The jeweller dropped my stone!!

[Nardil]

I went by the jeweller today to let him look at my stone and then he DROPPED IT ON THE GRANITE FLOOR!!! Or it sort of flew away while he was pushing something against it to test if it was the real deal. Now I'm terrified that something has happened to it. Absolutely terrified. I know this is hard to answer but what is the risk that it broke? I can't see anything but I guess there can be very small damages that can affect the diamond. I am going to ask another jeweller to take a look at it but I'm not sure I will be able to sleep until I know it is ok....

 

[chrono]

The jeweller should have louped it right away, on the spot, to see whether he damaged the stone. Once you leave the store, he can say it was already damaged or you damaged it later.

 

[Nardil]

I know, I know I feel so stupid for not asking but he just said that there was nothing to worry about and I was in a minor shock I think. Now I am almost crying here...

 

[WinkHPD]

Your odds of it having been damaged are very low, but if it hit on the culet the odds go up considerably if it landed with force.

Please have it checked, UNDER A MICROSCOPE as quickly as you can, that is the only thing that will bring you peace.

Most of us jewelers have never had a diamond damaged under these circumstances, but we all know jewelers who have.

It is inconceivable to me that your jeweler did not at least immediately loupe it to reassure you that it was not damaged.

After you have had it checked, chances are VERY high that you will know instant relief. If not, then you can consult with the jeweler to give him the opportunity to make it right. Let's not borrow trouble thinking about that option until it becomes necessary.

Wink

 

[pinkjewel]

oh no, but I know how you feel. I had brought my first pink diamond- a fancy purplish pink to an appraiser before having it insured. As she tweezered it to put it under the microscope -it flew out of the tweezers, landing first on the counter then on the floor. My heart dropped and I'm sure my blood pressure soared as she also said "nothing to worry about". However, she picked it up and put it under the microscope and I also insisted at looking at it, and very luckily it was fine. But, whew, I know that stunned, panicky feeling!!!! Have it checked right away for peace of mind

 

[Nardil]

Thank you both!! It calmed me a little to hear that at least it is not very likely that it was damaged. I will ask an other jeweller to have a look at it under a microscope first thing tomorrow! Some deep breaths and some prayers will have to do for tonight (but I sure will have nightmares about it). I'm starting to think that I have a very unhealthy attachment to this diamond

 

[WinkHPD]

What is this unhealthy attachment of which you speak? I have not heard of this ever before. Are you sure that is a real thing???

Wink








(Bwahahahaaaaa! Resistance is futile, you WILL be adorned!)

 

[baroque]

What is this unhealthy attachment of which you speak? I have not heard of this ever before. Are you sure that is a real thing???

Wink


(Bwahahahaaaaa! Resistance is futile, you WILL be adorned!)

 

[Rockinruby]

I have seen this happen in a few instances,but in each case the diamond was not damaged. I am shocked the jeweler didn't inspect it immediately under a microscope for their own peace of mind. Anyhow, keep positive. Hopefully it will be just fine!

 

[tyty333]

What is this unhealthy attachment of which you speak? I have not heard of this ever before. Are you sure that is a real thing???

Wink


(Bwahahahaaaaa! Resistance is futile, you WILL be adorned!)

+1...you are already there!

 

[Texas Leaguer]

It is very, very common for diamonds to drop out of tweezers or even be propelled out of tweezers. That is why it is very bad practice, especially when working with a customer's diamond, not to be extremely careful and take precautions such as working very close over a padded surface. A granite floor is a VERY bad idea for a diamond room.

Having said that, I agree with Wink that chances are excellent that no harm came to the diamond. They are incredibly durable. I also agree that it should have been checked thoroughly immediately after the event so that you could have peace of mind. The jeweler is not using good practices and it would make me question the overall quality of his services.

I would say that there is a rather cavalier attitude toward this kind of thing in the trade. The fact that it happens all the time and rarely results in damage allows people to become complacent in their handling. You see it all the time in the trade, and I have been guilty of it at times, especially when in a hurry. The problem is that even though rare, damage to a diamond is expensive. And when it is a customer's piece there is a sentimental aspect that once damaged, always damaged, even if repaired. A conscientious jeweler and true professional is very sensitive to this.

 

[gr8leo87]

It's pretty common to have a diamond slip from the tweezers and fly - especially while sorting melee sized diamonds and more especially while sorting star size. But it's very uncommon that s diamond be damaged. However for larger stones the falling becomes less often and should be louped right away. It's very unlikely anything happened to your diamond.

 

[denverappraiser]

Back in the days when I was a retailer, I has sales staff and customers would drop stones out in the showroom fairly regularly. Every jeweler does. You'll notice that, with most stores, when a sales person picks up a stone they do it over a velvet pad on the countertop. Protecting the diamond is definitely part of what this is for but, as pointed out above, diamonds are actually pretty durable little things. There's actually greater risk to the glass countertop. Granite floor in a diamond room? That's just a bad idea but, if it's any consolation, when a diamond comes in contact with granite, it's usually the granite that comes out of it the worse for the wear.

 

[WinkHPD]

FWIW when I was a student at GIA we had stone holders for the microscopes that we used. They were not as efficient at holding stones as the ones most often used today and it was not unusual for the door to the classroom to be closed to in and out traffic while a diamond was searched for.

Once it took twenty minutes to find a diamond that had gotten into a cuff on a guys trousers two tables in front of the one from where the diamond had flown. (You younger readers can ask your parents what cuffs are.)

By the end of class the holders were commonly referred to as "Spring loaded stone throwers."

Wink

 

[Sphene]

Thank you both!! It calmed me a little to hear that at least it is not very likely that it was damaged. I will ask an other jeweller to have a look at it under a microscope first thing tomorrow! Some deep breaths and some prayers will have to do for tonight (but I sure will have nightmares about it). I'm starting to think that I have a very unhealthy attachment to this diamond

Pls dont leave us hanging hows the diamond still intact

 

[Winks_Elf]

Many, MANY moons ago (about 17 years ago to be exact), on my very first day working for a jeweler in Charlotte, NC we had a client ask to see a few loose diamonds in the 2ct range. My manager handled the diamonds, but the first stone he took out of the paper with tweezers hadn't been locked in, and it went "dink-a-donk-a-dink-a-donk" across the glass display case and onto the marble floor. I thought I was going to puke, even though I wasn't the one who dropped it. The diamond was fine, but I think it took me a few hours to recover, and it served as an excellent lesson to put a cloth down on the glass so that if it ever happened to me the cloth would cushion the blow and prevent the diamond from bouncing.

Once you've been reassured that your diamond is indeed fine, make sure you have insurance in place if you do not already. I completely understand the emotional attachment to your stone, but at the end of the day if it does get damaged, having insurance will soften the blow. Not much, as each diamond is unique, but some because it can be replaced.

 

[Nardil]

Thank you everyone, your answers have eased my worries a lot! I am so sorry for the late update, I've been out at sea since Friday and I hardly had any phone reception.

I didn't have time to go to an other jeweller as they are quite far away but I called the store where it was dropped and asked if they could have a look at it. They said it was very unlikely that the diamond had been damaged but that they would gladly have a look at it. The only thing they found were *dundundun* TWO DUST PARTICLES such a relief!

I find it a little funny how much it actually worried me, I've never really cared about material things before and it is a quite small diamond so it could not be the money either. It is something special with diamonds isn't it?

 

[MollyMalone]

YAY for happy endings -- I bet you will sleep better tonight!

 

[Rockinruby]

Thank you everyone, your answers have eased my worries a lot! I am so sorry for the late update, I've been out at sea since Friday and I hardly had any phone reception.

I didn't have time to go to an other jeweller as they are quite far away but I called the store where it was dropped and asked if they could have a look at it. They said it was very unlikely that the diamond had been damaged but that they would gladly have a look at it. The only thing they found were *dundundun* TWO DUST PARTICLES such a relief!

I find it a little funny how much it actually worried me, I've never really cared about material things before and it is a quite small diamond so it could not be the money either. It is something special with diamonds isn't it?

Great news! Thanks for the update. So glad it all worked out so you can avoid worrying now.