star sapphires - translucency and "best" colors

[beaujolais]

star sapphires - translucency and "best" colors

I have one mini (under 1 ct) star sapphire and I'm looking at getting another.

People talk of translucency with star sapphires but I'm not totally sure what that means. I think that means the ability for the stone to transmit some light through it, which would (probably) give a better star. Is that why we want them translucent?

Anyone have any photo examples of a translucent s.s. versus an non-translucent one?

Also, what are the "preferred colors and shapes"? Yes, I know it all depends on what I want, but I'll ask anyway. Is oval preferred to a roundish oval? Where does bluish-white fit in as to desired colors? (You can still see the star pretty well on that one.)

I "think" I prefer the lighter blue ones, as opposed to the pink or darker blue. Just a softer, more feminine look.

Tx so much.

MTG has an amazing star sapphire.

 

[minousbijoux]

Its funny you should mention it, because I would agree that the best star sapphire I have seen (i.e., the one I like best) is MTG's. She could set that stone in tin foil and it would still look amazing. I like hers because it is so transparent that you can see print through it - so not only is it almost clear like a drop of water, but it has the pronounced blue of a good sapphire, and a well-defined star with, if I remember correctly straight and equal legs. Sigh, I'm going to happy land just thinking about it!

So I would say as transparent/translucent as possible, not cut too deep - some of them are cut so deep that they face up much smaller than a similar sapphire of equal weight, good quality color and untreated of course. I guess they come in other shapes, but I think the best stars I have seen are in ovals and rounds.

 

[chrono]

There are three levels of "clarity"
1. Transparent - totally see through
2. Translucent - almost see through
3. Opaque - non see through

With star stones, you will never get a transparent stone because the rutiles have to be present in order to line up correctly to show the star. The best level of clarity will be translucent. Of course the cleaner it is, the finer the stone, meaning no specks and other obvious feathers, etc.

In terms of colour, the same grading applies. Purity of hue, tone (medium dark preferred) and saturation. So a medium dark pure blue of strong saturation will be more prized than a medium light whitish blue star sapphire. That said, I certainly agree with you on the appeal of the lighter brethren because it looks like a drop of water.

I don't think shape matters too much as long as it is symmetrical. I rarely see rounds compared to ovals. I also prefer something without too much of a belly (wasted weight).

 

[MakingTheGrade]

Thanks guys!
I do love my star sapphire, it is about as translucent as I can imagine a star getting while still maintaining such a sharp and complete star. In all honesty it's probably the second hardest gem I have to replace, the first is probably my leuco garnet.

I imagine the top color of star sapphire would be the same as a normal sapphire, that intense blue.

Wildfish has a lovely article on evaluating star cabs.
http://wildfishgems.com/gemstones_on_photo#stasap

 

[beaujolais]

Thanks all. Great link, MTG - that helped.

Borrowed this from Ed's site (hope that is o.k.):

"Opaqueness is easy to spot on photos. It looks like a solid piece of material with the rays fixed or painted onto the surface.

At the other end of the spectrum we may have highly transparent quality with the rays reaching into the body. One can, however, not expect 100% transparency because needles are necessary to break the light and show the star."
----

So, we want translucent otherwise it just looks like the star was painted on the top. Now, I've got it. Also, it helped that he said they are not often in wonderful colors (unless huge &&&&). I was looking at some and starting to struggle with it as most of the colors are sort of . I think my favorite color is the grayish light blue. I had bought a fairly strong pink color with a good star but gave it away as the contrast between the pink and the white star just didn't work. If it was more translucent, it might have been ok.

Stars are pretty fun stones. (I don't think they are that popular here, though.) When they show up well, they sort of have a mystical, timeless feel to them.
-----

Um, MTG, link to your lovely star is welcome, (even though I've looked it, with envy, many, many times.)

 

[beaujolais]

Do I have this right, this one is an example of fairly translucent:

http://wildfishgems.com/inc/sdetail/10919/14353

 

[MakingTheGrade]

Do I have this right, this one is an example of fairly translucent:

http://wildfishgems.com/inc/sdetail/10919/14353

It does look fairly translucent. You could always ask for a non-star photo, it lets you judge translucency better when the lighting is diffuse. I can pretty much read through mine when there's no direct light on it.

Michael E used to have a silver star that was gorgeous with a star that almost floated out of it based on the photos.

Haha, I"m always happy to give links to that star! So far it's had one reset...and I imagine at some point in the future I"'ll reset it again, I'm still not 100% satisfied that it emphasizes the "water drop" look ad concept as much as it could.

Unset:
https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/violet-star-sapphire-photos.150649/?hilit=star sapphire

Bezel set:
https://www.pricescope.com/communit...-garnets-pictures.152231/?hilit=star sapphire

Lotus set:
https://www.pricescope.com/communit...from-sally-photos.157470/?hilit=star sapphire

 

[MakingTheGrade]

I always thought this photo was cool, you can see the tiny rutile needles in the first, and how translucent it is in the second, I call it my purple M&M photo.

 

[mastercutgems]

MTG that is a very nice star sapphire.

I know I have bought poorly faceted sapphires and when testing under 100x found them to be star sapphires and finally cut them en cabochon as they were worth more as a star cabochon sapphire than they were as a sleepy faceted gems..

That is about as transparent as they get although I have seen some extremely transparent and so much so you really had to play with them in certain lighting conditions for them to reveal their star...

Neat gems as those and cats eyes are amount my favorite phenomenal gems.

Most respectfully;

Dana Reynolds
ASG Certified Supreme Master Gem Cutter # 96CGE42

 

[Upgradable]

I have a star sapphire that I love! However, it only has one of the "quality star" characteristics, and that is a knock-out star!! I don't mind at all because I knew what I was looking at, knew what made an ideal specimen, and my love for this stone overrode that criteria.

So here is an example of an opaque stone with not great color. He's still my baby!!

 

[beaujolais]

Thanks MTG & all. I'm sure I could have found your links but thanks for putting them up. You know when you look at a stone & just keep looking & thinking about it, that it's got something going on. Yours does that to me (in a great way, of course). I'm not sure which of its two settings I like better, btw. Oh, and I see you are doing some light, pleasure reading in one of your photos .

Now, I'm not really interested in these stones, so I'm going to link them, for discussion and maybe someone is interested. They are not expensive stones but something made me bookmark them.

Comments welcome, as I'm (we) are all looking to learn more.

1. http://www.ebay.com/itm/251058722348?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

2. http://www.ebay.com/itm/261005711625?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649

3. http://www.ebay.com/itm/310307273573?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

 

[beaujolais]

That is a beautiful color, Uppy, and an awesome star !

Oh, how does one know from the rough, what they think will be a star cab?

 

[MakingTheGrade]

MTG that is a very nice star sapphire.

I know I have bought poorly faceted sapphires and when testing under 100x found them to be star sapphires and finally cut them en cabochon as they were worth more as a star cabochon sapphire than they were as a sleepy faceted gems..

That is about as transparent as they get although I have seen some extremely transparent and so much so you really had to play with them in certain lighting conditions for them to reveal their star...

Neat gems as those and cats eyes are amount my favorite phenomenal gems.

Most respectfully;

Dana Reynolds
ASG Certified Supreme Master Gem Cutter # 96CGE42

Yeah, I think if mine were any more transparent, it would lose the nice, bright star. Which would be a shame! People don't seem to enjoy cab gems in general compared to the faceted ones, and to be fair, well faceted gems are much more sparkly and eye catching, but I think phenomenon stones like stars, opals, and cat eyes have a special mystique of their own.



I like this photo because you can see the translucent quality, but also see how the needles are starting to manipulate the little bit of light into rays at the left edge of the stone.

 

[MakingTheGrade]

Thanks MTG & all. I'm sure I could have found your links but thanks for putting them up. You know when you look at a stone & just keep looking & thinking about it, that it's got something going on. Yours does that to me (in a great way, of course). I'm not sure which of its two settings I like better, btw. Oh, and I see you are doing some light, pleasure reading in one of your photos .

Now, I'm not really interested in these stones, so I'm going to link them, for discussion and maybe someone is interested. They are not expensive stones but something made me bookmark them.

Comments welcome, as I'm (we) are all looking to learn more.

1. http://www.ebay.com/itm/251058722348?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

2. http://www.ebay.com/itm/261005711625?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649

3. http://www.ebay.com/itm/310307273573?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

Haha, yeah, some light board studying.
Of the stones, I'd say I like the pink one in the last listing best. The first too seem to have that "painted" quality, and the star in the last blue one seems a bit weak, especially given that it's under a flash light..

 

[chrono]

1. Not particularly translucent. No info on the dimensions either. Looks a bit flatish. I prefer a slightly higher dome for star cabochons because they move around better. Remember that you won't see the star all the time so you must like its starless appearance as well.

2. I like this colour better and I think the translucency is slightly better than #1. Shape is a bit wonky though.

3. Looks to have the nicest star cabochons to me although my preference is for the pink. Good translucency, colour and star.

I noticed that none showed the profile. I wonder how the back looks. Probably flat backed? For the price, I probably won't be bothered if they have been heated. I just found out that even star sapphires are heated (pretty low temps compared to the faceted brethren which makes the treatment difficult to detect) to better bring out the star.

 

[beaujolais]

Thanks. OK, I thought No. 3 was the best out of those, also, but wasn't sure.

I prefer a slightly higher dome for star cabochons because they move around better.

That totally makes sense but hadn't even crossed my mind. Thanks.

----

Do you all prefer an oval shape to a slightly rounder shape in star s's?

How does the lower temp heating work on a s.s.? I'm guessing it would destroy/blend some of the smaller silk while leaving the rest to result in a sharper star?

I have realized to go for a color I can handle, as most of the time it's doesn't "star". I find the light greyish blue pretty nice. Or, of course, MTG's color.

 

[chrono]

Correct; low temp heating dissolves some rutile for a cleaner cabochon without affecting the star per se, but because the body is now cleaner, the star is further accentuated.

 

[MakingTheGrade]

I think the white ones are gorgeous. Michael E of the gemshopped had a silvery one with a misty star that was just entrancing, I'll see if I can dig up a photo later.

In the mean time, here's another article I found, don't know how respected the source is, so maybe take it with a grain of salt.
http://www.preciousgemstones.com/gfsum98one.html

And here's some interesting eye candy. A star sapphire in a halo made of star rubies!
http://www.christies.com/LotFinder/lot_details.aspx?intObjectID=5200381

 

[MakingTheGrade]

Ah ha! I had posted photos in this thread when someone was looking for a star sapphire ering. It's a very interesting thread if you want more info on star sapphires.

https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/star-sapphire-e-ring.117986/

Here was the star sapphire I was oogling. It's since been sold.

 

[beaujolais]

Thanks again, all. Great links.

Now, how would one know from the rough, what they think will be a star cab?

 

[chrono]

The Gemstone Forecaster is generally well accepted and read - I myself look forward to their quarterly newsletter.

 

[Edward Bristol]

Now, how would one know from the rough, what they think will be a star cab?

That is one of the trickiest rough to buy.

I have a certain idea what can make a good star when I see it, it’s a silvery sheen in the body, not too dense, and in a certain regularity. Hard to explain. Lots of experiences needed.

There are more analytical approaches but in the messy heat and chaos of a jungle Pola they don’t help. In the end only cutting shows.

 

[beaujolais]

Thanks so much, Ed. I really appreciate it.

OK, so if one wants to cut some s.s's - you find some rough that you think may make a s.s., cab it and then if it doesn't star, you end up with cabs. Now, I'd think there is less of a demand for not so clean sapphire cabs then a faceted sapphire of the same rough?

Thanks again.

 

[Edward Bristol]

Thanks so much, Ed. I really appreciate it.

OK, so if one wants to cut some s.s's - you find some rough that you think may make a s.s., cab it and then if it doesn't star, you end up with cabs. Now, I'd think there is less of a demand for not so clean sapphire cabs then a faceted sapphire of the same rough?

Thanks again.

I am not sure I understand the question correctly. Can you re-phrase?

 

[beaujolais]

Thanks Ed.

1. Say you select some rough for ss's. You cut one and it doesn't star. Do you keep going with different parts of that rough to see if it will star?

2. Are cabs from that rough that don't star less valuable than a faceted stone (from the same rough) would be?

3. Would a faceted stone from the rough you picked for stars not be the nicest faceted stone as it would have too much rutile?

4. Is is frequent that one selects ss rough and it just doesn't star?

Thanks so much,
sonoma

Some nice ss's at Wild Fish, btw !

 

[Edward Bristol]

Thanks Ed.

1. Say you select some rough for ss's. You cut one and it doesn't star. Do you keep going with different parts of that rough to see if it will star?

2. Are cabs from that rough that don't star less valuable than a faceted stone (from the same rough) would be?

3. Would a faceted stone from the rough you picked for stars not be the nicest faceted stone as it would have too much rutile?

4. Is is frequent that one selects ss rough and it just doesn't star?

Thanks so much,
sonoma

Some nice ss's at Wild Fish, btw !

1. No, unless it is a giant rock
2. yes
3. no, it would be muddy and pale (not sure I get this right again
4. happens

why?

 

[beaujolais]

Thanks so much! Just trying to learn.

Seems like the unpredictability of the rough and it not being good for faceted gems would deter people from trying to cut stars.

 

[RedSpinel]

Do I have this right, this one is an example of fairly translucent:

http://wildfishgems.com/inc/sdetail/10919/14353

Not to offend, but the star 'ruby' in that photo is of pretty poor quality. It looks like its got noticeable shallow inclusions, plus its not very translucent, as I'd call it opaque.

But another significant value factor in star sapphires and star rubies, is the quality of the star itself. If its not very obvious or visible, its worth less. The stones with most prominent stars are the most coveted. Another important issue with the star, is how clean, straight, and proportionate. The star in the picture there^ isnt very straight, or proportionate. Its all crooked and wavy.

That stone is not worth anywhere near $1,200......

 

[RedSpinel]

Thanks MTG & all. I'm sure I could have found your links but thanks for putting them up. You know when you look at a stone & just keep looking & thinking about it, that it's got something going on. Yours does that to me (in a great way, of course). I'm not sure which of its two settings I like better, btw. Oh, and I see you are doing some light, pleasure reading in one of your photos .

Now, I'm not really interested in these stones, so I'm going to link them, for discussion and maybe someone is interested. They are not expensive stones but something made me bookmark them.

Comments welcome, as I'm (we) are all looking to learn more.

1. http://www.ebay.com/itm/251058722348?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

2. http://www.ebay.com/itm/261005711625?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649

3. http://www.ebay.com/itm/310307273573?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

The gray star sapphire in link #2 has a nice, straight, clean star that seems very prominent. The pink star ruby in the 3rd link actually looks better IMO than the $1200 star ruby in an earlier posted link, and its a whole lot less expensive.

My 1st ever cut gemstone purchase was a medium-dark blue star sapphire of just over 3.5cts, and it was a 10mm x 8mm oval with a nice, even star. I bought it from one of the nicer, more famous local Philadelphia jewelers, Robbins. They had a colored gemstone guy who had colored gem connections, and he was contracted by them to get the stones. But their jeweler was backed up 4-5 weeks, so I wouldve had to wait a while to get the ring back, so I made the mistake of taking it elsewhere to a 'supposedly' nice, private jewelry store to get it mounted, and he got it done in 1 week, but chipped the side of the stone.

It wasnt so obvious though, so I wore it non-stop for 10 years, then somehow just lost it a few years ago! One day it was on my hand, the next day it was gone, and I could never find it.......

I bought a smaller 2ct gray star sapphire that sits in my collection years ago.