A gem dealer's journal — sapphire

Hey Loungers,

Today we will dive into the peculiar and mysterious world of jade with legendary gemologist, and author of the ruby and sapphire Bible: Ruby and Sapphire: A Gemologist’s Guide, Lotus Gemology’s Richard W. Hughes.

With him we will explore his passion for this material and the world that surrounds it. We will try to understand the difference between the various type of jades, what they are used for or what different nations consider jade to be. Whether it is the famous Burmese jade or the sublime and delicate Chinese nephrite sculptures, we hope to learn about them all today.

Without any further delay, we interview one of the only “gweilo” (white foreigner) mainlanders ask to speak about jade: Richard Hughes.

Hey Loungers,

Today we’re shaking up our usual format with a reverse interview of AsiaLounges’ founder, Simon Dussart by none other than gemologist and award-winning photomicrographer Billie Hughes of Lotus Gemology.

We’ll be talking about our brand genesis, what it stands for, and what we believe in.

Hope you like it!

Hey Loungers,  Today we will be taking a sweet trip down memory lane as we interview our pal, Spanish born and living in Japan: Jaume Labro, who will be telling us more about his art. The Lost Art of Mokumegane.  While many claim to being able to have perfected the technique, few have mastered that art at his level. He is one of the last person that the Japanese masters of old recognise as a Mokumegane master in his own right today. So, if like us, you want to learn more about this peculiar and highly interesting topic, read on!...

Hey Loungers,  While some of you may have already read our 2016 article on the topic, we figured that a little refresher probably couldn't hurt.  It is undeniable that nowadays the attraction for colour gem is on the rise yet, very few actually know what they are buying and this could lead to a somewhat rude awakening.  In this article we intend on discussing some of the main points that one needs to know when purchasing a gem such as: treatment, cut, clarity, carat weight, origin and of course the importance of a serious gemological report backing your purchase as well...

Hey Loungers,  The last time we interviewed E. Billie Hughes was about two years ago, as Lotus Gemology was growing fast but, we kind of forgot to ask about one of the most talked about features of their lab: Hyperion Photo Library! Some of you may have heard of it here, others have visited it out of professional curiosity while others just wanted to take a look at the art that the Lotus Team, with Billie as their vanguard, produces with a photo camera and a microscope.  This said, few of us know how this amazing tool got created. Billie,...