katharath
Ideal_Rock
- Joined
- Mar 5, 2013
- Messages
- 2,850
Hi everyone,
I have some eye candy to share - I have been on a bit of a buying spree lately
. I'll probably start this thread off with a couple of recent buys for now, and then (maybe tomorrow) add some pics of additional gems I recently acquired , plus a gorgeous little emerald ring I got last month from Yvonne Raley.
Bear with me, as this is long, but I wanted to share my experience bc it was great
I've wanted a really good quality, slightly larger (1+ ct), round mahenge spinel for ages. I've posted many pics in the past of my mahenge collection, and I've owned some stunners, but they've almost all been on the small side. (All but one has been under one carat, ranging from the 4 mm range to 5.5 mm. I have one oval that is 1.96 cts, 8.5 x 6.5 mm, but I've been dying for a bigger round. Like many other collectors, rounds have always remained my favorite cut). Before buying this gem, all of my mahenges have come from Yvonne - but she had told me a few months or so ago that it was slim pickings, and that she just had ovals (except for one larger 3+ ct that was out of my range). Since I already had my 1.96 ct oval from her, and I had to have this gem be a round, I ventured further afield
Well - round, saturated, well cut, clean, 1+ carat mahenges can be (as many of us know) pretty hard to find, lol! I've been looking for awhile. This gem is the most expensive gem I've bought to date, and I know that I paid a premium for the rarity of it. I'm pretty thrilled to have it, though. It still isn't as large as I *wish* it was, but it's as large as I'll probably ever be able to afford. And it is large enough to stand on its own as a solitaire, IMO.
It is 1.58 cts, 7 mm round. It does have a touch of orange hue to it, which I've stayed away from in the past. However, I saw a gorgeous mahenge here on PS that had an orange modifier (if I remember right it belongs to Xrisus, I think it came from Yvonne Raley - I really regretted not buying it myself!!), and ever since then I've been much more lenient towards orange modifiers.
This gem is interesting bc it can show itself as very pink, very red, a mix of both, and of course the orange pinkish red as well, which it probably shows most often. I've taken pics showing all of its personalities, and IMO all of these pics are accurate. Depending on lighting conditions it can really vary a great deal. I happen to like this gem in just about every scenario though
I got it from Julia at JuliaBJewelry (on etsy). I've followed her etsy store with great interest since she started it. I've always admired her excellent eye for gems, but at first her settings (although beautiful) weren't really so much to my personal taste. However, as my tastes have evolved, I've found that many of her settings have begun to be very appealing to me. She had this mahenge in her collection, not listed in her store, and I "found" it by inquiring as to whether she might have something. The reason I even thought to ask is bc she has several gorgeous mahenge pieces available in her etsy store. I was hoping that she might have a gem squirreled away that would fit my criteria - and in a stroke of luck for me, she actually did! I messaged her asking for a "1-2 ct mahenge, minimum 7 mm, round, strongly saturated pinkish red, if possible Portuguese cut" - and she actually had exactly that, lol!!! Even the Portuguese cut!
I think she had had this one for awhile, and she said that she was hanging onto it - she may not ever have offered it for sale. So I feel lucky to have it!
Julia also said that she has a ton of loose gems not listed on etsy. Lots of sapphires and spinels, and I think she actually said "hundreds" of loose gems that aren't listed. So if anyone is looking for something, she could be a great place to start. However, she prefers not to be a gem dealer per se, she really wants to sell gems and set them herself in her custom settings. She and I came to an agreement that after I saw the stone, provided I decided to keep it, that she would be the one to set it for me. Since then we have agreed on her Tulip solitaire setting, to be done in 18k YG. The setting is now in production, and I'll be mailing the gem back to her when it's finished, for setting.
Time for pics...all of these were taken in varying degrees of sunlight, over several different days.
I have some eye candy to share - I have been on a bit of a buying spree lately
. I'll probably start this thread off with a couple of recent buys for now, and then (maybe tomorrow) add some pics of additional gems I recently acquired , plus a gorgeous little emerald ring I got last month from Yvonne Raley.Bear with me, as this is long, but I wanted to share my experience bc it was great
I've wanted a really good quality, slightly larger (1+ ct), round mahenge spinel for ages. I've posted many pics in the past of my mahenge collection, and I've owned some stunners, but they've almost all been on the small side. (All but one has been under one carat, ranging from the 4 mm range to 5.5 mm. I have one oval that is 1.96 cts, 8.5 x 6.5 mm, but I've been dying for a bigger round. Like many other collectors, rounds have always remained my favorite cut). Before buying this gem, all of my mahenges have come from Yvonne - but she had told me a few months or so ago that it was slim pickings, and that she just had ovals (except for one larger 3+ ct that was out of my range). Since I already had my 1.96 ct oval from her, and I had to have this gem be a round, I ventured further afield
Well - round, saturated, well cut, clean, 1+ carat mahenges can be (as many of us know) pretty hard to find, lol! I've been looking for awhile. This gem is the most expensive gem I've bought to date, and I know that I paid a premium for the rarity of it. I'm pretty thrilled to have it, though. It still isn't as large as I *wish* it was, but it's as large as I'll probably ever be able to afford. And it is large enough to stand on its own as a solitaire, IMO.
It is 1.58 cts, 7 mm round. It does have a touch of orange hue to it, which I've stayed away from in the past. However, I saw a gorgeous mahenge here on PS that had an orange modifier (if I remember right it belongs to Xrisus, I think it came from Yvonne Raley - I really regretted not buying it myself!!), and ever since then I've been much more lenient towards orange modifiers.
This gem is interesting bc it can show itself as very pink, very red, a mix of both, and of course the orange pinkish red as well, which it probably shows most often. I've taken pics showing all of its personalities, and IMO all of these pics are accurate. Depending on lighting conditions it can really vary a great deal. I happen to like this gem in just about every scenario though
I got it from Julia at JuliaBJewelry (on etsy). I've followed her etsy store with great interest since she started it. I've always admired her excellent eye for gems, but at first her settings (although beautiful) weren't really so much to my personal taste. However, as my tastes have evolved, I've found that many of her settings have begun to be very appealing to me. She had this mahenge in her collection, not listed in her store, and I "found" it by inquiring as to whether she might have something. The reason I even thought to ask is bc she has several gorgeous mahenge pieces available in her etsy store. I was hoping that she might have a gem squirreled away that would fit my criteria - and in a stroke of luck for me, she actually did! I messaged her asking for a "1-2 ct mahenge, minimum 7 mm, round, strongly saturated pinkish red, if possible Portuguese cut" - and she actually had exactly that, lol!!! Even the Portuguese cut!
I think she had had this one for awhile, and she said that she was hanging onto it - she may not ever have offered it for sale. So I feel lucky to have it!
Julia also said that she has a ton of loose gems not listed on etsy. Lots of sapphires and spinels, and I think she actually said "hundreds" of loose gems that aren't listed. So if anyone is looking for something, she could be a great place to start. However, she prefers not to be a gem dealer per se, she really wants to sell gems and set them herself in her custom settings. She and I came to an agreement that after I saw the stone, provided I decided to keep it, that she would be the one to set it for me. Since then we have agreed on her Tulip solitaire setting, to be done in 18k YG. The setting is now in production, and I'll be mailing the gem back to her when it's finished, for setting.
Time for pics...all of these were taken in varying degrees of sunlight, over several different days.
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