Pick a sapphire for me

[noclueq]

A family member wants to buy me a sapphire necklace as a gift. After much back and forth negotiating different preferences, we’ve identified the following two sapphires from the NSC. I know now that they aren’t a recommended seller but we’ve spent so much time debating them that I don’t want to look elsewhere now. Hoping you guys can guide me as to which is the better choice (ie less of a rip off…). One is heated and one is not - I’m not planning to resell but would like it to not be a total rip off or valueless stone. I did ask for a picture and video of the stones in regular light and they look fairly similar to the naked eye aside from shape. TIA!!

Blue Sapphires | The Natural Sapphire Company

We offer a large variety of the beautiful blue sapphire. Between different hues and tones, you'll be sure to find the perfect blue sapphire here.

www.thenaturalsapphirecompany.com

1.24ct Ceylon (Sri Lanka) Oval Blue Sapphire - B17205

<p>Introducing a gemstone that not only dazzles the eye but also inspires trust and confidence like no other. Behold, the transparent 1.24 carat oval-shaped blue sapphire from The Natural Sapphire Company! This remarkable gem is a testament to our unwavering commitment to quality and...

www.thenaturalsapphirecompany.com

 

[Autumn in New England]

Hello there and welcome to the forum! I've purchased from the NSC previously and I'm quite comfortable with them. Are you working with Lauren? She's lovely. Anyway, strictly speaking in terms of these two options, hands down for me it's the 1.24ct. Not even a question... I like the shape better (a bit of a tilt window, but nothing egregious), it has a higher color saturation grade (using the NSC's scale), less color zoning, and it's unheated. Of course, it also has the higher price tag to match. You're certainly paying retail here, but I don't think the price is outrageous. Seems about right to me!

 

[noclueq]

Hello there and welcome to the forum! I've purchased from the NSC previously and I'm quite comfortable with them. Are you working with Lauren? She's lovely. Anyway, strictly speaking in terms of these two options, hands down for me it's the 1.24ct. Not even a question... I like the shape better (a bit of a tilt window, but nothing egregious), it has a higher color saturation grade (using the NSC's scale), less color zoning, and it's unheated. Of course, it also has the higher price tag to match. You're certainly paying retail here, but I don't think the price is outrageous. Seems about right to me!

Thank you! That makes me feel better. The customer service so far has actually been really good but I know that’s its own thing. I wasn’t sure if the color rating really mattered given that it’s an internal scale and they look so similar to my eye in the photo but I really don’t know!

 

[Autumn in New England]

Thank you! That makes me feel better. The customer service so far has actually been really good but I know that’s its own thing. I wasn’t sure if the color rating really mattered given that it’s an internal scale and they look so similar to my eye in the photo but I really don’t know!

There's so much to consider... it can be overwhelming!

I shopped 3 stones with NSC, and I can say I've found their color grading system to be as consistent across the board as is reasonably possible. If they say one stone has medium-intense saturation and another has intense saturation, you can be confident that the latter's apparent color in person will be better than the former. If you decide to look at options from other vendors, let us know. We may have more choices in your price range we can suggest. But I wanted to respect your OP; wherein, you asked for us to only select from these two stones. They're certainly both attractive sapphires and their prices seem appropriate. Good luck!

 

[Ionysis]

Hello there and welcome to the forum! I've purchased from the NSC previously and I'm quite comfortable with them. Are you working with Lauren? She's lovely. Anyway, strictly speaking in terms of these two options, hands down for me it's the 1.24ct. Not even a question... I like the shape better (a bit of a tilt window, but nothing egregious), it has a higher color saturation grade (using the NSC's scale), less color zoning, and it's unheated. Of course, it also has the higher price tag to match. You're certainly paying retail here, but I don't think the price is outrageous. Seems about right to me!

What AINE said!!

 

[Avondale]

I will go against popular opinion here, but for me, personally, the choice wouldn't be the second sapphire undisputedly.

It is true that it's unheated, with nice, uniform colour and better saturated. However...

Colour saturation wise, a difference can be seen in the video screenshot. It's not big, but it's there. And besides, these colour differences seem less significant to an untrained eye. If you're looking at sapphires for the first time, you probably aren't as sensitive to the different nuances. They may look insignificant to you but still affect price greatly.

If I were you, I'd ask the vendor what they see with their eyes - if the difference seen in the video is indicative of the actual difference seen in person. Also, sapphires behave differently under different light and even though these two may look the same under office lights, they may look quite different under sunlight, for example, or in a poorly lit room. All of this can be an important factor in your decision.

Heated vs unheated can be a big selling point or entirely unimportant, depending on your priorities. Undoubtedly, unheated sapphires are much more rare and expensive. That doesn't mean you must care about it. It's a matter of personal choice.

Colour zoning on the heated sapphire would be practically unnoticeable considering the size of the stone and the distance everyone will be viewing it from. We can see it on the extremely detailed and magnified images, but on a scale of 5-6-7 mm you wouldn't even think of it.

In terms of clarity both stones are graded as very slightly included, however, the inclusion in the untreated stone just... hurts my eyes. I can't stop staring at it. It's big, it's brown, it's ugly.


Maybe it isn't that visible in person but if it is, the setting will have to be designed to hide it. Meanwhile, I'm fairly confident the inclusions in the heated stone would be practically invisible unless you're meticulously staring at the stone up close looking for them.

The last one is a pet peeve of mine, but the unheated stone has a slightly off centre culet. Many people wouldn't be bothered by it, but it irks me.

My conclusion is that these two are a bit too similar to justify a quadriple difference in price. They're both pretty and they'll both make a lovely necklace. But unless unheated is a big priority for you and the unheated stone is actually visibly superior in colour in real life, spending four times the money for it isn't that straightforward of a choice.

 

[dk168]

I appreciate the OP has decided on choosing one of the two Sapphires posted, however, I would like to suggest to go down the custom route and have one precision-cut by one of the recommended lapidary artists.

My reasons for this suggestion are because I am not keen on the colours and cutting of the two stones, and would rather pay more to have one cut to my specifications in terms of 4Cs as well as budget.

Each to their own and all that.

DK

 

[noclueq]

I will go against popular opinion here, but for me, personally, the choice wouldn't be the second sapphire undisputedly.

It is true that it's unheated, with nice, uniform colour and better saturated. However...

Colour saturation wise, a difference can be seen in the video screenshot. It's not big, but it's there. And besides, these colour differences seem less significant to an untrained eye. If you're looking at sapphires for the first time, you probably aren't as sensitive to the different nuances. They may look insignificant to you but still affect price greatly.

If I were you, I'd ask the vendor what they see with their eyes - if the difference seen in the video is indicative of the actual difference seen in person. Also, sapphires behave differently under different light and even though these two may look the same under office lights, they may look quite different under sunlight, for example, or in a poorly lit room. All of this can be an important factor in your decision.

Heated vs unheated can be a big selling point or entirely unimportant, depending on your priorities. Undoubtedly, unheated sapphires are much more rare and expensive. That doesn't mean you must care about it. It's a matter of personal choice.

Colour zoning on the heated sapphire would be practically unnoticeable considering the size of the stone and the distance everyone will be viewing it from. We can see it on the extremely detailed and magnified images, but on a scale of 5-6-7 mm you wouldn't even think of it.

In terms of clarity both stones are graded as very slightly included, however, the inclusion in the untreated stone just... hurts my eyes. I can't stop staring at it. It's big, it's brown, it's ugly.


Maybe it isn't that visible in person but if it is, the setting will have to be designed to hide it. Meanwhile, I'm fairly confident the inclusions in the heated stone would be practically invisible unless you're meticulously staring at the stone up close looking for them.

The last one is a pet peeve of mine, but the unheated stone has a slightly off centre culet. Many people wouldn't be bothered by it, but it irks me.

My conclusion is that these two are a bit too similar to justify a quadriple difference in price. They're both pretty and they'll both make a lovely necklace. But unless unheated is a big priority for you and the unheated stone is actually visibly superior in colour in real life, spending four times the money for it isn't that straightforward of a choice.

Thank you! Yeah it does seem like a big price difference, given that I’m unlikely to resell it (though would like to pass it down), thus my uncertainty. It would be set like this which I think would hide that big inclusion… mostly I just want to make sure that neither one is a totally ridiculous purchase.

 

[JSG2185]

Heat doesn’t bother me much, if I had to choose between the two stones, I’d choose the first stone because the second one has an inclusion that’s too much for me personally. Either way, let us know which one you pick - would love to see the final piece!

A family member wants to buy me a sapphire necklace as a gift. After much back and forth negotiating different preferences, we’ve identified the following two sapphires from the NSC. I know now that they aren’t a recommended seller but we’ve spent so much time debating them that I don’t want to look elsewhere now. Hoping you guys can guide me as to which is the better choice (ie less of a rip off…). One is heated and one is not - I’m not planning to resell but would like it to not be a total rip off or valueless stone. I did ask for a picture and video of the stones in regular light and they look fairly similar to the naked eye aside from shape. TIA!!

Blue Sapphires | The Natural Sapphire Company

We offer a large variety of the beautiful blue sapphire. Between different hues and tones, you'll be sure to find the perfect blue sapphire here.

www.thenaturalsapphirecompany.com

1.24ct Ceylon (Sri Lanka) Oval Blue Sapphire - B17205

<p>Introducing a gemstone that not only dazzles the eye but also inspires trust and confidence like no other. Behold, the transparent 1.24 carat oval-shaped blue sapphire from The Natural Sapphire Company! This remarkable gem is a testament to our unwavering commitment to quality and...

www.thenaturalsapphirecompany.com

 

[CaseyLouLou]

Here are my 2 cents. Something about the heated one in the video just looks soooo much more lively. The unheated has a noticeable bow tie due to it being more elongated. And the unheated inclusions would bug me. And the saturation is not noticeably different.

You definitely need to pick the one that you like more when viewing. Not what looks better on paper.

 

[whitewave]

i actually liked #1better.

 

[noclueq]

Hi all, just wanted to say thanks for your advice! We ended up going with the cheaper heated stone, mostly bc the person buying for me is overly generous and I ended up feeling like I should limit the cost given how similar the stones look to an untrained eye… anyway, here’s how it turned out. I like it!

 

[Avondale]

Oh, it's beautiful! The design of the setting fits it perfectly. Wear it in good health!