Jewellery is a gift that is truly universal - something that can be given for just about any occasion, and something that has real meaning to it. If someone gives you jewellery as a gift, you feel touched, emotional, sometimes even overwhelmed. It's amazing to think that such small items can stir such powerful emotions, but this is something that happens all the time. You can bet that during every hour of every day, someone somewhere in the world is gazing open-mouthed at a beautiful piece of jewellery that has been given to them by someone special - perhaps an engagement ring, an elegant necklace or the perfect pair of earrings.

Of course, it's not just men that buy jewellery for women any longer as it was in years long gone by. These days, jewellery makes a popular gift for men as well, and many women choose to give rings, cufflinks, watches and other popular items of jewellery to the beloved men in their lives. Giving jewellery means that you can give a gift that actually speaks without words, and this is probably why jewels have been a hugely popular form of gift since ancient times.

Why buy jewellery online?

Since the explosion of the Internet, most products have become available to customers online, and jewellery is no exception. Modern technological advancements mean that it is no longer necessary for us to go scouring through every jewellery shop on the high street to find the perfect gift. We can now enjoy doing this from the comfort of our own homes, giving us more time to browse and compare the options open to us. Buying jewellery online offers many benefits, such as:

* Choice: There is certainly no shortage of choice on the Internet, and you will find a wide range of jewellery at your disposal. This means that you can browse a wide selection of jewels until you find the perfect gift with which to surprise a loved one.
* Convenience: Gone are the days when the local High Street jewellers was the only viable option if we wanted to get the perfect piece of jewellery in a short space of time. When you buy jewellery online, you can browse, order and pay from the comfort of your own home, and your chosen piece will then be shipped out to you safely and quickly. This means that you still have choice, however short of time you are. And, you don't even have to leave your home to get the perfect gift.
* Saving time: We all lead busy lifestyles these days, and you simply may not have the time to troop from shop to shop looking for the perfect piece of jewellery. When you buy jewellery online you can benefit from speed and ease, and you aren't restricted to looking within certain times, as you would be with a bricks-and-mortar shop.
* Affordability: When you buy jewellery online, you will benefit from far more choice, which in turn means that you are far more likely to find something within your budget. There are some really good quality jewellery products available online, and you can get these at a huge reduction compared to High Street prices. Online jewellers don't have the same overheads and running costs as their bricks-and-mortar counterparts, which means that they can afford to offer a bigger saving to their customers.

What sort of jewellery can you buy online?

These days it is possible to get just about every type of jewellery you can imagine online. You can even request custom-made jewellery, so if you can't find exactly what you are looking for you can simply get it made. Whether you are looking for engagement rings, wedding bands, necklaces, earrings, brooches, ankle bracelets, or any other type of jewellery, you will find a vast selection at your disposal when you buy jewellery online.

And you don't need to worry about "buying blind" when you buy jewellery online, because most quality sites provide totally accurate description and excellent photographs of each product, so you can get a real look at it before you commit to a purchase. Plus, of course, online jewellery stores accept returns and exchanges in the same was as High Street jewellery stores do, so you won't be compromising any of your statutory right when you buy jewellery online.

Whatever the occasion, buying jewellery online will prove effective, convenient, fast, safe and easy. Your chosen piece of jewellery will be delivered right to your door, and you can often request that it is gift-wrapped before it even arrives! It's never been easier to get the perfect gift of jewellery at an affordable, great value cost.

In summary

Buying all manner of products online is not the future any longer - it is the present. Online purchasing has become one of the most popular methods of shopping, and with the choice available to consumers it makes sense to buy your jewellery online. Whatever time of day or night, you can take your time to browse through the various products on offer from online jewellery stores, and when you are ready you can simply place your order and wait for it to arrive - no pressure, no rush, it's all done at your own pace and in your own time.

And you don't have to worry about security issues when you buy jewellery online. The advanced software used by websites these days means that monetary transactions are perfectly safe, so you can pay for your purchase by credit or debit card without having to concern yourself about a breach in security.

Buying jewellery from online jewellery stores can save you time, hassle and money, so why make more work for yourself by driving out and trundling from one shop to the next? You can now give the perfect, beautiful gift of jewellery to a loved one without even leaving the house - and you can benefit from a far wider selection and far better value with online affordable jewellery.

Men and women have worn costume jewellery since the Romans developed the ability to cut glass imitations of precious gemstones. Jewellery was worn to enhance appearance, display wealth and affirm love, friendship and loyalty. The reasons for wearing jewellery remain the same today, but the popularity of styles changes. Vintage costume jewellery is experiencing a revival these days as sparkling vintage rhinestone brooches are roaring back in style. Here are a few things you’ll need to know to help you pick out the right pieces.

What is it.

Costume jewellery is defined as jewellery that is made from non-precious materials such as cut glass.

Parures.

It is a set that includes a necklace, brooch and pair of earrings.

Demi-parures.

It includes a brooch and a pair of earrings.

Missing Stones.

Steer clear of an item with any missing stones. They are very difficult to replace.

Faux Pearls.

Watch closely any pieces with faux pearls because they chip easily and these chips cannot be fixed. Also, soap, cream and perfume can erode faux pearls.

Enamel.

Pieces with enamel can cause problems. Small areas of enamel damage can be retouched but large areas are very difficult to repair.

Condition Matters.

Good condition is important with vintage costume jewellery. Pin clasps that don’t work, hinges that are suspect may not be replaceable because they may no longer be made. Before you purchase, double check that all the pieces are in original condition and in good working order.

Names to Look For.

The biggest name in Canada for vintage costume jewellery is Sherman and it was usually signed. Other makers to be on the look out for are Trifari, Coro, Schreiner, Hobe and Schiaparelli.

Care.

Once you’ve found something you like, you’ll want to take good care of it. Store your vintage costume jewellery separately in small plastic bags to guard against scratching.

Where To Find Great Vintage Costume Jewellery.

Antique shops, flea markets, garage sales and Ebay are all good sources for vintage costume jewellery.

Value.

Prices range from under $20 for unsigned pieces to much more for signed sought-after pieces, parures and demi-parures.

You like jewellery and you think you can sell it. Yes but on Google there are about 46,000,000 web pages under jewellery. That’s a lot of competition! I believe that retail jewellery is about as close to perfect competition as you can find. In perfect competition on average you will find that businesses will only make the profit to pay back for the risk they are taking. If they can make more than this hungry new competitors will come and take that profit. That is on average. The most professional businesses will make the profit and the amateurs will take a loss.

We get 5 new potential customers a day looking to buy from us. Many of them wanting to start a home business

I run a wholesale jewellery business. If a relative of mine suggested starting an online jewellery business, I would advise them not to, and that is with the advantage of any favours I may give them.

Don’t think it’s easy.

You have got to find (or make) the goods to sell.

You have to take photographs. Jewellery isn’t easy to photograph well. Nobody would buy jewellery from my photographs, even after buying a professional digital camera and a proper jeweller’s light box. You have to produce a web-site. That’s quite easy, yes. But you need a shopping cart. Which one, buy the wrong one and your jewellery looks awful.

But your photographs aren’t the right size for the shopping cart, and oh they take so long to download.

How to get customers? Again easy submit your pages to Google, Yahoo etc. and the shoppers will come flooding in. Three weeks, nothing. Type in www.mynewjewelleryventure.com into Google and they haven’t even listed it yet. Grrh!

Friend says you have to link to other sites to get listed quickly in Google. You send out loads of messages to high ranking websites. No response, back. You ask your friend why there was no response to your friendly letter. "Ah!" She replies, "you haven’t got a Google Page Rank so you are no use to them." Talk about chickens and their eggs.

Finally Google lists you. Your friend suggests you buy advertising on Google Adwords and Yahoo Overture. It only costs 10p a click. You send off your money and people start to visit your site. One sends you an email and asks. "I like your monkey brooch it’s very nice. How do I pay?" You ask for a cheque please. "But I want it for Friday" she replies, "don’t you accept cards!" Your email saying that you’re a new business and don’t accept cards yet doesn’t receive a reply.

No new enquiries from Google. Why, they still have my money! Friend suggests checking their site. Your advert for "Jewellery" has been suspended. Thanks for telling me, Google. ( Google is a very respectable search engine, you just have to know how to the system works. It would help their business greatly if they advised newbie’s more what to do. )

Still no orders, you have to decide whether to pay more money to get the merchant account etc. etc. necessary to take credit card payments securely online.

Finally a cheque but to get to it you have to open the magazine-cut free the glued sheets of paper. To get the money into your bank you have to cash an Irish Grammar Schools cheque and send the goods to Nigeria. Do you?

PS We do have customers who have made a success of selling jewellery online.

Two of the most frequently asked questions we get at the Online Jewelry Appraisal Center is:

"How do I sell an item of Antique or Estate Jewelry?" or... "How much should I ask for it?"

Very often people receive an item as a 'Hand Down' or 'Bequest' after someone has passed away. It may or may not be worth something, or the person 'Just doesn't like it'....

So what to do?

# RULE 1: Take back control.

The Antique Trade in general are a Fine and Trusting lot, but there are always the 'Shyster' or 'Fagin' characters out there.

In this case it's not Buyer Beware, but Seller Beware...

Sometimes the Second-Hand Dealers or Pawn Brokers (all of whom have a great general knowledge on Buying and Selling) may not QUITE know what your particular item is really worth.

So the first thing to do is get your item appraised and valued by a qualified gemologist (if there are gemstones involved) and/or a member of the local Valuers association. Your local, TRUSTED Jeweler might be both.

It is greatly suggested that the person you obtain a valuation from, is NOT INVOLVED IN THE PURCHASE OF THE ITEM.

But a further word of advice is given here too...

Let these people know 'WHAT YOU WANT THE VALUATION FOR'.

There are several TYPES of Valuation and all will have a different price on the bottom line.

Did you want an Insurance valuation?

Did you want to sell the item to a third party?

Did you wish to sell the item through an Auction?

Did you just want to know what it would fetch?

All of these are very valid points, yet all are different.

If you are not sure which applies to your particular situation, why not check our very helpfull information section on 'TYPES OF VALUATIONS' at the Online Jewelry Appraisal Centre (address shown below).

If you don't want to go to a great expense, you might take advantage of the useful 'Do it Yourself' ONLINE Valuation Self Appraisal Kit. At such a low fee (less than the price of a Big Mac and Coke) it's money well spent. Indeed, if you just purchased something on eBay or Yahoo auctions for example, you might wish to confirm an approximate value by using this easy to use valuation kit.

The 'walk through' instructions are so easy my 6yr old Granddaughter completed the form in under ten minutes. (She had it all wrong of course) but it was under ten minutes.

'Just Kidding...' It couldn't be simpler.

My other Granddaughter (Rachael was eight) did it easy AND correct!

So if you recently bought something from a local Dealer, on the Market or at the Antique Fair, why not get it checked. What's the worst that could happen? You blow some loose change - Not much of a Risk, is it?

At this price it's a Bargain, plus there are many other advantages to having your Jewelry done at the Online Jewelry Appraisal Center.

# RULE 2: Pick your Market.

What do we mean by this is:

Are you in a hurry to Cash something in? Do you have the time to 'Try, Try again...' should something NOT sell the first time around? What are the costs involved? How about selling something 'On Consignment?'

Auction Houses are a great way to sell your Jewelry, but even the best of them have costs. Find out BEFORE you sell.

Selling on Consignment is another good method, as you should get more money from the sale than if you sold it directly to an Antique Dealer. BUT IT MIGHT TAKE MORE TIME.

Are the Classified Ads in the local paper worth doing?

In our experience... NO! Plus you have the extra security problem associated with someone coming to your Home to inspect the goods - 'And Check out all your other stuff too.'

It's just not Worth it...

There are several other SPECIAL REPORTS available through our eMail-on-Demand subscription box at the website, so please take some time to visit.

There is a timely warning on Security issues. It's good advice, plus there is some great tips on Investing in Jewelry, Insurance guidelines and other notes on selling, Hallmarking tips etc, and they are being added to all the time.

And the best bit is they are FREE....

Thank you for taking the time to read this special report. If you thought it interesting, useful or found it helped you in any way I would appreciate your comments via email at the address shown below.

This is my personal email address and I read every comment - good or bad.

Alternatively: why not pass it on to a friend. I'm sure you can think of someone who might benefit from this useful information. Treat it as doing me a big favor. I will certainly appreciate it.

Jewelry the dominator of many moods, how a piece of body decoration can change and alter a persons image is remarkable? Take the birth stone a coloured precious jewel representing the month you were born hence birth signs horoscopes etc. Then we have the pendant locket encompassing a photo of a loved one parted or present.

100% top of the list for popularity has to be the ring.

Many organizations symbolize memberships and identities of their followers with the wearing of a ring. But the most famous piece of warm gold or cool silver is the wedding band with the eternity and engagement ring trailing behind. Why you ask? Do these lag behind; they both represent friendship and togetherness, unlike the gold wedding band which goes further in bonding two people together for ever.

Diamonds are a girl's best friend and that of the man also. The male takes fashion and Jewelry just as serious as the female species and why would they not.

How a pair of pearl peepers placed onto the lobe of the ear can transform that figure hugging little black number. Glimpse how the bronze medallion swinging between an open neck shirt can transform the appearance of the male.

When buying Jewelry remember, wrong choice wrong image wrong you so be careful and take your time when deciding on what to purchase.

Most heirlooms today come in the form of Jewelry, grandmothers cameo brooch, grandads cuff links mum or dads wedding ring. Jewelry will always hold fond memories for a great many of us and it's funny how you never forget where that particular piece came from. So if you want to be remembered give a piece of Jewelry

Then we have the not so sweet memories when the glitter turns to bitter (Divorce)

Bling Bling clusters of sparkling precious stones assist and help elegance to protrude through especially when mounted on a 9ct gold band. Mans signet ring can alter the image of the male hand expressing masculinity

The male/female is only half dressed unless adorned with jewellery. Next time when shopping in a Jewelry store do not go over the top like Mr T from the A team. Too many accessories will spoil the whole look of any outfit thus marring your whole image.

If you are out to attract the opposite sex or keep the companion you have then it is all about beauty. Remember beauty lies in the eye of the beholder so let the beholder be you when looking for gold or silver.

Jewelry speaks in volumes about you and your personality so we do not want to give the wrong impression. Let the diamonds emeralds sapphires and rubies do all the talking. People will get to know you with out you even opening your mouth.