Stones That Look Good Indoor

[pwsg07]

After buying some stones online, I realized that the stones always look good under the sun but they look dark under low light. I was told that garnets and spinels look dark indoor. However, I have some orange spessartite garnets still look bright indoor. Please tell me the list of gemstones that do not look dark inside the room. Does the Jedi Spinels and the Mahenga garnets look dark indoor? Thank you very much.

 

[OTL]

stones always look good under the sun but they look dark under low light. I was told that garnets and spinels look dark indoor.

Not true. Garnets typically look darker directly under sunlight, they look the best in the shade outdoor. There are exceptions, Russian demantoid garnet has little to none shift in tone between indoor & outdoor. Spessartite garnet is another type that looks really nice under artificial light. Especially the ones with tiny sugar inclusions. Those saturated bright spinels don't go darker indoor either like the Jedi spinels.

Other types that I find attractive indoor are Paraiba tourmaline, chrysoberyl, Zircon, Apatite, mint garnet, Russian demantoid, canary yellow tourmaline, light toned spinel, Tanzanite, Rubies that contain very little iron. I can't think of others for now, I haven't played with my gem box for months...

 

[NKOTB]

As well as those OTL mentioned, I like pink sapphires and tsavorite garnets indoors.

 

[jordyonbass]

Some of the opals in my collection look absolutely spectacular indoors with a bit of diffused sunlight, some of those stones will then go on to make me salivate when they are under a long fluoro tube at night

 

[Niel]

I always thought my chrysoberyl looked good indoors

 

[arkieb1]

Lots of different stones look great indoors and many look magnificent under indoor lighting at night or indoor lighting in shops during the day time too. I think it's more a matter of buying things that aren't too dark to begin with, things that if they colour change or shift in colour, which many stones do, they change to something pleasant looking indoors. So if you dislike it indoors and you spend most of your time indoors why buy something you don't like.....

 

[pwsg07]

Thanks everyone for the inputs. Since I shopped online, the vendor's photos always look good. They still look good under the sun but are dark indoor. Since I want a stone with medium tone indoor, I am looking for variety of stones that doesn't black out.

Does rubellite, Mahenga garnet, Mahenga spinel black out indoor?

 

[OTL]

After buying some stones online, I realized that the stones always look good under the sun but they look dark under low light. I was told that garnets and spinels look dark indoor. However, I have some orange spessartite garnets still look bright indoor. Please tell me the list of gemstones that do not look dark inside the room. Does the Jedi Spinels and the Mahenga garnets look dark indoor? Thank you very much.

Rubelite, yes, a bit darker indoor, but shouldn't black out.
For Mahenge garnets you should more worry about the color shift, rather than tone.
Jedi spinels stay almost the same under any light.

 

[arkieb1]

Thanks everyone for the inputs. Since I shopped online, the vendor's photos always look good. They still look good under the sun but are dark indoor. Since I want a stone with medium tone indoor, I am looking for variety of stones that doesn't black out.

Does rubellite, Mahenga garnet, Mahenga spinel black out indoor?

I think you are missing the point, it doesn't matter what type of stone it is, lots of different types of stones can colour shift or look like rubbish inside. Rubellites can darken, can take on other colours indoors, so can Mahenge spinels, lots of darker Burmese spinels that are red outside colour shift to unpleasant darker colours indoors. They don't black out, they just change to different, what I would see as less desirable colours. So if you want a stone that is a medium colour indoors then go for one that doesn't shift much and starts out as either a light or a medium well saturated colour to begin with. And if you are shopping online, ask to see photos of the stones (if possible) on the back of a hand indoors. Since you asked about "Jedi spinels" here are some of mine.....

Top photo taken indoors in low to average lighting during the day.
From Top to bottom; 1 x Mahenge spinel from Yvonne Raley, 2 x hot pink neon Namya "Jedi spinel" cushions, 1 x red/pink Namya "Jedi spinel" trillion, 1 x Angel cut red "Jedi Spinel" crystal from Man Sin, 1 x red "Jedi spinel" antique cushion from Man Sin.


In the next two middle pics the pair of pink neon "Jedi" cushions are top, the two red Man Sin "Jedi" stones are in the middle, the red/pink (which you can see has colour shifted this stone can look hot pink or it can be red red) Namya "Jedi" spinel and the Mahenge from Yvonne is at the bottom in the next two pics, which also colour shifts in different lighting. The blue stone in the ring is a copper bearing "Paraiba" tourmaline from Nigeria, and even it changes colours depending upon the lighting situation it is in.

 

[PrecisionGem]

The question is what kind of indoor light? Incandescent, florescent, LED, CFL? A red garnet indoors with incandescent light will look wonderful, under CFL, not so good.

 

[NKOTB]

Arkie, dibs on the red cushion.

Here are some of mine in dim indoor lighting (LED).

 

[Siameseroo]

I always thought my chrysoberyl looked good indoors

Definitely chrysoberyl!

 

[Gloria27]

I always thought my chrysoberyl looked good indoors

Definitely chrysoberyl!

+1
Mine are yellow in sunlight and go almost neon in some artificial light and never look bad in any light.
Depending on the artificial light, my garnets go muddy.

 

[chrono]

Stone by stone basis. Sometimes you just get lucky and sometimes you don't.

 

[pwsg07]

Thanks arkieb1, NKOTB, Gloria27 for posting the photo. They are very educational.

First photo under 2700k LED. Second Photo under 2200k led. Third photo under 5000k Led. Last photo. Taken under diffused sunlight on a rainy day. The red garnets look dark in the photo. The orange one is spessartine the yellow one is zircon .
under the artificial light, the iPhone brighten the tone of photo. The orange stones look browner in photo. The garnet look less attractive in photos