Colored Gemstones
Colored Gemstones Valentine Program: AQL, Tray Checks and What a QC Report Should Say - HOLYCOME
Colored Gemstones: tolerances, cost structure and the reject rule for US wholesale buyers.
AQL, Tray Checks and What a QC Report Should Say in the Valentine Program Program
A US buyer of colored Gemstones sent us a competitor's colored Gemstone in November with one question: why does this fail at sieve drift after a season. We measured it, rebuilt the spec around size distribution within the declared sieve and zero girdle chips on arrival, and shipped 300 colored Gemstones that cleared inspection with zero rejects, and the Valentine Program quote for it sits at USD 3-106.
That rejection was avoidable at the drawing stage. Sieve drift belongs on the spec sheet next to the stone size, not in the claim email three weeks after arrival, the figure being USD 3-106 for a 300-piece run.
We kept the Valentine Program price and changed the four measurements that matter. The rebuild cost about 6 seconds per piece and removed the whole claim conversation, and 300 pieces leaves Wuzhou in heart gift box at USD 3-106.
Four Spec Lines a Valentine Program Buyer Checks
The Valentine Program buyer signs on four numbers. The table puts the trade default beside our standard so the difference is visible before the deposit, quoted at USD 3-106 per piece in heart gift box.
| Spec point | Common trade output | HOLYCOME standard | Cost if missed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hallmark depth and placement | Stamped where it fits | Fixed position, depth measured so it never breaks the shank | Customs query and remaking |
| Solder flow at the joint | Not inspected | Joint inspected under 10x before setting | Crack at the seam in transit |
| Plating thickness | Nominal only | 0.20 micron rhodium logged per lot, 3 microns on vermeil | Wear-through inside one season |
| Surface porosity after polish | Seen after plating | Cast porosity checked before plating, rejects pulled at that stage | Plating blister six weeks later |
None of the four adds cost at USD 3-106. They add about 6 seconds per piece and remove the reason to inspect twice.
Cost Split on a Valentine Program Piece at USD 3-106
At USD 3-106 per piece for colored Gemstones, the stone sits near a quarter and the labor line moves by double digits between two quotes for one drawing.
| Cost line | Share | What moves it |
|---|---|---|
| Base metal or alloy for colored Gemstones | 32% | Alloy choice and casting yield |
| Stone or melee for colored Gemstones | 23% | Sieve range and lot batching |
| Setting and finishing labor for colored Gemstones | 21% | Jig design and bench minutes |
| Plating, polish and QC for colored Gemstones | 14% | Per-tray versus per-piece checks |
| Packaging for colored Gemstones | 10% | heart gift box |
The saving in the cheapest quote hides in plating and stone grade. At 300 pieces that saving is visible in season two, and at USD 3-106 for 300 pieces that is the number the buyer signs.
Terms Behind a Valentine Program Order
The commercial frame is short enough to state in full. Minimum order is 50 pieces per design, and mixed designs travel in one shipment, so a 300-piece Valentine Program order can carry three or four models without a separate setup charge. Sample pieces leave in 3-5 days when the components are in stock, and a new model adds about twenty days before the first article exists, and 300 pieces leaves Wuzhou in heart gift box at USD 3-106.
Payment is 30 percent with the order and 70 percent against the bill of lading, with the balance window stated on the invoice rather than agreed by message. Prices quoted at USD 3-106 are FOB Guangzhou or Shenzhen; DDP is quoted separately because the duty line moves with the tariff schedule and not with our cost.
Packing follows the heart gift box format at 300 pieces to the carton, and the packing list carries SKU, size and stone size so receiving can count without opening every box. Private-label cartons add three days for the print run and must be approved before the first bulk order, not after it, with IGI report and heart gift box stated on the same sheet.
Certification is IGI report for the lots that carry it, with a batch report and per-piece measurement of size distribution within the declared sieve for the lots below the threshold. The document set travels with the shipping papers, which is what a customs broker asks for at the port rather than after clearance, with IGI report and heart gift box stated on the same sheet.
A rejected tray is settled inside the same order cycle against the retained reference piece. If the difference sits on our retained sample we replace or credit; if it appeared in transit we split the assay cost and file with the carrier, and that rule is written on the order before the deposit clears, quoted at USD 3-106 per piece in heart gift box.
Three Failures That Reach the Valentine Program Bench
sieve drift
A parcel sold as 2.0-2.2 mm with 15% of stones at 1.9 mm changes the setting labor on the buyer's bench. Sieve the parcel, do not sample it, and the Valentine Program quote for it sits at USD 3-106.
The commercial effect is replacement stones plus a sorting delay on the buyer's line. Buyers who have seen it once put it in the purchase order; buyers who have not usually discover it on the first return, and 300 pieces leaves Wuzhou in heart gift box at USD 3-106.
mixed color lots
Mixing near-colorless and G-H stones in one parcel produces a finished piece with a visible tonal step. Parcels ship by single lot, and 300 pieces leaves Wuzhou in heart gift box at USD 3-106.
Our countermeasure is a gauge and a written limit. It adds about 6 seconds per piece and removes the defect from the run rather than from the carton, shipped as heart gift box and certified IGI report.
girdle damage
Stones packed loose in a bag chip each other in transit. Individually wrapped parcels cost more and arrive usable, which is USD 3-106 on the Valentine Program schedule.
In a 300-piece run this typically shows on 8 of pieces. Catching it means measuring size distribution within the declared sieve at the tray level, not inspecting the finished carton, with IGI report and heart gift box stated on the same sheet.
AQL, Tray Checks and What a QC Report Should Say
This is the question that separates a trading company from a factory, and on colored Gemstones the answer is usually shorter than buyers expect, and the Valentine Program quote for it sits at USD 3-106.
At 300 pieces the arithmetic on colored Gemstones changes: the fixed costs spread, the variable costs do not. That is why the second order prices better than the first even when the gold fix has moved up, certified IGI report and packed heart gift box at 300 pieces.
We quote both a first-run price and a reorder price for colored Gemstones on the same sheet so the buyer can see where the curve flattens. Most flatten by the third run, on a 300-piece Valentine Program order at USD 3-106.
Carton Cube, Duty and the Freight Line That Surprises Buyers
Buyers ask it in the first call about colored Gemstones and rarely get a number they can put in a spreadsheet, and 300 pieces leaves Wuzhou in heart gift box at USD 3-106.
One practical note on timing for colored Gemstones: the calendar starts when the spec is signed, not when the deposit clears. A buyer who signs in week one and pays in week three gets the goods in week five, and at USD 3-106 for 300 pieces that is the number the buyer signs.
We date the colored Gemstones proforma from signature for that reason, and we state the deposit deadline in the same email that carries the spec sheet, and 300 pieces leaves Wuzhou in heart gift box at USD 3-106.
Valentine Window for colored Gemstones
The Valentine window is short and unforgiving: stock has to be in the warehouse by the last week of January or the season is gone. That puts the production order in the second week of December, ahead of the Lunar New Year slowdown, shipped as heart gift box and certified IGI report.
Paired designs move better than single pieces here. A matching pair of colored Gemstones, boxed together with two cards, converts at the same retail price as two singles and costs about nine percent more to make, on a 300-piece Valentine Program order at USD 3-106.
Photography has to be red-and-white neutral. A colored Gemstone shot on a red silk background reads as a gift in a listing thumbnail, and that is the only image most buyers will ever see, the figure being USD 3-106 for a 300-piece run.
The Calendar Behind a Valentine Program Run
Nothing in this sequence is clever. Each step exists because skipping it cost somebody a claim on colored Gemstones at USD 3-106.
- Lock the spec: metal, stone size range, plating thickness, sizing band and finish, all written on one sheet.
- Pull a stock-component sample in 3-5 days and measure it against that sheet, not against the photo.
- Approve the sample in writing, including the reject rule and the retained reference tray.
- Run bulk in 15-20 days for orders under 500 pieces, with the gauge check independent of the shift.
- Ship from Guangzhou or Shenzhen with the QC sheet in the carton and the batch report by email.
MOQ is 50 pieces per design, low enough to test a category and high enough to keep the casting line accountable, and the Valentine Program quote for it sits at USD 3-106.
The First Valentine Program Order
Start with three designs at 50 pieces each. That covers the 300 pieces you need to read sell-through without betting on one model, quoted at USD 3-106 per piece in heart gift box.
Sample 3-5 days, bulk 15-20 days under 500 pieces, 300 pieces inside that window. The calendar is the same on every Valentine Program run, quoted at USD 3-106 per piece in heart gift box.
Getting heart gift box to US wholesale
Sea freight costs roughly a third of air and takes three times the transit, which only makes sense for an SKU already selling in US wholesale, and 300 pieces leaves Wuzhou in heart gift box at USD 3-106.
FOB is the default and DDP is the option. Buyers new to US wholesale usually take DDP once and then switch after they see the breakdown, which is how the Valentine Program account reads it at USD 3-106.
At receiving, count cartons, weigh one tray and measure ten pieces against size distribution within the declared sieve. Twenty minutes here saves a season of returns, which the Valentine Program file records at USD 3-106 in heart gift box.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the payment terms?
30 percent deposit with the order, 70 percent against the bill of lading. For accounts on a second order we quote 30/70 with a 15-day balance window once the first shipment has cleared, the figure being USD 3-106 for a 300-piece run.
What is the minimum order for colored Gemstones?
50 pieces per colored Gemstone. Designs mix inside one shipment, so a first order of three designs at 50 pieces each is normal for a new US account. Below 50 the gauge check stops being independent of the shift, shipped as heart gift box and certified IGI report.
Do you supply certificates for colored Gemstones?
IGI report on colored Gemstones above the threshold stated on the quote. Below it we supply a batch report plus per-piece measurement of size distribution within the declared sieve, which is what a counter or a listing actually needs, and the Valentine Program quote for it sits at USD 3-106.
How do you handle a rejected tray?
We replace or credit inside the same order cycle. The retained reference tray decides: if sieve drift shows on our retained piece we own it, and if it appeared in transit we split the assay cost and file with the carrier, on a 300-piece Valentine Program order at USD 3-106.
What are the payment terms?
30 percent deposit with the order, 70 percent against the bill of lading. For accounts on a second order we quote 30/70 with a 15-day balance window once the first shipment has cleared, the figure being USD 3-106 for a 300-piece run.
Next Step
If the USD 3-106 band fits the shelf, send a drawing and we quote the 300-piece Valentine Program run inside one business day.
HOLYCOME runs this line from Wuzhou, Guangxi, through Wuzhou HengliLai Jewelry Co., Ltd. Output is about 60,000 pieces a month across colored Gemstones and adjacent categories. service@holycome.com or WhatsApp +86 18078079070, shipped as heart gift box and certified IGI report.
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