Help with violet stone purchase

[Arcadian]

indoor light

Beautiful stone. My thoughts is that its very well cut, however, the light dosen't go all the way to the edge, its got that ring that some round colored stones can have. This is ok for some stones and will depend on how you set it as sometimes that can go away.

IMO, get the stone and have a look at it in your environment. Your eyes will tell you way more than an image, and you'll be able to see it in all types of lighting situations. The color however is a rich, not quite vivid but the price reflects that, and being its unheated at the size makes the price jumps astronomically. I also see pink and blue in this stone. As long as you're ok with that, you should be good. On my monitor, I do not see any grey. But you should see it in person to see if you do.

Make sure there's a return policy in place in case you don't like this stone.

 

[Sabrina31]

Do you feel that stone at 9mm is worth 7k? I just seem to not have the eye. I just look at colors but obviously need to look closer b/c I didn't see that until you pointed it out. Thank you

I'm not sure, I'm not very good at pricing, is it a sapphire? what is the karat weight? Those will help determine your pricing

 

[Sabrina31]

Arcadian touched on the price and her explanations make sense to me.

 

[purple-sapphire]

I'm not sure, I'm not very good at pricing, is it a sapphire? what is the karat weight? Those will help determine your pricing

It is a sapphire, it is 4.30 carats. That's another thing, since its 9mm that means it faces up like a 3 carat stone. Thank you for responding

 

[purple-sapphire]

Beautiful stone. My thoughts is that its very well cut, however, the light dosen't go all the way to the edge, its got that ring that some round colored stones can have. This is ok for some stones and will depend on how you set it as sometimes that can go away.

IMO, get the stone and have a look at it in your environment. Your eyes will tell you way more than an image, and you'll be able to see it in all types of lighting situations. The color however is a rich, not quite vivid but the price reflects that, and being its unheated at the size makes the price jumps astronomically. I also see pink and blue in this stone. As long as you're ok with that, you should be good. On my monitor, I do not see any grey. But you should see it in person to see if you do.

Make sure there's a return policy in place in case you don't like this stone.

Thank you!!!! Yes I was wondering if this would be considered "vivid" color, so I got that answer (no). I was just making sure if 7k is a good deal or not seeing as its over 4 carats but faces up at 3 carats. I know coloring is subjective and if I love it great, I just wanted to see if any of you experts saw anything from the pics I was provided.

 

[Arcadian]

Thank you!!!! Yes I was wondering if this would be considered "vivid" color, so I got that answer (no). I was just making sure if 7k is a good deal or not seeing as its over 4 carats but faces up at 3 carats. I know coloring is subjective and if I love it great, I just wanted to see if any of you experts saw anything from the pics I was provided.

I don't really consider myself an expert...lol I do ok.

with colored stones is very hard to do a carat per carat conversion from diamonds. The color takes up some of that, and with sapphires, its always best to look at how it faces up, always expect them to face up smaller than their diamond (and other stones) counterparts. Quite a lot of the ct weight is going to be at the bottom giving you that color that is craved so heavily; meaning you will likely have to go with something custom as it will be a pretty deep stone. Its pretty much the same with zircons as well.

Vivid is something you will pay A LOT for, purple being no exception.

If you do a search on sapphires on this forum you're going to find some informative and interesting discussion, all worth looking at if you're in a learning mood.

By and large, the stone from Jeff White will look more steely in comparison to the sapphire. Its an apples/oranges type of thing. You will have to decide if thats your thing or not. IMO he did a fantastic job with the material. Whistle clean spinels are sought after of course. I think they're mostly rare though because of the type of material it is. if well cut, a natural will not be immediately noticable.

 

[purple-sapphire]

I don't really consider myself an expert...lol I do ok.

with colored stones is very hard to do a carat per carat conversion from diamonds. The color takes up some of that, and with sapphires, its always best to look at how it faces up, always expect them to face up smaller than their diamond (and other stones) counterparts. Quite a lot of the ct weight is going to be at the bottom giving you that color that is craved so heavily; meaning you will likely have to go with something custom as it will be a pretty deep stone. Its pretty much the same with zircons as well.

Vivid is something you will pay A LOT for, purple being no exception.

If you do a search on sapphires on this forum you're going to find some informative and interesting discussion, all worth looking at if you're in a learning mood.

By and large, the stone from Jeff White will look more steely in comparison to the sapphire. Its an apples/oranges type of thing. You will have to decide if thats your thing or not. IMO he did a fantastic job with the material. Whistle clean spinels are sought after of course. I think they're mostly rare though because of the type of material it is. if well cut, a natural will not be immediately noticable.

Thank you so much! I am doing a lot of google searching for pricescope to try to educate myself as people assist me through this adventure. I am now looking at steely to see what you mean. When corresponding with Jeff he said this stone is "special" and its extremely bright, no gray all purple so I am excited about that. I really think the most recent one I just posted is a winner for my dream stone. I have 6 3/4 size finger so I was hoping this wasn't too small. I really appreciate your help and passion. Thank you a million times

 

[T L]

This spinel looks very nice. The seller has no negative feedback on Toolhaus and is based in LA. They have been selling on ebay since 2013. Might be worth asking for a video.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Natural-Sp...356872?hash=item3f5b755948:g:soEAAOSwGotWqN~D

It looks grapey purple to me, not violet, and the vendor didn't show pics of the color change.

 

[purple-sapphire]

It looks grapey purple to me, not violet, and the vendor didn't show pics of the color change.

It is a grapey purple, which was always my favorite purple its always just too dark or some issue. This one is the perfect color and the vendor sent me pics and videos to show the inclusions (great vendor). Any thoughts on the most recent one I posted?

 

[T L]

It is a grapey purple, which was always my favorite purple its always just too dark or some issue. This one is the perfect color and the vendor sent me pics and videos to show the inclusions (great vendor). Any thoughts on the most recent one I posted?

Is it a spinel or sapphire? Did you post the carat weight?

 

[purple-sapphire]

Is it a spinel or sapphire? Did you post the carat weight?

sapphire. 4.3 carats 9mm, unheated

 

[T L]

sapphire. 4.3 carats 9mm, unheated

I wouldn't pay more than $1k/ct for it. Grapey purple sapphires are not as desirable as violet ones, like the original stone you posted.

 

[purple-sapphire]

I wouldn't pay more than $1k/ct for it. Grapey purple sapphires are not as desirable as violet ones, like the original stone you posted.

Ok, Thank you. I need to keep looking b/c I have not found not one 4 carat stone that color under 6k.

 

[digdeep]

Please take information as a reference not a rule............finding the color you want is always like swimming in the deep end of the pool with colored stones. Use your eye's and see the gems you are interested in.....ask about sales, whatever works for you.....

 

[chrono]

Is the return policy good?

 

[purple-sapphire]

Is the return policy good?

30 days no questions asked.

 

[purple-sapphire]

Is the return policy good?

What are your thoughts on this scenario, I have been searching the posts and found you to give some excellent advise.

 

[chrono]

No restocking charge?
Easy to ship back?
Trust worthy you’ll get your money back?

 

[purple-sapphire]

Please take information as a reference not a rule............finding the color you want is always like swimming in the deep end of the pool with colored stones. Use your eye's and see the gems you are interested in.....ask about sales, whatever works for you.....

You are so right, for me its a lot of money so I am so conflicted. By the pics I love the stone. I do know that this is personal preference as it pertains to color, but also want to ensure if this stone should only be 1k per carat I am only paying $4350 if that is truly the value. I really appreciate everyone

 

[purple-sapphire]

No restocking charge?
Easy to ship back?
Trust worthy you’ll get your money back?

Well I will pay with Paypal, I don't think this seller is a preferred seller, when searching there has been good and bad reviews. They are in India. I asked the seller to add in the paypal invoice comes with GIA certificate the #, and the 30 days no questions asked policy and they did.

 

[chrono]

Shipping back might be problematic. At least that’s my experience with international shipping. If you are new to this, I’d also advise having an experienced person assist with verification that the stone matches the GIA lab report. Have you seen the report and verified it on the GIA website? I’m also more cautious with an unknown vendor.

 

[purple-sapphire]

Shipping back might be problematic. At least that’s my experience with international shipping. If you are new to this, I’d also advise having an experienced person assist with verification that the stone matches the GIA lab report. Have you seen the report and verified it on the GIA website? I’m also more cautious with an unknown vendor.

I have looked up the report already, I also purchased another sapphire from Planetary gems a while back and had it verified by a GIA certified rep at Gemworld. I will do the same. I think that will suffice?

 

[digdeep]

Well..........I've had a shift here. When people say certified by GIA they are talking about the lab.......not an individual person at Gem World who may not have the equipment at hand to justify the 'eval'.........please proceed with caution. Also echo Chrono's concern about return shipping which is always stressful internationally.......esp. with high end gems.

 

[purple-sapphire]

Well..........I've had a shift here. When people say certified by GIA they are talking about the lab.......not an individual person at Gem World who may not have the equipment at hand to justify the 'eval'.........please proceed with caution. Also echo Chrono's concern about return shipping which is always stressful internationally.......esp. with high end gems.

Sorry if I wasn't clear. the seller is sending me the stone and the GIA certificate. Gemworld is where I will take it in Illinois to have a GIA rep that handles colored stones check to ensure it is a natural gemstone, hope that is more clear.

 

[purple-sapphire]

Well..........I've had a shift here. When people say certified by GIA they are talking about the lab.......not an individual person at Gem World who may not have the equipment at hand to justify the 'eval'.........please proceed with caution. Also echo Chrono's concern about return shipping which is always stressful internationally.......esp. with high end gems.

and to make sure the stone matches with the certificate.

 

[shinyrocks]

Well I will pay with Paypal, I don't think this seller is a preferred seller, when searching there has been good and bad reviews. They are in India. I asked the seller to add in the paypal invoice comes with GIA certificate the #, and the 30 days no questions asked policy and they did.

I would echo the others with regard to exercising caution. I have had a few nightmare experiences buying from international vendors! In one or two cases, it was the vendor's fault, in another case it was the shipping company's (lost stone). Not to mention the hassle of export declarations. It has been stressful enough for me that I rarely if ever buy expensive pieces from overseas sellers anymore.

 

[purple-sapphire]

I would echo the others with regard to exercising caution. I have had a few nightmare experiences buying from international vendors! In one or two cases, it was the vendor's fault, in another case it was the shipping company's (lost stone). Not to mention the hassle of export declarations. It has been stressful enough for me that I rarely if ever buy expensive pieces from overseas sellers anymore.

I have put alot of thought into it, and I am having second thoughts for sure. i really love the color of the stone, and the size is perfect. I will keep looking I guess there is no huge rush. I actually looked at almost every vendor on the preferred vendor list and not one this color or size (big sigh)

 

[digdeep]

I have put alot of thought into it, and I am having second thoughts for sure. i really love the color of the stone, and the size is perfect. I will keep looking I guess there is no huge rush. I actually looked at almost every vendor on the preferred vendor list and not one this color or size (big sigh)

Reach out to some of the vendors and ask for what you want.........they have rough that isn't cut and may have your color behind the scenes. Try Dana at Mastercut or Gary at Finewater or any of these vendors that cut..............

 

[purple-sapphire]

Reach out to some of the vendors and ask for what you want.........they have rough that isn't cut and may have your color behind the scenes. Try Dana at Mastercut or Gary at Finewater or any of these vendors that cut..............

I reached out to both thank you. A bit bummed bc I really like that stone, I know its a chance I can take but for several thousands I am weary, I have purchased overseas from Jeff Davies, and India but it was several hundred not thousands. I hope one of the two you suggested can help. Thank you for all your assistance

 

[digdeep]

Have you seen this one.....it's spinel.....there is a video on site I can't see, but the description says medium vivid so ????
https://www.africagems.com/purple-spinel-round-gemstone-48925062.html