Caratura

Caratura is a wholesale supplier of calibrated loose moissanite — accent stones ("melee") and larger single stones — sold directly to jewelers, setters and small studios rather than to consumers. It is based in Donghai County, Jiangsu, China, a district long associated with quartz and gemstone processing, and it ships worldwide by express courier. The brand positions itself not as a heritage house but as a transparent, proof-driven supplier: every order is hand-inspected before dispatch, stones are calibrated to a stated ±0.1 mm tolerance, and the person who checks the goods is named. That person is Leilei Zhang, who founded and runs the business and handles customer conversations directly, including over WhatsApp. The product line is built around moissanite in D colour and VVS clarity, offered in 14 shapes and a long list of listed millimetre sizes. Round melee is the volume staple, sold in 1-carat bags in single sizes from roughly 0.7 mm to 3.0 mm in 0.1 mm steps, while fancy shapes — heart, Asscher, and others — are sold by the stone or by the carat. Pricing is deliberately flat and public: round melee at a per-bag price, fancy shapes from a low per-stone figure up to a few tens of dollars, and larger calibrated stones at a flat per-carat rate. Shipping is a flat worldwide fee that is waived above a modest order threshold, with duties prepaid (DDP) so the buyer owes nothing on delivery. Caratura's commercial model is aimed at the working jeweler rather than the end consumer. The pitch is that a setter should be able to order the exact millimetre size a mounting requires, drop the stone into the seat, and scale up once the fit is confirmed. To support that, the brand offers no minimum order — a single stone or a single bag — and encourages a trial order before volume purchasing. It also publishes guidance on how to vet overseas gemstone suppliers and on its own calibration and matching guarantee, an unusual move for a wholesale supplier. The brand's name is explained on its own site as Italian for the highest caliber, measured by the carat, and the company frames its edge as transparency and proof rather than an invented European pedigree. Its stated experience base is four years supplying accent stones to jewelry clients across the UAE before the Caratura brand was formed. Ownership is private and founder-led; no parent company, group or stock listing is disclosed.

Caratura's own account of its origins is short and specific rather than mythologised. The company states that for four years before the brand existed, it supplied accent stones to jewelry clients across the UAE, learning what setters actually need: precise calibration, consistent colour, unusual fancy shapes, and a supplier who answers the phone when something goes wrong. Caratura is described as that experience turned into a brand. The business is based in Donghai County, Jiangsu, China, a county long known for quartz and gemstone processing and trading, and it ships from China with inspection before dispatch. Rather than claiming a European or historic pedigree, the brand explicitly says it does not invent a heritage: its stated edge is transparency and proof. The name itself is glossed on the site as Italian for the highest caliber, measured by the carat, which is presented as the promise of the brand. The commercial model that emerged is direct-to-jeweler wholesale. Caratura sells calibrated loose moissanite — round melee in 1-carat bags and fancy shapes by the stone or by the carat — with no minimum order, so a setter can buy a single stone or a single bag as a trial. Orders are hand-inspected before dispatch, filmed before shipping, and calibrated to a written ±0.1 mm tolerance. Shipping is a flat worldwide express rate, free above a modest threshold, with duties prepaid so nothing is owed on delivery, and a 14-day replace-or-refund policy backed by PayPal Buyer Protection. The catalogue is organised around shapes and millimetre sizes rather than around collections. Round melee is offered in single sizes from roughly 0.7 mm to 3.0 mm in 0.1 mm steps; fancy shapes such as heart and Asscher are listed by carat with exact millimetre equivalents, and smaller fancy melee is sold by the stone. Larger calibrated stones are priced at a flat per-carat rate, and the site states plainly that the price shown is the price paid. Sizes not listed can be made to order in about a week. A distinctive part of the brand's approach is educational content aimed at buyers of overseas gemstones. Caratura publishes a set of checks for vetting any overseas supplier — including itself — and a calibration and matching guarantee, and it documents individual orders, such as a parcel of 1.3 mm and 1.5 mm round melee in stated counts, and a set of four side stones measured beside a jeweller's already-chosen centre stone. The company remains privately held and founder-led, with Leilei Zhang named as the person who inspects every order and stands behind it.

• Four years supplying accent stones to jewelry clients across the UAE, before the Caratura brand was formed

• Caratura brand established as a wholesale house of calibrated accent stones, based in Donghai County, Jiangsu, China

• Flat per-carat pricing introduced for heart and Asscher loose moissanite at $26/ct, D colour, VVS clarity

• Round moissanite melee offered at $28 per 1-carat bag in single sizes from 0.7–3.0 mm in 0.1 mm steps

A transparent, proof-driven wholesale house of calibrated accent stones for jewelers — named hand inspection, written ±0.1 mm tolerance, flat public pricing, no minimum order, and DDP shipping rather than an invented heritage story.

• Round moissanite melee

  Calibrated round accent stones sold in 1-carat bags in a single size, 0.7–3.0 mm in 0.1 mm steps, at $28 per bag.

• Heart-cut moissanite loose stones

  D colour, VVS clarity, hand-cut and calibrated to ±0.1 mm, sold by the carat at a flat $26/ct; sizes listed by carat with exact mm, from 0.5 ct · 5×5 mm upward.

• Asscher-cut moissanite loose stones

  Square step-cut with clipped corners, D colour, VVS clarity, calibrated to ±0.1 mm, flat $26/ct; 1 ct measures 6×6 mm.

• Fancy-shape moissanite melee

  Small fancy-shape accent stones sold by the stone, from $1 to $32, including small hearts from 3×3 mm and Asscher melee from 2×2 mm.

• Made-to-order calibrated stones

  Sizes not listed in the catalogue can be made to order in about 7 days.

1. 1Caratura — Calibrated Moissanite Melee & Loose Stones, Wholesalecaraturagems.com
2. 2About Caratura — Moissanite Melee Supplier | Caraturacaraturagems.com
3. 3Heart Moissanite by the Carat — $26/ct, D VVS | Caraturacaraturagems.com
4. 4Asscher Moissanite by the Carat — $26/ct, D VVS | Caraturacaraturagems.com
5. 5Caraturawikidata.org