Heart jewelry is trending for 2017, not just for little girls, but for women of all ages, even those who have resisted heart jewelry for years. If your mind is still picturing those cutesy lockets of yesteryear, take another look at the sophisticated heart styles that jewelry designers are rolling out—and have been rolling out—to…
Though garnets come in a rainbow of colors, when we think about the January birthstone, it’s the red variety—in fact, the world garnet comes from the Middle English gernet, meaning dark red—that seems to emerge. Thought to represent friendship and trust, as well as peace, wealth, and good health, there’s no reason not to love…
As we’re fond of saying, you can never go wrong with diamond jewelry, and the sheer number of all-diamond pieces we regularly have here at Loudoun Jewelry on Maple Avenue is testament to that. But diamonds also make statements about formality, romance, and more that is replaced by festive sophistication when some of the piece’s…
Diamond jewelry is classic and beautiful, which is how it’s maintained such steadfast popularity over time. Engagement rings are still primarily diamonds, past/present/future necklaces were first designed with diamonds, and diamond earrings are still being touted as the jewelry staple every woman must own. But what if you would love to have a pair of…
The art of enameling goes back to ancient times when artisans discovered they could use fine particles of glass to substitute for precious gems. The effects were so stunning that we still see enamel used in fine jewelry today, with jewelers able to custom make hundreds of colors and incorporate them into bold designs (this…
If you do any shopping at all for jewelry in the DC area, you know that “fashion” rings are everywhere. But what are they? Are they costume jewelry? Phony stones? Cheaply made? If it’s a diamond, is it still a fashion ring? Just about the only obvious thing about such a nebulous term is that…
Onyx—in any color—is a banded variety of the mineral chalcedony. It’s a cousin of agate, the difference between them being the type of band: agate bands are curved, and onyx bands are parallel. Both black and white are common, and while it’s nice to know all these facts, what matters most is how beautifully shiny…
Everybody’s heard of Rolex, but watch collectors—and pawn shops in the DC area—know that IWC Schaffhausen has been making luxury Swiss watches for men since 1868, when 27-year-old Boston watchmaker Florentine Ariosto Jones journeyed to Switzerland with the idea to combine his entrepreneurial spirit with modern engineering technology pioneered by the Swiss. It was a…
If Kwiat isn’t synonymous with diamonds in your mind, it’s because the nearly 110-year-old company wasn’t always in retail. Family-owned since its 1907 inception, the company was primarily private label. It wasn’t until around the turn of this last century that the company became a high-end brand offering collections, bridal jewelry, and one-of-a-kind items that…
Vintage jewelry is so popular that jewelers often manufacture lines to mimic vintage styles. And, of course, what they mimic are the most popular trends within the vintage aesthetic. Yes, vintage jewelry is timeless, but there are always market trends. So what’s selling well in vintage? One only need look to runways to see. And…