Platinum resurgent as Chinese consumers choose it over expensive gold jewellery

 THE surge in the price of platinum – which posted its biggest monthly gain in November since 2008 – has been put down to renewed appetite among consumers who prefer the metal to its more expensive rival, gold.

“We have observed that Covid has resulted in a re-evaluation of love gifting,” Trevor Raymond, director of research at the World Platinum Investment Council (WPIC) told Bloomberg News. “Platinum has been very strongly associated with love gifting, globally and in China,” he said.

The WPIC said in its third quarter report in November that the platinum market would record another deficit in 2020, partly owing to a recovery in jewellery sales in China. In addition, 2021 would also represent the continued growth of the China market.

Platinum jewellery sales had fallen for seven consecutive years in China. Looking to 2021, global jewellery demand is forecast to gain 13% – some 246,000 ounces – with all regions seeing double-digit growth, said the WPIC.

“Platinum is more competitive,” Michael Xue, chairman of Shenzhen Bofook Jewellery, told Bloomberg News. “Gold prices have increased way too much since the pandemic.” Bofook said its platinum jewellery sales jumped 20% in the third quarter from a year earlier.

Platinum has almost doubled from a mid-March low, with a 25% surge since the beginning of November. But at $1,060 an ounce, it’s still much less pricey than gold, which was trading above $1,800/oz, said the newswire.

“If a person has more disposable income and is re-evaluating life, they’re more likely to spend it on love gifting with platinum,” the WPIC’s Raymond said. Platinum being so much cheaper than gold or palladium “doesn’t make sense,” he said.

25-year-old Indian jeweller’s 12,638-diamond ring sets world record

 A jeweller from Meerut has found a place in the Guinness Book of World Records for making a ring with the maximum number of diamonds.

The record was earlier held by a Hyderabad jeweller, Kotti Srikanth, who had made a ring with 7,801 diamonds.

An elaborate floral-shaped ring sporting 12,638 tiny diamonds has earned a place in the Guinness World Records — but its Indian creator has no plans to sell his priceless design just yet.

Called “The Marigold – The Ring of Prosperity”, the chunky circular band weighs a little over 165 grams.

“It’s wearable and comfortable,” said 25-year-old Harshit Bansal, who described his audacious creation as a dream project.

Bansal said he got the idea two years ago while studying jewellery design in Surat.

“My target was always more than 10,000 diamonds. I trashed many designs and concepts over the years to finally zero in on this,” Bansal told AFP.

In a statement, his company said that each tiny petal in the ring’s eight-layer flower design was unique.

Bansal said he had already knocked back requests from prospective buyers.

“We have no plans of selling it right now,” he said. “It’s a matter of pride for us. It’s priceless.”

The previous record determined by Guinness, also set in India, was for a ring containing 7,801 diamonds.

How to make a necklace that’s both stylish and wearable

 Stylish jewellery is a wardrobe staple, but owning a collection of on-trend pieces and classic accessories can be difficult on a limited budget. Instead of saving up for an expensive necklace, try making your own. There are many resources available for beginners, like pattern books, beading magazines, and online videos. You can even buy jewellery making kits to get you started.

While it might take a little time to learn the basics, you can start making simple, chic pieces like necklaces without much effort. The key parts of putting a necklace together are learning how to use simple tools, along with the style, colours, and materials you like best.

Jewellery-Making Tools

If you ever wander down the beading aisle in a craft store, you might find yourself staring blankly at the selection before walking right back out. Facing all those tools can be intimidating if you don’t understand their purpose, but that’s part of the beauty of learning how to make a necklace. In fact, the simplest styles don’t even require tools. When you’re ready to explore some complex designs, however, these tools will become essential to your kit. Bead boards, jump rings, clasps, crimp beads, pliers, and clippers are among the most essential. 

Bead boards
A bead board is a tray, usually with measured markings, that allows you to place beads in the pattern you want. These boards are very lightweight, so be sure to anchor the board to your table to avoid accidentally spilling your beads. Try masking tape to connect the corners to your work surface.

Jump rings
Jump rings are small, round rings that form a circle without connecting ends. They attach charms to chains, clasps to end cap beads, and more. They come in different sizes and a few different colours. When choosing your jump rings, consider the colour of the chain or charm you are using as they are typically available in gold, silver, and brass. When using a jump ring, avoid pulling the ends apart. Instead, twist the ring to avoid ruining its circular shape. 

Clasps and crimp beads
Clasps are the small hooks that help you secure a necklace, and they come in different styles depending on how you prefer to wear your necklace. Crimp beads are small beads placed alongside other beads or charms that are designed to remain in one place along the necklace chain. They are literally crimped twice using a special crimping tool.

Pliers and clippers
When you begin your jewellery making hobby, it’s best to start with chain-nose, needle-nose, and bent-nose pliers in your kit. You’ll also want a set of clippers called side cutters to help snip away small pieces. When working with side cutters, it’s worth investing in a cheap pair of craft goggles to protect your eyes from any small pieces that may pop off.

Getting started

For a simple, easy to follow style, start with a long ribbon or cord necklace. You won’t have to worry about clasps or chains, and all you really need is a soft ribbon and a pendant with a hole large enough to accommodate the ribbon or cord. These necklaces are versatile and can be worn with any simple style. 

Connector beads are another easy way to create your first necklace design, if solid ribbon feels too basic. String these beads along the ribbon or cord and tie small knots in the ribbon to alternate sections of beads and ribbon. 

No matter what style you choose, start simple, don’t overload yourself, and don’t worry if a design you see looks complicated. Beading and jewellery-making is meant to be fun, not frustrating! Spend time on beading sites, looking at sample patterns, and look at the necklaces you already have to see if there is a style you gravitate towards. 

Colours and materials

If you need some inspiration for choosing colours, try a colour wheel. These wheels help you match one colour with opposing colours that compliment your design. You can even widen your colour combinations with split-complementary shades. When starting out, choose materials that are easy to work with and require minimal tools, like fishing wire, a necklace charm, crimp beads, and a simple lobster clasp. Another easy design uses a simple chain, a pendant, and a clasp with jump rings. A jewellery making kit will include many of these basic components and is a great place to start your new favourite hobby. 

How to style your jewellery with your winter wardrobe.

 With the temperature dropping outside, we all dress up in layers of clothing, and while doing so we often tend to forget about the jewellery lying in our closet. Most of our winter wardrobe includes long coats and scarves where even if we wear jewellery, they hardly get noticed. But that shouldn’t be a reason for you to ditch those pretty baubles in winter. Celebrities are always there for some fashion inspiration and fashion experts tell us how to style our statement neckpieces and earrings with our winter wardrobe to shine on the gloom.

“While wearing a neckpiece with your winter wardrobe might get a little trickier for some, for those beginners, it is suggested that they experiment with their earrings. From studs to danglers and chandeliers, your winter wardrobe will be further amped up with those pretty earrings in silver, stainless steel, platinum and even gemstones like emerald and ruby. But when you are wearing dangler earrings, don’t wear your scarf with it. Studs are best suited with scarves,” says stylist Vikram Seth.

For those of you who think they can rock a statement neckpiece with their winter wardrobe, here’s a word of caution. “For a sophisticated appeal, wear your neckpiece on top of your sweater or turtle neck tee and then layer it with your blazer or coat. You can invest in a good bracelet or handcuff to go with your winter wardrobe. Another safe bet for this chilly weather is an oversized ring. Also never make this faux pas of wearing your ring over the gloves,” suggests stylist Isha Bhansali.

Jacquard Prince of Wales check single-breasted tailored jacket with a signature men’s shoulder and deconstructed lapel detailing.

This collection was designed during lockdown. It is made predominantly out of stock fabric: over-printed, over-dyed – renewed.

Shine bright like a diamond

 Cremation diamonds are real diamonds, made from love ones’ cremated ashes or hair, that can be graded the same to natural diamonds.

The only difference between natural diamonds and cremation diamonds from ashes is their origin – cremation diamonds are created from cremated ashes, whereas natural diamonds are minerals that form underground over billions of years.

The process of transforming your loved one’s cremation ashes into diamonds takes between 3 to 9 months (1 ct), depending on the size and colour of the cremation diamond ordered.

Many decide to wear memorial diamonds as a way of keeping their loved ones with them but there is also the avoidance of burial costs.

Cremation diamonds are usually set into a piece of memorial jewellery, such as a cremation ring, pendant or pair of earrings, and the wearer can take comfort in the fact that they will always have their loved one with them.

This rare purplish-red diamond was sold at Rs 20 crore

 The world has fawned over diamonds since time immemorial and this November 11, another rare gemstone set a world record at the famous Christie’s auction in Geneva.

The rare purplish-red diamond ring was sold at the auction at $ 2.77 million (20.4 crores) , ANI reported. The rectangular-cut diamond is mounted on a platinum and gold ring nestled between two heart-shaped diamonds.

The 1.05-carat diamond was bought by Tiara Gems and Jewellery DMCC, owned by a Dubai-based Indian expat Ashish Vijay Jain.

“The jewellery industry is growing rapidly, becoming more competitive and must be sensitive to consumer sentiment. Amidst the Covid-19 pandemic, there will always be interest for rare stores, which are an investment opportunity,” Jain said.

The rarity of the diamond comes from its colour, which is attributed to gliding atoms in the structure of the diamond.

Precious jewellery buyers take a shine to online platforms during pandemic

 Fine jewellery, which has been a difficult category to peddle online so far for most brands, is seeing an increased uptake on e-commerce in the wake of the pandemic. Companies such as CaratLane, Bluestone, Melorra and Indischen which sell precious jewellery online, say they have witnessed significant growth since the reopening of the economy.

According to Gaurav Singh Kushwaha, founder and CEO, Bluestone the platform is clocking monthly sales above Rs 41 crore and is on track to achieve Rs 500 crore revenue this fiscal as compared to Rs 255 crore in FY20. Melorra, which has seen a 65% growth this Dhanteras, is projecting its revenue to be higher than the previous fiscal’s Rs 100 crore. Meanwhile, traffic on CarateLane’s website grew by 40% during the festive period this year as compared to the last season.

The trend, however, is limited to lightweight jewellery; heavy jewellery is yet to take off on e-commerce.

“While customers are shopping for jewellery online, the surge is limited to low-cost items,” said Satish Meena, senior forecast analyst, Forrester Research.

Industry watchers say that the jewellery category on online channels is not a 22-carat or 24-carat market and the average selling price is mostly below Rs 50,000. Hence, most of the companies operating in this segment focus on lightweight jewellery and smaller SKUs, which are priced at the lower end of the spectrum. The trend has accelerated in the wake of the pandemic.

“Keeping in view that gold prices were on the rise, in recent months we focussed on the value play and brought out a range of products which looked heavy, but were lightweight,” said Saroja Yeramilli, founder and CEO, Melorra.

Moreover, the online channel has emerged as a way for customers to browse and research products, and then buy them in brick-and-mortar stores — much akin to electronics or cars. Offline jewellers, too, substantiate this. As per Suvankar Sen, CEO, Senco Gold and Diamonds, the brand has seen a 15-20% growth in customers who used online tools such as digital catalogues, video calls and its website to select jewellery this festive season.

Similarly, Saurabh Gadgil, chairman, and managing director, PNG Jewellers, said heavy jewellery for weddings or serious buys are being selected by customers online, but being purchased only in stores.

To tap into this trend, most online jewellery platforms have been focussing on an omnichannel play by launching stores offline. During the pandemic, too, CaratLane and Indischen introduced new stores with a focus on smaller towns.

“We had about 90 stores pre-Covid and now we have 110 stores,” Avinash Anand, co-founder, CaratLane, said. The company, in which Tanishq has a majority stake, has opened new outlets in towns like Patiala and Agra.

Bluestone, too, has launched 10 stores since the reopening of the economy and plans to introduce five more this year.

Despite the surge, jewellery remains a niche category in e-commerce. Experts say the category contributes less than 1% of the overall online retail market. According to a recent report by Bain & Co, the e-commerce market in India had an overall GMV of $30 billion.

Industry watchers are sceptical of whether consumers would continue buying jewellery online once offline store forays increase. “Precious jewellery is a very tactile and physical category and while these companies might have seen an uptake due to the pandemic, it will move out the moment normal life resumes,” brand strategy expert Harish Bijoor predicted.