Who is qualified to do a jewelry appraisal?

Fun fact: there aren't any national laws or standards that lay out who is qualified to appraise jewelry and who isn't! 

 

So, how do you know if your appraiser is qualified to appraise your jewelry? 

First, I recommend that your appraiser be a GIA Graduate Gemologist (GG). GG's are trained by the Gemological Institute of America in identification and grading for diamonds and colored gemstones. The GIA GG is recognized worldwide as an industry professional standard of education. If your appraiser is a GG, you can trust that they have the best knowledge and training to identify and grade the stones in your piece of jewelry. 

Second, I recommend that your appraiser be a member of an appraisal organization, like the International Society of Appraisers (ISA), the National Association of Jewelry Appraisers (NAJA), or American Society of Appraisers (ASA), to name the larger ones. These organizations hold their members to appraisal standards and ethical guidelines since there aren't national legal standards for jewelry appraisers. I am a member of ISA as their course offerings worked best with my schedule at the time I was looking to complete my training, however all the listed organizations are great. 

Third, I usually recommend that your appraiser not be the person that sold you the piece of jewelry you are having appraised. Though it's certainly possible for the person that sold it to you to give you a fair and accurate appraisal, it's generally best practice to have the appraiser be a third party who doesn't have any vested interest in the value of the piece.