A gem dealer's journal — vietnam

Hey Loungers, Today we interview our friend Zoe Michelou from Imperial Colors and we’ll be discussing about her path in the gem trade. Daughter of a prominent coloured-gems sourcing entrepreneur and emerald specialist, Zoe has made a name for herself in the fine quality gem segment. Discover with us today how she got involved in the trade and what pushed her to pursue the mine to market path she is now on. Without any further delay, we give you Zoe Michelou!   Here is Zoe Michelou looking at some fine emeralds in Colombia - Photo Credits: Zoe Michelou   AsiaLounges: First...

Hey Loungers,

Wim Vertriest is the current Supervisor of GIA´s field gemology program in Bangkok, Thailand.

Today, we propose you an interview with Wim in hope to better understand what field gemology is all about and what the average day at Bangkok´s GIA office looks like as well as how and why is a gemological field expedition deployed.

With this in mind, we propose you to fasten your seat belt and to follow us as we interview Wim Vertriest. Wim, the floor is yours!

Hey Loungers, 

Today we interview Nicholas Sturman, currently GIA’s senior manager of pearl identification globally who is based in Bangkok. Nick has over three decades of pearl identification under his belt and is here today to help us understand this very specialized part of the trade.

Our British friend worked on pearls for 16 years in Bahrain before joining us here, in the world gem capital, Bangkok, almost 11 years ago. 

Without any further delays we give you Nick Sturman,

Hey Loungers,

Today we receive Vincent Pardieu, one of the most famous, if not the most famous field gemologist in activity. Vince has been working for AIGS, then Gübelin and rose to fame through his tenure at GIA as he started the Field Gemology department for the Bangkok chapter of the famous organisation.

Today, while providing independent services at “VP Consulting SPC”, he is affiliated to DANAT, the Bahrain based lab where he is building a reference collection. This endeavour allows him and his teams of cameramen and photographers to travel the world and go from mine to mine and further gemological knowledge worldwide.

Today, we’ll pick his brain about field gemology obviously, but also about his thoughts about the trade, the tendencies and of course about his favourite gems.

Without any further delays, we give you Vincent Pardieu!

Hey Loungers,  While some of you may have already read our 2016 article on the topic, we figured that a little refresher probably couldn't hurt.  It is undeniable that nowadays the attraction for colour gem is on the rise yet, very few actually know what they are buying and this could lead to a somewhat rude awakening.  In this article we intend on discussing some of the main points that one needs to know when purchasing a gem such as: treatment, cut, clarity, carat weight, origin and of course the importance of a serious gemological report backing your purchase as well...