New to the game. Is this type of sapphire a realistic goal?

[Niel]

I'm looking for a center stone for my engagement ring. I would like to spend around 2k for the stone. My goal is a 6-7 mm round sapphire. Now here's where I feel like I may be out of luck. I would like a really vivid blue- that almost cobalt blue, and I know those are about the most expensive. I wouldn't mind if it was heat treated- sense I think that it would have to be for my price range. Is this doable or am I kidding myself?

And if it's not- my other thought was a light almost steel blue color- but I don't know how lesser quality those sapphires are. Would that color really be worth the investment?

 

[chrono]

Re: New to the game. Is this type of sapphire a realistic go

It might be possible if you are willing to wait for quite a while for the right sapphire and enjoy the hunt, and yes, it will have to be heated. A light steel-y blue sapphire will be far less expensive as that is not the prized colour by the general market. What do you mean by "worth the investment"? If you like that colour and didn't overpay for it, then it becomes "worth it" to you. Liking one colour or another is a very personal feeling and choice. If you want a top blue because you like it and want a fine example of blue sapphire, then that's what you should get.

 

[Niel]

Re: New to the game. Is this type of sapphire a realistic go

I forgot to include I do not know the best place to look. A lot of the online vendors I see here have mostly untreated sapphire, which I would like if i get a lighter color, but like i said would go heated to get a more vivid color.

I found this stone on ebay, but i dont kow how reputable the vendor is- or even if this is a good stone, seems like its too cheap

http://www.ebay.com/itm/RARE-1-78CT-TOP-ROYAL-BLUE-NATURAL-HEATED-SAPPHIRE-ROUND-/261069663904?pt=Loose_Gemstones_1&hash=item3cc8f6eea0

By investment i mean, I know it really only matters if i am happy with the color, but I think of it like those dark sapphires they sell in mall jewelery stores. I know they may be cheaper but if the stone isnt any good then id rather not buy one- even if I like the color.

 

[chrono]

Re: New to the game. Is this type of sapphire a realistic go

I do not know if the vendor is reputable either (with regards to refunds, accuracy of pictured colour and treatment). Colour certainly looks good if accurate even though it is a very deep 73% depth. I also don't know if he'll send the stone or make the stone contingent on having the sapphire verified by AGL as heat only (and not diffused, oiled, or etc).

 

[johnfish]

Re: New to the game. Is this type of sapphire a realistic go

For what its worth I purchased a stone in May at an Intergem show. It was cornflower blue and really sparkles and most importantly my fiance loves it. It is presently being made into an ering bu Hunt country jewelers. It is 6mm round and cost us 690. I know it was not the highest quality stone and it is heat treated but it is really a beautiful stone. The vendor is B and B fine gems. My understanding is that sapphires have become pretty scarse since then so i dont know if the prices have gone up.


John

 

[milton333]

Re: New to the game. Is this type of sapphire a realistic go

Honestly, I think you'll have far better luck if you don't restrict yourself to rounds. You are far more likely to find ovals. If you can be open to ovals, you'll have a better selection.

 

[milton333]

Re: New to the game. Is this type of sapphire a realistic go

Here are some options for you, but most are oval or cushion-y shapes.

None of these are round, but I'd grab up several of them if I were in the market for a blue sapphire at the moment:
http://wildfishgems.com/inc/sdetail/10883/8285
http://wildfishgems.com/inc/sdetail/10883/5497
http://wildfishgems.com/inc/sdetail/10883/11538
http://wildfishgems.com/inc/sdetail/10883/12912
http://wildfishgems.com/inc/sdetail/10883/13221


http://www.ajsgem.com/sapphire/blue-sapphire/blue-sapphire-1.52-carats.html-1
http://www.ajsgem.com/sapphire/blue-sapphire/blue-sapphire-1.60-carats.html

The Gemfix site doesn't let you link to specific stones, so I'll include the link and images of two to consider.
http://www.gemfix.com/sapphire_blue.html
This is first one is lovely, but oval.


This one is probably too dark, but precision cut, in budget, round, and there's a return period if it's not for you.


This is a bit iffy to me - it has a GIA cert, but the "glamour" shot pictures to me look very different from the handshot, and the image on the GIA report looks a lot more greenish to me than what's being captured in any of the other pictures. There's a 10 day return policy, though.
http://www.simplysapphires.com/blue/ceylon-blue-round-sapphire-1.60-carats-6.5x6.5x4.5mm

 

[Niel]

Re: New to the game. Is this type of sapphire a realistic go

ah thank you! I have been looking at some of those and i like them but I have such a dream of a round stone in a cushion halo.

Now, like i said, i also like a light blue color. To be honest, I think i like that even more than the vivid color, but from what i see and read on here they are much less prized than the very saturated color. Which I understand- but a girl cant help what she likes

the reason i am searching for a vivid medium color is because I feel like i should but that color because its more valuable, and I would like my e-ring to be a good investment.

With that said i did find a gem I am in love with
http://www.starruby.in/store/burmese-sapphires/2-99-carat-8-50mm-round-unheated-eye-clean-burmese-sapphire

what are your thoughts? I know its not what I was originally searching for, but is it a quality stone? should i buy a stone that color or is it not really that "good" (for lack of a better word). I know its important that I like it first and foremost, but I feel like its important to consider the general quality of the stone..... I think of it similarly to the same reason people want a natural stone vs a synthetic

 

[milton333]

Re: New to the game. Is this type of sapphire a realistic go

I guess I'm confused. I thought you wanted vivid, cobalt blue if it was possible in your price range, and would consider very pale/unsaturated if it wasn't possible.

To me, the stone you posted looks a bit lavender, and rather like a spinel to me.

I'm also not sure what you mean by "quality." In colored stones, the color is the most prized aspect of the stone. While you don't want a dull, plasticky stone, light performance is far, far less important than in a diamond. Generally, when you think of the market, you get what tends to be, on average, a sort of consensus about what the most desirable traits are of specific gems. With sapphires, blues are most valuable, and a saturated, vivid color without grey tones that some people describe as cornflower or Kashmir blue is typically the most expensive because it is highly sought-after. There's obviously no reason why you have to agree that that is what is pleasing to your eyes, but I'm not sure what you mean by "quality." The stone you posted would not be considered "top quality" color for a blue sapphire. But if it's pleasing to you, then you're the only person who really "counts."

You might look into Montana sapphires, they tend to be more "denim" blue, sometimes with green modifiers, and are far more cost-effective.

The stone you linked is not from a vendor with which I am familiar. The thing about colored stones is that it's all about the actual color, and internet depictions of color are notoriously sketchy. So I'd want to have a sense of whether this is a fairly accurate representation of the color or not. One way is to work with a trusted vendor that you or other people here have had experience with, another is to ask for additional photos of the stone (including hand shots). A return period is great, if it is honored and your money is actually refunded.

 

[MakingTheGrade]

Re: New to the game. Is this type of sapphire a realistic go

Being open to different shapes will also affect price point. For example, I recently bought a trillion that's a wonderful color but half the price of comparable rounds.

 

[tara3056]

Re: New to the game. Is this type of sapphire a realistic go

I just returned a sapphire from Gemfix that might fit the bill, though it is on the smaller side at right at 6mm. (They should be getting it back in the mail any minute.) The thing about their site is that they have a section of "newest gems" which are not cross-listed into the individual categories. So, IOW, if you look at the "sapphires" section, you'll miss at least a few of them that are actually for sale because those are instead sorted into the "newest gems" section. http://www.gemfix.com/newest_gems.html

I returned this sapphire:


I returned it because at right at 6mm, it was just a little smaller than I would have liked. It was also not *quite* the color in the picture in all lighting conditions. It was almost exactly the color shown at times, but then at other times, it would pick up a VERY SLIGHT steely "coolness" to it. Not quite enough for me to say that it picked up violet, because violet wasn't specifically discernable to my eyes, just that it went slightly less intense blue and more cool-toned. It was BEAUTIFULLY cut.

Adding to the temptation to keep it... you can see that it is listed as "heat only" on their website, but when I received the stone, the container it came in said "NO HEAT" (!). I emailed Laura at Gemfix to ask about it and she said that it was described and priced as if it had been heated but when Andrew (the cutter) took a close look at it under the microscope before shipping it, he saw fine rutile which was strongly indicative that it had not been heated. But because it had not been out for certfication, they couldn't sell it as unenhanced. So for the price of $1100, there's a chance it may be unenhanced.

I will say that the return process has been easy with Gemfix and the cutting beautiful, so you may want to check out their "newest" sapphires. There's a couple of lovely ovals and a nice, darker cushion, but the other rounds that are available are lighter.

 

[tara3056]

Re: New to the game. Is this type of sapphire a realistic go

If I'm "reading" the pictures on Gemfix right, I'm guessing that round blue one Milton posted would be even prettier than the one I just returned and a 6.5 mm vs a 6.0 mm is a noticeable difference. I wish that one he posted had been in my budget! Luckily, it's in yours

I know they'd send you 2-3 sapphires and let you pick one and return the rest, or even return all of them if none of them fit the bill. It's nice that they are located in the US - makes returns SO much easier!

 

[colorluvr]

Re: New to the game. Is this type of sapphire a realistic go

What do you think of the color of the sapphire in my ring in this thread?

[URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/3-71ct-unheated-medium-blue-sapphire-in-18k-wg.173002/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/3-71ct-unheated-medium-blue-sapphire-in-18k-wg.173002/[/URL]

I'm asking because you seem to be going back and forth between darker and lighter and if you really like the lighter ones, that is what you should get AND if you get a lighter stone, you should be able to find one in the size you want that is unheated within your budget.

I have both heated (darker blue) and unheated (medium blue) and I don't really have a preference, they are just different.

Also, if it matters to you, a lighter stone will look larger than a darker stone of the same size once they are set.... also, a lighter blue stone will darken a bit when it is set like this one did.

 

[Niel]

Re: New to the game. Is this type of sapphire a realistic go

I do like that color a lot. And you are so right I am in between a darker and a lighter stone. But being that a lighter one would be in my budget as well as look more substantial in a setting- than I think I should go that route. Apparently I don't get how to pick a sapphire

 

[minousbijoux]

Re: New to the game. Is this type of sapphire a realistic go

First off, you may want to ask the moderators to close one of your threads as at this point, they really are merging into one: your understanding of, and search for, a good sapphire.

That said, the point I want to make is that since your tastes are slightly different than the vast majority of sapphire buyers (you lucky girl, you!) if you want to, you will be able to find a stone in the lighter tone you really want for less than a comparable sapphire in a slightly darker tone.

Another way to look at is from an investment viewpoint (and I think that's also a question you're asking). From that perspective, I would imagine that you would want to go for a mainstream color, as that is what has proven to sell. But for how long? The whole resurgence in sapphires has come around at least in part as a result of the Diana/Kate ring, with the focus being a medium dark - or just plain dark - saturated blue. Who knows how long this will last? Will the next generation, perhaps due to the Zuckerberg/Chan ring start going for vivid red rubies? No one knows.

My point is that you can:

1) go get a stone that you really like for your engagement ring because its what you think constitutes a good investment stone at this point in time; or

2) get a stone that you really LOVE for your engagement ring and look down at it every day and love it. Who knows? maybe the next big celeb couple will use a lighter toned sapphire as their ER in a couple of years and then your stone that you truly love will have turned out to be the best "investment" of all.

Just saying...oh, and good luck!