Jeweler George Kaufman brings his beloved golden retriever, Sollie, to his store every day. He loves having her around, the customers find her adorable and Sollie seems to have a deep appreciation for all the lovely jewels.

Unfortunately, Sollie decided to examine Kaufman's diamonds a little too closely: one day, while he was meeting with a diamond trader and evaluating a 3-carat stone, the gem fell to the floor and landed at her paws. Curious, Sollie took a sniff – and swallowed the $20,000 diamond up.

A Diamond & Gold Eagle

A veterinarian was immediately called to the store to check the mischievous pooch and find out how the diamond could be retrieved safely. He advised Kaufman to just wait and let Sollie pass the stone, so to speak. Three days later, nature took its course and the diamond reappeared. It was returned to its owner – after a thorough cleaning, of course. 

Cat with Diamond Collar

Diamonds and animal undoubtedly have much better combinations. Some jewellers specialize in creating diamond and gem studded animal-shaped jewelry and figurines. Here is a menagerie of gorgeous creations:

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No matter how much you try to keep an eye on your belongings when you're visiting a crowded mall, you still may end up forgetting or losing something.

A visit to a local mall three years ago saw Chad Davis, of Orlando, Florida, misplace something slightly more expensive than his cell phone – he lost $3 million worth of diamonds.

As Davis tells it, while he was on a shopping trip in a Florida mall in 2007, he accidentally left a bag containing diamonds, packed in a small plastic box, under one of the tables in the food court.

The gems, which were never found, were bought from Belgium diamond supplier Rosy Blue. The company has accused Davis of stealing the gems and the subsequent litigation has driven him to bankruptcy.

Find the Diamond

Davis' involvement with Rosy Blue began in 2006, via businessman and diamond trader Eddie Lane. According to court documents, Davis and Lane flew to Rosy Blue's office in Belgium, and allegedly manipulated the company into thinking that Davis was an established diamantaire with the means to buy diamonds. Rosy Blue sold Davis $6.5 million worth of gems.

Though Davis kept up the payments for six months, the Belgian company now claims that they were made "as a ploy to obtain Rosy Blue's trust and willingness to sell him more diamonds."

According to Davis' version of the events, he stopped at the mall's food court for lunch and put several shopping bags, including the one containing the diamonds, under the table while he ate. It wasn’t until he got home that he realized the bag with the diamonds was missing. The bag itself was eventually found – empty.

Court records further revealed that while Davis reported his loss to the mall's security department immediately, he did not file a police report for six days. Davis explained the delay by saying he was "in shock from the loss."

Davis also claimed that it is possible he was followed by someone, and that that someone may have stolen the bag. Being a diamond broker, he said in his police statement, "is so high-risk. People are getting robbed all the time."

Rosy Blue, however, dismissed Davis' theory as lacking credibility. The company has also filed suit against Lane, who it claims conspired "to defraud Rosy Blue out of millions of dollars worth of diamonds." The case is still pending.

Realizing that you've lost something important – having your bicycle stolen, forgetting your new smartphone somewhere, or finding out that some "good Samaritan" help himself to your wallet – is one of the most frustrating moments one can experience, but overall, we tend to get over it after a few days. One has to wonder how long it would take Chad Davis to get over his astronomical loss.

Israeli diamantaires can contact the Israel Diamond Institute for helpful tips and guidelines on how to protect merchandise while travelling.

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Famed jewelry company Faberge announced it would soon debut a new collection of "conventional jewelry," following increased consumer demand.

The House of Faberge, which was founded in 1842 in Imperial Russia and earned its fame for designing elaborate jewel-encrusted eggs for Russia's Tsars, is owned by Pallinghurs Resources, a subsidiary of the Dutch holding company APG. The latter announced recently that it was venturing into mining with a $250 million investment in the field.

APG, via Pallinghurs, acquired Faberge in 2007 in the hopes of breaking into the competitive luxury goods market and challenging jewelry giants like Bulgari, Tiffany's and Cartier.

French boutique jeweller Frederic Zaavy was tasked with designing a collection true to recent diamond jewelry trends – which have little in common with Faberge's signature mosaic style, where hundreds or thousands of tiny diamonds and gems are used to create each piece. Is the diamond industry heading towards a change?

Pallinghurst Chairman Brian Gilbertson said that the company has already received "great feedback" on the collection, adding that consumers also expressed specific interest in pieces featuring large diamonds. 

Faberge's new contemporary collection includes 132 pieces in prices ranging from $40,000 to $7million.

Faberge has only one boutique, in Geneva. Instead of creating a worldwide chain of stores, the high-end jewelry house holds private, invitation-only showings across the globe. 

Check out the Israel Diamond Portal for more news about the most luxuries industry in the world.

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