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An extensive glossary of terms
relating to Jewelry and General Merchandise that will impress any
veteran in the trade. We have covered every Jewelry Trade term
including Precious Metals, Genuine Semi-precious Stones, Precious
Gems, Jewelry Making & Jeweler's References in the assembly of
all types of jewelry through out the history of human kind. We have
exposed Jewelry Fashion Industry words that cover close to the whole
gamut of the fashion accessory industry and some of the styles in
each period of history. |
Faberge: Legendary Russian goldsmith and jeweler to the
Czars of Russia who created ornate gifts, notably a series of
jeweled and enameled Easter eggs for European royalty.
Facet: Facets are the small flat surfaces of a polished
diamond or
gemstone. These polished, flat planes are a major determining factor in
enhancing the diamond's ability to sparkle
or reflect light.
Faceted: A gemstone carved with a regular pattern of many
planes, or "facets".
"Facets of Fire": Keepsake's patented diamond cut with 74
facets that
gives off more light and greater scintillation than a round-cut
diamond.
Faith Ring: See Fede Ring.
False Topaz: A name for yellow quartz.
Family Jewelry: Jewelry embellished with the name and
birthstone of a member of the family, or sometimes just the
birthstone. See also Mother's Rings.
Fancy Cut: A term used for gems that are
cut in a shape other than
the standard round-cut, such as single cut,
marquise, emerald,
pear, heart,
oval, square,
baguette, triangle, etc.
Also called fancy shape.
Fancy Diamond: A diamond found in a color other than
white, including yellow, blue, green, red, and purple.
Fancy Jasper: An opaque gemstone, the stone varying in shade from a
pastel green to forest green, pink to purple-red and yellow-gold in color, frequently
in the same stone.
Fancy shapes: Gemstones cut in any way other than round-cut.
Another term for Fancy cut.
Fantasy Cut: Stones cut in fancy shapes. See Fancy cut
Faux: (Pronounced like "foe") French word meaning false, fake, imitation or artificial.
In a manufacturing context, faux is used to indicate something made to resemble something else. Faux
marble looks like marble. Faux bois looks like wood. Faux porphyry looks like stone.
Feather: A kind of inclusion in a
diamond, usually only a tiny crack. Although they may have no affect on the strength or
beauty of the diamond whatsoever, these feathers, or “fissures” as they are
sometimes called, can make a stone more fragile and susceptible to
cracking depending on the depth or location.
Fede rings: (or "Faith rings") Are distinguished by having the bezel cut or cast in the form
of two clasped hands, symbolizing faith, trust or "plighted
troth". Fede rings date from Roman times and were popular in the Middle Ages throughout Europe.
Feitsui: The Chinese name for a highly prized variety of
pale green jade; the royal stone of China.
Feldspar: A family of minerals which are all silicates
of alumina with either potash, soda,
or lime.
They're usually white or nearly white, flesh-red, bluish, or
greenish, and occur in crystals and crystalline masses, vitreous
in luster, and breaking rather easily in two directions at right
angles to each other. The feldspars are essential constituents of
nearly all crystalline rocks, such as
Granite, gneiss,
mica, slate,
most kinds of basalt and trachyte, etc.
Fetish: An amulet, pendant or charm, often representing an animal
or person, believed to have magical power to protect or aid its owner.
Fetish Necklace: A necklace with shell and/or
turquoise beads
that has charms in the shape of small animals or birds along
it's length.
Fibula: An ancient and often ornamented clasp or brooch
used in ancient Greece and Rome to fasten clothing. It usually
consists of piece of bowed metal with a pin connected to one end
with a hinge. The pin is pushed through the clothing to hold it
together and is secured into the other end of the bow behind a
catch plate. A
fibula is sometimes referred to as a ‘safety-pin brooch’.
Filigree: A design made with thin wire intricately
interlaced or bent into rosettes, spirals, or vines. The wire is
typically gold or silver and may be plain, twisted, or plaited.
There are two major styles of filigree. The first is to solder the
wire to a metal base. This style was used in Byzantine,
Carolingian, Ottonian, Roman, Anglo-Saxon, and 13th century German
and Italian jewelry. The second style is to leave the wire as an
openwork design without a metal backing, which is characteristic
of European jewelry until the 15th century. Filigree was used on Jewish marriage
rings as well as
Spanish and Portuguese peasant jewelry. In England it is found
on some mourning rings.
Filigree Enamel: A type of decoration similar to cloisonné enameling
but having the cloisons made
of twisted wire, (rather than flat strips of metal), soldered to the
base and filled in with opaque enamel. After the powdered enamel
in the spaces is fused and, upon cooling, has contracted, the wire
shows above the surface.
Figaro Chain: Similar in style to a curb link
chain, but the links alternate between
a long one and three round ones instead of uniform links.
Figogucci Chain: A mariner link chain where the links are twisted and
diamond-cut so they lie flat like a curb link chain.
Figure 8 safety catch: A type of safety catch in which a
hinged wire in the shape of a figure eight snaps over a pin. The
wide end of the eight connects at the bottom to the hinge, and the
smaller end of the eight slips over the pin to hold the clasp
closed.
Fimo: A German-made polymer clay that comes in over 30
colors and can be hardened by baking in a standard oven. Beads
made from fimo have become popular in modern jewelry.
Findings: All types of construction components used
in jewelry making such as clasps,
pins, hooks, tabs, etc.
Fine Condition: A piece in Fine Condition may show extremely slight wear,
but not enough to have developed a patina.
Finial: A sculptured ornamental knob, often in the shape
of a leaf, flower, or fleur-de-lys, at the terminal end of an
object.
Finish: The way the surface of a piece is polished or
textured. The finish of a diamond refers to the polish on
the external surface of a diamond. When a diamond or stone is well
cut and polished, it is said to have a beautiful finish. Finish is
also used to describe the polish or texture applied to a metal.
Common finishes include high polish, matte or brushed.
Finish, Florentine: A surface in which parallel lines are engraved in one
direction, then crossed with lighter perpendicular lines
resembling brush marks. Also called brushed finish
Finish Jewelry, High Polished: Jewelry which is shiny, smooth and reflective.
Finish Jewelry, Matte: With jewelry which has a matte finish
the designer uses either a chemical process or an abrasive material to scratch
the top layers of the piece creating a dull and non-reflective surface.
Fire: See Dispersion.
Fish hook: A fishhook-shaped finding used to make
earrings.
The hook end hangs from the lobe of a pierced ear.
Fissure: A fracture or crack in the surface of a stone.
Fleur-de-lys: From Old French "flor de lis": flor (flower) + de (of) + lis (lily). A
stylized three-petaled iris flower, used as the armorial emblem of the kings of
France. It is commonly found in jewelry items.
Florentine Finish: A surface in which parallel lines are engraved in one
direction, then crossed with lighter perpendicular lines
resembling brush marks. Also called brushed finish
Fluorescence: A property possessed by diamonds,
fluorspar, uranium
glass, sulphide of calcium,
and many other substances, of glowing
without appreciable rise of temperature when exposed to
ultra-violet rays, cathode rays, X rays, etc. This fluorescent glow
is not always considered when grading a diamond for quality (using
the standard Four C’s); it is an inherent characteristic of a
diamond.
Fluoride: A binary compound of fluorine with another
element or radical.
Fluorine: An element of the halogen class
of elements which is only
found in nature combined with other substances. It is found combined as calcium
fluoride in fluorite, and as a double fluoride of aluminum and sodium in
cryolite. Fluorine is very active chemically, (the most electronegative and most
reactive of all the elements), and possesses such an avidity for
most elements,
especially silicon, that it can neither be prepared nor kept in glass vessels.
This is why even though it was first identified by Scheele in 1771, it was not
isolated until 1886 by Moissan. When isolated, fluorine is a pale-yellow, highly
corrosive, flammable, poisonous, gas.
Fluorite: A mineral composed of
calcium fluoride which is found in many different
colors such as white, yellow, purple, green, red, etc. Often very
beautiful, crystallizing commonly in cubes with perfect
octahedral
cleavage. See African Emerald.
Fluted: A long, usually rounded groove incised as a decorative motif.
Commonly seen on Greek and Roman columns.
Fob: A short chain or ribbon attached to a pocket watch,
often with an ornament or decorative seal attached to the end.
Foil: A paper thin sheet of metal placed behind a crystal or glass stone
to intensify the brilliance of the stone. See Foilback.
Foilback: A method of coating the back of a stone with silver,
gold, or colored foil. This enhances the
brilliance of the stone,
by reflecting back as much light as possible. It is commonly seen
in costume jewelry. A foilbacked rhinestone whose foil has been
damaged, (often from water creeping in), does not sparkle anymore
and is said to be a "dead" stone, lowering the value of
the piece. Before, modern, highly reflective cuts were developed,
even diamonds were foilbacked.
Foldover Clasp: A clasp used on a
necklace or bracelet with a box on one
end and a V-shaped tongue on the other. The lid of the box opens to reveal a
small hook. The tongue slips over the hook and then the lid of the box is
snapped closed to secure the tongue in place.
Fool's Gold: See pyrite.
Fossilized: A piece of bone, wood, or other organic matter that has become petrified and hard like a stone over time.
Four C's: The method by which a gemstone is measured for
quality. The Four C’s are cut, Color,
Clarity and Carat Weight.
See individual listings.
Foxtail Chain: An intricately woven chain made up of
three rows of links. The top and bottom row are oval-shaped links
lying on each other at a 45 degree angle, but not linked together.
The center row is a set of flat connecting rings set at an
opposing angle and flush with each other which bind the top and
bottom row together.
Fracture: A type of inclusion in
a diamond or
stone. A crack or feather in a different direction than its naturally occurring
crystals.
Fracture Filling: A type of enhancement where tiny
fractures in a gemstone are filled.
French Back: See Screw back.
French Ivory: A plastic produced
to simulate ivory. It was first produced by the Xylonite Company in 1866.
Other names include Celluloid, Ivoride,
Ivorine, Ivorite and
Pyralin.
French Jet: Black glass which is made to resemble real jet. Glass is
heavier and colder to the touch compared to real jet.
French wire: A curved wire resembling a fish hook which passes through the pierced
earlobe and has a catch closure. It is mostly used with
dangling earrings due to their extra weight.
Freshwater Pearl: A pearl produced by a
mollusk that inhabits
fresh water, such as a lake or river, as opposed to sea water.
These pearls are usually shaped like an uneven grain
of rice and unlike the saltwater oyster, which normally produces only one or
two pearls, each mussel can simultaneously produce many.
Freshwater pearls are grown in many countries such as the United States,
Japan, China and Ireland.
Natural freshwater pearls are found in a variety of colors including blue, lavender, violet,
rose and gray. They can also be dyed to enhance or change their color.
Freshwater pearls are much cheaper than their seawater cousins since they
produce several pearls at once and do not require an irritant to be inserted to
produce a pearl.
Full Cut: see Brilliant cut.
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