Attention J. Lo and Mrs. Kobe Bryant: A huge behemoth of a gem stone, possibly the largest polished round diamond in history has been discovered, sadly not by me.

The massive stone is the 20th largest rough diamond ever found, weighs 478 carats and is said to be of outstanding clarity.

It was recovered earlier this week at the Letseng Mine, in Lesotho, a small kingdom in  South Africa. The mine, owned by De Beers for many years and now owned by Gem Diamonds, had already delivered three of the world’s largest diamonds: the 603-carat Lesotho Promise, the 493-carat Leteng Legacy and the 601-carat Lesotho Brown.

It is hoped that the uncut diamond will be capable of producing a 150-carat polished gem stone, dwarfing the current largest Koh-i-Noor diamond (round cut; 105 carats) on the Crown Jewels.

The biggest mother of them all was the Cullinan Diamond, discovered in 1905. At 3,106 carats, it was the largest gem-quality rough diamond ever found, producing the teardrop shaped Great Star of Africa at 530 carats.

Youtube video (REUTERS report) about the newly excavated stone

Tidbit: Carat represents the most important factor impacting the price of diamonds: weight. This is why some diamonds have a poor cut just to retain a bigger carat and thus a higher selling price. To learn all about diamonds, consult WooU. Class dismissed!

x o x o
~ jewels

Fort Knox. King Midas. Leprechauns.

What do they all have in common? Gold.

Not all that glitters is gold, but all gold glitters.

Every month, you Woobies get the vital stats on a gemstone, but we’ve rather neglected precious metals in comparison. And everyone knows that nothing frames a gemstone quite as nicely as a setting of precious metals.

Well, it’s time to remedy this, and we’re going to get started with the most recognizable precious metal: good, old AU — gold, that is.

The vital stats for gold.

Gold is #79 on the periodic table of the elements, and is valued for its malleability, ductility, and rareness. It’s been used in everything from currency to sculptures to gourmet cuisine to dental fillings to, of course, jewelry.

It’s soft enough to shape, and can be alloyed with other metals to give it strength or even to change the color.

Gold alloyed with copper takes on a pinkish tint — what we know as “rose gold.”

Gold alloyed with a white metal (such as nickel or palladium — the new darling of the precious metal world) looks like silver — we call it “white gold.”

Gold is versatile. It’s worn by everyone from babies to grandmas to rappers. So, to celebrate this precious, precious metal, let’s count down the top five ways to wear gold!

5. Let Me See Ya Grillz

Rapper Nelly: Smile for me, daddy!

There’s no more ostentatious way to flaunt one’s wealth than to put it in one’s smile. Gold and diamond grillz have been all the rage on the rap scene.

Still, Olivia thinks that there’s no better dental look than pearls — pearly whites, that is.

4. I’ve Got the Power

My preciousssss!

One ring to rule them all, one ring to find them, one ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them.

This ring also has the power of invisibility, which makes it very convenient to duck out of boring meetings, avoid ex-boyfriends, and sneak backstage at a Nelly concert. It can even extend your life by hundreds of years.

Unfortunately, you will be an evil shell of your former self by the end of that life, and just might meet a grisly end in a giant pit of lava. But you’ll look cool doing it.

3. Watch This!

D&G Dolce & Gabbana Milano Watch in Rose Gold, $195 at saks.com.

And, now, getting to the serious part: the pink tones of rose gold give a sleek watch some feminine appeal. And rose gold is so unique!

2. Make a Wish

Jennifer Meyer White Gold Wishbone Necklace, $700 at barneys.com.

If I had a real wishbone, I’d wish for this adorable necklace by Jennifer Meyer. The darling designer of many celebs (as well as some regular folk like me), Meyer is a master at glorified simplicity. Who would have thought that the aftermath of Thanksgiving dinner could be made into an elegant piece of jewelry?

1. With This Ring, I Thee Wed

Tiffany Lucida Wedding Band Ring, $825 at tiffany.com.

What better way to use gold than to celebrate a new life together, to symbolize and unbreakable bond? Metal has no nobler purpose than to represent undying love.

Well, I hope that all you Woobies out there have a newfound appreciation for gold and all it can do. There’s been some talk out in financial sectors about bringing back a gold standard — and I say, “Bring it on.”

Goldenly,
Olivia

I don’t really own any fine jewelry. I don’t have an engagement ring, all of my pearls are faux, and I decided that it would be irresponsible of me to spend my life savings on one diamond necklace.

But for those of you who do, here is something to consider if you want to protect your investment: jewelry insurance.

Sometimes, a cleverly disguised hiding place isn’t enough to protect your valuables.

Many people depend on their homeowner’s or renter’s insurance to protect their fine jewelry. What they don’t know is that many policies only cover jewelry theft. So if your house burns down and your engagement ring gets lost or damaged in the debris, you’re out of luck.

You’re also out of luck if your jewels aren’t stolen from your home. If they’re stolen from a hotel, for example, they wouldn’t be covered by your homeowner’s insurance.

If the thought of losing your engagement ring keeps you up at night, you may want to consider purchasing a separate insurance policy specifically for your fine jewelry.

The value of your jewels, the amount of coverage you want, and whether or not you are willing to pay a deductible in case of a claim are all issues that you want to consider when looking at policies. If you can’t afford to pay much (or aren’t willing to), then you may be better off sticking with the theft coverage in your homeowner’s policy. But make sure it’s a risk you’re willing to take before you settle on it.

Jeweler’s Mutual is a fairly reputable company that offers a wide range of policies. And if any of you Woobies out there have insurance and can recommend other companies, we’d love to hear about them!

Not everybody needs to take this step, but you know what they say: better safe than sorry. And we definitely think you should play it safe when it comes to your jewels!

Cautiously,
Olivia

We recently posted an article about the difference between palladium and platinum. As we head into the weekend, we here at WooMeOver want to know:

Robbins Bros. Vivant Palladium Engagement Ring, $595 (without center stone) at robbinsbros.com.

Palladium. It’s a word I’ve been seeing a lot on the internet lately, especially in ads.

After a friend asked me what it was, I decided that I needed to look into it, for the good of Woobies everywhere.

Palladium.

Palladium is a “platinum group metal” (”PRG”), a group of metals that have chemical properties similar to platinum. Palladium has an atomic weight of 46, and is actually 12% harder than platinum. At different times in history, platinum has actually been more plentiful than palladium, driving up the price of this precious metal.

However, due to recent innovations in palladium production, palladium is about a quarter of the price of platinum right now!

People tend to look at the price of palladium and assume that it is of a lesser quality than platinum. However, the only significant downside to palladium vs. platinum is that palladium tends to discolor at high soldering heats, become brittle with repeated heating and cooling, and also reacts to strong acids. But unless you plan to wear your palladium ring in a fire or handle some sulfuric acid without gloves, you’re okay — and, even then, you’re going to have bigger problems than your ring getting ruined.

Palladium is about the same price as white gold, but has the added advantage of being hypoallergenic. Also, it’s far more resistant to tarnishing and fading than white gold. In fact, white gold is often an alloy of gold and palladium, which gives it its white luster.

The Robbins Brothers website has a great comparison chart that you can look at to see exactly how palladium stacks up against more popular metals.

Photo credit robbinsbros.com

I also found some beautiful palladium engagement rings on their website.

Vivant Palladium Engagement Ring with Round Diamonds, $595 (without center stone) at robbinsbros.com.

At a fraction of the cost of a similar ring in platinum (all the platinum designs I saw that even came close cost at least $2,000), think of how much money your fiancé will have leftover to spend on the diamond! Let’s face it: the only reason for the band is to house the diamond!

And now is a great time to buy palladium, too. There’s been a huge advertising push for palladium and, as it grows in popularity, the demand is bound to rise, which means that the cost will rise right along with it (hey, I took high school economics). So get in on the ground floor with this new trend in precious metals!

Preciously,
Olivia

Most of you have it in your jewelry boxes. Some of you are even wearing it now. All of you have heard of it. And we should all know exactly what it is.

I’m talking about sterling silver.

Pure silver is extremely malleable — far too soft to hold a functional shape for very long. Sterling silver is an alloy of 92.5% silver and 7.5% of another metal added for strength, usually copper.

The downside to adding copper for strength is that copper is much more reactive than silver. While silver doesn’t react with oxygen or water at room temperature, copper does. Sterling silver does tend to tarnish because of its copper content.

However, if your sterling silver jewelry becomes tarnished, you can clean it yourself at home!

Method #1
Make a paste of baking soda and water. Use a soft cloth to rub away the tarnish and then rinse and dry thoroughly.

Method #2
Line the bottom of a saucepan with aluminum foil. Fill the pan with 2-3 inches of water. Stir in one teaspoon each of baking soda and salt, and bring to a boil. Add your silver and boil for 2-3 minutes. Make sure that the pieces are all covered with water.

Remove silver from pan, rinse, and dry thoroughly, buffing with a soft cloth.

Method #3
Toothpaste. You heard me. Toothpaste. Not gel, but paste — the white stuff. Put a nice coat of it on your silver, run it under warm water, and work up a good lather. Rinse off and dry thoroughly.

To get at the tarnish in the crevices, you could use an old toothbrush to get into those hard-to-reach places.

But before you get started, make sure that none of these methods will harm any other materials (such as gemstones) in the piece.

And now let’s take a look at some jewelry that really helps sterling silver to shine as it should!

David Yurman Sterling Silver Tiger Ring, $850 at saksfifthavenue.com.

This solid cocktail ring boasts a sleek tiger design in iron. It really shows how powerful sterling silver can be. After all, sterling silver is nothing if not — pardon the expression — fierce.

Ippolita Silver Gladiator Cuff, $595 at saksfifthavenue.com

Ippolita’s Gladiator Cuff recalls ancient Greece with this simple, but powerful design. It allows the silver to shine as it was meant to, and the hammered look gives it the feel of antiquity. It’s truly a modern way to wear a classic look.

Slane & Slane Sterling Silver Tassel Pendant and Necklace, $870 at neimanmarcus.com.

The early buzz on the latest jewelry is that bees are the new butterflies. And this chunky necklace is about as “now” as it gets when it comes to sterling silver. I love this season’s thicker proportions and heavy pieces. They feel more substantial. You can believe you’ve gotten your money’s worth when you feel the weight of this pendant at your throat.

So to all of you out there who can now say that you know exactly what sterling silver is, remember: it may not be 100% silver, but you can bet it’s the real thing.

Yours Truly,
Olivia

Welcome to WooMeOver University, or WooU. As much as we think that jewelry and gemstones are fun to talk about, we also think that there’s something to be said for educating ourselves about them so that we actually know what we’re talking about.

So, let’s start with what I think is the quintessential gemstone: the diamond.

They say that “diamonds are a girl’s best friend,” but I sometimes think that men know more about diamonds than women do. After all, men are the ones who have to buy the engagement rings.

Regardless, every girl should still know how to at least evaluate a diamond, so here’s a review of diamond basics.

A diamond is basically a form of carbon. It is the hardest naturally-occurring mineral on earth. This makes it valuable for industrial purposes, but it’s more commonly known in its gemstone form.

And that brings us to the infamous Five Cs: the criteria by which all diamonds are measured.

Carat
The weight of a diamond is measured in carats. A carat is 200 milligrams. Since all diamonds have the same atomic structure, its weight measure is also its mass measure.

Clarity

Almost all diamonds have internal defects, called inclusions. Inclusions can be foreign materials in a diamond, or even another diamond structure within a diamond. They can also be tiny cracks, which make the diamond appear whitish or cloudy.

The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) has a system to grade clarity, which is based on a trained professional’s evaluation of the diamond under 10x magnification. Clarity is graded on a scale from flawless (negligible inclusions) to imperfect (many inclusions).

Color
A perfect diamond should be completely transparent. But chemical impurities and structural defects in a diamond’s crystal lattice can give a diamond the appearance of color.

The GIA has a system to grade color, from D (colorless) to Z (bright yellow).

But just because a diamond is colored doesn’t mean that it’s less valuable. In fact, yellow diamonds with a Z rating are rare and, therefore, more expensive. Pink and blue diamonds are also highly desirable.

Cut
A diamond needs to be shaped and polished in order to achieve its full potential as a gemstone. When light hits a diamond, the way it’s cut can either reflect lots of light, making it look brilliant, or absorb it, making it look dark.

Cut is not to be confused with shape. While cut refers to the reflective quality of the gem, the shape has no real bearing on how brilliant a gemstone looks; it’s just a matter of personal style and preference. Different shapes include round, princess, emerald, and heart.

Certificate
The best way to make sure that your diamond is of high quality, authenticity, and integrity is to make sure that it’s certified by a major independent gemological laboratory (like the GIA).

Hopefully, that fills you in all the basics a girl should know about her diamonds. But, as for getting a man to buy you one… well, that would require a different article.

Brilliantly,
Olivia