction anywhere in the world; this extraordinary diamond, with its impressive size and auspicious golden yellow color, will be a major attraction.”

Another highlight of the sale will be a colored diamond butterfly brooch by Carvin French. The center of the brooch is set with one fancy vivid blue diamond and two fancy intense blue diamonds, weighing 5.53 carats in total. Complementing the blue hues are the vibrant yellow and pink diamonds mounted on the wings of the butterfly. (Estimated value $3.8 million to $4.6 million.)

With strong demand for top quality diamonds weighing more than 15 carats, an impressive 34.07 carat cushion-shaped D, IF, diamond ring will undoubtedly attract much attention. (Estimated value $6 million to $7 million.)

Sotheby’s Hong Kong will present a pair of ruby and diamond earrings by James de Givenchy for Taffin. The two unheated, natural rubies, weighing 10.02 and 10.91 carats respectively, are well-matched in both color and shape. Each surrounded by eight rose-cut pink and eight colorless round diamonds, these rubies show a fiery red hue with dazzling brilliance fascinating all connoisseurs. (Estimated value $3.8 million to $4.5 million.)

Also featured among the colored stones is a pair of star rubies, alexandrite and diamond earrings. The rubies, weighing 19.45cts and 22.13cts each, are remarkably matched in both color and shape, and boast intense hues and fine clarity. (Estimated value $666,000 to $871,000.)

A further highlight is a Colombian emerald and diamond ring without any oil treatment. This natural 10.09 carat emerald boasts high clarity and a saturated color. It is embellished by 10 round diamonds, emphasizing the magnificence of the noble green color.

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If you are a San Diego resident who is a collector of fine jewelry from brands like Tiffany and Cartier, then you’ll want to read this article about how Vintage Jewelry is a Popular Investment.

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