Value Guides
Plain-English answers to one question: what is this stone actually worth? Each guide gives a clear verdict, a value rating out of five, and an honest price range — never a single tempting figure.
Aquamarine
Colour is everything — pale vs deep “Santa Maria” blue.
Amethyst
Abundant and cheap — pay for colour grade, not carat.
Citrine
Most “citrine” is heat-treated amethyst. Here’s the fair price.
Tiger’s Eye
Pay only for a sharp chatoyant “eye” — not dye or glass.
Carnelian
Mostly heat-treated/dyed agate. Pay for natural translucency.
Garnet
From $5/ct red to $5,000/ct green — the type is everything.
Carved Gemstones
Workmanship vs material — what you actually pay for.
Gemstone Spheres
Size and dye tricks, and the fair price for a decorative orb.
Opal
Body tone & colour play decide everything.
Peridot
Buy the green — a vivid olive is the premium.
Topaz
Cheap treated blue vs rare imperial — know which.
Moonstone
A strong, clear blue sheen is the whole price.
Labradorite
Rare flash colours command the premium.
Lapis Lazuli
Deep, even blue — and watch for dye.
Turquoise
Stabilized is cheap; fine natural is the prize.
Onyx
Dyed agate — the value is in the cut.
Diamond
Lab-grown collapsed 90%. The 5th C is certification.
Jade
Nephrite vs jadeite, and the Type A/B/C treatment scale.
Pearl
Lustre beats size — and nacre thickness is invisible.
Amber
Copal and plastic fakes, and the Burmese ethics problem.
Obsidian
Volcanic glass. Pay for the sheen, or the carving.
Malachite
Cheap, gorgeous — and never for elixirs.
Rose Quartz
Pay for the star, not the pink. And it fades.
Fluorite
Hardness 4, perfect cleavage. Buy the specimen.
Larimar
One mountainside. It fades — and Atlantis is invented.
Ammolite
Fossil nacre from Alberta. Almost always assembled.