GemTV Diamonds

This is not a post to knock Gems TV for the sake of it, honest. However, this issue has been eating away at me for several months.

Earlier this year I bought a pair of 1 carat diamond 9K gold earrings from GemsTV. They were sold as G-H in colour I1-I2 in clarity. When I viewed them through the plastic bags when they were delivered they appear to sparkle, or I wouldn’t have kept them. I thought I’d got a bargain. More fool me. I have worn them maybe twice in all those months, thinking I’d keep them for best. However, I’ve noticed that over time they have become brown and dead. There is no sparkle. Nothing! They are just brown dull diamonds. I’m actually embarrassed to wear the earrings and admit they are diamonds! Is this a phenomenon with diamonds? Do they lose their colour, clarity over time? Admittedly, I have never heard of this happening, but I am no gem expert.

By contrast, diamonds I’ve bought from TJC over the years look and sparkle like diamonds, even in their Classic range . For instance, a few months ago I bought a diamond pendant and stud earrings from TJC, admittedly in a lower carat weight from their NY 14K range, and I haven’t taken them off since . The diamonds sparkle, they are white and clean – at least to the naked eye. When compared with my Gems earrings the differene in quality is unmistakeable. With my GEMS purchase I feel I’ve wasted a lot of money for something I won’t readily wear – if ever. I feel as if I’ve been had.

While I’ve had some great designs from Gems TV and their sister channels over the years, especially in their Tookalon range, I will not be buying any diamond items from them again. I can’t afford to risk it.

Pauli

Hi Pauli... if they've hardly been worn maybe the diamonds have just collected dust and need a good wash? In my experience, Gems sell pretty poor quality diamonds but having said that I've had a few duds from TJC.

I suppose diamonds just aren't Gems' strong point - some of the coloured stones are pretty decent though.

If I were you I'd either ring or email them espressing your disappointment and ask them to look into it. I have many TJC Iliana pieces whch are G-H colour but with SI clarity and none of them have every gone brown.

It might be a silly question but have you tried cleaning them in case they got hair products or perfume on them which is affecting their colour? I periodically clean all of mine whether I've worn them or not in warm water with just a drop of washing up liquid in it and give them a gently brush which keeps them looking like new

Ok, first off, never look at diamonds through a plastic bag - they generally don't sparkle and look dull and lifeless and are often better out of the bag. However, this seems to be the opposite in your case.

No, diamonds can't get browner or lack sparkle. However, they can appear worse if they are dirty (as everybody else has said). Earrings are especially prone as they can be left in during hair washes, get hairspray and make up on them. So like everybody else has suggested, give them a good clean in either an ultrasonic or get a toothbrush, some washing up liquid and give them a good scrub.

The other thing is are they set in white or yellow gold? If in yellow gold, it may be that the yellow of the metal is reflecting onto the diamonds making them lose their whiteness. This may be more apparent in some lighting conditions than others. If in white gold, could the rhodium need re-plating? If the setting looks grey and dull it probably needs this. Items need re-plating on different levels of frequency depending on the acidity of your skin, the conditions you're wearing them in etc. For example I have a white gold ring I wear nearly all the time and I can see it needs re-plating about once a year. Other items, I only wear occasionally, hardly ever need replating.

In general though I1/I2 diamonds are not good clarity and this WILL affect sparkle. As a rule I very rarely buy anything less than a G colour or SI clarity unless they are completely hand picked.

Hope some of the above helps and you solve the problem.

Thank you all for your excellent suggestions. The point about the gold setting is a good one. The earrings are set in yellow gold so that could be the problem. I’ll have them cleaned though and see what they look like then.

Thanks again for all your good advice.

Pauli