Vendor pictures and owner pictures of PS stones

[Acinom]

Oww, sorry to hear this Niel. Did you send it back?
Based on these photo's the stone looks really nice. Especially the first and fourth photo. Too bad it disappoints in real life.

 

[mochiko42]

Oww, sorry to hear this Niel. Did you send it back?
Based on these photo's the stone looks really nice. Especially the first and fourth photo. Too bad it disappoints in real life.

+1 that's disappointing to hear! I also admired that stone on the website for a while... I wonder now at the accuracy of his photos in general as I haven't bought from Brad before but was hoping to do so.

 

[mochiko42]

Three amazing stones!!! Great haul Mochiko!
The beautiful cabs combine so amazing together

Phwaahh! They are gorgeous Mochiko! Any setting plans?

I ended up returning the moonstone and amethyst as I realized that even though they were very nice I wanted something larger.

I'm probably going to set the gem silica in a high karat gold setting (design to be decided...probably some kind of bezel, maybe a three stone ring with rubies or pink tourmaline) while the chrysoprase is going into a bezel pendant.

 

[Acinom]

Mochiko: The stones indeed were stunning, but it's a good decision to return them if it feels like a compromise on size. I am looking forward to see the gem silica set. Who will you ask to make the setting for you?

 

[Niel]

Oww, sorry to hear this Niel. Did you send it back?
Based on these photo's the stone looks really nice. Especially the first and fourth photo. Too bad it disappoints in real life.

The first photo is the vendors photo and what I was hoping for. The last picture is the nicest I ever saw it but it only looked like that maybe 5% of the time

 

[Niel]

Oww, sorry to hear this Niel. Did you send it back?
Based on these photo's the stone looks really nice. Especially the first and fourth photo. Too bad it disappoints in real life.

+1 that's disappointing to hear! I also admired that stone on the website for a while... I wonder now at the accuracy of his photos in general as I haven't bought from Brad before but was hoping to do so.

I've bought 3 stones from him. None really looked like their photos, but I kept one and returned the others. The other was a sapphire that was a lovely blue in the photos but very dark in person.

 

[Acinom]

Mochiko: I only have a one time only experience but the non color matching sapphires I bought from Brad are conform the photo's.

Niel: do you have any jewelry projects at the moment

 

[Niel]

Mochiko: I only have a one time only experience but the non color matching sapphires I bought from Brad are conform the photo's.

Niel: do you have any jewelry projects at the moment

I have one cushion I want to set but I am absolutely lost as to how to set it.

 

[Acinom]

Mochiko: I only have a one time only experience but the non color matching sapphires I bought from Brad are conform the photo's.

Niel: do you have any jewelry projects at the moment

I have one cushion I want to set but I am absolutely lost as to how to set it.

Create a thread to gather some ideas Niel! Is it a diamond cushion?

 

[tourma-guy]

Hi all. I'm new to PS but wanted to show off the two tourmalines I recently purchased from Steve at Westview Gems. He was fantastic to work with. His photos are pretty accurate to how the stones look in person.

First is a peachy Nigerian tourmaline. Not sure of the cut design, but it's 1.7ct and ~7.5 mm. The cut is unique and beautiful, and I had been looking for a stone of this exact color.

One of his photos:


His video:
https://vimeo.com/121433462

Next is a yellow/orange Kenyan tourmaline. I was originally only going to purchase the peach stone (for a ring for my fiance) but I loved how this one just lights up when the light hits the checkerboard cut. His video of the stone sold me. Its also 1.7ct and ~8.2mm.

One of his photos:


His video:
https://vimeo.com/122164470

My pictures of the two of them (in flourescent lighting):



Now I just need to figure out how I'm going to mount the peach tourmaline. Its cut and dimensions makes finding a pre-made setting rather difficult. Looks like a trillion would work best for the prong arrangement.

 

[tourma-guy]

Finally got hand shots for the two above stones. These really capture the liveliness of the two tourmalines. Its amazing what the right cut will do for lower RI minerals

 

[mochiko42]

4.69 ct Green Zircon, cut by Dan Stair
10x9x6mm
No treatment
Sri Lanka
Vendor : Jim McCormick

Vendor photo


Vendor video
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=N0hNI8MGLEg

OK, I have to say first of all that this zircon is absolutely gorgeous. It looks many times better in real life than in the photos. It's not hazy at all. I had so much difficulty trying to photograph this gem. I think the vendor's video of the recut is the most accurate in capturing how this stone looks in real life (compared to my own photos).

I was interested to learn about green zircon due to its rarity, but it's a beautiful gem in its own right. I would say that it is a little temperamental based on the lighting. In direct sunlight it looks a bit silky and maybe slightly warmer/yellow tint (but then the office building next to the park where I took the outdoor photos has gold-colored windows, might have been a reflection from that) but in office lighting (fluorescent) it is pure green. It is a nice medium green and is quite sparkly - not as dispersive as white or blue zircon, but it does have a lot of life to it! I think it actually looks better in office lighting (indoor) than outdoors, which is great because I sadly spend more time in the office than outdoors..

My photos (the zircon is not hazy or cloudy.. it's just the reflection and/or my greasy fingerprints!)

Indoors (office fluorescent)


Outdoors (direct sun)




Outdoors (indirect/shaded)

 

[Siameseroo]

tourma guy - I love the cut of both stones, they are beautiful and so interesting! Your fiancé is very lucky! Have you looked into settings yet?

Mochiko - your zircon is stunning! And it looks so much nicer in your photos compared to the vendors, I imagine that it's even more beautiful in person. I love that it looks beautiful in office lighting - it will brighten up your day at work! Do you have any plans for setting it?

 

[tourma-guy]

Mochiko - That zircon looks great!

ricezo - I've been throwing around ideas, but haven't settled on anything yet. I know I want to put the peach tourmaline in a ring but its difficult to find a setting that fits due to its shape and size. I'll probably end up having to go custom. The yellow tourmaline will likely also be in a ring, and I've been eyeing this setting in rose gold:

 

[Acinom]

Amazing Mochiko!! What a amazing colour!!
It would make a smashing ring. I love love love the indoor colour.

 

[mochiko42]

Mochiko - That zircon looks great!

ricezo - I've been throwing around ideas, but haven't settled on anything yet. I know I want to put the peach tourmaline in a ring but its difficult to find a setting that fits due to its shape and size. I'll probably end up having to go custom. The yellow tourmaline will likely also be in a ring, and I've been eyeing this setting in rose gold:

Thanks ricezo, Acinom and tourma-guy!! It's a nice metamict zircon. I'm still mulling over setting options...no ideas yet!!

Tourma-guy, I think a custom setting might be the way to go. For fancy shape like the peach tourmaline, how about something like this?

 

[tourma-guy]

Thats certainly an option. A nice simple setting would definitely draw more attention to the cool cut of the stone itself.

 

[Lisa Loves Shiny]

I'd been obsessed over this flame spinel from TGT forever so I finally got it home last month. It was very disappointing as the color had a lot of what appeared to be brown to my eye. I will post photos that best represent what I saw in the stone, best middle of the road and worst. Problem was I rarely saw it at its best, and typically its worst (to my eye)

Sorry Niel. I would have been disappointed too. I lusted over this gemstone with the neon red/orange photos and the description. From your pics I see a more cinnamon tone.

 

[T L]

Mochiko - That zircon looks great!

ricezo - I've been throwing around ideas, but haven't settled on anything yet. I know I want to put the peach tourmaline in a ring but its difficult to find a setting that fits due to its shape and size. I'll probably end up having to go custom. The yellow tourmaline will likely also be in a ring, and I've been eyeing this setting in rose gold:

Tourma-guy
Your stone is basically a round, although fancy shaped, so you have a 5 mm leeway on what setting you wish to choose. If your stone is 7.5mm, then a 7 or 8mm round should fit. I worry a little bit about that setting because it doesn't appear to have an open bottom (does it?), and dirt and moisture can collect in there.

I have a similar shaped stone, and it will fit in a round setting, although it's shaped a lot like yours.

 

[T L]

Ricezo,
Nice zircon, love the cushion shape. They're usually slightly hazy, as I have two of them myself, and they have the same slightly sleepy quality. Did you know they're sightly radioactive (I believe due to some uranium and thorium content), although not enough to hurt you, so don't worry! I think green zircons are cool stones.

 

[tourma-guy]

Tourma-guy
Your stone is basically a round, although fancy shaped, so you have a 5 mm leeway on what setting you wish to choose. If your stone is 7.5mm, then a 7 or 8mm round should fit. I worry a little bit about that setting because it doesn't appear to have an open bottom (does it?), and dirt and moisture can collect in there.

I have a similar shaped stone, and it will fit in a round setting, although it's shaped a lot like yours.

I didn't think about the whole closed bottom thing. Thats a good point to consider.

I wasn't sure if a round would work with that stone due to the crown facet layout. It has the perfect perch for a trillion type prong setup (three large facets in a triangle) so thats why I was thinking of going that route. I guess I can buy a cheap round setting and see if it fits before I take the plunge on something more expensive.

Thanks for the advice!

 

[T L]

Tourma-guy
Your stone is basically a round, although fancy shaped, so you have a 5 mm leeway on what setting you wish to choose. If your stone is 7.5mm, then a 7 or 8mm round should fit. I worry a little bit about that setting because it doesn't appear to have an open bottom (does it?), and dirt and moisture can collect in there.

I have a similar shaped stone, and it will fit in a round setting, although it's shaped a lot like yours.

I didn't think about the whole closed bottom thing. Thats a good point to consider.

I wasn't sure if a round would work with that stone due to the crown facet layout. It has the perfect perch for a trillion type prong setup (three large facets in a triangle) so thats why I was thinking of going that route. I guess I can buy a cheap round setting and see if it fits before I take the plunge on something more expensive.

Thanks for the advice!

Great idea, that's exactly what I did with my stone that's shaped like yours.

 

[mochiko42]

Just purchased a teeny, tiny, baby tourmaline from Beau-wy on Ebay (0.88 carats, lucky number in Chinese culture! I stalked this gem for several months until the vendor dropped the price from $350 to $175 ). I was such a klutz that I promptly dropped the gem box right after opening the USPS package. The gem box cracked!!!! I felt so sick until I louped the stone and it looks fine, no visible crack or chips or anything. OMG... You can see the cracked gem box in my photos below, but I immediately transferred it to a new box after taking the photos.

It is such a small gem yet the color really pops. It's super bright and soooo much better than the vendor photos. I would say that the vendor description is spot on. It's mostly a medium-light blue with a touch of green.

It would make a nice stacker ring, I think. It's so small that I'm not sure how to highlight it or use it as a center stone.. maybe bezelled and set in a band?

"This tourmaline from Afghanistan is the extremely sought after windex blue. It is not copper bearing, but will be mistaken for Paraiba tourmaline. It measures 6.7x4.6x3.5mm in an excellent precision cut fancy octagon and weighs 0.88 carat. It is just shy of eyeclean, with only minor colorless inclusions visible as pinpoints."


Anyway, here are the vendor pics:



My pics:

 

[tourma-guy]

Very pretty color! Gotta love them tourmalines.

 

[chrono]

When did 0.88 ct become considered "teeny tiny"?

 

[mochiko42]

When did 0.88 ct become considered "teeny tiny"?

Chrono, when you have chunky fingers like mine, you need the larger stones to get the same finger coverage!

 

[minousbijoux]

OTOH, when you have color like that that pops, it does so even when its "teeny tiny"! Beautiful stone and a great vendor.

 

[minousbijoux]

Ooh, ooh! I wannna jump in before TL does, heh heh heh. Normally I'd agree with her about rose gold for stones of this hue, but this one is begging to be in yellow gold - can you hear it? If you get up close to the ring box, I'm sure he is talking to you right now and telling you that...

 

[EvangelineG]

That is a beautiful, beautiful stone Mochiko!

I had my eye on the same Beau-wy sale too. I picked up a small black opal. Per the listing:

"This is a very fine quality, natural solid black opal cabochon, mined in Lightning Ridge, Australia. Classic nobby material, gem has very bright, small patch pattern (near harlequin pattern) nondirectional fire. There are no weak or dead spots, and there is orange fire not seen in the pics. It measures 7.1x5x1,7 in a low dome oval and weighs 0.41 carat. Brightness is 5/5 on a scale of 1-5, base color N3."





My photos:



Making friends with some small Ceylon sapphires (from JD) and Colombian emeralds.



This one shows the brightness better, but is blurry- sorry no photography skills here.

I feel the stone was accurately represented. There is a lot of orange in the stone, much more than the vendor photos show, but this was mentioned in the description. I am still undecided on it. Not sure why? It was an excellent price, and returning from Canada is a PITA, so I am hoping it grows on me in the next couple of days.

 

[T L]

Ooh, ooh! I wannna jump in before TL does, heh heh heh. Normally I'd agree with her about rose gold for stones of this hue, but this one is begging to be in yellow gold - can you hear it? If you get up close to the ring box, I'm sure he is talking to you right now and telling you that...

To check, put it on a copper penny, or on some yellow gold, to see which one looks better. I think both types of metal would accentuate that stone.