Please share your opinion on sapphire

[DotDot]

Hi all,

Hope everyone had a great weekend.

Saw this sapphire at my local jewler. Need help making decisions. Please share your thoughts freely.

Heated Ceylon 3.38ct. Slightly deep. I think face up is about 7.5x7.5. Too bad I didn't get more pics.



Thanks ahead

 

[MrsCornishWed]

Ohh I like!

 

[LoversKites]

Does it have a lab report?

I think the face up size seems ok, I wouldn't worry about the depth.

I think the colour is a beautiful violet blue. How did you feel about it in person? Oh, and are your photos taken under the jeweler's lights? Those can make stones seem nicer than they will be most of the time.

 

[ephsea]

How did you feel about it when it was in your hand? What color are you looking for? I like the color now, but depending on the setting it could darken. Did the price seem reasonable to you?

 

[JewelFreak]

It looks like the photo was taken under the jeweler's lights, good point, LK. I would recommend going back & seeing it in outside light if he'll let you. It's a beautiful color -- I love the purple secondary -- but looks quite dark & I see a fairly prominent bowtie. It will darken somewhat when set, so keep that in mind -- whether you like that or not is a matter of your own preference. Good luck!

 

[DotDot]

Thanks for the speedy responses.

The pictures are under jewler's lights. I think it makes it look slightly darker and slightly more purplish than actual. I did take it outdoor and it looks nicer in natural lighting than under jewler's lights. As for the bowtie, I was able to see the stone light up completely but I guess most of time, it would have some sort of bowtie. Is it an issue that I should pause on?

No lab report but the seller will send it to whichever lab I want. Seems NY jewlers are more familiar with GIA and EGL. Most of them don't give much credit to AGL. After being educated by PS, I am feeling a little disoriented.

I will most likely put it in a halo setting. Will that keep the stone bright?

I am experiecing major commitment phobia. Am I ready to jump in?

 

[chrono]

The colour looks very nice and the overall cut is decent. What light conditions will you be viewing the stone most under? Outdoors is a given. What about indoors? Anyway to simulate the same light conditions to see if you'll love the stone day-in, night out? Fluorescent? Halogen? Incandescent?

AGL is right in NY too but most jewellers are well versed in diamonds where GIA is the premier lab with EGL playing second fiddle. AGL is well known to those that specialize in coloured stones.

Halo settings tend to darken the stone a bit once set.

 

[LoversKites]

As for the bowtie, I was able to see the stone light up completely but I guess most of time, it would have some sort of bowtie. Is it an issue that I should pause on?

That's a personal preference. Some are stricter while some more lenient about these things. Will it bother you? If you don't have a time you want your project done by, you can wait, look, and ask around. It can take a quite a while though.

 

[RandG]

Love the color and the cut! Very nice find but would love to see at other angles/lighting. Given its size and likely cost, I would get a cert included in the sale.

 

[ilovegemstones]

Great looking stone! Definitely get a lab report with it.

 

[DotDot]

Thank you, PSers! You always have great advices.

I plan to go back sometime and negotiate for a deal. Let's hope the vendor is willing to deal.

 

[DotDot]

Been talking to the vendor. Is $4700 with AGL brief reasonable for the stone? Will see it today and try to take more pictures.

 

[LoversKites]

Been talking to the vendor. Is $4700 with AGL brief reasonable for the stone? Will see it today and try to take more pictures.

Well I may be wrong but compared to the sapphires I've seen it is a good price. I've seen sapphires of similar quality go for more. Especially considering it's over 3ct. Try to see it in regular indoor lighting, or low light, to be sure it's not too dark for your tastes.

This was the closest comparison I found. But I can't say how similar the colour really is.
http://mastercutgems.com/index.php?page=viewgem&id=6948

 

[DotDot]

Got it. It's on its way to AGL!

Will post more pics when it comes back. It's not quite dark nor as purple as the pictures on the top.

THANK You, Pricescope! It was such a journey. All of you have been soooooo wonderful!

Next obsession... a setting...

 

[pregcurious]

Can't wait to see more pictures. It looks beautiful.

 

[LoversKites]

That's great! AGL was the right way to go.

 

[T L]

Been talking to the vendor. Is $4700 with AGL brief reasonable for the stone? Will see it today and try to take more pictures.

If it comes back as heated, there may be an additional fee to test for diffusion, if they cannot determine it with standard gemological tools. You have to let them know if you want to pay for further testing then, because it could be diffused which would render the gem valued at a fraction of what you paid.

I would double check this with AGL. I paid an extra $100 to have my 2.4 carat sapphire tested with a mass spectrometer (a very expensive machine).

 

[chrono]

That is a very good price for a 3 ct heated sapphire with that colour and I hope AGL gives it the green light as heated only.

 

[DotDot]

If it comes back as heated, there may be an additional fee to test for diffusion, if they cannot determine it with standard gemological tools. You have to let them know if you want to pay for further testing then, because it could be diffused which would render the gem valued at a fraction of what you paid.

I would double check this with AGL. I paid an extra $100 to have my 2.4 carat sapphire tested with a mass spectrometer (a very expensive machine).

Hm..? The stone was sold as heated; I of course want verification that there are no other treatments. I thought the AGL testing will verify the (lack of) diffusion? Will the Prestige Gemstone report for standard ID report test any differently than Brief? Or I am better off to pay for brief + this mass spectrometer instead?

Thank you!

 

[T L]

If it comes back as heated, there may be an additional fee to test for diffusion, if they cannot determine it with standard gemological tools. You have to let them know if you want to pay for further testing then, because it could be diffused which would render the gem valued at a fraction of what you paid.

I would double check this with AGL. I paid an extra $100 to have my 2.4 carat sapphire tested with a mass spectrometer (a very expensive machine).

Hm..? The stone was sold as heated; I of course want verification that there are no other treatments. I thought the AGL testing will verify the (lack of) diffusion? Will the Prestige Gemstone report for standard ID report test any differently than Brief? Or I am better off to pay for brief + this mass spectrometer instead?

Thank you!

You can contact AGL by telephone for the specifics, but you can test for diffusion with the gem brief. It might cost more money to get a prestige report, and since you don't care about origin, or any other specifics, I wouldn't bother with it. The price of the prestige report may be even more $$$ than a gem brief that includes mass spectrometer testing for diffusion, but double check. I would call them and get the upfront information and pricing on all potential testing for this gem.

The problem of potential diffusion is an issue with all heated sapphires unfortunately. If the sapphire comes back as unheated, then you automatically don't have to worry about potential diffusion.

 

[chrono]

AGL will do their best to check for signs of diffusion under high magnification. Often times, this is sufficient but sometimes it cannot be determined, or they suspect diffusion from the appearance of the inclusions. If so, then they will contact you to let you know and offer the option of using the mass spectrometer at an added cost. I'd say you are better off with the brief, and wait to see if additional testing is necessary.

 

[T L]

AGL will do their best to check for signs of diffusion under high magnification. Often times, this is sufficient but sometimes it cannot be determined, or they suspect diffusion from the appearance of the inclusions. If so, then they will contact you to let you know and offer the option of using the mass spectrometer at an added cost. I'd say you are better off with the brief, and wait to see if additional testing is necessary.

Thanks Chrono, to your bolded phrase above, I'm not sure of this, unless you are. I would double check with AGL otherwise. I know when I sent my sapphire over there, I called them to indicate the type of further testing I wanted if the sapphire came back as heated. Maybe I was just overly proactive, and they would have eventually called me????

 

[DotDot]

What I am hearing is:
AGL Gem Brief receives the same tests as Prestige ID/Enhancement report so no need to pay more for Prestige report.
In case additional testing needed for diffusion, we can request using the mass spectrometer.

Since the vendor is including the AGL cost as part of the sale, they will have no incentive to put more $ in for testing. I guess I will have to reach out to AGL seperately and hoping they will contact me in case additional testing is needed. With the cost, I think paying another $100 is reasonable to ensure peace of mind.

Does GIA's report automatically include all testing needed (incl mass spectrometer if necessary), or I should stick with AGL?

PSers, you have such wealth of knowledge. I am so glad I am getting help from the experts through this process.

 

[T L]

What I am hearing is:
AGL Gem Brief receives the same tests as Prestige ID/Enhancement report so no need to pay more for Prestige report.
In case additional testing needed for diffusion, we can request using the mass spectrometer.

Since the vendor is including the AGL cost as part of the sale, they will have no incentive to put more $ in for testing. I guess I will have to reach out to AGL seperately and hoping they will contact me in case additional testing is needed. With the cost, I think paying another $100 is reasonable to ensure peace of mind.

Does GIA's report automatically include all testing needed (incl mass spectrometer if necessary), or I should stick with AGL?

PSers, you have such wealth of knowledge. I am so glad I am getting help from the experts through this process.

Stick with the AGL gem brief, and they're often more highly regarded than GIA for colored gems, and at the very least, regarded equally. GIA will include mass spectrometry, but it won't be inexpensive either, so you're better off going with AGL.

As for the prestige report, I'm unsure if the price also includes testing for diffusion using mass spectrometry, I only obtain gem briefs for my stones, but if I bought a very very expensive sapphire that required origin testing, I would go full out for the prestige report (there are two levels of prestige report). In this case, your stone, if its heated only (no diffusion), is a good price, and you can go for a full prestige report, or just an origin report, but I don't think its necessary. It's up to you for additional information you would like to have. The full prestige report includes information regarding origin, hue, saturation, tone, clarity and cutting, and an overall rating. It's a very expensive report, and I"m not sure if it includes diffusion using MS testing.

AGL has more information on their reports at their website, and there's additional information in this recent thread.

[URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/unheated-burma-blue-sapphire-agl-prestige-report-help.203697/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/unheated-burma-blue-sapphire-agl-prestige-report-help.203697/[/URL]

 

[DotDot]

Finally got the ring with an AGL cert. Hooray! Thank you all for giving me valuable advices.

 

[Acinom]

Yay! Your stone and setting are amazing
Thanks for sharing your beautiful ring.

 

[pregcurious]

It looks really beautiful. The halo really sets of the color!

 

[woofmama]

Gorgeous ring! I love the color of the sapphire

 

[Lisa Loves Shiny]

Gorgeous!

 

[kjessop]

Your ring is gorgeous!