If you have travel plans in your future, think carefully if you really need to take all your expensive jewelry. The risk of theft, loss and damage increases as soon as you start your trip because you are in new surroundings, doing new activities and often in tourist areas that are the target of pickpockets, thieves and con artists.

If you are traveling out of the country, check to be sure your jewelry insurance covers your property when you are traveling outside the United States. Because the risk of theft is so much higher in foreign countries, some insurance companies only provide domestic coverage.

To avoid inviting crime, plan to dress inconspicuously to blend into the environment, especially when in another country. When traveling internationally, consider taking and wearing no jewelry. Criminals assume all tourists are wealthy so if you choose to wear jewelry, turn rings around so the diamonds are not showing and avoid dangling earrings. Large, expensive-looking jewelry is an attractive target and it is easy to snatch dangling earrings.

It is never wise to put jewelry items in checked baggage, especially with security personnel going through your belongings. The percentage of bags lost by airlines continues to increase and their liability for your lost luggage is very limited. Keep your jewelry and other valuables like money, keys, wallets, tickets, cameras, and medications in your carryon luggage. If airport security requires going through your carryon, request a private place so other travelers will not see your valuables.

Be especially careful with your valuables in hotel rooms because they are open to cleaning personnel several times a day and safes in hotel rooms are not particularly secure. How many times have you walked by hotel rooms with doors wide open and cleaning crews not visible? Professional criminals know the cleaning procedures and can quickly enter your room when cleaning service personnel are not looking.

If you do not put your jewelry in your luggage or leave it in your hotel room, that means you are carrying it with you but that can be a problem at the security checks at airports or when carrying something all day as you travel or are sightseeing. Many valuables disappear after being left for a few moments in a bag at a restaurant, transportation waiting room, restroom, or ticket line. Thieves patiently wait for travelers to let their guard down for just a minute and grab their bag without anyone noticing.

Theft is only one of the risks when traveling. Often a vacation includes some time at the beach, pool or hot tub. The sand and concrete can easily scratch precious metals in jewelry as well as gemstones that are not as hard as diamonds. Chlorine can also weaken and discolor precious metals. Travelers often expose their jewelry to risks they would never think of doing at home.

Carrying jewelry when traveling also needs some special care. Diamonds, gemstones and metal can scratch each other if carried together in a single bag. Place fine jewelry in separate cloth bags or put in separate compartments of a jewelry bag made for travel. Then be sure to carry the jewelry case in a purse or carryon.

The purpose of most vacations is to relax, not to impress the locals, so minimize jewelry when traveling. If you do take jewelry, be aware that you are in new and potentially dangerous surroundings. Take special care of your valuables and enjoy your trip.

First let us start with what diamonds are. Diamonds are crystals of pure carbon formed millions of years ago deep below the Earths crust and forced up to the surface in rivers of volcanic lava. The diamonds are then separated from the cooled volcanic lava, or Kimberlite as it is properly known, by mining. Also, as diamonds are the hardest natural substance known to man, many survived the effects of erosion and were distributed over a large area by being washed down rivers into the sea.

The use of diamonds as gemstones of decorative value is the most familiar use to most people today, but in their rough or uncut form they are a far cry from the image that we know and prize. Four characteristics, known as the four Cs, are now commonly used to describe diamonds: these are carat, clarity, colour, and cut, and rough diamonds have to be sorted and graded before being shipped to specialist polishing and cutting centres around the world. Not all rough diamonds are suitable for jewellery, the rejected diamonds are used for industrial drilling and cutting tools.

This now brings us to what “conflict” diamonds are. In 1998 it was brought to the worlds attention that some of the more politically unstable central African and west African countries were funding their wars against the legitimate governments by the sale and control of rough diamonds. Diamonds sold through this process are known as conflict diamonds or blood diamonds and in 2002 an agreement was reached by 40 participating governments to control the export and importation of rough diamonds. This agreement became known as The Kimberley Process and provides documentation and certification of diamond exports from producing countries to ensure that the proceeds of sale are not being used to fund criminal or revolutionary activities.

Recently a system of self regulation was announced by the World Diamond Council under which all diamonds sold, rough or cut, are covered by a warranty given by the supplier. Buyers guarantee to buy only from suppliers who give this following warranty:

“The diamonds herein invoiced have been purchased from legitimate sources not involved in funding conflict and in compliance with United Nations resolutions. The seller hereby guarantees that these diamonds are conflict free, based on personal knowledge and/or written guarantees provided by the supplier of these diamonds.”

An important note is that The Kimberley Process only applies to rough diamonds whereas self regulation applies to both rough and finished diamonds.

As it is not possible to know the origins of old recycled and part exchanged diamonds from before the existence of The Kimberley Process, UK trade bodies recommend that trade in these diamonds is covered by the following declaration:

“The seller warrants that conflict diamonds will not be knowingly sold and that, to the best of his ability, he will undertake reasonable measures to help prevent the sale of conflict diamonds in this country.”

Diamonds are a common focus of fiction and the latest offering by Warner Brothers due to be released in 2006 is The Blood Diamond directed by Edward Zwick, starring Leonardo DiCaprio. Jennifer Connelly and Djimon Hounsou.

The Blood Diamond is the story of Danny Archer (Leonardo DiCaprio), a South African mercenary and set in 1990’s Sierra Leone. It involves the quest for a rare rough pink diamond and the chance of a new life if found.

Jewelry is an outstanding piece of art on a woman’s body. It enhances her personality and makes her feel and look divine. Be it for any occasion or just to make a fashion statement it is a must have for every woman.
It is said that ‘Diamonds are a girls best friend’ and which woman wouldn’t agree with that. Diamonds are always considered to be elegant. They compliment anything that you wear. They boast a touch of royalty in them. Be it just a finger ring embedded with a well cut diamond or a pair of sparkling diamond earrings or even a stunning diamond necklace they all stand out individually

All online jewelry stores advertise to give their customers an idea about their product line
When you purchase jewelry from a store online it is very vital to have a look at the various policies offered, the reputation of the company managing the store, its affiliations, shipping insurance, etc.

www.onlinejewelrymall.com is a newly launched online jewelry store. It is a part of Universal Gems, which is a business in its 4th generation. www.onlinejewelrymall.com offers its customers jewelry at excellent prices, with a money back guarantee and world wide shipping association (shipping insurance included) with FedEx. Universal Gems is a member of the International Colored Gemstone Association and the Thai Gem and Jewelry Association. This makes you sure enough to know that you are purchasing jewelry from a trustworthy online jewelry store.

What is it about a pair of diamond earrings, or a solitaire diamond ring that makes women around the world, “oooh” and “aahh” to it? Why is it that a diamond tiara is used to honor the most beautiful woman in the world year after year? What is it about a diamond that its beauty continues to astonish us?

A diamond lives for eternity, it is said. It’s the ultimate symbol of love, used by men around the world to confess their undying love for a woman! The capacity of a diamond to make a woman feel cherished, loved and special is one to which no gem can compare. It’s a feeling so unique, so different, and so exquisite, it’s unexplainable.

Jewellery has been known to enhance a woman’s beauty, and even add a finishing touch to her ensemble! Be it for a Saturday night party, or for a classy wedding, jewellery adds that special “zing” to an outfit. More often that not, the jewellery on a woman is more likely to draw someone’s attention than the outfit itself. It can be a simple gold chain, or a more elaborate and stylish diamond necklace, but at the end of the day, it holds it all together. Jewellery can say a lot about your personality, it’s said. You can either be flamboyant with bold tastes in your jewellery or you can be simplistic in your essence. But it can safely be said that while jewellery can have compliments coming your way, its really diamond jewellery that can make you the envy of any party!

Diamond jewellery is always going to be the flavour of the season. Be it antique diamond jewellery or contemporary diamond jewellery, it somehow never goes out of fashion! What is so fantastic about diamond jewellery is its versatility. It can be expression for appreciation, tradition, and most importantly one of love. It can be a graduation present for your daughter, or a Mother’s day present for your mom. Diamond jewellery enchants, bedazzles and bewitches. It’s the perfect gift for any occasion. But what makes a diamond really beautiful, is its design. Like the two halves of a heart, a diamond and its design will be incomplete without each other. www.onlinejewelrymall.com, is one place which offers the most exquisite of designs, for that most exquisite woman!

A diamond is testimonial to the fact that nature even its crudest form, is beautiful enough to stun us all. But the fire, the brilliance, and the beauty of diamond jewellery can meet its match, only when the perfect woman wears it. Make the perfect woman in your life, feel more beautiful, more enriched, and simply wonderful with the best gift she can have. Show her that just like diamonds, your love for her will too last for eternity.

Organizations around the world has been realizing the cultural diversity within organization is not a negative aspect, rather can facilitate organizational stalk for glory (Papers4you.com, 2006). However it is not an easy task to manage employees with different cultural backgrounds. Nevertheless there are many policy guidelines that can make task easy.

On a broader perspective, cultural diversity can be manage through communicating (creating awareness among all employees about diverse values of peers through communication), cultivating ( facilitating acknowledgement, support and encouragement of any employee’ success by all other workers), and capitalizing (linking diversity to every business process and strategy such as succession planning, reengineering, employee development, performance management and review, and reward systems) strategies ( Cascio, 1995).

There are many different innovative ways that organizations have adopted to manage diversity. For instance Tabra Incorporation, a small manufacturer of jewellery and accessories in California comprised of modest workforce is composition of Third World immigrants from Cambodia, China, El Salvador, Ethiopia, India, Laos, Mexico, Thailand, Tibet Vietnam and other nations. To acknowledge importance of their cultural association, at least 10-12 different flags are always hanged from the ceiling of its main production facility which represents the countries of origin of the employees. The owner’s view point is ‘I would like for this to be a little United Nations everybody getting along and appreciating each other’s culture instead of just tolerating it’. (Bhatia & Chaudary, 2003)

If cultural diversity can be managed effectively, there is a potential to use diverse workforce for organizational benefits. Cox and Balke (1991) asserts that multi-culturism is directly linked to organizational success as

Effectively managed multi culture companies have cost effective competitive edge

It helps in promoting minority friendly reputation among prospective employees

Diverse cultural corporations help to get better customers which has a variety of people

Diverse group of employees are perceived to be more creative and efficient in problem solving as compared to homogenous group

Ability to manage cultural diversity increases adaptability and flexibility of an organization to environmental changes.

Many organizational examples can be taken in this regard. In Australia, for instance, Hotel Nikko in Sydney has unique edge that staff members in direct guest contact areas speak a total of 34 different languages. Similarly Qantas Flight Catering has sixty-six nationalities on staff, with various overseas-born chefs. So dedicated diverse ‘ethnic’ kitchens gave Qantas a huge competitive edge that offers food based on customer’s ethnic taste and requirements. Moreover Don’s Smallgoods through literacy, language and cultural trainings increased cross-cultural communication and increased profits while lowering costs at the same time. Similarly The Cheesecake Factory had put special effort to understand Japanese quality and packaging culture as Asian employees assist management to understand Asian tastes so that they can target exports to Asia (Nankervis et al, 2002)

The oldest metal known in this world is the gold. It came into use in 5000 B.C. There are so much to say about gold. It is possible to compare its value with only its own value. As in many languages, gold does not only have physical meaning in Turkish but also symbolizes beauty, goodness and wealth. The most common utterance used about gold in Turkish is "He has a heart of gold." Gold, beginning from its usage as money, is also used in making necklaces, bracelets, for the decoration of clothes (sim), and in frescos and tiles. In Jewellery in Turkey, Antalya has been the center after Istanbul in the last 5 years. There are 4 large jewellery factories and more than 1000 jewellery shops which attract attention with the quality and richness of their designs which improve day by day.

Because labour is cheap in Antalya, it is in competition with the other markets.

GOLD

The carat used in gold in Turkey is 24/18/14. The carat of gold is stamped on all the gold products. The alloys of gold with other metals increases its degree of hardness. Copper+gold form red gold; silver+gold form yellow gold, platinum+gold form white gold. Pendants and other gold products obtained from these combinations of gold have been rather famous. The most important hand made gold work, which is not found in any other country in the world, is "Trabzon Produced" bracelets and pendants. This wonder of jewellery, which is woven like cloth is produced in the Blaksea region in Turkey, especially in Trabzon (it gets its name from this city) where it was first produced. In Turkey gold is preferred without stones.

SILVER

In Turkey, silver work was started during the Selcuk and the Ottaman periods as an alternative to gold in bracelet, ring, pendant...etc. production. Silver has a very important place in the Turkoman (nomad) culture. The silver ornament worn on the forehead, (which is made by using silver coins), silver rings and silver pendants with agate are different types. Silver bracelets, pendants, and rings are sold in several shops in Antalya.

Aromatherapy is the most sought after forms of therapy in today’s world. If the fragrance could heal then there is no alternate to it. Essential Oil content does the dual job of aiding in enhancing the health of the skin and its fragrance gives the mood swings a rest and puts you at peace. Cosmetic aromatherapy for obvious reasons is gaining in popularity too in this form of therapy. We just cannot piggyback our aromatherapy practitioner wherever we go and so the viable alternative should be aromatherapy jewellery. True to its nature aromatherapy jewelry not only adorns and adds beauty to the beholder but also gives its therapeutic effect on all time of the day. It is usually a necklace that is preferred for this particular criterion. The lockets are the source for the space where one could have vial of aromatherapy ingredient and which then would give you the fragrance and the cure. There is always a satisfaction in giving and of course healing. When one adorns the aromatherapy jewellery, it not only provides you with its effects but the residue effects the crowd near you and as natural the individual being in the presence of loved and cared ones would add another jewel to his or her personality by adoring this aromatherapy jewel.

As with all good things they come in small sizes the jewels, it could a bracelet, a necklace, a pendant, or even a wrist band. When on a shopping spree to purchase aromatherapy jewelry make sure the pure essential oil is embedded in its structured place and be sure of the quality. Avail for only genuine products in this criterion. Lavender is the most potent source of aromatherapy essential oils and is recommended to be used in the vial containing the jewellery. Though most of the pendants in the necklace comes chosen by the retailer there are options of jewels wherein the socket is left open for the user to insert essential oil of his or her choice. This allows for you to choose and exhibit and exhale and inhale the fragrance of your choice. These are called diffuser pendant necklaces and are available widely. Apart from the physical beauty this form of aromatherapy jewellery provides it also acts as a stress reliever and allows you to remain at calm and peace when the situation demands it. All in all, aromatherapy jewellery could be termed as a cosmetic that heals with fragrance while looking good.

To receive a ‘Hallmark’ items of precious metal must undergo tests carried out by the ‘Assay’ office. This is done to ascertain if the object’s content of precious metal meets the standard requirements of purity.

Forms of marking precious metal objects were around from the Byzantine period in the early part of the first millennium A.D. However, it was under the rule of king Edward I of England, known as ‘Longshanks' due to his size, that hallmarking was first established.

The term ‘Hallmark' comes from ‘Mark of the Hall of Goldsmiths’ in London, who in 1327 were the first official ‘Assay’ hallmarking office decreed by parliament to control the standard of precious metals circulating in the British Isles. To this day they still operate one of four authorized assay offices in Britain.

Before items made of precious metals such as silver, gold or platinum are stamped with an ‘Assay’s’ hallmark they undergo rigorous testing to prove whether or not the metal purity measures up to the established standards. In fact, the word ‘Assay’ is derived from the French word meaning to test, trail or examine.

The basic method of assaying, also known as the 'Cupellation' process, was first introduced by the ancient Egyptians. The process starts when a small sample of silver is removed from the object to be tested, which is then carefully weighed and measured. The sample of silver is then placed in a ‘Cupel’, a small receptacle made of bone ash, along with a small quantity of lead. This is then placed in a furnace and heated to a high temperature with a draught of air flowing over it. The lead and any other base metals contained in the silver sample are either oxidized or absorbed into the ‘Cupel', leaving only the pure silver behind.

The remains of the silver are then weighed and measured and compared to the initial weight of the sample. The ‘Cupellation’ process is the most accurate method for determining metal purity and is the standard technique practiced today. Upon meeting the required standards of sterling silver the item of sterling is stamped with the appropriate hallmark.

Until quite recently, most Hallmarks were ‘Struck' using steel punches. The punches are produced in various proportions, appropriate for petite pieces of jewelry to hefty items of silver ware. Punches are made in straight shanks for normal punching with a hammer, or ring shanks used with a press to mark rings.

The trouble with traditional punching is that the procedure can misshape the form of the jewelry, resulting in the article having to be reworked after hallmarking is completed. For this reason, unfinished items of jewelry are often sent to the assay office where cuts-offs are taken and tested from the articles before hallmarking is executed.

Today, a new method of marking is being employed using laser technology, which burns the hallmark on to the jewelry, something which is especially valuable for delicate items which would otherwise be damaged by the traditional technique of punching. This procedure of hallmarking uses high power lasers to dissolve material from the metal surface. There are two methods of laser marking, 2D and 3D, 2 dimensional marking, which burns the outline of the hallmarks into the object, while 3 dimensional marking simulates the traditional punching.

Often the hallmark is made up of several elements including: the type of metal, the maker and the year of the marking. In 1999 a new format of English hallmarking on objects of sterling silver was initiated consisting of a maker’s mark, the assay office insignia and a 925 symbol. Optional extra marks are the ‘Lion Passant’, the UK sign of sterling silver, and the date letter stamp.

The standardizing of the date letter sequence, shared by all four remaining assay offices in Birmingham, Edinburgh, London and Sheffield, were introduced to bring the UK system closer in line with other European Union standards. However, the problem remains that many countries throughout the world have different standards and specifications that vary considerably, making it difficult for one country to accept another's hallmarking as equivalent to its own.

With the advent of globalization, ‘Free trade’ and the Internet, finding the problematic solution to the standardization of world hallmarking has become increasingly important. In 1972, the EFTA (European Fair Trade Association) consisting of Austria, Finland, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom held the ‘Vienna Convention,’ where the first European hallmarking laws for precious metals were put into force.

The convention enables specially designated assay offices throughout member countries of the EFTA to apply, after testing, a common control mark to articles of precious metals including sterling silver in accordance with the Convention. The articles bearing the Convention marks, called CCM: Common Control Marks, are accepted without further testing or marking by the assay office of any destination country that is an EFTA member.

Although this system is not worldwide as yet, Denmark, Ireland, the Czech Republic and the Netherlands have since joined the Convention. And Bahrain, France, Israel, Lithuania, Poland, Spain and several Eastern European countries have shown an interest in the Convention and are preparing for application.