I haven't posted to this blog in a while and I must admit that things at The Karat Patch have been very busy.  The time I spend typing some of my jeweler's jibberish has been better spent on more profitable things. 

In the past months a lot of things have been changing in the jewelry industry.  The 'blue topaz scare' has now blossomed into all-out 'gemstone paranioa'.  Every periodical and trade publication now has an article about new fears among the colored stone dealers and distributors of the world concerning treatments, enhancements and reproductions of almost every type and specie of gem.  It's becoming ESSENTIAL that every person who is paying money for gems, from the trader to the consumer, to know the person with whom they are dealing, and trust that person implicitly.  Gone are the days I think when a man's word was his bond.  *very sad*

I have noticed that not much of this new fear has caught the attention of the media just yet, but it's only a matter of time until they will be putting that fear into the hearts and minds of the consuming public.   As long as there are ways to be deceived, there will be deceptive people who will try to profit.  Most folks understand that by the time we find out that we have been deceived, many others have already fallen victim.  I suppose that is why so many agencies are working so hard to regulate so much.

I suppose too, that we will have the long hot summer to figure out just what we might be able to sell when the fall comes around.  You'll remember from previous entries that the sale of blue topaz was completely shut down in the wake of the discovery that importors did not have the proper paperwork authorizing distribution.  It makes me wonder how many gems could fall victim to that same kind of discrimination if things got to that point when our biggest selling season rolls around.  It's a very scary proposition.