Dagny Solheim 
I spent six years hunched over a microscope in a grading lab, and if there is one thing that gets under my skin, it’s the way sellers try to wrap every little flaw in a cloak of “mystical energy.” They’ll show you a stone with two distinct hues and tell you it’s a sign of … Read more
I remember sitting in a cramped grading lab in Bergen, the kind of room where the air feels heavy with the smell of ozone and stale coffee, staring through a loupe until my eyes burned. A client had brought in a stone that looked absolutely stunning under the daylight, but the moment we hit it … Read more
I remember sitting in a cramped grading lab in Bergen, staring through a loupe at a beautiful, sea-foam green apatite that looked like a piece of the Atlantic after a storm. The client wanted it set in a cocktail ring, ready for a lifetime of clinking against champagne flutes and dinner plates. I had to … Read more
I spent six years hunched over a bench in a grading lab, staring through a loupe until my eyes felt like they were full of sand. I’ve seen enough “miracle” stones to know that most of the online chatter about colour change gemstones and what causes the shift is either pure marketing fluff or complete … Read more
I remember sitting in a cramped, fluorescent-lit lab in Bergen, staring through a loupe until my eyes felt like they were filled with sand. A client had handed me a slip of paper, beaming with pride, convinced that the fancy seal on the document meant they had found a miracle. But as I looked at … Read more
I spent six years in a grading lab, hunched over a microscope until my neck ached, watching light bounce through carbon structures. I’ve seen enough “miracle stones” to know that the marketing departments are usually trying to sell you a dream that doesn’t exist in the mineralogy. Most people think a princess cut is just … Read more
I spent six years hunched over a microscope in a grading lab, and if there is one thing I’ve learned, it’s that the jewelry industry loves to treat brown stones like the unwanted leftovers of the gem world. Most people see a muddy hue and immediately think “cheap,” but that is a massive mistake. There … Read more