Gems TV

First time I’ve ever watched it and had to change the channel within minutes due to the terrible female presenter.

She looked like she was having some sort of meltdown at 3.45ish this morning.

I didn’t see what jewellery she was advertising.

I am a customer of Gems TV despite the awful presenters. They literally drive me off air. I would definitely buy more if they would just shut up from their dribble and let the gems speak for themselves. I’ve written to Gems TV about the issue as not one of those presenters are bearable.

As BBC an example I wanted to buy my daughters a diamond ring now after weeks of looking I can’t stay on air long enough to choose as the presentation is so bad they literally force me to switch off. Come on Gems TV get a grip of your employeees and give them some training let them watch QVC jewellery presenters

I like most of the jewellery. It's affordable and mainly good quality BUT omg lately I can't stand watching and either switch off or mute.

One presenter keeps constantly saying 'here we are today ' over and over again.

Another new presenter should be on childrens tv. Talks to viewers like we're all children. I say talk lightly more like shout,with a demented laugh and near hysterical disposition.

Come on gemporia you can do better

I bought a ring at auction and later, the same ring was at lower price in another auction. I contacted Customers Service because they offer a lifetime low price guarantee for any item bought in live auctions. They refused to credit back to me the difference in price, more that £50 in this case. In their website it says that if you find out that the item you bought in live auction is later at lower price, they will credit your account with the difference.

My partner years ago bought a stone that was sold as being a tanzanite, upon having some gems valued it turns out that this particular “stone” is actually glass. Very disappointing, to say the least!

I have bought a few items of jewellery but the more expensive items were returned as they looked nothing like the example shown on screen. Czarite ring and an Ambilobe sphene both looked like something I might find in an Xmas cracker. Am very unlikely to buy from them again.

Presenters extremely irritating and rabbit on far too much. There is one female on in the evenings whose clothes are unsuitable for her build. Usually off one shoulder and her chest seems to be in danger of falling onto the desk. Her hair is a mess and she is always scratching her head and she looks like she needs a good scrub. This coupled with her inability to string a coherent sentence together means I never watch her. Steve Bennett and his virtue signalling.......annoying and hypocritical.

All in all I now buy from antique shops or a local independent jewellers.

One of the poorest customer service advisors had to speak to attitude straight away as soon as I advised I was a returning customer and needed to set up a account shocking

I used to watch Gems a long time ago (five years), loved it used to have more price falls per item than they do now. That is not the main complaint.

I cannot stick the presenters that are on there now. They get to be so grating I turn over.

With the repetitive ‘Oh my word’ ‘Oh my ....’ ‘Oh my word’ I can’t believe’ ‘never done before’’look at this’ ‘ this is mad what are we doing’. I know they have to sell but for ‘Oh my goodness’ sake! One presenter did the ‘oh my word’ in one version or another 14 times in a five minute period.

We don’t want to know about your family birthdays or your holidays. We don’t want to watch you scratching your face and head every two minutes like you’re flea bitten or watch you flicking and running your fingers through the matted rats nest that looks like you haven’t brushed today.

Put off the other day because the last thing the presenter then should be selling is anything that gives a close up of the ingrained fake tan that was all over her hands - yuk !

Tidy yourselves up gems tv.

I had to uphold standards of cleanliness and neat appearance in my profession, why are presenters allowed to look the way they do.

I wish to pre-empt this dissertation by saying I am not a jeweler, but I do have a jeweler friend who has looked at my pieces and given me some advice. I don't buy from him mainly because he deals in high-end, high-priced items which I cannot afford. I have taught myself about jewelry from information the hosts on Gemporia have provided, watching their programs diligently and surfing the internet for more detailed information from loose gemstone sites and the GIA. The following are just my opinions from my experiences with Gemporia.

I know there are buyers of all ages and financial budgets. I, in no way, want to offend anyone and believe you should buy and be happy with your jewelry no matter how much you spend on it. I myself won't spend any more than $200 on a piece of jewelry no matter how much I like it because I know my financial limitations. If you are happy with buying a diamond in Sterling Silver, then be happy. If you are an investor who can spend thousands of dollars, then I'm sure you're familiar with the cost of loose stones and the work that goes into making the pieces and the cost of labor and the bottom line you wish to spend. To each his own.

QUALITY - One thing I have come to learn from the pieces I've purchased from Gemporia is that the gems you purchase in sterling silver will not be of the same quality as those purchased in gold. For example, a Zambian emerald in a sterling silver setting will be cloudy and very included compared to one that has been set in 18k. I, personally, believe that to be wrong. The quality of the gem should be the same quality no matter what the setting. The only difference should be in the cost of the diamonds, the cost of the gold it's set in and the price of the stone in relation to it's size. The quality/clarity of the stone should not be diminished. I don't want a Zambian emerald set in a sterling silver ring to look like a candy box prize. I want it to have good clarity and not crushed. The pieces set in sterling silver are already small. Why can't they be of good quality? My ring in sterling silver will naturally be less expensive because it's not set in gold and it doesn't have diamonds and it's made up of .15ct sized stones. But those small stones should be just as nice as the ones in an 18k gold ring set with i1-i2 diamonds that has a 1ct emerald in it. You're paying for the 18k, the high quality diamonds and the bigger stone so of course it will cost more, but my sterling silver one should not be any worse in quality or clarity to that 18k item. That's my opinion.

RETURNS - it should not take 10 working days to "process" a return and up to 30 days (or more ) to see my return on my credit card. It's actually longer, because once they take their time "processing," I still have to wait another 2 or 3 days for my own bank to accept it. So in reality it is more than 30 days. They drag it out to make sure they get their 30 days in before they have to "process" the return. It's not right. I understand that I am in the U.S. and it is being shipped to England and it takes slightly longer to get there. I usually send my items back by Priority Mail to their new Florida receiving area and they get my package in 2 days. But once they receive it in England, it should not take another 10 working days to process my return. Everything is computerized. All that is needed is for someone to inspect that the items are the correct ones being returned, process the return on the computer and then send it on it's way to the main vault/studio. I should not have to wait for it to get to the main vault/studio for my return to be processed. In fact, now that they have a "live" program and building coming out of Florida, U.S.A., I can't understand why they can't streamline the return process and shorten the time for those of us ordering from Gems who live in the U.S. When I purchase something at my local store, I don't have to wait 30 days to see my refund. It's all computerized and instantaneous. If they can pick, process and send and get the item to me in 7 days, then it should work the same way on the return.

PRONGS - An issue they really, really need to work on is the prong setting of the stones. I have too many rings where the prongs are not set properly and they stick out and catch on everything. My daughter wanted to borrow my Madagascar Ruby bracelet and she had to take it off because it was catching on her clothing too many times. She got fed up with it. I know this has happened to me many times also with other items.

STERLING SILVER QUALITY - I just had an experience with is a bracelet made with Sterling Silver. The metalwork was not good and the bracelet contained cracked stones. On top of that, the sterling silver was already tarnishing which makes me wonder how long this piece has been laying around. This piece of jewelry should not have passed quality control. It should have gone straight into a clearance/outlet store on gemporia.com. At the very least, they should have cleaned/polished the silver on it before sending it out.

FREE ITEM - Along with this current purchase, they were apparently giving away a free black agate chakra bracelet. I laughed out loud when I saw it. It looked like something you would give as a baby's bracelet or for a toy doll, the stones were that small. I could barely get it over my hand. I was afraid it was going to break and the beads would fly everywhere. What a joke. If you're going to give me something free, then at least make it something that will make me want to come back and purchase more.

ACCURATE ITEM INFORMATION - Be conscious of how they present their merchandise. For example, yes Chrome Diopside (one of my favorites) is rare and only mined 3 months out of the year in Russia. But it is only rare when it hits the 2 carat size. So when they show you a 2.39 carat ring made up of 1/4 carat stones, this is not rare. Rarity comes from 2 carat or larger solitaires with very little inclusions. But, I own both smaller stones and larger 2ct + solitaires because I love the color of Chrome Diopside. What I don't like is how they're misleading the buyers by saying that all Chrome Diopside is rare.

LOUNGE ITEMS - If you are a regular viewer of THE LOUNGE, like I am, be careful of what you bid on. If an item only has a scratched band, then go for it, but if your multiple stones are not the same color or there is a scratch on the stone itself, then you may be better off passing on it. I have purchased items where the stones were scratched or not color-matched or ended up being more heavily included than what I would have wanted, whether or not the price was right, and I returned them. In order to fix the scratched stone, it will cost you more money in the end, which defeats the purpose of buying it on The Lounge. And you can't replace an off color stone unless you buy it loose on line and then you still need a jeweler to pay to fix that. But, of course, if you can live with the imperfections, then by all means go for it.

PINK SAPPHIRES - The new PINK Sapphires they're selling now seem to be different batches made in the 10k. I recently watched a Gems UK show on Sept 3rd and saw a beautiful 1ct Pink Sapphire Solitaire in 10k yellow gold. And then strangely, I saw another Gems UK show on Sept 6th and saw another 1ct Pink Sapphire Solitaire in 10k yellow gold that was very pale compared to the first one I saw they both had different item numbers. Obviously, the ring with the deeper stone was $80 more than the paler one that was shown a few days later. I don't understand what's going on? If I was the one that bought the pale ring and then saw the deeper stone of the same carat weight and size, I would be upset. If you go on line to some of the loose gemstone sites, you can see what the color saturation of a pink sapphire should be.

SRI LANKAN BLUE SAPPHIRES - are diffused which gives them their great color.

CEYLON SAPPHIRES - Their Ceylon Sapphires in 10k gold are pale and have too much banding of color. So far, all of the ones I've ordered and returned were very poor in color consistency. I had rings with 6 stones and at least 3 were only half colored blue and the other half were clear sapphire. You have to buy 14k or 18k to get better color saturation. I would rather have a consistent color throughout the stone and have it be paler than have zoning where half of the stones are blue and the other half nothing. Just because they have the name of Ceylon on them does not mean Gemporia is giving you a high quality product. I'm tired of seeing the items on air look great and then receiving an inferior product.

Maui Kunzites - Some are irradiated.

Most rubies are Fissure-filled. But they have recently brought in some new Mozambique and Thai rubies that are not fissure-filled. At least that's what I believe they are saying. But I have recently read that there is "heat" treated and there is "heat" treated with flux. Which is Gemporia selling to its customers?

Most Rainbow Sapphires are Diffused now. Their original Songea sapphires were only Heat Treated which was great. I have a few of them.

COLORED DIAMONDS - Check that your white diamond is better than an i3 because it won't have any sparkle. As for your colored diamonds? The hosts tell us that they only use quality colored diamonds in their jewelry, but the fact that they don't grade their colored diamonds (and you can grade colored diamonds), tells me that they aren't telling us the truth. Also, diamonds set in sterling silver won't be any better than i3 or worse.

Their Genuine Jade is so pale it's not worth purchasing, unless you happen to get into it early and pick up some darker green pieces.

Tanzanite are at least $100 to $150 or more; Triple A stones over 1 carat are now only placed in 14 or 18k; smaller Triple A stones are placed with zircon instead of diamonds; they are placing larger 1.5+ carat Double As in 14k because they know no one wants the Double As any more, especially if you want to invest, and they believe because it is in 14k that you'll think the color will be better. Fortunately, I purchased several Triple As when they first came on air in 2012 in the US and they were still reasonably priced and my Double As look like Triple As. ALSO, I believe they have raised their old designs by$50 to $100 more than what they may have been a year ago. Unfortunately, who wants the Double As any more? The only Double A's I may purchase would be larger carat stones (2+) in 10k or 14k solitaires or cluster pieces using large (.80 to .90+ cts, just under one carat each) Double A stones in pendants or rings. I would love to find a 3 or 4 stone pendant with a total of 2.70cts or larger in 10k or 14k gold with a price that won't burn my pocket. I think I'll have to go to Ebay. Anyone purchasing for an investment has already missed the boat unless you find one in 18k for a really good price. They're all too high now.

ZAMBIAN EMERALDS - Color is the most important when it comes to Emeralds. If I can't afford a 2 carat emerald, then I would like them to make some nicer cluster rings or pendants in 10k gold that have 1/2 carat emerald stones in a cluster setting with a higher total carat weight. I would love a 3.60 carat cluster emerald pendant with 9, .40 ct stones as long as it had the right color. Or a 3 carat pendant with 6, 1/2 carat stones. But it must have the right color. Don't give me pale, cracked or cloudy emeralds in my smaller settings. Just because I can't afford a 3 carat Emerald in 18k gold or platinum doesn't mean I don't deserve the same quality in your smaller stones.

MAHENGE BLUE SPINEL - Their new stock of Mahenge Blue Spinel is very beautiful but way overpriced. I own a 3.33 carat, 5 stone Mahenge Purple Spinel 10k Gold Ring that I purchased a few years ago for $199. Each stone is .66 carats. I think it's beautiful but I still think I paid too much for it then. If you look on any of the loose gemstone sites, a .38ct blue spinel is only $21.00 and they have many to choose from. So 3 stones in a ring would only cost around $63 for the stones. But understand, that if you go that route of buying the loose stones and making your own ring, you'll be paying for any accent stones and the gold content and the labor. But you will be getting something unique to you. Gems wants $279 for a 3 stone Blue Mahenge spinal 14k ring with diamonds. 14k Gold is about $25 per gram in the U.S. right now. So that's $50 in this ring. 3 Blue Spinel .38ct Stones about $63. Add 12 pave i2 Diamonds around $43. You have a total of $156 wholesale cost in just the materials. $156 to $279 is about a 75% mark up. So that mark up pays for television time, salaries for hosts, designers and craftsman and any profit and charitable work. But be aware, not all of their jewelry is hand-made. Probably a good portion is bulk made in some way or another.

Don't tell me they don't use colored lights or filters to show bluer tanzanite and to make the stones look darker than they are. As I am watching right now on Gems UK, I can plainly see that there is a bluer light or filter being used because the host's hands are even showing a blue haze on them.

They have all these beautiful stones. You want a Ceylon Sapphire but you can't afford one in 14k or 18k so you wait until you find one in 10k. Once they place these sapphires in 10k they also place them with Zircon instead of diamonds. Any one else notice that? I want my 10k Ceylon Sapphire to have diamond i1 to i2 accent stones just like the ones in 14k or 18k and I want my Ceylon Sapphire to have the same depth of color as the ones in 14k or 18k. Maybe I can't afford 2, 3 or 4 carats of them but at least I would be happy knowing that I bought 1/2 carat of smaller deep blue sapphire stones with diamond accents that was not diminished because it was in 10k. They must think that because I cannot afford their 14k or 18k items, that suddenly I desire to have Zircon with my 10k Ceylon Sapphire. All industry known gems (Ceylon, Paraiba, Bumese Ruby, etc) should only have diamond or sapphire accents.

A Ceylon Sapphire is a Ceylon Sapphire and shouldn't be diminished in quality just because it is set in 10k and then make it even less desirable by putting it with Zircon. I love Zircon. But not as accents to my Ceylon Sapphire. Everyone looks for diamonds as accents. And not i3 crushed Diamonds...which is what I got when I purchased a 1/3 carat Diamond ring. The ring was to have i1 to i2 diamonds, but when I received it, it was as if someone took a hammer to it and turned it into a crackle quartz. Where in the heck is their Quality Control? I had to return it and so I lost my purchase Postage amount and my return Postage amount. Losing $10 on top of the fact that it was a terrible ring.

I really don't like cleaning sterling silver. If they used almost pure .999 silver then I wouldn't have to worry. It would rarely tarnish. If it doesn't say 925, then it is a lower grade of silver and will most definitely tarnish. I spoke with a retailer and designer of sterling silver jewelry in my local mall and he said that true sterling silver will rarely tarnish and if it does it just needs a light rubbing with a cloth. He only used .999 silver in his designs. Why can't Gems provide Rhodium plated sterling silver which will last longer and stay beautiful longer? The other Liquidation Channel does.

Their ERV (Estimated Retail Value) in their Gemporia Store on Line is different than what they show on air for the same item. On air I have seen that they raise the ERV of that same item and then make you think you're getting such a great deal.

Another issue regarding their pricing/selling tactics. You see an item on air that you want and it comes down to a "never before seen" lowest price. Only 2 days later, I saw that same item, it was the last one (I purchased the other 2 days earlier). The current host said that was the best lowest price ever and it was $50 more than the host that had it on air 2 days earlier. What's up with that. Are they all seeing different prices on their computer screens? Whatever the low price was 2 days ago should be the same low price 2 days later, not $50 more.

Their Ametrine line is getting paler and paler, especially in sterling silver. Everyone knows the 50/50 split is the most wanted but they are doing more and more of the fancy faceting which hides the fact that your stone may only be 90/10. The colors are paler or they are either almost all Amethyst or very pale Citrine showing through. I would be very happy with 60/40 or 70/30 split as long as the colors were rich and deep. It looks like they try to hide the lack of color depth by faceting the stones so you don't notice it as much. I recently purchased a 13ct in Sterling Silver Ametrine which was beautiful deep color, but with no color play. It was mostly purple Amethyst. Don't bother cutting and faceting Ametrine stones that are less than 70/30. I will send it back.

Amber - Gemporia's Amber is HP (Heat and pressure). I was confused by this since all of their natural untreated stones have no treatment stated in the details and they keep stating on air that it is natural. Yet, Amber has HP in the treatment details. That means that you may be getting real Amber but they are bits and pieces of Amber that have been taken off from larger stones or rejected by authentic Polish Amber sellers and have been fused together to make it more uniform in design. Treated amber is genuine amber but not natural Baltic amber. Natural Baltic Amber commands a price. It is a rare gem and is priced as a rare gem. People who mine amber know its value and do not sell it at low prices. You simply do not get it cheap. If you get cheap amber, it is likely ambroid or low quality pressed amber.

If you're going to buy a ring that came down to a remarkably great price and the only one left is a smaller size than you normally wear, you may want to pass on it. Their 10k gold rings have EXTREMEY THIN bands. I purchased a ring that I had been waiting for and I didn't realize that it was in a size smaller than I wear. I thought, well I can get it resized a half size larger. When it came, the band is already so thin there is no way I can get it resized without paying out a lot of extra money to add gold to it. I am keeping the ring because it is a beautiful Csarite in a nice carat weight (biggest of all my Csarites). But there's no way you would be able to make it two sizes larger like they state on air. If they keep telling us it can be re-sized, then they better start making their rings with a heavier gold weight so that we can.

In regard to their diamonds, they have all of these new collections and pieces coming in and yet they STILL do not have the diamond clarity and color listed on the details as you watch the program. You have to ask them on air to tell you the clarity of the diamonds. If I'm paying $400 for a blue Mahenge spinel, then I want nothing less than i1-i2 diamonds as accents.

If you're going to buy any chain from Gems, make sure you know the gram weight you're looking for. Anything under 1 gram will be a VERY VERY THIN chain. If you want something more substantial, look for chains that are at least 1.40 grams for 18 in and higher weights for longer chains.

They should be providing the TREATMENT information on their Authenticity Cards. At the time of this writing, I believe they may have added that piece of information on their cards, but I have still received cards with NO TREATMENT INFORMATION.

The hosts are always telling you that they never use the same design twice. That's just isn't true. They use the same design over and over. They just change the stones so they can say they never use the same design twice with the same stone.

APPRAISALS - The hosts keep telling us to take the item to our local jeweler and see what they say about the value of the item, but what they don't tell you is that no jeweler will tell you anything unless you PAY them. I have tried contacting several jewelers in my area and none of them will give me the time of day to just look at my pieces and tell me whether they are worth the price I paid.

Lastly, I wish they could understand that our time is valuable to us. I like to play with the hosts while they are on the air so long as they keep the program going. But I have no patience for the hosts that take forever to put the next hour up when it's time and keep chatting away about their personal lives and I can't stand one host that just gabs and gabs during the program while we wait for her to do her job and can't get through all the pieces while she's on. Converse with us, but keep the program going at a good pace. We want to see our pieces and banter a little with the hosts, but we also have other things to do.

Good Luck and Smart Shopping

Ive watched this show for the past 5 years. Ive brought lots from diamonds to plain silver chains. ive got some nice looking pieces, but ive also gotten some total rubbish. If you can get the lorique items then I imagine its quality, I cannot stretch to these budgets. Tanzanite and Emeralds are never as they look on screen IVE GOTTEN 2 EMERALD PIECES WHICH I LIKE BUT I KNOW NEITHER LOOK ANYTHING LIKE THEY DID ON TV.The presenters are pure salesmen!! not presenters. I also believe they have specific pieces to use in studio which are best quality but they send out inferior quality. Some time ago I was advised by a presenter they had discovered a new Topaz which was peach pink in colour, and that once it had been studied it would turn out to be a more important gemstone than they at the moment think, ive not even seen any more ever sold so I expect I was robbed again. Diamond solitaire ring I brought was returned, as my local jeweller compared for me and the difference was very visible, mine looked opaque in fact I was advised by him to send it back as it looked like something used in the industrial sector. I BROUGHT A YELLOW AND WHITE DAIMOND RING AND ALL THE DIAMONDS SEEMED TO VANISH? that too was returned. The PRESENTERS all say compare this online, it'll cost hundreds more, but your not comparing like for like. Ive noticed more recently the amount of created colours they are now doing so much for totally and always natural. Where's his wife's collections gone not seen any for a while. Some of the best staff have vanished,. a couple are now on Rocks & co, where the jewellery is far superior to Gems - tv

 PROMISES DO NOT GET HONOURED ANY LONGER HAVE TO AGREE WITH EVERYONE THE BEST CALL CENTER STAFF NO LONGER WORK FOT THEM. Those there now have no idea how to speak to anyone

Gems tv has grown too big a company too quickly. Therefore lost the integrity and truth about the gemstone jewellery business I grew too love, its no longer what it once was.