Jewelry Tips: By the way, iron pyrite is a yellowish mineral sometimes mounted as a gemstone called “marcasite.” Iron pyrite is most commonly known as “fool’s gold.”

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Jewelry Tips: Can all metals be engraved Gold, silver, platinum and steel jewelry can be engraved by equipment that every good jeweler has on hand. Platinum is easier actually to scratch than gold, which makes it excellent for engraved jewelry. Titanium and tungsten can also be engraved, but this requires diamond-tipped engraving tools or a laser engraver.

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Jewelry Tips: Diamonds from Canada and Australia: African diamonds may be associated with the conflict diamond trade.

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Jewelry Tips: For those on a very strict budget, or if you want some bling you can wear at your most rough and tumble activities, consider cubic zirconia. These man-made gem substitutes, plus man-made rubies, emeralds and sapphires, are very low-priced, look good, last long and (except under close scrutiny) are indistinguishable from the real thing.

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Jewelry Tips: For those with metal allergies, titanium is an exceptional choice–good enough for artificial hips means good enough for body jewelry. Tungsten is also hypo-allergenic unless processed using cobalt or nickel, to which some people are allergic.

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Jewelry Tips: Frequent wearing of silver jewelry does prevent a lot of tarnish, but not all; silver must be cleaned occasionally. Many commercial polishes or polishing cloths are excellent; they work best when tarnish first appears and the tarnish layer is thinnest. Silver is considered the most reflective of precious metals, so keeping silver jewelry bright will allow you to show it off at its fullest beauty. Gold and platinum require less, but the occasional thorough cleaning is also a good idea.

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Jewelry Tips: Gemstones from Kenya, Madagascar, Israel, India, Belgium and South Africa: Gemstones mined in Myanmar (Burma), which supplies some of the most valuable rubies, jadeite and semi-precious stones in the world, come from mines rife with forced labor and human rights abuses.

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