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Hello All:
Holiday season is upon us and we have tried to provide information and pictures which would be of interest to all our customers. As this season appears to be one of smaller budgets and "smarter shopping" we invite you to enjoy the below information and please keep Lambert Gems in mind this holiday season. Whether you have stones to be made into jewelry or specific jewelry designs using Lambert's stones, we are available to assist however we can.
We invite you to shop smarter at Lambert this season and we look forward to hearing from you.
Kindest Regards,
Eric Forbes
Lambert Industries Ltd.
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Holiday Gift Suggestions and Gift Certificate
Gift Certificate Amount: Minimum of US$50.00 and multiples of US$50.00.
Payment: Payment by PayPal or credit card are the only payment methods accepted for purchasing/ordering a gift certificate.
We will send your gift certificate when we receive notification of your payment.
When we receive your gift certificate order, we will send you back a confirmation by email.
When applying a redeemed gift certificate to a jewelry or gem item on our website, the same rules that are on our website will apply.
For ordering a Lambert gift certificate click here
To view all of Lambert's jewelry Holiday gift suggestions, click here
Consumer Education
It is a Lambert tenet that an informed customer is the best kind of customer. To further this end, Lambert gives gem & jewelry seminars and publishes information that a laymen can understand and use in making buying decisions.
Hot off the press is DIAMOND SHOPPING TIPS tutorial which you access by clicking here on this title or on the page link on our website www.lambertgems.com. If you are ever in the market for a diamond, you don't want to miss this.
Also listed on our website are the tutorials, GEMSTONE SHOPPING TIPS, RUBY & SAPPHIRES and PEARL TERMINOLOGY which you can also access by clicking here on these titles.
Testimonials and Quotes from the Press
A major source of Lambert's new customers has been referrals from the media and from satisfied customers. We have just posted a TESTIMONIALS AND QUOTES page link on our website where you can read all the unsolicited praise for Lambert which you can also access by clicking here on this title.
The latest recommendation is from the Bangkok Airways magazine "Fah Thai". "Fah Thai" is a bi-monthly magazine that appeals to the mostly European and American passengers of Bangkok Airways, Asia's only 'boutique airline' and Thailand's second biggest carrier. Produced in both English and Thai, the magazine is a high end, glossy publication that focuses mostly on travel, culture and lifestyle.
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In-House Upgrade
To better serve our customers, Lambert has purchased, installed and is now testing a state-of-the-art enterprise software program specifically designed for gem & jewelry companies/manufacturers.
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A Word About the "Situation" in Thailand
Many of you have sent emails, faxes and letters asking if we are okay and if it is safe to visit Thailand. The answer is that Thailand is perfectly safe. The protests are confined to a few areas and most tourists would not be aware of this if it were not reported in the media. Somewhat like Italy, Thailand has had many changes in government since 1932 and we locals take this as a matter of course. It is said that Thailand is like bamboo. In a strong wind it bends but never breaks.
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Bangkok & Hong Kong Gem & Jewelry Fairs
All Lambert staff involved with hands on gem & jewelry responsibility attended either one or both of these major international fairs to assess trends and garner ideas. We don't exhibit as these fairs are for the trade and our main business model is direct sales to the consumer (at wholesale prices).
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Exception to the "Tom Lantos Block Burmese JADE (& Ruby) Act of 2008"
The US Government has not banned the importation of Burmese rubies (& jadeite) or jewelry set with these stones if they are imported for personal use according to reportage and breaking news from the Jewelers Vigilance Committee (JVC).
"The importation ban does not apply to Burmese jadeite or rubies that are imported for personal use, meaning for personal wear by the importer. Further, the bill does not address..." (JVC website, Oct. 10, 2008 breaking news).
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Gem/Jewelry Term of the Month
Tourmaline: A gemstone fit for an empress: The last Empress of China, The Empress Dowager Tz'u Hsi, loved pink tourmaline and bought large quantities for gemstones and carvings from the then new Himalaya Mine, located in San Diego County, California.
The recent emergence of the huge popularity of this beautiful and fascinating gem warrants a little more ink than many other gems.
Tourmaline has become one of the most popular gems for setting in jewelry designs because of the combination of its large variety of beautiful colors, good durability (good toughness & hardness) and availability. Although widely available, beautiful gem grade stones are rare and thus its price range is as broad as its color range.
Description: Tourmaline is the term applied to a group of 9 different related mineral species that have their basis in slight variations in chemistry and crystalline structure. All the species have the same basic hexagonal-trigonal crystal structure and boro-silicate as part of its composition.
Almost all the attractive gem tourmalines belong to only one of the species (elbaite species).
More than any other gem, tourmalines come in just about every color and shade of color one can think of, including more than one color in the same crystal.
Tourmaline's hardness ranges from 7 to 7.5 and visible inclusions are quite common, putting a premium on eye clean stones. It is extremely rare to find "eye clean" pink, red (rubellite) and bi-color tourmalines, yet these varieties/species are highly sought after, along with green, because of their exquisite color. The one exception to its good toughness is heat shock. Do not steam or boil tourmaline.
Colors: Rubellites (intense red to pink) are mainly found in Brazil, Nigeria, Mozambique, Madagascar and Pakistan. Green tourmaline is mainly found in Brazil, Nigeria, Namibia, Mozambique, Pakistan and Afghanistan. Very rare chrome greens are found in Namibia and Tanzania. Beautiful blue-green tourmalines are found in Nigeria and yellows in Malawi. Afghanistan is noted for its intense and high clarity greens.
In the U. S. A., gem quality tourmalines are found in the Pala pegmatite district in San Diego County, California and Maine. Known for bright pinks and bicolors, California was the largest world source of gem tourmaline in the early 1900's.
Paraiba tourmaline: (neon-like intense blue to green and colored by copper) is found in Paraiba State and Rio Grande do Norte in Brazil and more recently in Mozambique and Nigeria. Mozambique "Paraiba" is usually more intense in color than Nigerian material. There is considerable overlap in the appearance of Brazilian and Mozambique stones.
In addition to copper, some "Paraiba" tourmaline also contains manganese. The presence of these two elements results in a variety of beautiful colors: purple, emerald green, indigo, bluish-violet turquoise to sky blue and sapphire blue. Copper in high concentrations is responsible for the prized turquoise, radiant blue and green hues. Red and violet tones are caused by manganese.
Cutting of Tourmaline: The intensity of color of a tourmaline crystal varies dramatically with change in direction (strongly pleochroic). Because of this, pale stones are cut with the table perpendicular to the long (C) axis as this direction has the deeper color. Dark stones are cut so that the table lies parallel to the long axis as this direction has the lightest color.
Sources: Tourmaline has its origin in both pegmatite and metamorphic type rocks but almost all gem tourmaline is found in pegmatite (a course grained granite). Brazil and Africa are the largest source. The African countries of Nigeria, Mozambique, Malawi, Namibia, Madagascar, Kenya, Tanzania and Zimbabwe are sources of fine tourmaline, followed by Afghanistan, Pakistan, California and Maine. Sri Lanka and Burma are very minor sources.
Geological Evidence of Continental Drift: Copper containing tourmaline from both Brazil and Africa derive their color from the same mechanism and gemologists can be challenged to identify the source of some specimens. Coincident with this fact, the coastline of west Africa and the east coast of South America will fit together like a puzzle with Brazil and Nigeria in contiguous positions.
To view both Lambert's loose tourmaline gemstone & tourmaline boutique jewelry collections, click here
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