Tips on smart shopping for holiday jewelry
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But Simanton points out that those elements won't be "evaluated quite the same way. There is not an international system for grading colored stone like there is for diamonds."

Colored stones are more likely to contain flaws and are rated by the flaws you can see with the naked eye, says Ehrenwald. Rubies and sapphires should be "eye clean to moderately included under magnification," he says.

With emeralds in particular, a flawless stone should make you suspicious. "If you see an emerald that looks beautiful and clear, be sure to get a laboratory report to verify whether it's natural or has been treated," says Simanton. "It should be verified."

Color and richness are big factors, too. With emeralds, you want a richly saturated medium green color, says Ehrenwald.

For rubies, look for rich tones that run the gamut from orangey red to purplish red. "The more pure red it is, the more valuable it would be," he says.

With sapphires, look for a medium- to medium-dark-toned, well-saturated blue color, Ehrenwald says.

Rubies and sapphires are sometimes heat-treated to produce the desired rich color. The effects are permanent, and there is nothing inherently wrong with heating, as long as it's disclosed to the customer -- and "providing nothing foreign has been added to the stone, such as glass filling," says Ehrenwald. "If the color is from nature and untreated it will be much more expensive," he says.

Fracture filling "is more a negative thing," says Ehrenwald. "On the other hand, these treatments do allow colored gemstones to be affordable. However the stability of fracture filling is questionable."

And the origin of the stone can make a difference. Labs can usually tell where a stone is from by the telltale signs inherent within the gem, says Ehrenwald. Top rubies come from Burma, Africa and Thailand, then the rest of the world, he says. The best emeralds are from Colombia. And the premier sapphires hail from Kashmir, followed by Burma, then Sri Lanka, then Australia.

Smart shopping
"The key that distinguishes jewelry from every other industry is that jewelry requires the expertise of a trained professional," says Ehrenwald.

When it comes to jewelry, you have to have a certain amount of confidence in the seller. Does the retailer have a reputation for good jewelry? Is the store a member of a professional organization, like Jewelers of America, the Jewelers Vigilance Committee or the American Gem Society, that espouses a code of professional standards and ethics? Does it have certified gemologists on staff? Do you get a description of the stone or piece from an independent gemological institution?

Retailers need to guarantee that the piece is genuine and allow for returns in case you or your giftee isn't satisfied.

Ehrenwald recommends getting a report from a recognized and well-established gem lab.

If it's a less-expensive piece and the seller doesn't want to provide a report, "all the information should be written on the sale receipt," he says. What you need: a complete description of the piece, "the more descriptive the better," he says. "It's a legal document." So if you discover that those "cultured pearls" are imitation, there's something in writing.

Certification is the key to making a good buy, Ehrenwald says. It allows consumers "to compare, which is really great for shopping."

Bankrate editorial assistant Leslie McFadden contributed to this story.