INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

• Welcome Note
• Featured Gemstone: Grape Garnet®
• Fair Trade Gems Commitment
• Colored Gemstone Promotions
• Featured Retailers

WELCOME!

I would like to welcome you all to the first issue of our Gem Notes Newsletter. It will give us a chance to tell you more about the beautiful precious gemstones we love, and all the people in this industry that bring these gems to you. We hope this newsletter will bring together committed retail jewelers who all have similar interests and beliefs.

You all are an integral part of one of the most amazing supply chains in the world, so we hope you will feel at home. Let us show you why the small precious colored baubles are so rare and wonderful, and please feel free to let us know your experiences. We want you to take an active part in one of the most exotic and intriguing industries on earth.

So, again Welcome!

Grape Garnet® is the first brand name gem variety Columbia Gem House, Inc. developed. It is the name given to a rich Welch's grape juice purple color. The name came into being when the owner of Columbia Gem and his young daughter, Alixandra, were having breakfast one morning. They were looking at these beautiful rich purple gems and Alixandra thought they looked like her juice. Thus, the beginning of the name Grape Garnet®.

Grape Garnet® has been known for many years, but had always been mixed in and sold as Rhodolite garnet. In reality, it is much more purple than Rhodolite and has a much higher refractive index.

Grape Garnet® is mined in alluvial deposits in the remote Indian state of Orissa. Here, it is hand mined in small quantities in generally small pebbles. The average rough stones will yield ¼ to 1 ½ carat size finished gemstones. The largest fine quality Grape Garnet® cut to a 5 ½ carat stone. Thus, stones from 2 carat and up are quite rare.

Grape Garnet® is somewhat difficult to cut in that the crystals are actually "under stress." If this stress is not relieved before cutting, the surface will show little nicks or "explosions" where pieces of the gemstone break off. After many years of experimenting, Columbia Gem House found a way to relieve this stress and yield bright, clean, well polished gemstones that bring out the gemstone's high natural sparkle. This is all done with no treatments to the gemstone. The color and clarity are exactly as Mother Nature created.

When selecting a natural, rare Grape Garnet®, you know you will always have a bright, sparkling, purple gemstone. Lower qualities or off-purple stones are never sold as rare Grape Garnet®. With this gemstone, the wearer gets a little part of India's natural gemstone wonders, a little of the young girl who named it, and a beautiful natural gemstone that will last a life time and more.

FAIR TRADE GEMS COMMITMENT
Columbia Gem House, Inc. and Trigem Designs are committed to introducing elements of Fair Trade into the gem and jewelry industry. This is something completely new to the jewelry industry. We felt a commitment to certain principles both supporting all the people along the supply chain and enhancing the beauty and rarity of the product. There are three principles we address when dealing in any gemstone mining, cutting or jewelry manufacturing. These are environmental protection, a fair labor commitment that supports the individuals and communities we work with, and a commitment to the jewelry consumer. The commitment to the jewelry consumer is they will always get a fair value in their purchase that encompasses quality, ethics and support for others.

In future newsletters, we will bring examples of how fair trade principles can support people across the full spectrum of gem and jewelry production. We'll also talk about how these little, or big efforts can bring not only a brighter future to producers, but also a brighter, more wonderful piece of gemstone jewelry to those who actually wear it in the end.

A small change in your shopping decisions can make a big difference in people's lives! Visit these web sites for more information about Fair Trade:

* Fair Trade Gems
* Fair Trade Federation
* Fairtrade Labeling Organizations International
* Co-op America
* Oxfam International's Make Trade Fair Organization
* TransFair USA
* Fair Trade Resource Network