In the novel Daniel Deronda, George Eliot writes:

“A human life, I think, should be well rooted in some spot of a native land, where it may get the love of tender kinship for the face of earth, for the labours men go forth to, for the sounds and accents that haunt it, for whatever will give that early home a familiar unmistakable difference amidst the future widening of knowledge: a spot where the definiteness of early memories may be inwrought with affection, and kindly acquaintance with all neighbours… The best introduction to astronomy is to think of the nightly heavens as a little lot of stars belonging to one’s own homestead.”

In 1998, I was commissioned to film autumn footage for a Thanksgiving television special. An elderly minister who was raised in Maine insisted that the only place on earth to capture such footage was in his home state. He and his wife took me on a tour which ultimately led to the top of Mount Battie overlooking the harbor of Camden, Maine.

I am an Appalachian who has wandered for years, finally returning to the mountains that bore me. But seared into my memory from a late October afternoon is the picture of Camden, Maine nestled between the rocky coast of Penobscot Bay and a sea of brilliant fall colors. It was breathtaking.

Artists, for the most part, are inspired by a very limited geographical frame of reference. Andrew Wyeth spent his entire life painting scenes from Pennsylvania, except for his occasional divergence to the coast of Maine.

Ahh, Maine.

What is it about this rugged, pristine land that inspires so many artists? It is no accident that this jewel of a town, Camden, would produce the world renowned jewelry designer, Etienne Perret.

As a student at the University of Vermont, Etienne Perret visited Penobscot Bay one summer and became possessed by it. At the age of nineteen he dropped everything, packed all his belongings into a small truck, and moved to Camden to pursue his passion for silversmithing. In time, an inspired artist was forged by the wind, rocks, and sea. The unique colors of the landscape likely gave Etienne a distinctive ability to blend hues and metal into astounding designs which have since been honored and recognized by the world’s most prestigious jewelry authorities. His specialty? Of course… colored diamonds. Etienne Perret’s work is available the world over, but can be viewed by anyone in fine retail stores such as Nordstrom, Birks of Canada, and Mikimoto.

You can learn more about Etienne and fancy colored diamonds here at The Colored Diamond Blog and at his primary website Etienne Perret.

Like an artist, I believe one must make the investment to find the geography that is you, and be inspired by it. And at night, when the stars of your homestead come out, you may indeed think of them as your own.

There is one amazing diamond lineage that can be traced back to the time of Moses in the Bible.  Some time around 1500 B.C., the ancient Israelis made their exodus from Egypt.  As depicted in the Charlton Heston movie, The Ten Commandments, the Law was given by God to Moses on Mount Sinai.  In addition to the list of commandments, there were many instructions given to Moses regarding how the new nation would be organized.

The nation was divided into twelve tribes, according to the twelve sons of Israel.  One tribe, made up of the descendants of Levi, was appointed to be a tribe of priests.  The Levite who would be the High Priest was the only one who could approach the Ark of the Covenant to make sacrifices on behalf of the nation on the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur).

The High Priest was given a special set of garments to wear, which contained many precious stones.  In the book of Exodus, Chapter 28, jewelers and gem cutters from the tribe of Levi were commanded to fashion the priestly outfit to exact specifications.  Included in the “uniform” was a breastplate on which were set twelve precious stones.  The jewels were arranged in four rows of three.  The third stone on the second row is a diamond.  The gold and gemstone craftsmen were given the responsibility to fashion all of the precious metal and stones involved in ancient Israeli worship ceremonies.

One of the leaders today in the design and sale of champagne or chocolate diamonds is the LeVian family of jewelers.  According to their posted history, Mr. A. LeVian founded the company in the United States in 1950 after immigrating from Persia.  It was in that ancient land where he inherited a storied and famous trade from a long line of family jewelers who trace their lineage directly to the tribe of Levi.

Chocolate diamonds are birthed in the geologic history of the earth, but their human history is also a tribute to their staying power.  These stones are also a testimony to God’s ability to preserve those whom are His.  Though the wild popularity of chocolate diamonds may be relatively new, they are one of the least transient things on earth.

Nowadays, check any “red carpet” event and you are likely to see some gorgeous brown jewelry on display from some of the best jewelry designers in the world.  Jennifer Lopez wore a combination of shades of champagne and peach diamond earrings to the Academy Awards.  Both the Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress winners in 2007 wore champagne diamonds.  Helen Mirren featured a 62-carat brown and white diamond brooch while Jennifer Hudson wore a champagne diamond on her right hand.  Previous Academy Award winner, Hillary Swank, wore a 20-carat champagne diamond in her hair.

It is no exaggeration to say that Hollywood is infatuated with chocolate diamonds.  Cameron Diaz, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Cate Blanchett, Jessica Simpson and Halle Berry have all been seen with dazzling chocolate diamond arrangements.  E! reporter, Maria Menounos, captured everyone’s attention wearing a gown embroidered with 2,000 champagne diamonds.  A set of gold and champagne diamond earrings were recently worn by Eva Longoria and E! News host, Guiliana Rancic.  Singers Kathleen “Bird” York and British pop star Natasha Bedingfield have been seen with champagne earrings and necklaces respectively.  The feelings extend across the globe to Japan where the movie star, Mari Natsuki, is a collector of chocolate diamonds.

Everyone, from carriers of the most luxurious high-end jewelry to the local mall retailer, is embracing the hottest jewelry fashion on the planet, champagne or chocolate diamonds.  Because of the unique color design options and blending with earth tones, there is room for unlimited design creativity and variation.  The affordability of chocolate diamonds allows for price points to be dependent upon the artistry of the design and not just the value of the stones themselves.  This creates greater selection and accessibility on the part of purchasers from one end of the economic scale to the other.

If you are interested in making a solid investment, then you will want to look for the kind of chocolate diamond that is certified by any of these institutions: the International Gemological Institute (IGI) ; the Gemological Institute of America (GIA); the American Gem Society (AGS); the European Gemological Laboratories (EGL) and GemEx Systems.  Ask the salesperson if the diamond is “certified”.  Certification simply means that the four C’s have been verified.

“Carat” has to do with the diamond’s weight, which is related to the stone’s size.  Remember, bigger isn’t always better.   ”Clarity” has to do with the inclusions or blemishes that may be present within a stone.  The cleaner a diamond is on the inside, the more it refracts light.  “Color” is the natural hue of the diamond.  Typically, the more colorless a diamond is, the more valuable.  However, the fancy colored diamonds are an exception.  These diamonds can show up in pink, yellow, blue, green, and of course… brown.  They are more rare than white diamonds and are usually more expensive.  However, the brown stones-champagne diamonds, chocolate diamonds, etc., are in greater abundance than the other fancy colored diamonds, and so they are more accessible.

The final “C” is “Cut”.  This feature has to do primarily with the symmetry of the diamond-how well the depth and width of the stone work together to help it refract the most light, regardless of the shape.  If a stone is too deep or too shallow, even if it is a big and clear stone, it will not “glimmer” with light the way it is supposed to.

The common diamond shapes are: round, princess, marquise, oval, pear-shaped, emerald cut, radiant, heart-shaped, trilliant, and cushion.  You will want to look at the shape of the diamond in relation to the size of your hand, assuming you are purchasing a ring.

Chocolate diamonds offer a great deal of flexibility.  In contrast to white diamonds they make a stunning complementing arrangement.  The key is to experiment and try on what works for you.

Lake Argyle from space

What do you usually find in a creek bed—some minnows, tadpoles, or crawfish?  What would you expect to find in a desert stream?  What if among the stones and eddies you happened upon a raw diamond?

Diamonds were suspected to be present in the deserts of Western Australia since the late 19th century.  But it wasn’t until 1976 that some geologists stumbled upon precious stones lying in Smoke Creek, near Lake Argyle.  After a little more digging, this remote region of Australia was discovered to possess one of the largest deposits of diamonds in the world.

Natural diamonds need three main ingredients in order to exist: heat, pressure, and carbon.  With temperatures has high as 2300 degrees Fahrenheit, under extreme pressure, carbon atoms grow into diamonds, the hardest substance known on earth.  A pure carbon diamond is colorless.  When a diamond has traces of other elements, such as nitrogen or boron, it exhibits a shade of color.  Structural deformities that occurred during the formation of the diamond can also be a source of color.  Geologists have discovered the elements and conditions that make a diamond blue, purple, or yellow.  However, the source of the color of brown or chocolate diamonds, as well as the very rare pink diamonds, remains a mystery.

Argyle Diamond Mine now produces more than a third of the world’s total annual supply of diamonds.  Eighty percent of the diamonds that come from this mine are of the brown variety.  This is the birthplace of most of the world’s chocolate diamonds, which are responsible for billions of dollars in diamond sales.  In recent years, less expensive cultured diamonds, those made in a laboratory, are becoming more popular because of their similarity to natural diamonds.  Chocolate diamonds were once not considered as valuable as white diamonds.  Over time, though, the world has come to enthusiastically embrace their unique beauty and elegance.

Chocolate diamonds demonstrate several things.  They are, like all diamonds, examples of the worst of conditions producing priceless results.  We too are made of carbon, honed and formed by the heat and pressure of our experiences.  Chocolate diamonds also demonstrate the reward that follows endurance and patience; that which is valuable can be found if we just keep looking.  Given time, our value will likewise eventually be recognized.  But chocolate diamonds are also the result of a physical flaw.  They are indeed not perfect.  Yet it is their imperfection that is the very source of their amazing beauty.

One does not need to go to a museum to see something nearly as old as the planet itself. You are likely wearing it on your finger. Blasted through molten rock some 93 miles below the surface of an earth in the pangs of creation, behold the diamond.

The brightest gem on earth is the diamond, which possesses the greatest ability to refract light. And right now, the brightest diamond, in the sense of popularity, is the brown diamond. Brown diamonds, which are among the stones known as fancy colored diamonds, come in a range of shades. This range, according to the Natural Color Diamond Association, begins with the light-colored champagne diamonds, and ends with the ever-darker, rich brown cognac diamonds. Cinnamon, caramel, and chocolate diamonds fall within this scale.

Chocolate diamonds are graded just like colorless diamonds, using the four C’s: carat, clarity, color, and cut. Colored diamonds can be very expensive because of their rarity. The deeper and richer the color, the more expensive. However, brown diamonds are produced in greater abundance than other colors. They can come from mines in Africa or Russia, but most chocolate diamonds come from the world’s largest producer, the Argyle Diamond Mine in the remote Kimberley region of Western Australia.

Two other characteristics determine the value of a diamond: beauty and demand. Two diamonds may look equally valuable on paper; they may have all the right C’s. But the jewel that catches the eye is the more valuable. And of course, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Demand also determines value. A colorless diamond may be beautiful and costly, but not nearly as hot as the increasingly popular chocolate diamond. Because of their natural beauty and their ability to blend well with earth tones, brown diamonds are being seen more and more on the bodies of the rich and famous. Chocolate diamonds also pair beautifully with colorless diamonds. Surrounded by white diamonds, brown diamonds make a stunning centerpiece.

Value is also determined by meaning. A toy ring from a lost loved one has no market value, but its worth cannot be measured. One’s soul has more value than the wealth of the entire world. When choosing a diamond, consider the occasion, the person, and the timelessness of the gift. Chocolate diamonds, like true love, last forever!