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Cobalt Blue Spinel

Autumn in New England

Autumn in New England

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Jan 20, 2012
Messages
5,237
Hello friends,

I've been on a real tear lately with my gemstone buying, which is sort of inconvenient when you're trying to responsibly maintain your first home. :roll2: But none of my recent purchases were terribly high. This one was up there a little. With any luck, I will hate the stone when it arrives. (But I secretly hope to love it.)

Anyway, I bought it from a gentleman in VN. He was born, raised, and still lives in Luc Yen. Can you imagine? I would have my little plastic beach shovel and pail out there every day hoping for a score. :cool2:

The gem is 2.61ct. with (according to the seller) medium-dark tone (6) and vivid saturation (6). Clearly, at this size, it's not going to be the neon variety. He showed me one that was 5ct. and almost a half million dollars. :oops2: But if the color is similar to the melee suite I have from Yvonne, I'll be pleased. As you can see, he has a low-relief feather, which the seller says you really have to look for at eye level. We shall see if I can tolerate it... it's so difficult to find clean stones in this material. He has a decent native cut though, so I'm happy there. It comes with a new GIA cert.

 
Ooooo I'm excited to see what you think!
 
lovedogs said:
Ooooo I'm excited to see what you think!
Click to expand...

The lengths I went to in an attempt to guarantee a well-saturated stone that wasn't overly dark... you have no idea. If this stone still has gray in daylight or is gloomy, I give up. I specifically tried to avoid the inky material and also the color-change material that goes from a dull blue to a dull violet.
 
Wow. The video does seem too good to be true. I mean I hope it looks like that but it’s pretty electric!
 
Dreamer_D said:
Wow. The video does seem too good to be true. I mean I hope it looks like that but it’s pretty electric!
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He said he tried to make the video as accurate as possible, but... you know how it goes. I'm sure it will be darker in person. I just hope the saturation is there.
pokewithastick.gif
 
The size is killer! Fingers crossed the color works.
 
Good lord, that's stunning! I hope it is, in person, as it is in video.

You have such a great eye for this stuff, and you do the leg work to find great pieces. If the color is true to life, I feel as tho this and your new, amazing, lavender spinel should have been a moi et toi! Could you imagine??!! I say this merely hypothetically, tho: nobody who has seen the CADs for the lavender spinel is going to let you off the hook from that beautiful design - with purple diamonds, no less!!

Do you have a post in the "Show Us All Your Rings On One Hand" thread? I'd love to see all your pieces together! And fingers crossed that this one is all you're hoping for!
 
Oh baby! :-o I sincerely hope it looks as good in person because that video is wowza! I’m crossing both my fingers and toes for you on this one. :lol::mrgreen:
 
mrs-b said:
Good lord, that's stunning! I hope it is, in person, as it is in video.

You have such a great eye for this stuff, and you do the leg work to find great pieces. If the color is true to life, I feel as tho this and your new, amazing, lavender spinel should have been a moi et toi! Could you imagine??!! I say this merely hypothetically, tho: nobody who has seen the CADs for the lavender spinel is going to let you off the hook from that beautiful design - with purple diamonds, no less!!

Do you have a post in the "Show Us All Your Rings On One Hand" thread? I'd love to see all your pieces together! And fingers crossed that this one is all you're hoping for!
Click to expand...

It's so funny you should mention that, because this cobalt is the exact same size and cut as my red one! They look like 2 little fraternal twins.
slap4.gif
So I considered a toi et moi, simply because that is just such a cool coincidence. But I'd love to have 2 separate rings... and cushion isn't really the best shape for a TEM.

You're always so encouraging and upbeat (but also very genuine). Thank you!!
 
Mrsz1ppy said:
The size is killer! Fingers crossed the color works.
Click to expand...

elle_71125 said:
Oh baby! :-o I sincerely hope it looks as good in person because that video is wowza! I’m crossing both my fingers and toes for you on this one. :lol::mrgreen:
Click to expand...

Thanks, ladies! Not only does the color need to impress (though I'm not expecting top neon quality, obviously), but I need to be ok with the clarity as well. So we shall see... I will post my own pix/vids regardless once he arrives. :)
 
Is this the feather in question?

1719735263499.png

1719735340572.png

It's fairly obvious in video, I doubt you'll have to "really look for it at eye level" to see it. But to be honest, I don't think it would be bothersome, at least I probably wouldn't care for it. Your tolerance for inclusions is lower so fingers crossed it doesn't irritate your eye in person.
 
Avondale said:
Is this the feather in question?

1719735263499.png

1719735340572.png

It's fairly obvious in video, I doubt you'll have to "really look for it at eye level" to see it. But to be honest, I don't think it would be bothersome, at least I probably wouldn't care for it. Your tolerance for inclusions is lower so fingers crossed it doesn't irritate your eye in person.
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That would be the one... yeah, it's a decent size. This material is always so highly included that crystals are often not even viable. So I went into this thinking the stone is still relatively clean. lol But yes, I do have a low tolerance for clarity issues. I'm actually more concerned with that than the color. But the image above is gigantic. The stone in person is only a little above an 8x6mm. Just a wee little guy. So hopefully it's not glaring at eye level. That's going to be my criteria, I think. If it's not distracting, I will overlook it (if the color is right).
 
As an aside, here's my red one. She's exactly the same size, shape, and faceting (she's 2.72ct., but cut very deep). Isn't that funny? I mean, they're just begging to be a toi et moi. But I don't know how that would work with cushions. Plus, I'd like to have 2 rings. Also, the red is super neon and might overshadow the blue.

thumbnail_Resized_20240630_145516_1719773926859 (1).jpg
 
Hopefully the stone is exactly what you want!

I've already posted this a few times but......

Antique Tiffany in red and blue, both cushions!
www.langantiques.com

Edwardian Tiffany & Co. Ruby and Sapphire Ring

Hooray for the red, white, and blue! From America's foremost purveyor of pretty things in small packages (back in the day) comes this singular and sensational Edwardian era jewel. Dating back to the first or second decade of the twentieth century, this magnificent bypass style ring, hand...
www.langantiques.com www.langantiques.com

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This particular set of rings is a little much, but I thought of Shaun Leane since your stones are begging to be a moi et toi but you want to wear them separately -- he does a lot of interlocking styles, but mostly for bands. Other people must have good inspiration for this concept, though!


shaunleane.com

Shaun Leane 18ct White Gold & 1.60ct Diamond Ariana50 Eternity Ring Set

Iconic and Bold. Shop Shaun Leane 18ct White Gold & 1.60ct Diamond Interlocking Ariana50 Eternity Ring Set that is handcrafted to perfection.
shaunleane.com shaunleane.com
1719939945701.png
1719939957584.png
 
LilAlex said:
I'm thinking something super-patriotic, color-wise, since that's exactly how i'm feeling this past week o_O

Gorgeous spinel(s). I don't think the new one will disappoint!
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lol I do love red, white, and blue (and hotdogs, mostly). I truly hope you're right about it not disappointing. :pray: I'll be really eager to set these guys in that case!
 
newtojewels said:
Hopefully the stone is exactly what you want!

I've already posted this a few times but......

Antique Tiffany in red and blue, both cushions!
www.langantiques.com

Edwardian Tiffany & Co. Ruby and Sapphire Ring

Hooray for the red, white, and blue! From America's foremost purveyor of pretty things in small packages (back in the day) comes this singular and sensational Edwardian era jewel. Dating back to the first or second decade of the twentieth century, this magnificent bypass style ring, hand...
www.langantiques.com www.langantiques.com

1719939778329.png
1719939788484.png
Click to expand...

Oh yeah, I've seen and admired this beauty before! Thank you for the inspo!! Man, I'm going to be so bummed now if mr. cobalt doesn't impress.
 
Autumn in New England said:
As an aside, here's my red one. She's exactly the same size, shape, and faceting (she's 2.72ct., but cut very deep). Isn't that funny? I mean, they're just begging to be a toi et moi. But I don't know how that would work with cushions. Plus, I'd like to have 2 rings. Also, the red is super neon and might overshadow the blue.

thumbnail_Resized_20240630_145516_1719773926859 (1).jpg
Click to expand...

Gorgeous cobalt and red spinels! Surely Inken can help you design a superb toi et moi once she's back from vacation.
 
voce said:
Gorgeous cobalt and red spinels! Surely Inken can help you design a superb toi et moi once she's back from vacation.
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Thank you! I hope the cobalt doesn't disappoint, but I should be receiving it soon. Inken tends to only set her own stones, with a few exceptions, so I'm not sure she'd be interested. But you know I'll always try. lol She told me the biggest concern with this stone will be an overly dark tone reminiscent of a lackluster sapphire. So we shall see!
 
Autumn in New England said:
Thank you! I hope the cobalt doesn't disappoint, but I should be receiving it soon. Inken tends to only set her own stones, with a few exceptions, so I'm not sure she'd be interested. But you know I'll always try. lol She told me the biggest concern with this stone will be an overly dark tone reminiscent of a lackluster sapphire. So we shall see!
Click to expand...

Yes, you're right, I had forgotten because I haven't done a jewelry project in over a year. I have had some luck where I start with a stone and have Inken source the other stones, but if both stones are not sourced by her she won't take it. In that case DK can design it for you!

Fingers crossed on your not receiving an over-dark stone.
 
So here it is along with my first impressions. I had about a half hour of light left to snap a couple of pix.

Pros:

~Feather is all but invisible at eye level when viewed face up... the only time it's obvious is when the stone is backlit or viewing it from the pavilion.
~Color is decidedly blue... no gray or teal.
~Tone is definitely not inky or overly dark. I think the vendor's assessment of medium-dark (6) was accurate.

Cons:

~Cut is way wonkier in person than I was expecting... culet is off-center... crown is not level... overall proportions and shape are asymmetrical.
~Saturation, in my opinion, is intense (5) and not quite vivid (6) when compared to my melee. It's certainly not "neon" and I don't think it would blow anyone's compression stockings off when they inevitably mistake it for a sapphire.
~Probably nixing the toi et moi idea... it really doesn't pair that well with the red spinel.

Yet, I think I got a decent price and I know it's very rare material in this quality. I don't think I could do any better in this size and price range. If I keep it, I will need to zhuzh it up with either a colorful halo or a matched pair of bright, contrasting side stones (and then maybe a diamond border all around).

What does everyone think?

Autumn

In front of window... not direct sun.
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With the melee I bought from Yvonne... they are super duper vivid in person.
thumbnail_Resized_20240705_173158_1720225242534 (1).jpg
 
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