Blue Topaz - are these synthetic? Please help

[paninigem]

Hello everyone, I am considering to buy these two pieces. They look great but I feel they might be very fake.

Could you all please help?

The resolution is quite low on the photos. Sorry if it is not good.

Thank you.

 

[dk168]

Welcome to PS.

Topaz are not expensive, therefore, I doubt if they are fake.

However, the golden rule of "if they are too good to be true ..." applies.

What sort of prices are the vendor asking for out of interest?

What are the settings and melees made of?

DK

 

[paninigem]

Welcome to PS.

Topaz are not expensive, therefore, I doubt if they are fake.

However, the golden rule of "if they are too good to be true ..." applies.

What sort of prices are the vendor asking for out of interest?

What are the settings and melees made of?

DK

hello DK! thank you for your reply!

both are set in 925 and cubic. it really is cheap but since they look kind of bling i thought i can just get them. but i am just unsure if they are topaz or just some other blue lab created gem or even glass? do topaz look like this?

the earrings are looking at ~$120 and the ring is about $200.

thank you.

 

[dk168]

Do their listings provide information with regard to the type of stones?

How trust-worthy and reputable is the vendor?

If you Google the colours for Blue Topaz, you should find they are available in different colours of blues, including the one in your photos.

DK

 

[paninigem]

Do their listings provide information with regard to the type of stones?

How trust-worthy and reputable is the vendor?

If you Google the colours for Blue Topaz, you should find they are available in different colours of blues, including the one in your photos.

DK

they say it's swiss blue topaz.

hmm reliability wise, because it's inexpensive, so i guess people purchase without much consideration.

hmmmmmm is the price point decent?

 

[dk168]

they say it's swiss blue topaz.

hmm reliability wise, because it's inexpensive, so i guess people purchase without much consideration.

hmmmmmm is the price point decent?

I would consider their colours as Swiss Blue Topaz myself.

As for the price point, sorry, can't help, however, Google is your friend - that's what I would use for price comparison and research purposes, for jewellery and other items that I may wish to purchase.

DK

 

[lovedogs]

I doubt they are synthetic. Blue topaz is all treated to achieve the color, and isn't particularly expensive, so there isn't much reason to suspect it's synthetic.

 

[seaurchin]

I agree with the others. I've had some really pretty, low cost sterling silver and CZ pieces with blue topaz. Blue topaz is probably no more expensive than a sythetic would be so they wouldn't have any reason to use a synthetic instead.

 

[T L]

Whether they’re created gems or not, it seems you are paying for the settings, and the prices are fair retail value. I would be more concerned about the quality of the pieces then if they’re blue topaz or not. Even if they are blue topaz, that’s one of the least expensive gems on the market, so you’re not getting a “steal” if they’re genuine stones.

 

[pokerface]

Nearly all blue topaz is irradiated in order to achieve the color. The stones themselves are nearly worthless. Silver is not an expensive metal and of course cubic zirconia is also not really worth anything. You're paying for the design and the setting. I would not spend $200 on non-collector's-item costume jewelry, but that's just me. I believe you could find similar looking pieces for much less money.

 

[seaurchin]

I think they are priced high but they're also really pretty. So I guess it's just if it's worth it to you to pay that much for fashion jewelry (meaning no or very low resale value). Or you could keep looking for similar pieces at a lower cost.

 

[paninigem]

Nearly all blue topaz is irradiated in order to achieve the color. The stones themselves are nearly worthless. Silver is not an expensive metal and of course cubic zirconia is also not really worth anything. You're paying for the design and the setting. I would not spend $200 on non-collector's-item costume jewelry, but that's just me. I believe you could find similar looking pieces for much less money.

Thank you everyone for your comments!

Ohh this ring in this screenshot looks almost the same as the one in my screenshot. It's not even listed as blue topaz but zircon. Tsktsk.

Is that from aliexpress? I'm worried that the sellers on aliexpress use a 'nicer' photo but the actual product is something that very much looks like glass which is see through with not many facets I.e. very fake

 

[pokerface]

Topaz does look like glass, imo. Mass produced pieces made of materials like cubic zirconia and silver are not great quality. I personally do not think there should be a $100+ price difference between aliexpress-type pieces and the items you posted.

 

[Tourmaline]

Yes, 100%, those are fake.

 

[landscape]

Not synthetic but Radiation treatment ​

 

[paninigem]

Not synthetic but Radiation treatment ​

Ohh.. interesting. radiation treatment like heating?

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Ohh.. interesting. radiation treatment like heating?

i think all the blue ones are
but that's ok
they are very pretty
i love a blue topaz

 

[pokerface]

Ohh.. interesting. radiation treatment like heating?

No, irradiation is not the same as heating. Irradiation means treating with radiation (an emission of electromagnetic waves which causes ionization). As per the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the process can take place in a nuclear reactor (neutron bombardment), an accelerator (electron bombardment), or by exposure to gamma rays in an irradiator. It's true that some stones that have been irradiated in a nuclear reactor have been found to be radioactive. There is a PS-er whose mom developed cancer on her finger where she would wear a topaz. I would not purchase an irradiated stone for this reason. https://www.gia.edu/doc/Irradiated-Topaz-and-Radioactivity.pdf

 

[T L]

Electron bombardment is usually how irradiation of blue topaz is done these days. It is safe for the wearer if you purchase a new gem. It used to be done by neutron (or proton, I forget) bombardment, and they were more radioactive. I would not buy an older (pre-2000) blue topaz as a result. The darker blues tend to be the more radioactive ones. ,

There are some gems that are naturally radioactive, like some zircon, but they’re safe to wear. They have tiny amounts of uranium in the crystal.