Just a thanks and request for help! - Sapphire

[crawf71]

Good Day everyone! First off, I just want to say thanks for all he knowledge that this forum has provided me. I have been lurking for about 2-3 months now just reading every thread I could.

Some backstory. In Feb of 2006 my wife and I got engaged with what I thought was a beautiful ring, Fast forward a couple of months and we went to get it appraised where we found out that the 1 carat stone that was sold to me as a diamond was actually moissanite. I had no reason to question the authenticity of the diamond, the store has been open 30+ years and the "diamond" came with a certification.

The man that sold me this ring also sold at least another 23 rings/earrings/etc to other people that we know of. Apparently this guy was switching out diamonds for moissanite and pocketing the difference. Needless to say, the store we dealt with offered to give us the money we spent in store credit, however being turned off at the time my wife declined the credit and said she was happy with the ring. However, I never have felt right about it and we are finally in a position where I can get her something else.

Fast forward to today. I know she always have wanted a ring with a sapphire center stone. In the last year or so she has been mentioning that she really likes the halo rings. I think the Beverly K settings really suit her style. Where is the best location to get these settings? Google isn't really helpful with this.

As far as the stone goes, I have approx $1500 that I can spend on the sapphire. She prefers stones that have been labeled royal blue in color. Some examples: http://www.ebay.com/itm/CUSHION-CUT-2-99CT-ROYAL-BLUE-SAPPHIRE-CERTIFIED-SEE-VIDEO-/370626451313?pt=Loose_Gemstones_1&hash=item564b0ed771#ht_1925wt_1162 or http://www.ebay.com/itm/2-85CT-FLAWLESS-UNHEATED-TOP-FIRE-KANCHANABURI-SAPPHIRE-/250796941638?pt=Loose_Gemstones_1&hash=item3a64a9a146

How would these stone preform in a halo setting? I also have a email out to Jeff White, but I'm assuming that will provide a smaller but superior cut sapphire. And opinions on what I can expect from the rings above, or Jeff White. I would like the ring to be completed by Christmas.

Again thanks for the help, your collective knowledge has been priceless.

 

[chrono]

Pearlman's carries Beverly K settings at a reasonable price.

1st sapphire: there's too much going on internally for my taste. I am unsure if the banding I see is silk or colour zoning. Secondly, the video shows a less saturated colour than the hand shot, so I wonder if that one has been flooded with light to bring out a brighter colour. Thirdly, the stone is heavy on the bottom and a bit lighter on the top. Such a stone is likely to mean a custom setting to accomodate the extra depth, and it also looks smaller than a nearly 3 ct stone should.

2nd sapphire: Also not a stone I would purchase dut to cut and colour issues. This sapphire looks to have uneven colour and a gray modifier.

A stone that is to be halo-ed should not be dark in the first place. It should also have limited extinct areas that could potentially become worse once set in an enclosed type setting.

 

[crawf71]

Thanks for the advice Chrono. What should I expect for $1500-2k for a sapphire?

Currently, I just sent Jeff White an email back, hopefully he will have something in stock that he can cut.

After looking at more stones, the color that I am shooting for can be seen in cut stone in this link. [URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/help-wanted-finding-a-sapphire-e-ring-so-i-can-propose.146843/page-4']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/help-wanted-finding-a-sapphire-e-ring-so-i-can-propose.146843/page-4[/URL]

Thanks again for the help.

 

[vintagelover229]

I can't be any help on the sapphire (but your in good hands here) but I wanted to say SHAME on that jeweler! You should have at the very least gotten your money back-I hope someone reported him and he's out of business


Another good company to check out for settings is Gabriel and co-they have some great rings and beautiful styles and a good price as well. GOG carries them as well

http://goodoldgold.com/iframe.gabriel.html

I can't wait to see the finished product!

 

[chrono]

What $2K will net you depends on how you want to weight the remaining Cs of colour (hue, tone and saturation), clarity, cut, and treatment.

Do you mean the sapphire as seen in the hand shot or the one used as his avatar? The original OP stated that he could not do the stone justice in his pictures and I'm guessing the stone is likely to be brighter and slightly lighter in person.

 

[crawf71]

@ Vintage lover The actual salesperson/jeweler is now in jail. The store at which he worked is still opened. The reputation took a huge hit as this was all over the local news.

@ Chrono I was referring to the handheld gem, however I believe the avatar is the same gem. This is the color that we are shooting for. As for size. We were hoping to stick to a 1 carat round diamond equivalent, so 1.4 carat sapphire. Assuming my research is on par. As for color, see above. Clarity, am I right assuming a good cutter can hide some clarity issues? I believe my wife is more "stuck" on color and sparkle. See want's a eye catcher.

I fear that she has champagne taste on a Bud light budget

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I'll be curious to hear if Jeff can cut you a stone in that price range. I recently bought a 6.5mm sapphire and found retail prices in the $2500-3000 range for great color, cut, and clarity.

I will mention that Good Old Gold sells Beverley K, and I saw one of their videos where they were helping a customer choose a cushion sapphire. They are in NY and can source stones for you to choose from. Here is the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzx0dxDu99s&list=UUEV7slr-i-VduBBnfv9MxhA&index=4&feature=plcp

This would help me a LOT in choosing a stone.

 

[milton333]

It sounds like you may be looking at rounds? I'm not clear from your post about round diamond equivalents. Please consider not restricting yourself by shape, you can get a halo to fit any shape stone, first focus on the best solitaire for your budget (and you'll see a lot of ovals).

 

[milton333]

If you scroll down, there's a 1.3 ct round for $1560 that may be worth a look http://www.gemfix.com/sapphire_blue.html

I also really like the look of a cushion further down, 2.05 ct for $1950.

 

[crawf71]

@ Milton - Rounds would be my first choice. I'm not stuck on them, I think she just prefers them.

I'm hoping that Jeff will have something.

Thanks

 

[lin_ny]

If you scroll down, there's a 1.3 ct round for $1560 that may be worth a look http://www.gemfix.com/sapphire_blue.html

I also really like the look of a cushion further down, 2.05 ct for $1950.

Just had to interject briefly - that 2.05ct cushion picture is a bit deceiving... just a heads up. It's more of a medium-light with perhaps some colour zoning or a bowtie... most likely a cut issue though. Its also not nearly as well-saturated as it looks in the picture either. Now that they're posting handshots under 'newest gems', you get a better idea of what the stones actually look like. I wouldn't really trust their pictures alone though.

 

[chrono]

Yes, the avatar and hand shot gem are one and the same but the picture shows two very different looking stones. So which one is it? Is Jeff's picture accurate or is it the OPs? The hand shot shows a well saturated bright stone, the avatar shows a dark stone that has a gray tint.

Something around 1.5 ct will average out around 6.5 mm which is roughly what a 1 ct diamond measures. I expect the sapphire to have little to no clarity issues partially due to cut and partially due to having rather clean material to work with.

I agree about the caution with Gemfix. It seems that his pictures are inconsistent with some being spot on and some being very different from the stone when viewed in person.

Diamondseeker,
I think you purchased your sapphire from Richard Homer. His labour premium, even for traditional flat faceting, is much higher than what most lapidaries charge. Based on past experience with Jeff White, I am sure the OP's budget is sufficient for what he is looking for.

 

[crawf71]

@ lin ny I saw your post about the sapphire you received from Gemfix and will defiantly take the photos with a grain of salt. Thanks for posting your experience with them. I would have ordered a stone through them if I didn't see your post.

@ Chrono. Can I say we like both pictures? [URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/got-a-great-jw-sapphire-lets-find-the-perfect-setting.151890/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/got-a-great-jw-sapphire-lets-find-the-perfect-setting.151890/[/URL] My wife like all the pictures on the first post on the page but prefers Jeff picture, followed by the avatar. Also good to hear that you think that my budget will cover something with Jeff. I haven't heard back yet and was getting worried.

As soon as I hear something from Jeff I will let you all know.

Thanks again!