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Is this a good spinel?

cocobianco said:
The color and size is my ideal. However with the chips I would need a decent discount from the seller to justify the price, and I'm not sure he's willing to do that. He says they usually just ignore it. I would want to recut it probably, it's just too much hassle for me
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That's fair. To be honest, I would just set it as-is and not worry about recutting. But I know others might feel differently.
 
Stellamaris gems were recommended to me by someone well known in the trade, but has anyone here bought from them before? Here are some neon little candies! Most of them are namya and I think all have that "glow". Downside is they're slightly included, and I'm not sure how visible they are in person. What do you all think?

Edit: PS has really desaturated the images below for some reason. Screenshot_20211216-134031_Instagram.jpgScreenshot_20211216-133411_Instagram.jpg
 
You need indoor photos too. These stones tend to look more vivid in the sun.
 

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T L said:
The link you provided states it’s shot outdoors.
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Hmm for some reason it's showing up like this, just click on the whole thing and it'll take you to the listing.

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Has anyone here ever had transactions with sereenigemstones or burma_gems on instagram?
Thank you.
 
cocobianco said:
Has anyone here ever had transactions with sereenigemstones or burma_gems on instagram?
Thank you.
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Hi dealt with burma_gems.

Very good exchange, friendly and professional, however the pictures of the stone I bought are unfortunately not representative of what I see IRL. They do not alter their photos but as we all know, modern smartphone cameras make automatic adjustments that enhance colors, it’s just a fact. To be perfectly honest, I’ve had this problem with all IG vendors. I wish vendors were more upfront about this, it would make me a returning customer, which I chose not to be.

Their return policy is valid only if a lab disproves origin, lack of treatment, or a different trade name for the color. But knowing how generous labs are (except AGL, Gübelin and SSEF), these trade names are not worth the paper they are written on. Some AIGS “pigeon blood” rubies look like dead garnets but are priced at $$$/ct. same as “jedi” spinels…it’s a joke.

I would suggest starting with a small purchase to see for yourself - my advice is to state exactly what you want and what each word means to you. For example, what I consider vivid is now called neon by many. What they mean by vivid is what I call intense. To me, No windows means no window, not “small window”. You get the point ;)
 
VividRed said:
Hi dealt with burma_gems.

Very good exchange, friendly and professional, however the pictures of the stone I bought are unfortunately not representative of what I see IRL. They do not alter their photos but as we all know, modern smartphone cameras make automatic adjustments that enhance colors, it’s just a fact. To be perfectly honest, I’ve had this problem with all IG vendors. I wish vendors were more upfront about this, it would make me a returning customer, which I chose not to be.

Their return policy is valid only if a lab disproves origin, lack of treatment, or a different trade name for the color. But knowing how generous labs are (except AGL, Gübelin and SSEF), these trade names are not worth the paper they are written on. Some AIGS “pigeon blood” rubies look like dead garnets but are priced at $$$/ct. same as “jedi” spinels…it’s a joke.

I would suggest starting with a small purchase to see for yourself - my advice is to state exactly what you want and what each word means to you. For example, what I consider vivid is now called neon by many. What they mean by vivid is what I call intense. To me, No windows means no window, not “small window”. You get the point ;-)
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Thank you so much for the detailed explanation and feedback for the vendor as well. We have had good communication so far but she currently doesn't have what I'm looking for. For instagram vendors, I'm assuming the colors will be slightly more muted in person than their pictures so I could be more mentally prepared if I decide to buy something:twisted2:

Totally understand why you don't want to buy from IG anymore. I would much rather buy from a US vendor with a good return policy as well, however it seems like the Asian vendors have more of what I'm looking for in this spinel search particularly.
 
cocobianco said:
(Video links attached below) The two on the right are both from Namya. Seller is asking $14k for the center one:eek2::knockout: Is it a rip off or is it really what "real" jedi material cost these days? The center one is 1.5+ carat GRS vibrant pinkish red, so I assume the videos are somewhat close to what it is IRL



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I have been offered a stone in same size and color for 54k USD (38k per carat).

Then again, it was Vlad, and it was probably his best carat-sized spinel. I did not buy it :)

The price you’ve been quoted is absolutely where the market is today. What a nice and vibrant color!
 
T L said:
You need indoor photos too. These stones tend to look more vivid in the sun.
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Do you think so? My experience is just the opposite, that they look more intense in color a bit more red in incandescent light. I have found they look loose color in daylight, as do pink sapphires.
 
PrecisionGem said:
Do you think so? My experience is just the opposite, that they look more intense in color a bit more red in incandescent light. I have found they look loose color in daylight, as do pink sapphires.
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It’s due to the UV light from the sun. Like some rubies, they glow in the daylight due to red fluorescence. Not all do, but some do.
 
T L said:
It’s due to the UV light from the sun. Like some rubies, they glow in the daylight due to red fluorescence. Not all do, but some do.
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Fluorescence by just daylight is very minimal, most people can not see it, you are one of the rare people who see this strongly. In incandescent light, these stones would produce a stronger red color than in daylight.
 
PrecisionGem said:
Fluorescence by just daylight is very minimal, most people can not see it, you are one of the rare people who see this strongly. In incandescent light, these stones would produce a stronger red color than in daylight.
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Respectfully disagree. I see strong fluorescence in some red spinels (natural stones with lab reports). That being said, not all red or pink spinels have strong or noticeable fluorescence in the sun.
 
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PrecisionGem said:
Fluorescence by just daylight is very minimal, most people can not see it, you are one of the rare people who see this strongly. In incandescent light, these stones would produce a stronger red color than in daylight.
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Agree with @T L

Always thought it is dependent on whether the spinel has strong fluorescence to add a bit of flavor under the sun.

Was playing with a new torch yesterday and you can see how the 2 mahenge spinels light up whereas the red Burmese (top row, 2nd from left) doesn’t:
688A63C7-4ADF-4C7B-A079-C588C9A8BD52.jpeg
 
This stone shows it’s fluorescence in the sun. It’s got this glow that it just cannot get indoors. The pear is also showing off its fluorescence.B3FACA37-F20A-46D0-8B46-544FFB0CFAD9.jpegF7C68A81-C01D-4ED7-A9AE-C6767B72BD86.jpeg
 
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T L said:
Respectfully disagree. I see strong fluorescence in some red spinels (natural stones with lab reports). That being said, not all red or pink spinels have strong or noticeable fluorescence in the sun.
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+1

917.jpg
 
T L said:
This stone shows it’s fluorescence in the sun. It’s got this glow that it just cannot get indoors. The pear is also showing off its fluorescence.B3FACA37-F20A-46D0-8B46-544FFB0CFAD9.jpegF7C68A81-C01D-4ED7-A9AE-C6767B72BD86.jpeg
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I can’t disagree with that picture. Maybe I need to look in direct sunlight not indirect. I checked a few spinel roughs with my UV light that glow like crazy and will have a look in direct sunlight tomorrow if the sun is out here.
 
PrecisionGem said:
I can’t disagree with that picture. Maybe I need to look in direct sunlight not indirect. I checked a few spinel roughs with my UV light that glow like crazy and will have a look in direct sunlight tomorrow if the sun is out here.
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Direct sunlight fluorescence is not a given. Fluorescence under UV torch is not a guarantee that the stone will fluoresce in sunlight. I do not know why though :)
 
cocobianco said:
(Video links attached below) The two on the right are both from Namya. Seller is asking $14k for the center one:eek2::knockout: Is it a rip off or is it really what "real" jedi material cost these days? The center one is 1.5+ carat GRS vibrant pinkish red, so I assume the videos are somewhat close to what it is IRL



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The colour of the two on the right looks really intense.

The price, though, is almost reaching colourless vS2+ diamond despite below 2 ct….o_O
 
VividRed said:
Direct sunlight fluorescence is not a given. Fluorescence under UV torch is not a guarantee that the stone will fluoresce in sunlight. I do not know why though :)
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That is true. I have pink spinels that fluoresce under a UV flashlight, but not in the sun. It usually tends to be the more red Burmese materisl (Jedi) or older pieces from Mahenge. I have seen Mahenge material that also does not fluoresce in sunlight.

Also important to note, is that some red spinels have strong fluorescence in the sun, but can be brownish indoors. Sun induced fluorescence is not always an indicator of high quality, but it is desirable.
 
Double E said:
The colour of the two on the right looks really intense.

The price, though, is almost reaching colourless vS2+ diamond despite below 2 ct….o_O
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They’re pink too, not red. Red or pinkish red tends to be higher priced.
 
VividRed said:
Direct sunlight fluorescence is not a given. Fluorescence under UV torch is not a guarantee that the stone will fluoresce in sunlight. I do not know why though :)
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Yeah, I have always wondered about this, but I've never come across a good explanation. Same for rubies. Surely some PSer must know? Or can point to a reference?
 
Starstruck8 said:
Yeah, I have always wondered about this, but I've never come across a good explanation. Same for rubies. Surely some PSer must know? Or can point to a reference?
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I’m not sure why, it’s just my observations. I have a natural violet spinel with strong red fluorescence, and that obviously does not glow red in the sun at all.
 
So the sun peaked out a bit today, and I had a look at a few spinels. All from Mahenge, but from different years. They looked really nice in the sun, but then they looked really nice in any light and almost no light. So I can't tell if I'm seeing fluorescence in the sun, or just the glowy color of the stone in any light. Maybe my eyes can pick it up. Here's the stones in a pretty dark room and UV light.

FlorecenceSpinel.jpg

SpinelRough.jpg

What's interesting is the one on the left which as some purple glows in UV as much as any of the others.
 
In strong sunlight, the stones will glow red and look a bit hazy as a result. Do you have photos in the sun?

These are very old photos taken with an old digital camera, but they were obviously fluorescing to my eye when these photos were taken in the sun. The stones almost take on a hazy appearance, similar to how they look under a UV light. 51B27F05-F27F-40D3-8879-6DC3A580F126.jpeg94476120-03A5-48D2-9C9E-89EED096DB45.jpeg46980B07-F387-4A96-92AE-422461BC9633.jpeg
 
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Starstruck8 said:
Yeah, I have always wondered about this, but I've never come across a good explanation. Same for rubies. Surely some PSer must know? Or can point to a reference?
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Wonder the same！
 
The sun emits ultraviolet radiation in three bands, UVA (315-400 nm), UVB (280-315 nm) and UVC (100-280 nm). Uv lights are usually 365 or 395nm right? Is that why?
 
icy_jade said:
The sun emits ultraviolet radiation in three bands, UVA (315-400 nm), UVB (280-315 nm) and UVC (100-280 nm). Uv lights are usually 365 or 395nm right? Is that why?
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I think most common are long wave UV flashlights that are 365nm. I have a light that has both long wave and shortwave 254nm. With the spinel, I get the strongest reaction with the long wave. Other gems may show different colors with the two waves.
 
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