Monday, December 29, 2008

What Are the Jewelry Options For Men?

For many decades, most jewelry beyond a pocket watch or wedding ring were reserved for women. You would never see a man other than a pirate, wearing an earring or having any portion of his body pierced with an ornament.
Bracelets
Mo st men do not wear bracelets. That type of jewelry has not quite caught the fancy of men. With the exception of medical alert bracelets, there will not be many men out the re sporting a bracelet on either their wrist or their ankle.

Earrings
It has become acceptable in our society for a man to wear earrings, sometimes on both ears. Often, men will go beyond the ear and pierce their nose, lip, eyebrow, nipple and a ho st of other places. Earrings have be come so common on men that few people even look twice at it. Make sure your husband or boyfriend will wear an earring before you buy one for the.

Necklace
A necklace was never se en on a man in the pa st, but, following World War II, ne cklaces became more and more fashionable. A sma ll gold necklace with an important symbo l hanging from it can be an e xcellent gift. But, don't go all out and buy him a je wel-encrusted necklace with some strange word ha nging from it like J-Rock.

Thursday, December 25, 2008

How To Choose The Right Jewelry

Choosing the right jewelry is very important because, if your jewelry is wrong, you're going to regret the purchase. That is definitely not something you want to have to contend with. As a matter of fact, no one wants to have to look at a piece of jewelry they absolutely hate. They don't want to have to live with that regret. Sure, they can always replace that wrong piece of jewelry, but the truth is that replacing a certain piece of jewelry is not always possible.

So how do you choose the right jewelry? Well first, you have to choose the right company. In this case we're talking about an online company because the Internet is going to present you with more jewelry options than walking into a jewelry store. You're going to be able to pick out whatever you want on the Internet. What's even greater is the fact that the Internet provides you the opportunity to get a lower price. This is due to the fact that a lot of overhead is eliminated by selling online.

The right company is going to have a professional-looking website. They should have a simple checkout system, a site that is easy to navigate, and they will more than likely have some sort of guarantee. They should also have a nice return policy. This is something that is very important in an online jewelry store. They have to provide you with a solid return policy. This is mainly due to the fact that you're not able to see the jewelry in person. You are more or less looking at it on a computer screen and relying on a description.

Although the description of the jewelry is most likely going to be accurate and you're going to love it, it is still a good idea to make sure the return policy is one that you can live with. If you can't live with it, it is probably in your best interest for you to move on. If you find that the return policies of other companies are still not favorable, but not as good as the first one, then you may want to go back to the first one.

Furthermore, the company needs to provide you with an accurate description. They should also provide you with honest reviews on the items that they're offering. Now the reviews are not by the website owners, but the reviews are by the individuals who bought the jewelry items themselves. You definitely don't want to purchase from a site that expects you to take the opinions of the site owners. Why should you take their opinion when their goal is to sell you as much as they possibly can? Of course they're not going to say something negative about an item in their inventory. They're going to inflate it into something that it may not be, so make sure the site is offering up reviews and ratings to help you make an informed decision about your purchase.

So now you know the importance of finding the right company. You also know that it is a good idea to ensure the website has a return policy you can live with and that reviews and ratings play a huge role in making that decision. Since you have all of this under your belt now, it is time to choose the right jewelry.
First of all, think about what it is you like in jewelry. If you have to, sit down and write it all down. If you're buying a ring, what style of stone do you like? Let's say it's a diamond ring.

You also want to make sure that what you pick matches other jewelry. If you are a yellow gold person, then yellow gold is something that you may want to purchase. However, there are some individuals who enjoy two-tone jewelry. For example, their wedding ring is two tone. Because of this, they may be able to get by with having silver earrings. However, if their wedding ring is solid yellow gold, then they want to make sure those earrings are solid yellow gold. This is something that depends solely on personal preference, but is definitely something to keep in mind.

Now think about the shape of diamond that you like. Do you like a traditional cut or a marquis cut? Do you like white gold or yellow gold? Take a look at some of the diamond rings being offered by the online jeweler and make note of what you like in some of the rings. Even if you don't like a ring in its entirety, write down what you like about it. This is going to help you keep in mind what it is you like. That way, you can immediately identify the perfect ring.

The same goes for necklaces. Look at the pendants and how they make you feel. You also need to look at chain length. A 16 inch chain may work for one person, but not for another. There may also be cases in which you can actually pick out the length of chain that you need. It really depends on the necklace, but some give you that option.

Most importantly, ask yourself, "Is this a purchase that I'm going to regret?" Hopefully, by this point you have found the jewelry that makes your heart melt. If you're really "feeling" it, then you have more than likely found what you're looking for. In this case, your only regret is going to be not purchasing the jewelry item. Fortunately, that is a regret that is very easy to avoid.

Sometimes it has some sort of meaning behind it. If it does have a certain meaning behind it, then having the wrong piece of jewelry means that meaning behind it is somewhat tainted.

Sunday, December 21, 2008

Buying Fine Diamond Jewelry Online

Jewelry now used as decoration was initially created for practical use such as wealth and status purposes among others. In recent times Jewelry is available to adorn all body parts and is available in high quality made with precious gemstones and precious metals. Jewelry makes a perfect gift for anniversaries, holidays, birthdays or just for someone you love.
As it is always said, Diamonds are forever and the best selection is available online.
A wide selection and beautiful collection of fine jewelry can be found today without you needing to step out of your home. The basic is to know what to look for. It is very easy to get swayed by cheap and low prices without knowing the quality of the Jewelry. Even by looking at jewelry we will never come to know about it. Here are a few tips to consider and worth knowing before shopping for Jewelry.
Shopping for Diamonds:
Diamonds are usually sold in carats (weight) unlike Karats which is a unit to measure purity of gold. The greater the weight of diamond the higher is the price. However make sure the diamond is not Cubic Zirconium which is a look alike of a real diamond but is not genuine and produced artificially and is much cheaper. Cut of diamond is also very important and specially when buying solitaire or cluster ring. Diamond shapes can be classified into round brilliant, oval, tiffany, marquis, pear shaped, heart shaped, emerald cut, princess cut, trilliant, radiant or cushion cut with each having its own brilliance and price.
Always think of buying Jewelry as an Investment. It takes little responsibility while making a online purchase including Jewelry purchase. All Jewelry description and details provided on the website must be read carefully. One must ensure that the details are clear and includes the metal and diamond weight etc in clear understandable terms. All delivery policies must be carefully examined which includes insurance, return and above all authenticity.
Online stores offer a certificate of authenticity for most fine jewelry.Keeping the above factors in mind and with a little bit of effort & responsibility you can find a world of beautiful Jewelry collection at your fingertips. Hope this article helps you in your Jewelry purchase be it Diamond rings, gold necklaces, pearl rings and earrings or semi precious and precious gemstone jewelry.

Fine Jewelry Sales Prospects For the 2008 Shopping Season

We have all spent months hearing grim news, but as the holidays approach, how will prospective diamond and fine jewelry buyers respond?
In National Jeweler's exclusive holiday jewelry survey, consumers revealed concerns and shared details on holiday spending plans that reflect a sense of caution. The good news is that jewelry, especially gold jewelry, remains on shopping lists, and those in the highest income brackets actually plan to spend more this year.
But, of course, there's bad news too: Many consumers are heading into this holiday season with their confidence sagging amid a backdrop of general economic gloom.
Gasoline and food prices are up, the housing crisis lingers and unemployment is rising, with figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showing that the national unemployment rate was 5.7 percent in July, up from 4.7 percent a year ago.
So it is no surprise that 68 percent of respondents who participated in Consumer Jewelry Buying Survey said they are feeling worse about the state of the economy than they did a year ago, and just 3 percent reported feeling better about it.
And, when asked to identify the No. 1 factor influencing their decision of whether to buy diamond and fine jewelry for the upcoming holiday season, the greatest percentage, 40 percent, indicated they would bypass jewelry because it is not a necessity.
This sticking-to-the-basics attitude reflected in the survey parallels the consumer mindset the National Retail Federation (NRF) is anticipating for the holiday season.
Kathy Grannis, the NRF's manager of media relations, says consumers have held back on discretionary spending this year to concentrate on buying the necessities, a trend that is likely to extend into the yuletide season.
"Most consumers will be a bit more cautious with their spending this holiday season," Grannis says.
That crowd includes survey respondent Tracy Arntson, a college student living in Muskegon, Mich. The 22-year-old says she likes diamonds and silver but other financial obligations-her bills and the high cost of paying for college-take priority over jewelry. The bad economic news of the past year has done little to loosen her purse strings. "I don't feel that much better about the economy going into the holiday season," Arntson says. Hope, change and holiday shopping.