Show me your Montana Sapphires!!!

[amyek]

Jeff's cuts and photos are accurate and impeccable. I own 3 of his larger Montanas and they are amazing. See below. They appear in hand as they appear in his beautiful photos.

 

[amyek]

Btw, 2 of my stones are set. I am contemplating the setting for the 3rd.

 

[amyek]

I also own, and love, these Yogos, but Jeff didn't cut them... They are freakin' blue and untreated, well cut and clean. I don't mind what I paid for them one bit...

 

[deskjockey]

amyek that lavender one is just lovely. Would love more pictures of that one!

 

[RissaLou]

Okay holy wow! When I was searching for old Montana Sapphire posts I came across this website: http://www.earthstreasury.com/product-category/gemstones/sapphire-gemstones/montanasapphire/

Has anyone used them before? Heard anything good or bad? Because woah, they have some stunning Montana Sapphires!

Sharing pics of a few of my favs, gorgeous. I'm super curious if anyone knows anything about them, like are these photos altered do you think?

These are mine; that's my business. I can assure you that NONE of my photos are altered. Photography is one of my passions and I put a great deal of effort into making sure my photos are as close to "real life" is possible given the limitations of digital cameras/computer screens and differences in individual color perception. I have carefully calibrated my camera and computer screen to a X-Rite color standard and I use special lighting in my studio. If the color shifts I generally will try to get photos in different lighting to show this.

I'm glad you like my sapphires; Montana sapphires are a specialty of mine. I have spent a great deal of time working on optimizing the angles and creating my own designs to maximize the brilliance of these remarkable gems. Proper orientation of the stones is crucial for displaying the best color on these stones, and I almost always will optimize for the purest color hue and the best blue rather than simply trying to cut the largest gem. I also go to great effort to source the absolute best rough and have close relationships with most of the miners in Montana to ensure that I can do so.

Personally I think these sapphires are greatly underappreciated. In part I believe this is due to the prevalence of poor cutting of many of these stones. This seems to be slowly changing as they gain more recognition and as interest in colored gems and education about proper cutting grows, in no small part due to communities like PriceScope.

Regards,

Jeff

Thank you so very much Jeff for taking the time to respond and for all the information! You truly have some beautiful gems

 

[RissaLou]

amyek you have a wonderful collection!! Please come back and share when you have your next one set as well, I'd love to see

 

[Alnitak]

amyek that lavender one is just lovely. Would love more pictures of that one!

Here's my picture of it in the studio before it was sold. Its a rare color from Montana, especially in a larger size like this. It's 1.97 carats and 8.55 x 6.85 x 4.60 mm. Unheated as are most of the Montana sapphires I work with. I LOVE these stones!

Jeff

 

[Alnitak]

Thank you so very much Jeff for taking the time to respond and for all the information! You truly have some beautiful gems

Thanks! I love what I do and I get great satisfaction out of the joy my creations can give others. I really love it when my sapphires are used in engagement rings as I know they'll be worn every day and treasured for years to come.

 

[Alnitak]

Jeff, out of curiosity, do you know anything about this guy?

http://missouririversapphire.co/

I'm not exactly in the market but everything looks great on there.... (he's on etsy too) Just curious because I haven't seen anyone here get anything from there yet...

Yes, actually that's ephsea from these forums. Very nice guy and he came to me a year or so ago for some tips on photography. His photography is quite good and the colors look pretty "classic" Montana to me, so I assume they are very representative of reality. He's got a decent inventory of nice Montana sapphires all faceted here in the US by a variety of different cutters.

Jeff

 

[deskjockey]

Jeff, out of curiosity, do you know anything about this guy?

http://missouririversapphire.co/

I'm not exactly in the market but everything looks great on there.... (he's on etsy too) Just curious because I haven't seen anyone here get anything from there yet...

Yes, actually that's ephsea from these forums. Very nice guy and he came to me a year or so ago for some tips on photography. His photography is quite good and the colors look pretty "classic" Montana to me, so I assume they are very representative of reality. He's got a decent inventory of nice Montana sapphires all faceted here in the US by a variety of different cutters.

Jeff

aha! mystery solved. LOL. Been loving his site/etsy lately and wishing I had disposable income!

 

[MissouriRiverSapphireCo]

Ah yes, hello lovely PS'ers The last year has been busy - got married, opened a business, and now we're expecting! I shall endeavour to be available if forum members have any questions I can help with. Thanks for the kind words, and I'm honored to have been the subject of a mystery!

 

[deskjockey]

Ah yes, hello lovely PS'ers The last year has been busy - got married, opened a business, and now we're expecting! I shall endeavour to be available if forum members have any questions I can help with. Thanks for the kind words, and I'm honored to have been the subject of a mystery!

Congratulations!!!!

 

[lmcriss]

Thank you so much for starting this forum DeskJockey! I'm having so much fun lurking around on here! So many beautiful stones and pieces of jewelry!!

 

[RissaLou]

It's here! It's here! and I am so in love It's an extremely difficult booger to photograph, but I did the best I could. It's 1.16cts, eye clean. It has a gorgeous deep blue color with flashes of teal. I just love the cut that Shannon at Mountain Momma Gems did. I love that she was the one who cut this one, and that it was heat treated (no added chemicals, heat only) by her father in Montana after her family mined it from rock springs, which means entirely made in the USA which is pretty cool for me personally.

I'm planning on making this into a three stone ring with two small AVC's eventually, but it'll be awhile before I can. I also haven't 100% decided on the design.

Onto the pics!...

 

[SparkliesLuver]

Love this thread. Here's my little contribution.

 

[ilovegemstones]

Here is mine! 6.5 mm unheated Montana, OEC cut from Dana. These are his pics.

 

[_lovesvintage_]

Great thread...beautiful stones everyone! Loving your stone, ilovegemstones...very excited for you. Great pic of your ring, Sparkliesluver! Rissalou, that will make a fabulous ring and I can't wait to see it when it's done!

 

[userangl28212003]

I have my own I panned from rough and just got back from gem mountain cut after 8 months of waiting hehe . A green and nice blue(my pic of the blue isnt very good sry and looks much better in person)
They are in the process of being made into hammered/textured yellow gold stacking rings. Both are heated only. The green was pretty much the same color before heating, and I'm glad it stayed like that. Even the person at gem mountain was like yea ur right that is a good color.

 

[Mailin]

Here is a link to a gallery with the non resized images: http://postimg.org/gallery/3jim15mes/

 

[MeMow]

Hello to All,
I am looking to work with a reputable company to make a Montana sapphire (blue-green) engagement ring. I would preferably like to work with a Montana based company as they have favorable tax codes. I would appreciate any help or guidance you may have. Thanks so much.

 

[chatoyancy]

Hello to All,
I am looking to work with a reputable company to make a Montana sapphire (blue-green) engagement ring. I would preferably like to work with a Montana based company as they have favorable tax codes. I would appreciate any help or guidance you may have. Thanks so much.

My dad lives in Montana and they do not have sales tax (ours was just raised where I live ugh). However, I noticed that the sapphire prices in Montana are pretty ridiculous where I have looked. Earth's Treasury and Mastercut have much better prices. Maybe someone here can give you advice on an online store that is reasonable and based in Montana.

 

[mtsapphirelovingannie]

MeMow, You might want to start a new thread for help. It would be helpful to know more like what size and shape stone you are looking for and your budget.

I am NOT one of the PS experts but I do enjoy Montana sapphires and have done business with numerous B&M jewelry stores in Montana.

There are various custom jewelry makers in Montana but I've not worked with any Montana based cutters. Your best bet might be to buy the stone form a good cutter, like those listed above, and then find a Montana based goldsmith.

Anyhow, I will provide some links in case they are helpful. Myself or close friends have had good experience with these stores:
http://www.eatonturnerjewelry.com/
http://www.imaginedesignsmt.com/

If you are looking to purchase something already made these two B&M stores in Bozeman are reputable and have websites:
http://www.millersjewelry-mt.com/
https://gemgallery.com/

Please know that Bozeman, Montana prices can be very elevated. In fact, gemstone and jewelry prices in general in Montana are elevated compared to what I see with internet based stores.

You might also contact the Montana Sapphire Gallery: http://www.sapphiregallery.com/ They have a large inventory that is not on the website. I do know know what work they do over the phone or via email.

 

[mtsapphirelovingannie]

I have a set of studs that are an interesting color for Montana sapphires. I bought them set at a local B&M. The are between 5 to 6 mm.



I also have a pendant set with a Montana sapphire that I mined. It is an unusual color for an unheated Montana sapphire.

 

[minousbijoux]

I have a set of studs that are an interesting color for Montana sapphires. I bought them set at a local B&M. The are between 5 to 6 mm.



I also have a pendant set with a Montana sapphire that I mined. It is an unusual color for an unheated Montana sapphire.

Wow. Can honestly say that I've never seen a Montana of that color - absolutely stunning!

 

[Alnitak]

That pink is quite rare. I've personally sorted through more than 300 kilograms of Montana sapphires so I've seen a lot, and gems that color make up only a fraction of a percent of the sapphires found there. Great find!

 

[Burmesedaze]

I love that purplish pink and unheated too! Congrats on that find!

 

[mtsapphirelovingannie]

Thank you for the compliments on the pink Montana sapphire. It was a long tough day of mining and that was the only worthwhile stone we found.

 

[MTHealthyLiving]

I'm am absolutely in love with these stones. I've spent all day looking through old threads, but I'd love to see a bunch of these beauties all in one place!

So please share, loose or set, I don't mind

If you like Montana sapphires, you’d love yogo sapphires! Only one place in the world they can be found... Central Montana, about 40 miles from my house. The front ring on my stack is a yogo sapphire. My husband bought it for me for our tenth anniversary. It’s my most cherished possession!

 

[mtsapphirelovingannie]

If you like Montana sapphires, you’d love yogo sapphires! Only one place in the world they can be found... Central Montana, about 40 miles from my house. The front ring on my stack is a yogo sapphire. My husband bought it for me for our tenth anniversary. It’s my most cherished possession!

Lovely ring and great stack! I love purple Yogo sapphires. I have a very small pendant with four purple stones. I haven't seen many purples in a long time.

 

[MTHealthyLiving]

Lovely ring and great stack! I love purple Yogo sapphires. I have a very small pendant with four purple stones. I haven't seen many purples in a long time.

Thank you!
I’m so jealous that you have purple yogos! I bet they are beautiful!