Understanding your jewellery
Appraisals and estate evaluations carried out by a GIA Graduate Gemologist, in a studio built from experience and education.
The value of an appraisal
A good appraisal gives you the right information for the decisions ahead. Insurance appraisals describe and document replacement value, while estate and market evaluations help you understand value in today’s secondary market.
As a GIA Graduate Gemologist with over a decade in fine jewellery, Kat combines gemological training with an understanding of how jewellery is made, worn and valued.
Good gemology also means knowing when not to guess. When a gemstone requires testing beyond what can responsibly be determined in-studio, Kat will recommend a specialized laboratory.
Clear information, honest answers, and knowing when to ask for more.
Credentials
- GIA Graduate Gemologist
- Bachelor of Fine Arts in Metalsmithing and Jewellery, Alberta University of the Arts
- Over a decade designing fine jewellery for established houses
- Goldsmithing trained through apprenticeship
- Interviewed by CBC Radio One as a local gemology expert
What it costs, before you have to ask.
Verbal Identification
$35 per piece
You bring a piece or loose stone to Katalyst Jewellery and we can tell you what it is: the stones, the metal, the workmanship, and roughly what it is worth. No written document, no waiting. The right service when you simply want to know what you have. (Occasionally the item needs to be left with the Gemologist for further evaluation)
Insurance/ Estate Appraisal
$95 per piece
A formal written appraisal with a documented replacement/market value, prepared to the standard your insurer requires.
Collection evaluation
Call for a quote
For a group of pieces. We work through the collection together and tell you what each item is, what deserves a formal appraisal, and what does not. Priced on volume, feel free to contact us for an estimate.
Estate and market value evaluation
Call for a quote
For inherited jewellery and estates, where the question is usually; what it is all worth and what to do with it. People arrive with a shoebox full of items and leave knowing what they are holding. Priced on the size of the task.
Verbal and insurance appraisals are priced per piece. Collection and estate evaluations are quoted on what you bring, feel free to reach out, tell us roughly how much there is and we will give you an estimate before you book.
New to you?
Plenty of estate evaluations end with the procurement of a piece that is beautiful, valuable, and completely unwearable as it stands. If that happens, redesign is the natural next step.
Questions we are asked
- What qualifies you to appraise jewellery?
- Kat MacLean is a GIA Graduate Gemologist, the Gemological Institute of America's diploma in diamond and coloured stone grading and identification, alongside more than a decade designing and making fine jewellery professionally.
- What is the difference between a verbal appraisal and an insurance appraisal?
- A verbal appraisal tells you what you have and what it is roughly worth, in conversation. An insurance appraisal is a formal written document with a documented replacement value that an insurer will accept. If you need to add a piece to a policy, you need the written one.
- How often should an appraisal be updated?
- Metal and stone prices move, so a valuation from a decade ago will usually understate what a piece would cost to replace today. Most insurers want to see something reasonably current, the general rule is every 5 years, but it is worth revisiting after any significant change in the market or to the piece itself. Ask your insurance provider for their individual policy requirements.
- I inherited jewellery and have no idea what any of it is.
- That is exactly what an estate evaluation is for. We go through the pieces together and sort them honestly into what deserves a formal appraisal, what might be worth redesigning into something wearable, and what is simply worth its metal.
- Do I need an appointment?
- Yes. The studio is by appointment only, which means you get the whole appointment rather than sharing it with a shop floor.
- Can you appraise a piece you did not make?
- Of course. Most of what we appraise came from somewhere else entirely, including inherited pieces, older estate jewellery, and rings bought overseas. Katalyst Jewellery does not appraise watches.
Book an Appraisal
Let us know what gemological or appraisal service you require and Katalyst Jewellery can book you in for a drop-off or evaluation appointment.
Call 403 926 7464 or email kat@katalystjewellery.com. Book a consultation in-studio or online. We try to answer all enquiries within two business days.