Expensive and rich” principle becomes a thing of the past

What kind of jewelry do Belarusian women like

NNowadays, it is quite difficult to get an idea of a personal income level judging by what a person is wearing. And this is especially noticeable when it comes to jewelry: today, bijouterie is in fashion — inexpensive items made of base metals. Both high school girls and successful ladies over forty wear them readily. Jewelry seems to have become less relevant — modern women can easily do without it. But jewelry store sellers argue that this is not the case. — It is clear that jewelry is far from being an essential item. But people continue to get married, which means they will buy wedding and engagement rings. An engagement ring is a ring that is given to a girl being proposed, and only she wears it, while wedding rings are for both partners. Recently, engagement rings have become part of the wedding tradition in Belarus. And small girls who have just had their ears pierced are usually given their first earrings made of gold. Well, jewelry is still an excellent gift for a beloved woman on any occasion,— says Marina Kudritskaya, a shop assistant of a jewelry department in one of the capital’s shopping centers.

What do Belarusian women like

— Rubies have been in fashion for several seasons, but these gemstones can, if misused, make an “old-fashioned” look — says Marina.— To

Despite the upheavals and cataclysms, which, apparently, our history is rich in, many families have preserved “grandmother’s look stylish, a young girl should think through her image. jewel-boxes” with gold earrings and rings. Usually granddaughters keep ideas are born there, which later go around such relics as a memory and rarely wear the world, and adapt to local tastes in each them. Well, they may give it to a jewelry country. workshop to have something more modern — On the Belarusian market the prefeout of a grandmother’s ring. It is believed rence is given to calm, tender and discreet that gold and precious stones are a kind of jewelry: medium-sized products, small “constant”, “eternal jewels”. Indeed, there is stones. Jewelry collections for evening wear “timeless” jewelry, which is distinguished are not widely represented in Belarusian by simple forms and democratic design, not jewelry stores, because they are not in great loaded with additional decor. Such jewelry demand, notes the interlocutress. looks good both in day time and evening Although, as I was told, there are exlook. But there is fashion in the jewelry in- ceptions to the rule: about four years ago, dustry, albeit not as changeable as in the bi- a five-thousand-dollar diamond necklace jouterie industry. Its trend-setters today are was sold in one of Minsk jewelry stores — the jewelry capitals of the world — Hong for evening wear. But in general, our

Kong and Thailand. Once a year the women usually buy evening accessories in World Jewelry Exhibi- bijouterie departments, and not in jewelry tion is held in Hong stores. Kong, An interesting nuance: Belarusian women, like Russian, love the so-called “English clasp” earrings. In collections for Western Europe, stud-type clasp prevails, as European women like it more. — Our women want to look beautiful all the time. And when they clean the room or wash the dishes, dig potatoes or do baking, very often they do not take the rings off their fingers. And jewelry is supposed to be worn when out visiting, and taken off at home and put into a jewelry box. If you wear it all the time, gemstones can crack

The most delicate of precious How do buyers choose jew- to wear, they break, and the “links” of the stones — emerald — is also liked by elery? It is clear that it takes time chain can be deformed. As for rings, the our women, but as it turns out, and thought as the purchase is manufacturer can save metal on the “shank”, problems may arise with it. The fact is that emerald rings and earrings should be treated with care — they may easily crack, chip, be scratched. not cheap. People try it on, leave and return several times. But, just imagine, there are spontaneous purchases in this area. — Several years ago on New Year’s Day in Serebryanka in the jewelry department of a hypermarket, a man bought i.e. the reverse side of the ring, as jewelers call it. This reverse side is thinned and the bulk of the metal is used on the good part of the ring, which is seen when it is on the finger. But the problem is that such an unreliable “shank” can burst or bend — it is unlikely that such a piece of jewelry will last long and you will be able to hand it down to earrings for almost one and a your daughter or granddaughter. half thousand dollars as a gift (in In earrings, to make the product cheap(especially emeralds), or it can change Rubles equivalent, of course). It is strange, er, the manufacturer can lighten the earwire, color — it gets dirty too… i.e if people are going to choose an expen- i.e. the part of a clasp that is hidden behind

As for the color our women prefer, I was sive piece of jewelry, they usually go to the the ear. And in this case, the clasp may also told that, for example, in silver jewelry col- city center, to an expensive store on Nemiga break. Thus, the purchase of uncertified lection with Swarovski crystals, jewelry in or Karl Marx Street. And he came on De- jewelry, for example, in small shops in seablue and green colors was sold well, which cember 31 in the morning, bought food and side resorts, is always risky. cannot be said about orange crystals, de- earrings for his wife. How to have an eye for jewelry? How spite the fact that there are a lot of red or By the way, one of the hottest new to learn to see the difference between beaubrown-haired girls and women with brown trends in jewelry, which has been in tiful and vulgar jewelry? Only through eyes. fashion for quite a long time, is gold and practice, the jewelers say. This skill is devesilver items in unusual, non-standard loped in the same way as the ability to be How do people forms, combined with enamel, similar to an expert in good wines or, for example, choose jewelry bijouterie. In Europe, such products are in elite cheeses. The fact that today women demand. Experts say that our customers do often give preference to democratic bijou-

Do people buy diamonds in Belarus? not show much interest in them: if, for ex- terie, rather than jewelry made of precious This also happens. ample, a gold piece of jewelry with enamel metals, is positively assessed by experts. The — The cost of diamond jewelry is not does not look like gold, but the price is the “expensive and rich” principle is becoming always incredibly high. For example, a dia- same as for a gold item, there is no great in- a thing of the past, and that’s good. First, mond engagement ring can cost as much as terest in such a thing. top-quality designer jewelry can actually 400 rubles. Yes, there will be a very small cost more than low-grade gold jewelry with gemstone. But not “shards”, as buyers some- And if cheaper cubic zirconias instead of precious stones. times say. Jewelers don’t have such a thing as And secondly, even high-quality gold “diamond shards”. Jewelers have some tricks to significant- jewelry today is not an investment — unless,

Jewelers evaluate a diamond according ly reduce the price of a piece of jewelry. For of course, it is a heirloom or an exclusive to four criteria that determine the value of a example, the so-called hollow chains (these jewelry masterpiece from a famous designgemstone: size, color, clarity and cut group. are often brought home from resorts). The er. So we should choose what we can afford It seems to non-specialists that all dia- chain link inside is not filled with gold, but is and what we like — and feel like queens! monds are white, but in fact, jewelers evalu- a hollow tube. Such chains are less practical Aleksandra Antselevich ate the color of this stone on a scale from 1 to 9, where 1 is an absolutely white stone, but the closer to 9, the more yellowness it has. Yellow diamonds are traditionally combined with red gold — then the yellow tint is not so noticeable. White and yellow gold usually goes with a white stone, which As for gemstones, according to jewelry sellers, our women love topaz — blue, transparent and not very expensive. In the Slavic countries, of all colored gemstones, topaz is generally best sold as it matches the most common “summer” color type in Eastern Europe and suits almost means that the product is more expensive. all Slavic women, without exception. The clarity of a gemstone means absence Golden-age women like to try on rings of defects, cracks, gas bubbles. The classic and earrings with rubies. They most often cut of a diamond is 57 facets, the simplified buy large rings. cut is 17 facets.