Opal- A fascinating gem!

by Brendan Gryg | Feb 15, 2024 | Australian Opals, Uncategorized

Australian opals are renowned worldwide for their vibrant and unique play-of-color, making them one of the most sought-after opals globally. Opals are a type of mineraloid composed of hydrated silica, and their characteristic play-of-colour arises from the diffraction of light within the microscopic silica spheres that make up the stone.

Here are some key points about Australian opals:

1. Types of Australian Opals:
– *Black Opal:*
Mined primarily in Lightning Ridge, New South Wales Australia. Black opals are known for their dark body tone, which enhances the brilliance of their play-of-colour.
– *White Opal:*
These opals have a lighter body tone and are found in various locations, including Coober Pedy in South Australia and Mintabie in the Northern Territory.
– *Crystal Opal:*
Characterized by a transparent to semi-transparent body, crystal opals showcase a play-of-colour against a clear or translucent background. They are found in various Australian opal fields.

2. Play-of-Colour:
– The mesmerizing play-of-colour is the most distinctive feature of opals. It can include a wide spectrum of colours, and the patterns can vary from pinpricks of light to broad flashes.

3. Opal Fields in Australia:
– Australia is home to several opal fields, each producing opals with unique characteristics. Notable fields include Lightning Ridge (New South Wales), Coober Pedy (South Australia), Andamooka (South Australia), and Mintabie (Northern Territory).

4. Mining Methods:
– Opals are mined using various methods, including open-cut mining, underground mining, and tunneling. Coober Pedy is famous for its underground mining, where miners dig tunnels to extract opals.

5. Ethiopian Opals:
– While Australia has long been the main source of high-quality opals, Ethiopia has emerged as another significant producer of opals, including precious and fire opals.

6. Opal Treatments:
– Some Non-Australian opals may undergo treatments to enhance their appearance or stability. Common treatments include impregnation with a colorless resin to improve durability.

7. Cultural Significance:
– Opals hold cultural significance for Indigenous Australians. They are often associated with dreamtime stories and are considered a symbol of good luck and spiritual connection.

8. Opal Jewellery:
– Australian opals are widely used in jewellery, including rings, earrings, pendants, and necklaces. The unique and individual characteristics of each opal make them prized gems in the world of jewellery.

When buying Australian opals, it’s essential to purchase from reputable dealers and to be aware of factors such as colour, clarity, size, and overall quality to ensure you get a genuine, beautiful and unique coloured stone.

What is the process of resizing a ring?

by Brendan Gryg | Feb 15, 2024 | Services, Uncategorized

Resizing a ring involves adjusting its size to fit the wearer’s finger properly. Here is a general overview of the process:

1. Determine the New Size:
– Measure the wearer’s finger size to determine the desired size for the resized ring. Professional jewellers use sizing tools or mandrels to accurately measure finger size.

2. Consult a Professional Jeweller:
– Take the ring to a reputable jeweller with experience in resizing. It’s crucial to work with a skilled professional to ensure the integrity of the ring is maintained.

3. Assessment:
– The jeweller will examine the ring’s design, materials, and structure to determine if resizing is feasible. Some rings, particularly those with intricate designs or set gemstones, may have limitations on resizing.

4. Cutting or Adding Material:
– For resizing smaller, the jeweller may cut a small section of the ring’s shank (the band that goes around the finger) and then solder the ends back together.
– For resizing larger, the jeweller may add a piece of metal to the shank. This process involves cutting the shank, inserting a piece of matching metal, and soldering it securely.

5. Soldering:
– The jeweller uses a high-temperature torch to carefully solder the metal pieces together. This requires skill to avoid damaging any gemstones or altering the appearance of the ring.

6. Refinishing:
– After resizing, the jeweller will polish and refinish the ring to restore its original appearance. This step may involve removing any scratches, re-plating if necessary, and giving the ring a clean finish.

7. Gemstone Resetting (if applicable):
– If the ring has gemstones, they may need to be removed and reset after the resizing process. This ensures that the stones are secure and undamaged during the resizing.

8. Final Inspection:
– The jeweller conducts a final inspection to ensure that the resizing was successful and that the ring meets the quality standards.

It’s important to note that not all rings can be resized, especially those with intricate designs, tension settings, or certain gemstones. Consult with a professional jeweller to determine the best course of action for your specific ring.

Learn About BECKS

by Brendan Gryg | Sep 12, 2023 | Wedding Rings

Who are BECKS?

Established in 1976, BECKS (formally known as Peter W Beck) is a well known South Australian wedding ring and bangle manufacturer. They pride themselves with products that are both innovative in design and made to the highest quality standards. Here at Allgem Jewellers, we gladly offer the BECKS RANGE to our clientele both in store and online.

What do they offer?

They have wedding ring designs to compliment all styles. Whether you’re looking for a ring with a comfort focus, or a ring that makes everyone say WOW, you’ll absolutely find what you’re looking for within BECKS RANGE. They also have a dress ring and bangle collection too!

Browse our BECKS RANGE menu to view all the incredible designs available. Read the descriptions for all the information you will need to find your perfect jewellery piece.

Receive a complimentary laser engraving on any new BECKS ring or bangle order!

Term's and conditions apply. 
Selected "STANDARD FONTS" 
and heart engravings only. 
Additional charge for 
"EXPRESS YOURSELF" laser 
engravings. 
Enquire for more information.

Metal Types Available

9ct YELLOW/ROSE/WHITE Gold – 37.5% Pure Gold

10ct YELLOW/ROSE/WHITE Gold – 41.7% Pure Gold

14ct YELLOW/ROSE/WHITE Gold – 58.5% Pure Gold

18ct YELLOW/ROSE/WHITE Gold – 75.0%% Pure Gold

22ct YELLOW Gold – 91.6% Pure Gold

Palladium

Platinum

Titanium

Zirconium

Sterling Silver

Finishes

Don’t like the look of a traditional polished finish? BECKS offers 19 different finishes you can choose from!

View the list below:

Standard (Polished)

Brush Coarse

Brush Fine

Ultra Fine Brush

Matt

Grain Parallel

Fine Grain Parallel

Ultra Fine Grain Parallel

Pearl

Cobble Stone

Cross Hatch

Scratch

Silk

Satin

Satin Cross

Sparkle

Bark Cross

Bark Parallel

Diamond Cut

Please note that not all of these finishes can be applied to every design. Please enquire for more information.

We have samples of these finishes in store for viewing.

How to organise a Quote:

Each item listed under the BECKS RANGE on our website will state the types of metal, width, thickness, finish, and size that particular design can be made in. Read the description section on the product’s page to get this information.

You need to supply the following details for us to workout a quote.

– Listing title (E.g. Classic Wedders – (High Dome Edge) HDE2, HDE3 & HDE3.J)
– Width and thickness
– Finger size
– Metal type or combination of metals
– Finish type (E.g. Polished, Fine Grain, Cobblestone, etc…)

We recommend that you organise your custom piece a month or two before you need it. Most of BECKS range can made through Allgem Jewellers within 10 – 21 business days but ALWAYS plan ahead in case of a delay!

Submit your quote here or enquire via the products’ page.

Learn about Australian Opals!

by Brendan Gryg | May 24, 2023 | Australian Opals, Uncategorized

This article educates the reader about what opals actually are. Read how to differentiate opal types and values, plus discover some fun opal facts!

Learn About Opal

Buy Opal Here

Know The Difference Between Solid, Doublet and Triplet Opals

SOLID OPAL

(The whole stone is a solid piece of genuine opal)

DOUBLET OPAL

(A slice of genuine opal glued onto a black backing)

TRIPLET OPAL

(a thin slice of genuine opal glued in between a black backing and clear quartz capping)

Solid stable opal can be worn as daily jewellery and in water. Unstable, treated, enhanced, doublet or triplet opals are best to avoid water or harsh chemicals.

What is Opal?

Opal is a form of hydrated silica (SiO₂·nH₂O). This silica “gel” fills small fissures/voids within the Earth which creates opal once hardened. Each precious opal contains an average of 6-10% of water and an organised array of silica spheres/voids. A regular arrangement of these silica spheres/voids diffract white light breaking it into different colour spectrum. The diameter and spacing of them determines the colour range of the opal. Small spheres produce the colour blue. Whereas large spheres produce red. If the spheres/voids are irregularly arranged, too small or absent, this type of common opal will have no colour and is called potch.

Types of Australian Opal

BLACK OPAL

Black opal is the most rare and valuable. It produces the best play of colour. It comes from mainly Lightning Ridge in New South Wales. You can distinguish black opal by the blackness of the background known as body tone.

You can also get a slightly lighter body tone variety called Dark or Grey Opal. These can be found in Mintabie and Lightning Ridge.

WHITE OPAL

White opal is a common and more affordable form of opal. It can be found at all Australian opal fields but the bulk of it comes from South Australian fields such as Coober Pedy, Mintabie and Andamooka. It was also mine in White Cliffs back in 1887. White opal is distinguished by the lightness of the body tone.

CRYSTAL OPAL

Crystal Opal is a transparent form of opal. High quality stones can show a distinct play of colour, even better when against a surface such as jewellery metals or against skin when worn. You can get crystal opal in both black and white body tones. It can be found in most Australian opal fields.

BOULDER OPAL

Boulder opal is unique as it naturally forms on a host rock. It sometimes is referred to as “a natural doublet opal”. It is mined predominantly in Queensland opal fields. You can distinguish boulder by the brown iron stone host rock attached to the opal. It can share the same darkness and brilliance as high quality black opal.

MATRIX OPAL

There are two types of Australian matrix opal. Boulder matrix opal is found in Queensland. It is intimately diffused with the brown iron stone resembling a glitter appearance on a dark background. Andamooka matrix opal has the opal intimately diffused with sandstone. This resembles a glitter appearance on a light background if left untreated. However, this type of matrix opal is very often treated to turn the material dark and enhance the colours to make it resemble black opal.

FIRE OPAL

Australian fire opal is formed exothermically rather than sedimentary which the other Australian opals are. It is found near Kalgoorlie in Western Australia. It was only recently discovered in 2013 so mining is very limited. It is very transparent so it is often faceted rather than cabochon-cut and polished. The colours range from clear to red with a minimal play of colour compared to the other Australian opals.

Determining Opal Value

BRIGHTNESS

The brightness of colours is the most important factor in determining an opals value. The brighter the opal, the higher the value. It is graded using a scale from B1 to B9. B1 one is the most brilliant colour, where as B9 is a dull colour.

BODY TONE

The body tone is the background of the opal. A darker background is of higher value than a lighter one. It is graded using a scale from N1 to N9. N1 to N4 is considered black opal. N5 to N6 is considered grey opal. N7 to N9 is considered white opal.

COLOURS

The number of different colours can greatly affect the price. An opal containing every colour can be more valuable than one displaying only one or two. An opal changing to a contrasting colour, such as RED to GREEN, will have a higher value too.

PATTERN

There are many patterns opal can come in. Some much more rare than others. A geometric shaped pattern called harequin is the most rare and valuable. Other unique patterns such as broadflash, chaff, chinese writing, and mackeral also have great value.

SHAPE

Cabochon-cut opals typically will have a higher value than opals with a flat surface. Free form shapes are gaining popularity due to its’ more distinctive designs.

MARKS

Most opals will have sand in the back of the stones. This usually doesn’t affect value. However, marks or natural inclusions that are fairly noticeable to the face of the opal can affect the value.

History of Opal

Opal was first established as a gemstone by the Romans during the trading era. It was originally believed to be found in India so the Romans named it “Opalus” based on the ancient Indian word “Upala” meaning precious stone. Opal was valued above all other precious stones and quickly earned the nickname “The Queen of Gems”.

A lot of the early sort after opal came from open-cut mines in Hungary. These opals were the only source of opal in Europe until the Spaniards returned with fine Aztec opal samples from the New World. During the great depression the demand for opal diminished and the Hungarian open-cut mines closed for a period of time and reopened again as underground mines. The discovery of Australian opal was originally suppressed because the Hungarian mines couldn’t believe opal with such brilliance could exist and deemed it to be fake.

The first Australian common opal was discovered by Johannes Menge, in 1849, near Angaston (South Australia). Mining of precious opal began at White Cliffs (New South Wales) in 1890, Opalton (Queensland) in 1896, and Lightning Ridge (NSW) in 1905.

Opal was discovered at Coober Pedy (South Australia) in 1915 by a teenage boy prospecting for gold with his father. Mining began around 1920 and Andamooka (SA) began mining in 1930.

In 2013, fire opal was discovered approximately 600kms north of Kalgoorlie, Western Australia. It is Australia’s only exothermically formed opal. Mining is still becoming established.

Australia is currently producing more than 95% of the World’s opals. Other sources of opal come from Mexico, America, Brazil, Indonesia, Ethiopia, Peruvia, Slovakia, Tanzania and Honduras.

Myths and Facts About Opals

Myth: Opals are bad luck.

Fact: When opals were first discovered in Australia, diamond traders were concerned opals would become more popular than diamonds due to the unique brilliance our opals have. To make sure this didn’t happen they got their wives to spread a “Wives Tale”. Opal has actually been considered to bring good luck to the wearer and has been prized by many civilisations. Top quality Australian black opal can actually have a higher price per carat than diamonds!

Myth: All opals can’t get wet.

Fact: Solid stable opal can get wet! This myth was derived from the production of assembled opals such as doublets and triplets. These opals can discolour or separate if routinely submerged in hot soapy water. This happens due to the glue dissolving. Unstable opal (opal with visible cracks inside it) can be further damaged if consistently being taken in and out of water. This type of opal is best to be stored as a collectable specimen in a jar with water to keep it hydrated.

Myth: Opals are too fragile for jewellery.

Fact: Opal is 5.5-6.5 on the Mohs scale which is between the hardness of glass and steel. Yes it is on the softer side but with proper aftercare they will make wonderful additions to your jewellery collection! Just like all jewellery… you should avoid wearing them during hard labour, exercising, cleaning, gardening or any other rough activities you risk impacting the opal with hard surfaces. Remember, you can still break a diamond so treat ALL jewellery with care.

View Entire Opal Range Here