Gems Log

There’s a reason diamonds are a last-minute holiday shopper’s best friend, area jewelers say.

The No. 1 holiday choice: diamond earrings.

But there are other jewelry options that may be worth keeping in mind. Among the gemstones that have stolen some of the diamond’s limelight in recent years: tourmaline, which, when finished and mounted, is brilliant red and eye-catching.

“Blue topaz, sapphire and amethyst [also] have become extremely popular,” said Michael Phelps, proprietor of Michael’s Custom Jewelry in Visalia.

Phil Kaestner, owner of Burnays Jewelers in Visalia, said he’s sold more white gold in the last year than in the previous 20 years combined. Other jewelers said they’re selling pendants, pins and tennis bracelets of all kinds.

While all types of jewelry are available ready-made, some customers are looking for a special fit. Kaestner’s merchandise is mostly custom-ordered, he said.

“The last two weeks, two-and-a-half weeks before Christmas is when it really takes off,” he said.

Phelps’s customers often ask for custom-designed pieces using nontraditional stones and mounts. In such cases it’s important to profile the buyer or gift recipient, said Jennifer Marlow, sales representative at Michael’s Custom Jewelry.

“I need to know about this person’s personality and preferences,” she said.

What would she recommend for, say, a grown woman who prefers youthful, contemporary styles but has just gotten married and has a new baby daughter?

“Smokey quartz,” Marlow said, pointing to a cluster of raw quartz crystals and then an eye-sized cocoa-colored stone.

Technology also can assist the holiday jewelry shopper. Phelps, who authored one of only two jewelry-repair books in print, “How to Repair Jewelry,” said he’s used engineering-style computer software to digitally design mounts for jewels.

“Look at this design,” Phelps said, pointing to a computer screen. “It’s supposed to look like a flower when the stones are mounted.”

One Michael’s customer who took advantage of this high-tech help was Angela Wyatt, who posed an unusual and daunting challenge. Her husband had just presented her with a beautiful new diamond ring on her 14th wedding anniversary, meaning the original stone needed some retooling.

“So I took the original ring and another ring I liked, and the designers used their computers to design a new ring that combined them both,” Wyatt said. “It’s wonderful.”

Other buyers are just as happy with something shiny out of the case. And the diamond, of course, is as shiny as it gets.

Francisco Herrera, a sales representative at Ashoori & Co. in Visalia, said his hot sellers include a “Journey Pendant” with six or eight diamonds and a “Circle of Life” with four. He’s bracing himself for the pre-Christmas crowds, since the retailer does 35-40 percent of its business after Thanksgiving.

“That’s why we fill our cases with merchandise this time of year,” he said.

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