Your Pot of Gold…no leprechaun needed

As gold once again hovers around $1,000 per ounce, we are all temped to cash in our jewelry. I have two cautionary bits of advice: research before you cash in and don’t scrap anything you might regret later because you will have to buy it back at today’s high prices. It takes a lot of jewelry to equal an ounce and you won’t make a car payment with your great grandfather’s wedding band.

That said, I have spoken to many people who have cashed in single earrings, broken chains, dented what-evers and been thrilled with the return. Go to your local, trusted jeweler, or call several jewelers and ask for their scrap price. Do not let anyone convince you that the small diamonds or colored stones in your pieces are not worth anything. You should be compensated for them, or have them removed and returned to you. Your gold will be weighed in pennyweights (dwt.), which is the common jewelers’ unit of measure for mass. One dwt. is equal to .054 oz. You will be given a dollar price per dwt. These days, this figure will probably range from $12-20 per dwt., depending on the karat of the gold and whether the piece is solid or chain. This price, of course, fluctuates with the spot market, so follow the market. My favorite site to do that is www.kitco.com. Good Luck to ya!

The Brooch

The brooch is one of the most interesting and often most versatile pieces of jewelry. It has fallen out of favor in recent years due to a more overall casual style of dressing, but it should not be over looked. Shown here, Charlize Theron takes the brooch “out of the box” by wearing a pair of Art Deco diamond clips as an unexpected accent on an otherwise unadorned evening dress. In the same fashion, sun dresses, tops and t-shirts can be accented with a brooch or delicate pin placed in an unexpected spot.

There are still a large number of women who wear suits and dresses to work each day and there is no better way to add style and self expression than a brooch to a collar, lapel or shoulder. Brooches are versatile because neckline or sleeve length of each outfit need not be taken into consideration, which is not the case with bracelets or necklaces. Madeleine Albright, Former US Secretary of State and Founder, The Albright Group LLC, is a jewelry collector. She said that she used pins as a diplomatic tool-reinforcing the message of the day, choosing among pieces that depict an eagle, dove, balloon or bumble bee to name a few.