How to Tell If a Diamond Is Real

Most people own at least one piece of jewelry, whether it be a gift, an inheritance, or an item they decided to buy for themselves. There should be some clarification to make sure the money is being well spent in the case that the piece of jewelry is expensive. You should able to check if a diamond is real should be something more people take into consideration when purchasing or selling jewelry. If selling to a jeweler, the person should be able to know if the diamond is real to estimate the value before heading to a buyer.

One of the first ways a person can check if a diamond is real is to look at the diamond and its setting through a loupe, which is a magnifying glass that is easily bought from jewelry stores allowing you to view the gem and setting much closer. It is important to remember that there will be imperfections in the carbon when looking at the diamond as the majority of them are made in nature. A fake diamond will look absolutely perfect under the loupe, but since some lab-grown stones will look flawless as well, it is important to double check with an expert before disregarding the stones.

A real stone will also have sharp edges while a fake stone will have rounded edges. If you don’t want to purchase a loupe, rubbing sandpaper against the stone will prove if it is fake or not as a real diamond would not be scratched by the sandpaper. A “fog test” can also be done by breathing hot air onto the diamond to see if it would fog, similar to how a mirror would fog by breathing hot air onto it. A real diamond would not be able to retain the heat and therefore it would not fog as opposed to a fake diamond.

If you are looking to buy or sell a diamond piece of jewelry, try to remember these tips, but make sure to check with the experts at Coin Galleries of Oyster Bay beforehand!

Selling Gold on Long Island

Gold has been soaring in the markets as of late as investors are becoming more and more worried about the global economy. Since there is growing concern over the global economy, safe-haven assets, including gold, are becoming more valuable and pricey. Gold has always been an easy investment for people unsure of the future of the economy.

On Long Island, gold should be something in which most people invest in. Selling gold while the global economy is in a state of uncertainty could be beneficial for both the seller and buyer. When selling gold, it is important to remember some tips in order to be sure you are receiving the best you can get. The first thing to remember is to understand the scales. Gold is valued by its weight, but jewelers use a different measurement standard, called the Troy ounce, when weighing gold.

Knowing what karats are and how they are used will also be beneficial in selling your gold jewelry. Being able to determine how many karats your jewelry has will help in making a decision on the scrap value. Separating your karats is also something to remember when selling your jewelry. If a dealer weighs all the jewelry together, they may pay you for the lowest karat value.

Be sure to know the value of your gold jewelry. The Coin Galleries of Oyster Bay will help you in verifying the current market price of gold before you sell it.

Along with knowing the value of the gold, it is important to be aware of what you are selling. If you have an item from a specific designer or maker, then it may be worth more to sell it as is rather than if it were melted down.

When selling your gold, always remember to be realistic while taking in all of these considerations. It may be hard to meet all of your expectations, but it is helpful to be aware of these tips to ensure you are getting the most out of your gold!

How to Make Money Selling Collectables

Making money off eBay or Craigslist can be both fun and profitable as you could get some extra pocket money for the weekend by selling things laying around the house you no longer need. The secret is that you could be making more than just pocket money if you know what you are doing. You can make a lot of money selling many different things, but nothing yields more money than collectibles, be it sports memorabilia, coins, antique instruments, duck carvings, or comic books.

First off, if you plan on selling and making money, you need to find something to sell! It's key to try to sell something that you know; maybe something that's been a hobby for years or even something you never thought of selling that could make a decent profit. I myself have been collecting comic books for over 5 years and it was actually my uncle's collection I first saw when I was young that really made me want to get into collecting. Selling what you know can give you a leg up when trying to research prices for items, especially if you're an expert in the field you wish to sell. If not, then you should try to find an expert that you can trust with your merchandise to help teach you the history of the items, the conditions they are found in, and how much they are worth. Try a pawn shop if it's an item you're not too familiar with, or if it's comics go to a comic book shop for some advice.

Although finding an expert is key, especially if you are trying to get an opinion for merchandise you already physically have, but what if you are starting from scratch and don't know where to begin looking for possible collectibles to sell? There are many places you can try to start searching, but some good examples are:

• yard or estate sales
• local auctions
• thrift stores
• pawn shops
• local classified websites (eBay, Craigslist, etc.)
• hobby shops (comics)

Condition is key when looking for merchandise to purchase and resell later on. Of course, original condition is always the best and will always be better than refinished or refurbished items. This doesn't necessarily mean used and damaged items are terrible. Depending on the item, the condition might not be as key if the items are rare or from a limited production run. If someone finds an old, beat up copy of Amazing Fantasy #15 (Spider-Man's first appearance), it's still worth bringing to an expert to assess the condition, poor as it may be, as there are not more than a 1,000 or so copies left in existence. You may be looking at a profit in the thousands, maybe millions!

Another pro tip for an auction or yard sale is to buy large amounts of similar items as fellow collectors could be interested in bulk merchandise, for example anything Star Wars or baseball related. Negotiation is your best friend! When you go to these places where the seller has a lot of merchandise, you can try to negotiate price if you are buying all the merchandise, as you are essentially closing the seller down, making his job easier and letting him go home too. When going to yard sales it is also recommended to go later in the day, when the seller has grown tired of standing around all day and just wants to be done. It could be a cheap ploy, but it's also a smart ploy; if you’re able to negotiate the seller to a lower price, he gets to go home, and you have more merchandise to sell!

When selling, you should keep several things in mind. First off, try to sell your collectibles offline in a physical store or auction so the potential buyer can physically see the items and their condition. This could put the buyer at ease and make them want to pony up the few extra dollars once they see what pristine condition you have kept your items in. Pictures can be misleading, so if you do choose to sell online, take the pictures of your merchandise yourself; don’t use Google images or other stock photos. It lets them see the actual condition without them being able to physically hold or look at the item. Also, as depressing as it may be, when selling to other collectors or collectible shops, keep in mind they will plan on selling the merchandise you just sold them. This is important to remember if selling to a store or shop, they will need to sell it for sometimes double of what they paid you for it just to keep profits coming in on their end. Try to negotiate to keep both parties happy, but don't get angry when you go in the store the following week and see they want an arm and a leg for your Batman statue; you know, the one that they only paid you a hand and a few fingers for? Business is great, isnt it?

One day many years from now, if you're lucky, your collection will still be going strong, but eventually your collectibles will outlast you. If you also had kids, or younger relatives, you'll want to leave your collectibles with someone you trust that will be around to take care of them for the foreseeable future. To make their jobs easier, keep records they can refer to if a potential sale comes up. Certificates of authenticity and original receipts are all good to hang on to. Recording what you think they are worth and why you bought them could be helpful to your heir(s). Lastly, if the heir doesn't know too much about your collectibles, then try to leave a name of an expert you trust that could guide them in your absence.

I hope to be collecting comic books or some type of collectible the rest of my life. They become a part of you, and memories will stir when looking or holding certain ones important to you. I've considered selling certain items I deem as collectibles, but I know that the longer I have them, hopefully the more they will be worth, and demand will outweigh supply. When you are ready to sell, seek out the proper help; make sure you aren't getting shortchanged out of something you really care about. Take care of your precious collectibles so hopefully one day they can take care of you!

The Most Expensive Penny

Have you ever heard the saying: “see a penny pick it up, all day long you’ll have good luck”? These sayings have been passed down from generation to generation, and whether you believe in luck or not, start collecting some pennies for they can make you incredibly rich. You are probably questioning how a penny, a coin with very low profit, can make you incredibly rich.

In the past, pennies were made solely of copper, but as time went on, the material used to make pennies also included zinc and steel, along with a slight percent of infused copper. The 1943 copper-alloy cent is reported to be the most valuable Lincoln penny of all as there are only 40 coins in existence made from copper. This means we should start scavenging for these pennies. If you are still questioning how one penny would benefit you, maybe this can persuade you: the 1943 penny is worth 1.7 million dollars, or at least what the last dealer sold it for. To put this in perspective, in 1958, the copper cent was sold for $40,000 dollars. As time passes, the value of this penny will only increase as the value of rare items increases with time.

As many people know about this fabulous penny that could make us thousands, if not millions, of dollars, scammers have found a way to create counterfeit pennies. How are these pennies made? The pennies are first coated with copper but still contain steel and zinc and the dates can be altered. How do you make sure your lucky penny is legitimate? Simply get a magnet and place it by your penny. If the penny sticks to the magnet, it is a fraudulent coin, meaning it is made of copper-plated steel.