What’s New at SBJ?

Jewelry Appraisals Thursday, November 8th! Jane Chaikowsky is an Independent Jewelry Appraiser who is Graduate Gemologist (GG) of the Gemological Institute of America, an Accredited Senior Appraiser (ASA), Master Gemologist Appraiser® (MGA) of the American Society of Appraisers and Certified Senior Member (CSM) of the National Association of Jewelry Appraisers, assuring an unbiased opinion of value. Jane can appraise your jewelry while you watch using portable gemological laboratory equipment. 🔬   Jane only visits our store about once a month and won't be back until after the holiday season so be sure to call and schedule your appointment! 610-434-8001   You can also drop off your jewelry the day before if you are unable to make it in on Thursday!

Since 2005, we have had the privilege of carrying Pandora Jewelry... in fact, we were one of the first jewelry stores in the country to help build the brand! Over the last 13 years, we have provided expert sales advice (and had A LOT of fun!) designing charm bracelets and putting together stack rings for our clients. I have recently decided that Susan Bella Jewelry will not continue to sell Pandora Brand Products. We need to make room for all of the exciting new jewelry I've been buying at trade shows!! We've had an amazing run with Pandora, but now it's time for us to focus on being able to provide more options for more price points with our Sterling Silver and Fine Jewelry. Perhaps you've seen our "Every Style, Every Budget" campaign? Initially, this decision came with a very heavy heart. But now I am only excited -- VERY excited -- about the future of Susan Bella Jewelry and all of the fabulous new products I will be offering. This includes a new line of jewelry I'm designing (more to come on this!), in addition to more custom one-of-a-kind pieces for sale! We are currently selling our beautiful Pandora collection Clearance Style: first come, first serve, while supplies last, all sales final. The current discount is 40% off and will increase closer to the Holiday, but your best selection is now, so don't wait too long! Get your gifts now and hold them until December... did you know there are only 8 Saturdays left until Christmas, and even scarier, only 6 left before Hanukkah?? It's been an honor to serve our clients with the Pandora line. Many of you found us because of the [...]

OPAL What is an Opal? Opal is the product of seasonal rains that drenched dry ground in regions such as Australia’s semi-desert “outback.” The showers soaked deep into ancient underground rock, carrying dissolved silica (a compound of silicon and oxygen) downward. During dry periods, much of the water evaporated, leaving solid deposits of silica in the cracks and between the layers of underground sedimentary rock. The silica deposits formed opal. How Opal Forms Opal is known for its unique display of flashing rainbow colors called play-of-color. There are two broad classes of opal: precious and common. Precious opal displays play-of-color, common opal does not. Play-of-color occurs in precious opal because it’s made up of sub-microscopic spheres stacked in a grid-like pattern—like layers of Ping-Pong balls in a box. As the lightwaves travel between the spheres, the waves diffract, or bend. As they bend, they break up into the colors of the rainbow, called spectral colors. Play-of-color is the result. Although experts divide gem opals into many different categories, five of the main types are: White or light opal: Translucent to semi translucent, with play-of-color against a white or light gray background color, called bodycolor. Black opal: Translucent to opaque, with play-of-color against a black or other dark background. Fire opal: Transparent to translucent, with brown, yellow, orange, or red body color. This material—which often doesn’t show play-of-color—is also known as “Mexican opal.” Boulder opal: Translucent to opaque, with play-of-color against a light to dark background. Fragments of the surrounding rock, called matrix, become part of the finished gem. Crystal or water opal: Transparent to semi transparent, with a clear background. This type shows exceptional play-of-color. Opal's Physical and Spiritual Healing Properties Writers have compared opals [...]

September Birthstone: Sapphire! What is a Sapphire? Few gems have held our attention over millennia as well as sapphire. The pure blue colors and excellent durability make for an exceptional gemstone. However, not all sapphires are blue! They come in every color of the rainbow, except red. All red Corundum gems are considered Rubies. Sapphires of other colors are named “Fancy Sapphires” and they come in violet, green, yellow, orange, pink, purple, and even gray, black and brown! Sapphires get their extraordinary colors from traces of iron, titanium, chromium, and other elements. Physical & Spiritual Healing Properties In ancient Greece and Rome, kings and queens were convinced that blue sapphires protected their owners from envy and harm. During the Middle Ages, the clergy wore blue sapphires to symbolize Heaven, and ordinary folks thought the gem attracted heavenly blessings. In other times and places, people instilled sapphires with the power to guard chastity, make peace between enemies, influence spirits, and reveal the secrets of oracles. A stone of prosperity, Sapphire sustains life force and attracts joy and peace.  Sapphire helps to open the mind to beauty and intuition. It is a stone of wisdom, with each color containing its own unique energy vibration and information. Physically, Blue Sapphire can assist with healing on a cellular level, blood disorders, eye issues and general stress.  Blue Sapphire has been used as an aid to ease depression, anxiety and insomnia. How to care for your Sapphire Corundum (Ruby and Sapphire) is relatively hard—9 on the Mohs scale. It has excellent toughness and no cleavage, which is a tendency to break when struck. This makes it a great choice for rings and other mountings subject to daily wear. Stability Corundum is [...]

Jewelry Appraisals Thursday, September 27th! Jane Chaikowsky is an Independent Jewelry Appraiser who is Graduate Gemologist (GG) of the Gemological Institute of America, an Accredited Senior Appraiser (ASA), Master Gemologist Appraiser® (MGA) of the American Society of Appraisers and Certified Senior Member (CSM) of the National Association of Jewelry Appraisers, assuring an unbiased opinion of value. Jane can appraise your jewelry while you watch using portable gemological laboratory equipment. 🔬   Jane only visits our store about once a month so be sure to call and schedule your appointment! 610-434-8001   You can also drop off your jewelry the day before if you are unable to make it in on Thursday!

💫Shop For A Cause!  Here at SBJ we are avid animal lovers, as we know many of you are! It is important to us to support local shelters and thank them for their selfless acts of community service and care for creatures of all sizes! 🐭 That's why, from 9/18 - 9/22 we will be donating 10% of every purchase to Peaceable Kingdom Inc.! AND as a thank you for helping us support such a worthy cause, we will extend a 10% discount* to YOU! 💗 Just mention this post! If you can't make it in to shop and still want to help, just click the 'Donate' button on our Facebook! We will also be accepting cash and check donations in the store.  Now, a little about our beautiful four-legged models: Lulu (left) is a sweet Yorkie with a flair for sparkles. 🌟 She is the Unofficial God-Daughter of our Social Media Bella Girl, Jen and like her, enjoys spending her days draped in diamonds.  #DontWeAll You may recognize the lovely lady on the right! Olive is the Official Susan Bella Mascot/Greeter/Head of Security! Being the daughter of a jewelry store owner definitely has its perks - Olive can play dress up whenever she wants!  But her absolute favorite job is being her mom's muse. She takes that position *very* seriously! Most of the day, she can be found laying under Susan's desk providing the perfect soothing balance of gentle snoring for optimum creative energy.  We are endlessly grateful for the kind souls we get to share our lives with!  *Excludes Pandora

CLOSED Tues. 8/28 - Mon. 9/3 Every year we close for the week of The Great Allentown Fair, so that means that your last chance to pick up repairs, gifts and accessories is by 4pm Saturday! 💎 🇺🇲️ Have a wonderful Labor Day Weekend SBJ Friends!  We hope you eat, drink, relax and enjoy all the fruits of your labor. You deserve it!  We'll be back Tues. 9/4 at 10am and we can't wait to see you! ~ Susan and The Bella Team ~  

Jane Chaikowsky is an Independent Jewelry Appraiser who is Graduate Gemologist (GG) of the Gemological Institute of America, an Accredited Senior Appraiser (ASA), Master Gemologist Appraiser® (MGA) of the American Society of Appraisers and Certified Senior Member (CSM) of the National Association of Jewelry Appraisers, assuring an unbiased opinion of value. Jane can appraise your jewelry while you watch using portable gemological laboratory equipment. 🔬   Jane only visits our store about once a month so don't miss your opportunity! 610-434-8001 Walk-Ins welcome from 10am - 1pm! Prices start at $135

Join us every Thursday for our weekly Wish List Happy Hour! Have a cocktail, play with fabulous jewelry and enjoy some me time! Take pics of all your faves and then watch for our Flash Sales on Social Media *exclusively* for Wish Lists!* #SBJHappyHour *Flash Sales/Discounts eligible for that day, on In-Stock Wish List items only. Excludes Pandora.

What Is A Peridot? Peridot is the gem variety of the mineral Olivine. Its chemical composition includes iron and magnesium, and iron is the cause of the yellowish green colors. Peridot is named after the French word peritot, meaning gold, because the mineral can vary towards this color. The color range for peridot is narrow, from a brown-green color to yellowish green to pure green. Gem miners find Peridot as irregular nodules (rounded rocks with peridot crystals inside) in some lava flows in the United States, China, and Vietnam and, very rarely, as large crystals lining veins or pockets in certain types of solidified molten rock. Geologists believe both types of deposits relate to the spreading of the sea floor that occurs when the earth’s crust splits, and rocks from its mantle are pushed up to the surface. Sometimes—as in Myanmar— these rocks can be altered, deformed, and incorporated into mountain ranges by later earth movements. Rarely, Peridot can have an extraterrestrial source, being contained in meteorites that have fallen to earth! Some historians believe that Cleopatra’s famous emerald collection might actually have been Peridot. People in medieval times continued to confuse Peridot with emerald. For centuries, people believed the fabulous 200-ct. gems adorning the shrine of the Three Holy Kings in Germany’s Cologne Cathedral were emeralds. They are, in fact, Peridots. Physical & Spiritual Healing Properties Peridot has always been associated with light. In fact, the Egyptians called it the “gem of the sun.” Some believed that it protected its owner from “terrors of the night,” especially when it was set in gold. Others strung the gems on donkey hair and tied them around their left arms to ward off evil spirits. Peridot has [...]