You are cordially invited…..

Coming to the Radisson Blu, Little Island Cork this March is a Charity Wedding Fair.

Wedding Fair Invite

Run by Cork Weddings and Events, it will be held on the 24^th, from 2 – 5.30pm and it is run on behalf of the wonderful Irish Dogs for the Disabled.

Based in Cork, Irish Dogs for the Disabled attempt to enhance the quality of life for young people and adults.

They provide fully trained assistance dogs that in turn provide physical and psychological support to their partners. They receive no funding.

So on the day there will be over 50 suppliers, myself included, covering every aspect of your wedding.

So what will I be doing on the day?

I will be on hand to offer advice on all things bling. Will be happy to talk with you about jewellery styles, metals, and of course Diamonds.

I also offer a pre-wedding service, which is a full complement of services for brides to be. Ring resizing, inspection of settings and mounts, polishing and plating service.

Do ask me on the day.

As well as the above I will be offering a Full Valuation Service** to include:

• A full Valuation service on ‘Multiple Items’ of Jewellery.
• An Itemised list of all Items of Jewellery.
• A full check of the Settings, and Stones in your Jewellery.
• A printed Schedule of all Items for Insurance Purposes.

Flat Rate of €60* for all of the above.

*I will donate €10 directly to the charity.

I will NOT be charging a ‘final value fee’ of the Item(s).

If you wish to make an appointment, you may call me on: 086 8687456 or e-mail: michaelwallbespoke@gmail.com

Booking is advised. You can also drop by my stand on the day.

As mentioned the fair is running from 2 – 5.30pm

The Entrance Fee is €5 for adults. Prize giveaways and a fashion show throughout the day. There might even be a fabulous give away from me too!

Do please check out the wonderful work Irish Dogs for the Disabled are doing, and do please come along the 24^th March 2013 to the Radisson Blu, Little Island.

Below is Breffni, held by Irish Dogs for the Disabled patron Graham Norton. Breffni was matched with 8 year old Patrick, a young man from Cork with cerebral palsy.

Irish Dogs for the Disabled patron Graham Norton with Breffni

Patrick is now 10, walking independently and is also managing to ride his own bike.

For more information about the Wedding Fair visit Cork Weddings and Events:

http://www.corkweddingsandevents.ie

For more information on Irish Dogs for the Disabled:

www.dogsfordisabled.ie

If you have any questions you can contact me by phone or by e-mail.

Alternatively you can join in the conversation on Twitter:
Follow @DiamondsIRL

Would love your feedback, your comments and thoughts.

Thank you.

Michael

**Multiple Items of Jewellery appraised by Michael Wall, Accredited Jewellery Professional.

I am NOT buying or selling any gold, or precious metals. If you do have any items that you want to bring along to ask advice about, I will be happy to oblige.

Advertisement

The Green Garnet

Queue the Billy May orchestration, the Al Hirt trumpet solo and it’s the makings of a superhero movie.

For the purpose of this post it’s only going to be about a gem where in one of its rarest forms is an indicator in the search for Diamond. A gem that is used as an abrasive, as a sandpaper substitute in cabinetmaking and in some instance for cutting steel. A gem that was also used as ammunition.

The Garnet.

Januarys birthstone Garnet is commonly seen in its red or reddish brown form but is in fact one of the lesser known gems. There are six recognisable species of Garnet, with at least 17 varieties. As with a lot of gems, Garnet will share a crystal structure but it is the chemical composition that gives them colour.

Unusually among gems Garnet will exist in hybrid from. That is, a mix of two or more of the species.

Let me start with the lesser known Garnet varieties.

Demantoid: An outstanding gem and highly desirable. It was used by Peter Carl Fabergé to encrust the Jewellery of the Russian Tsars as it had a similar dispersion to Diamond and exhibited a staggering array of rainbow coloured light. Not discovered until the mid to late 1800’s it is relatively new, yet occurs in different shades of green. From a pale yellowish green to a rich Emerald colour, the Demantoid commonly occurs in sizes no greater than 0.60ct. Stones above 1.00ct are rare. 

Demantoid will include needle like inclusions that take the name ‘horsetails’. They do resemble wisps of tails or a mane, and are important when identifying the gem.

Tsavorite: A most wonderful variety of Garnet of the grossular species. 

Tainted by murder, intrigue, and government controls, this gem only became recognisable by the use of a strong marketing campaign by Tiffany & Co. 

Before that it was known as a green grossular and more familiar to gemmologists. Unlike Demantoid it takes its colour from chromium, and iron.

Spessarite: Possibly one of the most unique Garnet species. It occurs in one basic colour and one colour only. Orange. This is why it is sometimes given the name the ‘Mandarin Garnet’. It receives its colour from one fundamental element; manganese. First identified in Spessart, Bavaria the Spessarite is now commonly found in Namibia and Nigeria. Most have a sleepy or hazy appearance due to the fine inclusions and innumerable minute crystals.

As I mentioned earlier Garnet can occur in hybrid from. Mali Garnet is a hybrid of both grossular and andradite Garnet, and Rhodolite is a mixture of pyrope and almandite Garnet. Rhodolite occurs in a Purple colour.

Falling into the the grossular species is the Leuco Garnet, which as the name suggests is in fact colourless.

So from colourless through to orange, up to red and purple there is more to Garnet than meets the eye. Coupled with the rare greens, Garnet isn’t just a dull red stone. True, the reds are no Rubies, and the Tsavorite no Emerald, but these rare Garnets can command a €10,000 per carat price.

They are a precious gem in their own right.

Few little facts:

Garnet is the Birthstone for January.

It can be given on both the 2nd and 6^th Wedding Anniversaries.

Garnet will not occur in Blue.

In early biblical writing, it was referred to as a ‘carbunculus’

Garnet gets its name for the Latin ‘granatus’, Greek ‘granatum’ meaning seed like.

Garnets were used by the Hunzas as ammunition. It was said the Garnet could add ferocity to the wound.

On the Mohs Scale Garnet ranges between 6.5 and 7.5

Should you contemplate buying a Garnet, do let me know. I’m happy to guide you through that purchase and give you some tips on what to look out for.

Do please leave a comment, a question if you have any, and your thoughts.

As always, you’ll find me over on Twitter here:
Follow @DiamondsIRL

Many thanks for looking

Michael