The world’s most expensive dessert has just been unveiled at The Fortress resort in Sri Lanka. A fruit infused confection with a chocolate sculpture and a huge gemstone, an 80 carat aquamarine. “The Fortress Stilt Fisherman Indulgence” was created to give visitors at The Fortress resort in the coastal city of Galle a one-of-a-kind experience, said the hotel’s public relations manager, Shalini Perera.

The dessert is a gold leaf Italian cassata flavored with Irish cream, served with a mango and pomegranate compote and a champagne sabayon enlighten.
The Indulgence has to be specially ordered, Perera said. Though the hotel has gotten calls about it from as far away as Japan, she said, no one has yet forked over $14,500 to try it.

Consumers and retailers need to become aware of the recent increase in unstable topaz being sold on the market. This topaz is reddish to pinkish brown in color and usually originates in Thailand. However, many dealers are claiming these stones are from Burma or even Brazil. The origin of the color in these gems still unclear. However, when these stones are exposed to sunlight, they fade to nearly a colorless stone.

An example of this can be seen in the photograph of the same stone side by side. The first stones shows the original color, before exposure to sunlight. The second photo shows the same stone after exposure to sunlight for 24 hours. The results are extraordinary.

The sale of these stones to unsuspecting consumers, or retailers, could damage the confidence in an already delicate market. Consumers and retailers need to be aware of what they are buying and where the stone originated. Trust becomes an important factor when buying precious gemstones. Retailers need to trust their sources of precious stones. Additionally, consumers need to go to a source where they feel comfortable buying precious gemstones in order to ensure a quality stone.

After seeing a recent increase in consumer assurance, as well as prices, the emerald market is yet again faced with a new challenge. A new method allowing for the treatment of rough emeralds has begun to spark worry for many involved in the trade. This method uses hardener resins such as Permasafe to treat rough emeralds, making them more suitable for faceting. This treatment seems to be materializing in Columbia, which is a key source of emerald production. Rough Columbian emeralds are usually washed during separation, but are never treated.

These fillers, such as Permasafe, are accepted for finished stones as long as the treatment is revealed. However, treating emeralds in the rough could result in jeopardizing the stone, as well as the assurance of consumers. Such fillers, when used in the rough, can make the stone up to 65% stronger. If stones are treated in the rough, this information is usually disclosed by the producers. However, the problem is that many retailers, those higher up in the distribution of the stones, are dropping the disclosure of these treatments.

These treatment methods create a problem for consumers looking for genuine emeralds. There is a way you can assure that your emeralds have not been treated in the rough. When buying an emerald or emerald jewelry, it is always good to buy from a source you trust. Trust is a key factor when you are looking to buy precious stones. Trust is especially important when buying colored gemstones. Colored gemstones have no international consumer authenticity source. This can create a problem when you enter the market for colored stones. In order to ensure a quality, authentic precious gemstone, make sure you shop with a dependable, reliable and established retailer whom you feel comfortable dealing with.

In the free world one can love or hate anyone or anything they choose. The point I would like to make is that knowing the facts can make even the most ardent critic change their mind. Specifically I would like to show why its okay to love Rolex or the people that wear them. So lets look at the facts and I will leave it up to you to decide.

1. Rolex invented the wristwatch as we know it. Rolex was the first company to put real effort into marketing and producing them in 1905. Other companies could see no reason to stray from producing pocket watches.

2. Rolex invented the waterproof wristwatch. Their invention of the screw down crown was a classically simple concept, similar to a submarine hatch.

3. Ditto for self winding mechanisms. The company saw the way the watch market was headed and also saw the mistakes other companies made. Today, a vast majority of the automatic watches produced use a version of the Rolex Auto Rotor system.

4. One of the most important advances made by Rolex was their decision to gain chronometer certification. Before they instituted the program other companies just talked about how accurate their watches were; but Rolex was the first company to have the accuracy proven by an independent agency.

5. Today many companies have “Professional” watches designed for a specific job, such as diving, sailing or pilots. Rolex just so happened to invent this concept as well. The Submariner is one such example.

6. As you can see thus far Rolex is the most innovative watch company to date, with over a thousand patents in 100 years.

7. Today they are the most self-sufficient watch company in existence because they produce all their own movements, cases ,bracelets, and crystals.

8. Many a customer has come in and wondered just why the cost of a new Rolex is so high, well, there are two main reasons. First they sell every watch they make. Second, no one in history has ever been forced to buy a Rolex, it is up to ones free will. Like everything else that is for sale, the free market system rules.

9. It is hard to speak about Rolex without touching on resale value. In the most simple terms Rolex (both new and pre-owned) retain a higher percentage of their cost than any other Swiss production watch.

10. My favorite reason to buy a Rolex is one that people rarely think of. Most of the company profits go to good causes. The company is owned by two family trusts, the larger of which gives a majority to charitable causes , including education and an orphanage.