The Bottom Line
An excellent reference with explicit, easily understood details about colored gemstones.
Pros
- For all levels of expertise.
- Each chapter can be a stand-alone reference.
- Drawings and color photos to help us understand.
Cons
- Pricing guides could become outdated.
Description
- Instructions and diagrams help us learn to use a jeweler's loupe to examine and evaluate stones.
- Drawings and text help us recognize a gemstone that's well cut.
- The importance of color, with details to help us make good gemstone selections.
- Sample certificates of authenticity from respected gem laboratories.
- A chapter containing details about synthetic gems.
- Tips to help us recognize simulated and composite stones. Names used to advertise gem impostors.
- Alternative gem choices for each color category. Price guides for all discussed stone categories.
- Details about numerous popular colored stones.
- Alternative gem choices for each color category. Price guides for all gemstone categories.
- Many pages of color photos at the book's center.
Guide Review - "Colored Gemstones Buying Guide"
Antoinette Matlins has gathered everything you need to know about buying a colored gem and inserted it into this easy-to-comprehend text. She's a wonderful teacher who anticipates our questions and provides immediate answers. Experienced gem enthusiasts will appreciate this thorough text, but beginners won't be overwhelmed, because all material is presented clearly and logically. "The Colored Gemstone Buying Guide" provides us with the knowledge we need to weigh the many options that will be thrust at us when we shop for a stone. If you love colored gemstones, you'll refer to this book often.
