Christmas Opening Hours

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas....

...so take a moment to double check when we're around before popping in to spend your Christmas pennies:

Sunday 25th December          CLOSED
Monday 26th December        CLOSED
Tuesday 27th December        CLOSED
Wednesday 28th December   CLOSED

Thursday 29th December       OPEN 09:30 - 17:15
Friday 30th December            OPEN 09:30 - 17:15
Saturday 31st December        OPEN 09:30 - 17:15

Sunday 1st January                CLOSED
Monday 2nd January             CLOSED
Tuesday 3rd January              CLOSED

Wednesday 4th January         OPEN 09:30 - 17:15

Merry Christmas everyone!

Supporting the local community

Our shop in Beaconsfield has been open for 20 years and we really believe that our active involvement in the local community is a huge contributing factor to our growth and success.  Over the years, Andre has headed up the local Chamber of Commerce, founded the Neighbourhood Action Group and the annual Festival of Lights as well as contributing to countless school raffles and charity programmes.

In these difficult times, it becomes even more important to stay local and to give whatever you can to causes and charities whose funding and support will undoubtedly have dwindled.

In the coming months, expect to see us supporting:
The Rotary Festival of Lights (details to follow soon!)
Jordan's School
The Wooburn Singers
The Prostate Cancer Charity

Do your bit by attending some of these events and by buying local!

And it was all yellow...

Since the weather has turned distinctly autumnal, we thought we’d select yellow stones for our monthly colour focus.

Citrine, a quartz like amethyst, is mined (mostly from Brazil, the US, Spain and Russia) in such a range of colours (from pure yellow to honey, to a brownish yellow) and is relatively inexpensive so remains a popular choice with sun-stone seekers.  The colour in citrines can sometimes appear broken up or patchy, but this rarely noticeable, and the excellent lustre and clarity often compensates for small areas of shading.   

9 carat yellow gold line bracelet set with citrine - £725.00

18 carat yellow gold pendant set with a 45.52 carat heart-shaped citrine and diamonds totalling 0.60 carat on an 18 carat yellow gold round box chain - £6,395.00

18 carat yellow gold drop earrings with a total of 2.40 carat of citrine and 0.14 carat of diamond - £1,495.00

As the name suggests Lemon Quartz is also a quartz, but is classed as a separate stone due to it unique, and more delicate tone.

18 carat white gold earrings set with lemon quartz with 0.05 carat diamond each - £625.00

18 carat white gold necklace set with and lemon quartz with 0.10 carat of diamond - £895.00

18 carat white gold cocktail ting set with lemon quartz and diamonds- £2,750.00

Having discussed sapphires in some detail in our ‘Feeling Blue’ post back in July, we needn’t cover the same ground again here regarding yellow sapphires, but suffice it to say that the range of yellow tones covered by yellow sapphire (from lemon to canary to golden honey) combined with their stunning lustre make them a popular choice for those looking to invest in a precious stone.

Cocktail ring set with a 3.04 carat natural yellow sapphire and a total of 0.60 carat of diamonds - £7,450.00

Amber is widely known as being made from the resin of pre-historic trees, capable of perfectly preserving mosquitos and other small creatures.  Amber is predominantly found along the Baltic coasts of Russia and Poland.  Amber can be anything from honey yellow through to quite a brownish yellow, and in varying degrees of transparency – the darker and more opaque the stone, the less valuable it is.  Amber isn’t hugely popular at this time, but does enjoy perennial revivals in interest.

9 carat oval rubbed over set clip earrings with amber - Was £285.00, Now £114.00



Christmas is coming....

Whilst it may seem a little keen to be using the 'C' word in early October - especially given the fantastic weather we have been enjoying recently - we just couldn't wait to introduce you to some of our fabulous new stock arriving ahead of the festive season.

Check out these beauties...

Keep an eye out for our christmas brochure which will follow in a few weeks.

A comprehensive guide to choosing your wedding band

Many clients searching for their wedding rings come into the shop looking for ‘oh just something simple – plain gold band’.  Little do they know...

Shapes

All rings come in different shapes, but with your wedding ring – something you will wear every day – it is important that your chosen piece is as comfortable as it is pretty.  There is a wealth of shapes available beyond the traditional ‘flat’ and ‘court’ as outlined here:

Widths

Most wedding bands start at around a 3mm width, with 4-6mm being the most popular.  It is worth remembering however that the thicker shapes (like the halo or traditional court) will mean more bulk as the ring gets wider (resulting in the wearer being less able to close their fingers completely together).

Neither the shape nor the width of a ring have a significant impact on the price of a ring by themselves – these are simply design features – but rather, taking the two factors together, along with the overall weight of the design will determine how much metal is needed to produce the chosen ring, which of course is where the cost lies.

Materials

Wedding rings are made from all sorts of things these days (hypoxi-resin, wood, murano glass etc), but the precious metals remain the most popular:

Gold is of course the most common.  It remains popular since, even amidst the recent rising prices, a plain band needn’t be all that expensive, is fairly hardwearing and of course comes in the yellow, white and rose colour.  The carat of the gold refers to the content of gold (versus other metals) out of 1000 parts:  9 carat gold contains 375 parts gold to 625 parts other metals and 18 carat gold contains 750 parts gold to 250 parts other metals.

Platinum is the purest of metals (hallmarked platinum contains 950 parts platinum to just 50 parts other metal), and is traditionally the most precious – with the price tag to match!  If cost is no object, this is certainly the luxe option.

Titanium has enjoyed a period of popularity due to its attractive colour (particularly for men’s rings), but is not widely recommended by jewellers since titanium rings can rarely be re-sized, leaving the wearer to bear the cost of a new ring should their finger size change over time.

For those wanting something a little different, palladium is a fantastic option since it is harder than platinum (and therefore more hard-wearing), and since it can be produced in 500 parts, 950 or 999 parts, can prove an inexpensive way of purchasing a white metal ring.

Production

There are two main production methods in circulation.  Cast rings are much cheaper to produce, saving the buyer money, but rings produced by this method can be porous, meaning less gold content and leaving the ring less hard-wearing.

Alternatively, weddings bands can be milled – a process whereby a strip of metal is rolled around and sealed before being sealed and polished.

There is also a third method, known as stamping, but since this requires expensive specialist machinery, and doesn’t allow for any design embellishment, it is rarely seen on the high street.

Settings and finishes

Modern wedding rings come in a wonderful range of finishes with all sorts of decoration.  Diamond set rings are proving increasingly popular (although clients do find that when combined with an engagement and eternity ring, their finger gets a little to ‘bling’ to handle), with beaded edges, engraved patterns and bi-colour stripes also selling well.  All of these options do add to the overall cost however.

A slightly more cost effective way to obtain a pretty look is to opt for one of the many finishes available – plain polished (the shiny look that you see most often in jewellery) can be replaced with a variety of brushed, hammered or a satin looks

Engraving

Engraving your wedding ring is a lovely and romantic way to personalise your purchase.  New rings (as long as they are not hollow or porous) can be laser engraved direct from the manufacturer or machine engraved, however any engraving by this method will not outlive the ring itself.

Hand engraving does cost more, but offers more depth and character and a far better life expectancy.

Care

Plainer wedding bands should require little more care day to day than a hand polish with a soft cloth, although embellished rings may require soaking in warm water with a little washing-up liquid.

Platinum and white gold rings are rhodium plated to give them the best white appearance.  Over a period of some years, this plating will wear off and will need replacing in order to look as good as new.

Many customers choose to purchase wedding bands of the same material as their engagement ring so that the rings will wear at the same rate.  This is the ideal scenario, but it is also worth noting that all metals will wear over time anyway.

Obviously when it comes to your final choice, there can be no substitute for trying a range on and seeing how they suit your hand, but hopefully our guide has offered you a little food for thought!

Photo credits:

Ring shapes:  http://www.weddingrings-direct.com via http://www.mabellejournee.co.uk/wedding-rings

Ring finishes:  http://www.stuller.com/pages/3128/

de Marsac in the press

Well, just in case you've been keeping up with our exploits, here is the fabulous coverage we received in September's edition of Beaconsfield Life. 

In other news, we are very pleased to help to promote two upcoming local charity events:

Friday 30th September:  Second Hand Rose Designer Clothes Sale for The Children's Trust at The Bellhouse Hotel

Sunday 2nd October: Memory Walk for The Alzheimers Society at Hall Barn

Two worthwhile charities, and two easy and fun ways to help them!

Green Eyed Monster

Continuing our monthly colour-based stone breakdown, September’s chosen hue is green.

Despite being one of the most valuable stones found in nature, Emeralds do not enjoy as much popularity as in the past – although more modern settings with diamonds in white gold are a very striking choice!  Emeralds come from the same family aquamarines (described in our ‘Feeling blue’ feature back in July) in that they are a beryl, but only those with sufficient chromium to give that distinctive, deep, green (coming mostly from Colombia and parts of Africa) are able to carry the ‘emerald’ title.  Light reflection and refraction is not strong in emeralds, which, some argue, makes them less interesting to look at, but a large stone with a strong, even colour will come close to rivalling similar sized diamonds in value.  Even synthetically produced emeralds hold reasonable value.

18 carat yellow and white gold bracelet, set with emeralds weighing a total of 3.25 carat, and diamonds weighing a total of 0.35 carat - £2,850.00

18 carat white gold necklet with integral chain, set with a pear shaped emerald weighing 0.33 carat and diamonds weighing a total of 0.19 carat - £1,295.00

18 carat white gold, emerald and diamond drop earrings - £975.00

18 carat white gold cocktail ring, set with an emerald weighing 1.78 carats and diamonds weighing a total of 0.32 carat - £4,850.00

18 carat white gold pendant set with an oval cut emerald weighing 0.73 carat and diamonds weighing a total of 0.21 carat (with an 18 carat white gold chain) - £2,850.00

Peridot is a semi-precious gemstone - a silicate of magnesium and iron.  Being less expensive, but not given to particular inclusions, as well as being available in a lovely range of tones, from a yellow-ish, through to bottle green, it is a very versatile choice, often used in conjunction with other coloured stones altogether. 

18 carat yellow gold drop necklace with peridot, citrine and diamond - £525.00

9 carat gold drop earrings set with an oval cut peridot and 0.13 carat of diamonds  - £325.00

9 carat white gold ring with a cushion cut peridot and 0.06 carat of diamonds - £575.00

Another silicate, this time of calcium and aluminium, forms a stone from the garnet family – Tsavorite – found mostly in Kenya and Tanzania.  Available in a range of shades, the clear, bottle green makes a lovely alternative to emeralds, especially since the stone offers fantastic lustre.  However, they are rarely found in large sizes.

18 carat white gold bracelet set with a total of 2.06 carats of tsavorite and 1.98 carats of diamonds – £4,850.00

18 carat white gold earrings set with a total of 0.58 carat of tsavorite and 0.30 carat of diamonds –  £875.00

Since some people find the brightness of peridot to be too strong, green amethyst can offer a fantastic alternative within the semi-precious categories.  Amethyst is a quartz – silicon dioxide – which is one of the most widely distributed minerals on Earth and is often used in jewellery (by various names depending on the colour) due to its clarity of colour and excellent lustre.  The green variety used in the jewellery industry is a more muted, pastel green which looks particularly lovely when set with white gold.

18 carat white gold pendant set with a square cut green amethyst and diamonds (with a 9 carat white gold spega chain) – £740.00

A green Beryl is essentially a low grade emerald – the same components as in the real thing, but with insufficient chromium to give it it’s distinctive colour (and value!).  However, when a beryl is pale and translucent, it offers a watery luster which is very pleasing to the eye.

18 carat white gold pendant set with a green beryl weighing 11.35 carats and diamonds with a total weight of 1.18 carats, with chunky chain - £8,250.00

Green tourmaline is an interesting gemstone since the variety of shades it is found in make it very good at imitating other stones.  The darker, more olive coloured stones tend to hold less value than the bright, mid-tone ones.

18 carat white gold cluster ring, set with an oval green tourmaline and diamonds weighing a total of 0.70 carat - £1,625.00

Malachite, a basic copper carbonate which forms in stripes of different green tones, is not typically very high-value, but is much admired in sculpture, and occasionally used within the jewellery trade – more often set in silver.

Sterling silver and malachite bracelet - £495.00

9 carat yellow gold stud earrings set with malachite - WAS £285.00 – NOW £114.00

Jade, most commonly known for its use in oriental art (the paler, ‘nephrite’ jade being prolific until the mid-eighteenth century, when the darker ‘jadeite’ became more popular), is also sometimes used in the jewellery industry.  Found in small quantities all over the world, the largest deposits are located in Russia and New Zealand.

Nephrite jade bead bracelet with 9 carat yellow gold clasp - WAS £95.00 – NOW £47.50