Easy. With the new iPhone app, Blush. Blush is an interactive wine selector that  asks you a series of questions, all leading you to your perfect wine! Awesome way to find one for Valentine’s Day!

Download it, blush, and tweet to @MervisDiamonds what wine you selected! We’re loving the Buccaneer Zinfandel!

We’re proud to announce that the brides of weddingwire.com have voted us their top choice for a third year in a row. Enjoy this video we made to celebrate.

You can read all our reviews at weddingwire here:

We’re back on the blogging train and testing out our systems. If you can read this, thumb it up!

The experience was so exceptional that we kept in touch with Diane at Mervis and a couple of years later I went back to upgrade the second ring as a gift for my Diane earning her doctorate degree from George Washington University. Here is where the friendship and creative minds of myself and Diane Giles started to work.  I wanted the new stone to be a surprise to give her when our children were here for graduation, but did not want to purchase a new ring since hers had a special “split band” to allow her to get the ring on over her knuckle. We took the ring in for “cleaning” and to be checked and left the ring at Mervis using the excuse that the “split band” had to go back to the manufacturer for repair. I actually picked up the ring about 2 weeks later and used the “repair excuse” to keep it for about a month until graduation.  The surprise was great and perfect for her efforts earning her doctorate. This was in 2009.

Long story longer, our 25^th wedding anniversary was in May 2010 so why not upgrade the stone yet another time.  I had planned a three island, 2-week vacation to Hawaii for our anniversary and where my Diane had lived for 14 years before we met in Korea. Like I said, long story longer.  I was in the Army and she was working for the Air Force as a civilian. Side note is that I had never been to Hawaii. Back to Diane at Mervis in November 2009. I had no clue how to now switch the stones and make the upgrade. She offered to replace the 2009 stone with a cubic zirconium that closely matched the diamond in the original setting and ring and we would put the new stone in a completely new ring and setting. We did this at the Tyson’s Corner store and waited for the new stone to come in along with the new ring. My Diane wore the cubic zirconium ring from November 2009 to May 2010 when we went to Hawaii. Never questioned that it was not “her diamond”! We left it in our safety deposit box at the bank for “safe keeping” along with the pendant. I picked up the new ring at the Rockville store also in May and hand carried it in my camera bag to Hawaii.  I gave it to her on a dinner boat cruise off of Waikiki and Diamond Head on Oahu on our anniversary. She was totally overwhelmed. When we got back to the hotel I also gave her a hand written note from Diane Giles she had given me when I picked up the ring.

End of this story is that Mervis and our friend Diane Giles, made this all seamless, educational, fun, and each time made us (really me) feel we were the most important customer she had.  Their stores are great, people always willing to help and why would you go anywhere else to buy a diamond with this kid of personal service.

Thanks for being you Diane and Thank You Mervis!

diamond cut

Today’s diamond fact of the day isn’t really a “fact” per se, but more about learning terminology. Let’s learn some words:

When talking about a diamond’s cut, the “fire” represents the flashes of color you see in a polished diamond.

“Scintillation” -  This refers to the flashes of light and the contrasting dark areas you see when the diamond, the light, or the observer moves.

“Unplanned light leakage” – This refers to the light that escapes through a diamond’s pavillion and weakens its display of light.

A well cut diamond has excellent fire, excellent scintillation, and minimal light leakage. It’s the precision of the angles of a diamond that allow maximum light to be refracted and shot out the table.

Thank you for inquiring about Elliot and Ronnie’s South African Safari.

Our reservations department is open:
Monday – Thursday: 9:00 AM – 8:00 PM EST
Friday: 9:00 AM – 6:00 PM EST
Phone: 1-888-722-4872

FAQ:

1.  Is the price for one person or two ?

Per  person, assuming 2 per room.

2. When is it payable ?

Payment is required at time of booking.

3. What class of air travel ?

Economy. If you’d like to upgrade, please inquire.

4. Are kids welcome ?

Yes.

5. Do I need immunisation ?

No. We are going to malaria-free areas only.

6.  Do I need a visa.

No visa is necessary for an American passport.