Latest News

You may be interested to read the information below on how www.dejoria.co.uk has developed since our launch in the UK in November 2003 and what we are currently doing to improve our site, products and service to you. We have also included some industry news for your information.

7/5/08 - A DIAMOND IS FOREVER FLORAL SPECTACULAR KICK-OFF AT GRAND CENTRAL
Hollywood elite and New York glitterati flocked to historic Grand Central Terminal to kick off the opening of the A Diamond is Forever Floral Spectacular designed by chic celebrity floral designer Anthony Todd, commission in celebration of Mother's Day. The stunning installation was created with more than 24,000 long stem red roses spelling out A Diamond is Forever. Located along the Vanderbilt Hallway Bridge inside Grand Central Terminal, the floral spectacular is as beautiful as it is meaningful. The concept of using roses as the material for the installation illustrates the idea of the temporary versus the permanent. Over time these roses will age. And as they do, the timelessness of diamonds becomes even clearer to those observing it. As part of the festivities, A Diamond is Forever is also giving away a diamond gift each day for three days. Beginning Wednesday May 7th through to May 9th, anyone who walks by the Floral Spectacular insude Grand Central Terminal has the chance to pick up one of 1,000 roses being handed out daily by A Diamond is Forever. Everyone who picks up a rose will get a code that they can then enter online at www.adiamondisforever.com for a chance to win a 3 stone diamond necklace worth $5,000.

2/5/08 - GIA MUSEUM BUILDS HISTORIC DIAMOND JEWELLERY COLLECTION
The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) Museum is building a comprehensive assemblage of jewellery, objet d'arts and gemstones from all time periods and cultures worldwide for its "GIA Historical Collection". Elise Misiorowski, GIA Museum Director said "We intend to create a wide-ranging, world class collection that captures the essence of each period in gem and jewellery history. People are always fascinated by historical pieces. It is our goal to bring together a variety of significant treasures representing different episodes in history." The GIA Museum already has some prized pieces, such as a late 18th century diamond brooch and a coursage ornament which features a pink topaz and diamonds from around 1905. The institute anticipates this collection will quickly become an important addition to the Museum because donors, visitors and students alike will benefit from sharing the stories of these intriduing pieces. Misiorowski added "We hope the GIA Historical Collection will grow to inspire, educate and excite viewers today and for generations to come."

2/5/08 - DEJORIA LAUNCHES INTERACTIVE DIAMOND SEARCH
www.dejoria.co.uk today launched its Interactve Diamond Search, enabling visitors to adjust a slider mechanism to generate a results grid of available diamonds from an inventory of over 50,000 diamonds. Visitors can then make an online purchase for their complete diamond ring. Furthermore, DeJoria also offers those visitors who are not familiar with diamonds a "Work with our diamond experts" facility whereby they can also adjust a slider mechanism to see how the characteristics of a diamond interact with each other, which determines a guide price - DeJoria's diamond experts then make contact to discuss requirements in more detail, which is a free and professional service.

28/4/08 - IGI TO LAUNCH "LOVE VIEW BOX"
The International Gemological Institute (IGI) announces plans to launch the IGI Love View Box which is a customised diamond ring box that can display pictures, play video and audio / music and includes a credit card size IGI diamond certificate report. Upon opening, the IGI Love View Box reveals a personalised LCD screen expressing romance through multimedia data which is downloaded through a USB port. It is a high tech way to deliver a message both visually and audibly. For customisation, therefore, consumers are able to download his or her own videos or photos to the box from their computer or other personal electronic devices to the box. Jerry Ehrenwald, president and CEO of IGI said "While technological advancements are key to our industry, so is emotionally connecting with our customers. As such, we are excited to introduce the IGI Love View Box, a successful combination of the two."

22/4/08 - CHRISTIE'S NEGOTIATES SALE OF EMPRESS EUGENIE'S BROOCH
The Louvre and Friends of the Louvre acquired a diamond brooch originally planned for auction at Christie's in New York on April 15th. The auction was cancelled at the final hour due to a court order. Empress Eugenie's brooch had a pre-sales estimate of $4 million to $6 million and was one of numerous lots for sale in Christie's Rare Jewels and Gemstones sale. The Louvre paid almost $11 million. After the sale was cancelled, however, a private sale of the diamond brooch was negotiated to the Louvre by Francois Curiel, president of Christie's Europe, with the agreement of the owner. "Among the great missions of the Louvre is the devlopment of the museum's collections", said Henri Loyrette, president of the Louvre in Paris. Of particular interest to the famous museum are any works of art and precious objects belonging to members of the former French Royal family. The crown jewels are important among the nation's treasures and we are thrilled to see the brooch of Empress Eugenie returning to France, thanks to the friends of the Louvre, the generosity of Mr and Mrs Rouffet and the support of the French state", Loyrette said.

18/4/08 - CHRISTIE'S NEW YORK SALE GARNERS $49.8M
With a mix of big diamonds and beautiful jewellery, Christie's garnered $49,894,875 for its Magnificent Jewels sale in New York on Wednesday, making it the most valuable jewellery auction held in the USA. A room filled with bidders and active phones keep the pace fast as clients eagerly scooped up lot after lot, barely pausing for breath, even when items reached the coveted $1 million and over mark. The sale was 88% sold by lot and 95% sold by value. All of the top 10 lots went for more than $1 million and the top lot of the day was a cushion cut D-Flawless diamond of 39.34ct which sold to a private individual in the Middle East for $6,873,000 - an astounding $175,000 per carat. Buying came from around the globe with the US trade vying actively with other bidders. Important diamonds were in demand and selling easily for very solid prices.

15/4/08 - IVANA WEARS OVER 450CT OF DIAMONDS FOR WEDDING
Ivana Marie Zelnickova - better known as Ivana Trump - married Rossano Rubicondi on 12th April and wore a number of diamond pieces during the celebration. The couple were married in Florida after a 6 year courtship. During the wedding ceremony, Ivana wore a 71.76ct diamond necklace and a pair of 6.39ct oval cut diamond earrings, whilst for the reception she wore a diamond bracelet, diamond earrings and a diamond necklace totalling more than 150ct.

15/4/08 - COURT ORDERS CHRISTIE'S TO CANCEL RARE JEWELLERY AUCTION
A New York court on Monday order Christie's to cancel a rare jewels auction scheduled for tonight. The sale, entitled "Rare Jewellers and Gemstones: The Eye of a Connoisseur", was to include 115 Esmerian family heirlooms on behalf of jeweller Ralph Esmerian. Among the pieces to be put under the hammer was a 14.23ct fancy pink diamond (with a pre-sale estimate of $10-15 million) which Christie's billed as "one of the most important pink diamonds ever to be offered for sale at auction". The selection was handed over for auction by Merrill Lynch, after Esmerian defaulted on a $185 million loan from an investment house. Esmerian's lawyer said that her client felt that Christie's had priced the collection at one quarter to one third of their actual value.

11/4/08 - THE ICE BELOW IS LOADED WITH GEMS AND OIL
The Antarctica is an inhospitable land surrounded by sea, and the Arctic is a frozen sea surrounded by land, but both poles are under increasing scrutiny as climate change takes hold. There is a cruel irony in that the industrialised world, whose greenhouse gas emissions have almost certainly caused global warming, should benefit from the Polar region's natural resources becoming more available as their ice caps recede. Yet, despite the first ice-free Arctic summer in the North West Passage during 2007, sovereignty issues, international treaties and the harsh, physical constraints of exploration may mean that any pot of gold, or diamonds, at the end of the rainbow will remain elusive for quite some time to come.

6/4/08 - THIEVES STEAL $600K WORTH OF JEWELS FROM CAR IN DALLAS
Dallas police are investigating the theft of more than $600,000 worth of diamonds and pearls taken from a jeweller's secured car boot. The jewels, reported stolen on Friday outside a north Dallas office building accouned for most of the jeweller's collection. He said that the theft could mean the end of his career. The jeweller said that he parked his car outside the office building and when he returned an hour later, his car was gone. Inside the boot, which was secured by heavy-duty locks and cables, were three suitcases filled with diamond rings, diamond bracelets, diamond earrings and two bags of pearls. Jewel thefts and robberies have been reported nationwide over several decades in California, Texas, Florida, Georgia and New York. Police and jewellery industry representatives have said that they suspect professional thieves from South America are responsible for many of the heists.

31/03/08 - SOTHEBY'S TO OFFER $51M IN JEWELS
More than 320 lots of jewels and jadeite estimated at $51 million, including a rare pear cut diamond which is D-colour and flawless, with be offered at Sotheby's Magnificent Jewels and Jadeite 2008 Spring Sale on April 10. The highlight of the sale is a 72.22ct diamond which is the largest pear shaped D-colour flawless diamond to date to appear at auction in Asia, with its price estimated between $10 million and $13 million. This diamond was cut from an original rough diamond weighing 188.11ct. A rare 3.47ct fancy vivid blue diamond estimated at around $4 million is also among the highlights of this season's sale. The spring sale will also offer the world's largest graded intense purple diamond, which is to make its first appearance at auction, with the priced estimated at around $2 million.

31/03/08 - SLOWDOWN? WHAT SLOWDOWN?
It is clear that there's a mood of economic uncertainty afoot. But while a recession appears to be casting a shadow across some sectors, the top end of the consumer market seems to be good health. Marks & Spencer's Chief Executive Sir Stuart Rose said last month that "the West End can't get enough diamonds". The Champagne region is enlarging to meet demand. Luxury goods and services are continuing to boom, outrunning the ecomonic slowdown.

21/03/08 - THIEVES STEAL $500K OF DIAMONDS FROM NEW YORK DEALER
A jewellery wholesaler was relieved of $500k worth of diamond jewellery on Wednesday by opportunistic thieves. The robbery occurred in front of Lord's jewellers in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The thieves snatched the jewellers bag from his car before heading away in a white van. Whilst rare, such incidents can prove to be extremely costly.

20/03/08 - GOLD SHEDS 11% IN 4 DAYS
Gold was trading at $920.70 per ounce this morning, after having hit a record $1,032 per ounce overnight on Sunday, as investors take profits and the dollar gains ground against major currencies. For the past 12 months, however, gold is up 40%, as are most precious metals.

10/3/08 - CANADA'S NEW DIAMOND DISCOVERY
A large number of diamonds has been unearthed in the James Bay region of Quebec, Canada. 649 diamonds have been recovered from ancient surface rock samples dating back to more than 2.7 billion years ago. In addition, nine purple diamonds were amongst the 649 unearthed. Natural fancy coloured diamonds are extremely rare and unique, with purple diamonds being one of the most rare of all, making the Quebec discovery thrilling and, of course, very valuable.

9/3/08 - DIAMOND NECKLACE STOLEN FROM ARTS FAIR
Thieves took off with a diamond necklace worth an estimated $1.8 million from an arts fair in the Netherlands, according to press reports. Police arrested two women from Mexico and a man from Costa Rica suspected of carrying out the theft, but the diamond necklace has not yet been recovered. The theft took place Thursday afternoon during a VIP reception preceding the official opening of the TEFAF arts fair in Maastricht. The diamond necklace was made by American jeweller William Ruser in 1948.

6/3/08 - SPITZER SPACE TELESCOPE TO HELP FIND DIAMONDS IN SPACE
Scientists have devised a way to use the Spitzer Space Telescope to find diamonds in space, which might help them to understand how carbon-rich molecules develop. According to a report in Discovery News, on Earth, diamonds form deep inside the planet under high pressure and temperature. In space, the opposite conditions exist, with extremely low pressures and temperatures that dip to minus 400 degrees fahrenheit. In certain meteorites that have crashed to Earth, about 3% of the carbon inside is in the form of nanometer sized diamonds. If the meteorites accurately reflect the composition of insterstellar gas and dust, it would mean that every gram of cosmic cloud contains 100,000 trillion nanodiamonds. They key to spotting the diamonds is high energy ultraviolet light, which would cause the diamond's carbon bonds to move as it passes through, producing a distinctive pattern in the infrared - therefore, according to the scientists, the best way to find diamonds in space is to look right next to hot stars, which radiate ultraviolet.

2/3/08 - SOTHEBY'S TO AUCTION RARE 72CT PEAR DIAMOND IN HONG KONG
Sotheby's will auction an extremely rare pear-shaped D-colour flawless diamond in its Magnificent Jewels and Jadeite Sale to be held at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre on April 10th 2008. The diamond, which is the largest pear-shaped D-colour flawless diamond to be auctioned in Asia to date weighs 72.22 carats and was cut from an original rough diamond weighing 188.11 carats. The diamond is expected to fetch between $9.5 million to $12.5 million.

26/2/08 - ITALY: THIEVES SWIPE $8M IN DIAMOND JEWELLERY
During the course of several months, an undergroud tunnel was dug from a neighbouring cellar into the Damiani showroom in Milan. On Sunday morning, the tunnel was used to gain access into the showroom and several men involved reportedly stole about $8 million worth of diamond jewellery. Some reports suggest as much as $30 million in jewellery was stolen, but a full list of goods has yet to be made public. Four men dressed as police emerged from the tunnel, tied up staff with plastic cables and locked everyone in the bathroom except for the manager, who was forced to empty the safety deposit boxes. The men reportedly spoke with "southern" Italian accents, but police suspect the raid may have been an inside job. The thieves avoided being captured on security cameras by exiting the showroom through the tunnel. No alarms were set off during the robbery, which took about 40 minutes to complete.

25/2/08 - CHINA BECOMES WORLD'S NUMBER ONE GOLD PRODUCER
While China's demand for gold has pushed the commodity closer to $1,000 an once, the nation has quietly become gold's number one producer. According to the second update of Gold Survey 2007 by London metals consultancy GFMS, China became the world's largest producer of gold last year. GFMS estimates that China produced 276 metric tons in 2007, surpassing South Africa's 272 metric tons. This is the first time since 1905 that any nation has exceeded the output of South Africa.

25/2/08 - DIAMONDS DAZZLE AT THE 80TH ANNUAL ACADEMY AWARDS
Oscars for outstanding film achievements were presented tonight at the 80th Annual Academy Awards, Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, and its Hollywood royalty radiated in glamorous gowns and amazing diamonds. Illuminating from the red carpet, the big diamond trends of the evening included the return of stunning diamond necklaces, perfectly paired with sophisticated diamond drop earrings of all styles, and beautiful bold diamond bracelets and cuffs. The most mesmerising diamond look of the evening was showcased by Oscar presenter Nicole Kidman, who lit up the stage in an extraordinary rough and polished diamond necklace designed by L'Wren Scott, containing a total of 7645 diamonds and totalling almost 1,400 carats.

24/2/08 - DIAMONDS ON THE RED CARPET...QUITE LITERALLY
Diamonds on the red carpet have always been glamorous and fashionable, and this goes for shoes as well. This year, the designer Stuart Weitzman has chosen screenwriter Diablo Cody to wear his million-dollar diamond shoes. Each year, Weitzman makes a $1 million dollar pair of shoes to be worn at the Oscars and one lucky lady gets to wear them. This year's diamond creation, called the "Retro Rose" is a throwback to the 1940s - it is adorned with diamond roses and incorporates over 1,800 diamonds weighing over 100 carats in its design.

22/2/08 - PRECIOUS METALS HIT RECORD HIGHS
Gold and platinum both hit new records this week. On the week, gold rose 4% to $944.40 an once and set a new record for Thursday at $953.91 an once. Platinum rose 6% this week to $2,169 an once after touching $2,206 in early trading on Friday. Silver hit its highest level in 27 years at $18.05 an once. Since only the start of 2008, the price of gold has risen 17% and platinum a staggering 41%. The platinum price increase is mainly attributed to power cuts in South Africa which have disrupted mining activity and pressured supplies.

22/2/08 - REPORT LINKS HEZBOLLAH WITH SIERRA LEONE'S DIAMONDS
The US Embassy in Freetown, Sierra Leone, claims that for the past 5 years in Africa, Hezbollah has raised millions of dollars by selling diamonds in Europe that were first mined in Sierra Leone. Details on the online portal for analysts in the spheres of foreign policy, geopolitics, counter-terrorism and conflict also stated that: "The US Embassy in Freetown has published a report to the effect that rough diamonds worth $70 million to $100 million are smuggled out of the country each year for the purpose of buying and smuggling weapons for terrorist activities. However, exactly 3 days before the publication of the report, Sierra Leone's Vice-President Samuel Sam-Sumana had assured the Third International Rough Diamond Conference in Israel that diamonds exported out of Sierra Leone are now conflict-free. "We are taking steps to restore growth in our country. We adhere closely to the Kimberely Process. All the diamonds we export are conflict-free", he stressed.

20/2/08 - DIAMONDS AND ART - HIRST STYLE
The controversial British artist Damian Hirst has created art's priciest piece ever, using diamonds. Hirst took a cast of a life-sized human skull in platinum and covered it with no less than 8,601 pave set diamonds weighing 1,106.18 carats to complete the world's most expensive piece of art. The huge single diamond placed in the centre of the skull's forehead is reportedly $4.2 million alone. At an estimated cost of $10-15 million, the project was financed by the artist himself. Hirst, who made a name for himself in the art world with works such as his dissected cow and a shark placed in formaldehyde, explains his creaton, entitled "For the Love of God": "I just want to celebrate life by saying to hell with death...and what better way of saying that than by taking the ultimate symbol of death and covering it in the ultimate symbol of luxury, desire and decadence? The only part of the original skull that will remain will be the teeth. You need that grotesque element for it to work as a piece of art. God is in the details and all that". According to ABC News, the work has been sold to an un-named investment group for $100 million...and Hirst will be paid in cash.

19/1/08 - HOPE DIAMOND NEW DISCOVERY
Researchers at the Smithsonian and Naval Research laboratory have recently found that the famously blue Hope diamond glows red when exposed to ultra-violet light. Whilst most blue diamonds glow blue when exposed to this kind of light, the Hope diamond's uniquely reddish glow is attributed to its special chemical compounds. Scientists claim that this discovery could help "fingerprint" authentic blue diamonds - which are very rare - and distinguish them from artificial ones by measuring their different glows. The Hope diamond is currently on display at the Smithsonian's Museuem of Natural History, and while conditions do not allow for it to be shown in ultraviolet lighting, the museum may make a video of its reddish glow for visitors to enjoy.

7/12/07 - POPULARITY OF ONLINE SHOPPING INCREASES THIS CHRISTMAS
More and more shoppers are finding their gifts and comparing prices online this Christmas. A survey conducted by AOL indicates that this year, a whopping three our of four internet users will do at least some of their Christmas shopping in front of their computer screen. During the Christmas rush, online shopping is particularly rewarding, as it may help save money due to easy price comparisons and definitely saves the time spent parking the car or waiting in queues. Unsurprisingly, more and more people are discovering the rewards of shopping for the perfect gift from the comfort of their own home.

20/11/07 - WORLD RECORD BREAKING DIAMOND
A new world record has been set for the highest price per carat for a red diamond. The record price of $1,180,340 per carat was paid at Christie's latest Magnificent Jewels Auction in Geneva, where Mr Lawrence Graff purchased a 2.26ct octagonal-shaped purple-red diamond. The total price paid for the red diamond was $2.67 million.

5/11/07 - DIGGING FOR DIAMONDS?
Not may people can say they actually dug up a precious diamond. However, that's exactly what happened to Chad Johnson of Arkansas today. He discovered that the rock caught in his sifter was actually a 4.38ct tea-coloured diamond. Mr Johnson has been digging for diamonds at the Crater of Diamonds State Park, an Arkansas park open to the public, and the only site in the world where visitors can keep the diamonds they discover. Open since 1972, the largest diamond found in the park was the 'Amarillo Starlight' - a white 16.37 carat diamond unearthed in 1975. Out of approximately 700 diamonds found in the park this year, Mr Johnson's discovery is the second largest one, and his largest to date.


FEBRUARY 2008 - www.dejoria.co.uk extends its range of diamond engagement ring designs in its Create Your Diamond Ring and Diamond Jewellery Collection sections.

FEBRUARY 2008 - DeJoria Diamonds is featured in Vanity Fair magazine.



JANUARY 2008 - www.dejoria.co.uk announces that its successful birthstone promotion whereby they inset her birthstone into the inside of her diamond ring is extended until Valentines Day.

JANUARY 2008 - www.dejoria.co.uk is delighted to report that all Christmas orders were successfully fulfilled on time.

NOVEMBER 2007 - www.dejoria.com appears in OK! magazine in the USA which covered the launch party of DeJoria Diamonds (see below).



OCTOBER 2007 - On 4th October 2007, DeJoria Diamonds launched www.dejoria.com in the USA. To celebrate the occasion, we held a party at John Paul DeJoria's residence in California. Over $5 million worth of diamond jewellery was presented to the 125 guests, along with the introduction of the brand new DeJoria Platinum Vintage Champagne.



OCTOBER 2007 - www.dejoria.co.uk is again proud to work alongside one of London's leading publishing houses to help promote Jackie Collins' 25th novel "Drop Dead Beautiful".



JULY 2007 - John Paul DeJoria's wife, Eloise, models some unique diamond and gemstone jewellery pieces to promote John Paul DeJoria's "Private Collection" of jewellery in the USA. The Private Collection website is a new side 'viewing' room of www.dejoria.com, but only accessible with a unique passcode provided to selected people by John Paul DeJoria himself.



JULY 2007 - www.dejoria.co.uk announces the introduction of the DeJoria Lifetime Care Programme whereby our customers are able to return their diamond jewellery once every 2 years for a free diamond security check and re-polish if required.

JULY 2007 - www.dejoria.co.uk launches a promotion whereby we will set her birthstone onto the inside of any DeJoria diamond engagement ring at no additional cost. This makes the already-personal gift of a diamond engagement ring EVEN MORE personal.

JUNE 2007 - www.dejoria.co.uk is proud to work with one of London and the UK's leading publishing houses on the exciting publication of "Lucy in the Sky" - as part of the launch promotion, www.dejoria.co.uk provides a pair of diamond earrings worth £500 to one lucky reader.



JUNE 2007 - www.dejoria.co.uk announces a new format of independent appraisal document that is available on all purchases in excess of £10,000. The Safeguard "Jewellery Portfolio" is a leather bound document and contains all information associated with your purchase, including specification of the diamond and digital images etc.

MARCH 2007 - www.dejoria.co.uk adds to its already-extensive of ring mounts in its Create Your Diamond Ring section, providing its customers with even more choice. The new mounts can be found in the Brilliant cut diamond rings and the princess cut diamond rings section, and so if you are looking for that perfect diamond engagement ring for that special person in your life, then your search can end here!

JANUARY 2007 - www.dejoria.co.uk is delighted to announce that all Christmas orders were successfully fulfilled on time.

JUNE 2006 - www.dejoria.co.uk launches a promotion whereby delivery on all items is free within the UK. Yet another reason to make your purchase with www.dejoria.co.uk

MARCH 2006 - www.dejoria.co.uk introduces a further 10 brand new ring mount designs into their Create Your Diamond Ring section, providing an ever-increasing selection of stunning diamond engagement ring designs, with both classic and contemporary styles available. These new designs complement the existing range of diamond rings, many of which are exclusive designs to www.dejoria.co.uk. Click here for more information.

FEBRUARY 2006 - www.dejoria.co.uk becomes a 'Recommended Site' of www.thegoodwebguide.co.uk - an independent website which reviews major online retailers. www.dejoria.co.uk also becomes a full member of the SafeBuy consumer protection scheme, providing customers with complete peace of mind to make their purchase. Click here for more information.

JANUARY 2006 - www.dejoria.co.uk is delighted to report that all Christmas orders were successfully dispatched before the December 21st cut-off date, resulting in 100% customer satisfaction.


JANUARY 2006 - www.dejoria.co.uk introduces a customer satisfaction survey results page - a unique and fully automated feedback page showing what DeJoria customers really thought about their 'DeJoria Experience'.




SEPTEMBER 2005 - www.dejoria.co.uk introduces its range of gold and platinum wedding rings, perfectly complementing its collection of diamond engagement rings. www.dejoria.co.uk also announces an ongoing promotion whereby all customers who purchase their diamond engagement ring through www.dejoria.co.uk also receive a 10% discount on their wedding rings.





AUGUST 2004 - www.dejoria.co.uk sells what it believes to be the largest diamond ever sold on the internet in the UK - a 5.50ct (approx 12mm x 8mm) Emerald cut diamond to a private UK businessman, valued around £100,000. Click here for more information.




FEBRUARY 2004 - www.dejoria.co.uk is featured in Stag & Groom magazine. Click here for more information.