What do you think about this black opal?

[missy]

I saw that too and laughed, since I store my opals next to a cup of water and soak little cotton balls to place on top of their boxes. Occasionally I give them a good soak. Opals love water!

I do this too. My dad said keep the black opal's thirst quenched. I am concerned as we haven't been home for 3 months and need to check on my opal but other things are taking precedence at the moment. Hope that watery cotton ball in the safe next to black opal is still moist...

 

[arkieb1]

I do this too. My dad said keep the black opal's thirst quenched. I am concerned as we haven't been home for 3 months and need to check on my opal but other things are taking precedence at the moment. Hope that watery cotton ball in the safe next to black opal is still moist...

Yes effectively what you are both doing is preventing them from drying out. Will they do that in a mild climate? Probably not, but in severe ones and over many years yes, they could.

 

[ForteKitty]

Yes effectively what you are both doing is preventing them from drying out. Will they do that in a mild climate? Probably not, but in severe ones and over many years yes, they could.

I have so many opals/opal pieces they're all stored in a square silicone infant food making tray with water filled in the middle cube, lid loosely on. Looks like i'm growing opals lol. It's pretty hot and dry here so the extra precaution probably isn't unwarranted. I have one set Welo opal and that thing has been through some hard times. Dropped it down the stairs at work and it's even been to the beach... still fine and not even a scratch!

 

[arkieb1]

I have so many opals/opal pieces they're all stored in a square silicone infant food making tray with water filled in the middle cube, lid loosely on. Looks like i'm growing opals lol. It's pretty hot and dry here so the extra precaution probably isn't unwarranted. I have one set Welo opal and that thing has been through some hard times. Dropped it down the stairs at work and it's even been to the beach... still fine and not even a scratch!

Yes again when IG sellers mention repeatedly that opals are soft, they are so fragile etc, what they seem to fail to realise is that most solid opals have the same hardness as volcanic glass, so they can take a bit of punishment provided they aren't doublets and triplets, they are not heavily treated, and some but not all boulder opals can be a bit crumbly and more easily damaged.

This guy actually puts a heap of opals in the microwave for 3 minutes, in the freezer for several days and soaks them in things like vinegar and lemon juice to prove they really are much tougher than everyone thinks (you have to keep clicking through the pages but it's still interesting the amount of punishment this guy puts the opals through);

http://www.gemstory.com.au/experiment/opal-experiment.html

 

[GliderPoss]

How do you tell if it’s a doublet? I was looking for a line but couldn’t see... or is it the black back?

Something about the back of it makes me suspect it's not solid but always difficult to tell from photos, especially as it's already set. It is was solid, I guess I would also expect it to be MORE expensive considering all the red flash in it.

I keep a damp cotton wool pad in the box with my opals just in case as it's very dry & cold here at the moment (although we rarely get dramatic temperature changes in general).

 

[arkieb1]

Something about the back of it makes me suspect it's not solid but always difficult to tell from photos, especially as it's already set. It is was solid, I guess I would also expect it to be MORE expensive considering all the red flash in it.
I keep a damp cotton wool pad in the box with my opals just in case as it's very dry & cold here at the moment (although we rarely get dramatic temperature changes in general).

I thought the top surface of it in the photos looked oddly like glass or perspex the way it's reflecting back light too. Side on also not sure.

 

[icy_jade]

Just wanted to come back and thank everyone for chiming in. There are enough doubts to convince me that buying either opal probably isn’t such a great idea, so thanks again everyone. Collective PS wisdom is always so helpful.

 

[icy_jade]

Your opal is gorgeous Icy! Any photos of it looking blah in daylight?

It's so pretty in those pics and so colourful

Like this. But gorgeous under lights so ok all is forgiven when I go indoors under lighting.

 

[mellowyellowgirl]

I still think it's really pretty!

 

[Arkteia]

Can you tell I'm an Aussie I'm used to seeing black opals, crystal opals etc.... which makes me kind of biased provided your first opal is a solid black opal that is a lot better quality of opal than the second one.

@arkieb1 - on my visit to Australia, I wanted to buy a gold coin with sapphire nuggets in it, but I had hard time explaining what I wanted to the locals. The moment i’d say, “it is national, purely Australian”, people would tell me, “oh, apples? Apples are everywhere,” leaving me bewildered. So now I call Australian opals “apples”.

@icy_jade . I don’t know what to say, I once bought an Australian opal and ended up donating it. I know red carries a premium, but to me, the brightness would be the deciding factor.

The thing about an Australian opal is ... you want to look at the play of color all the time.

 

[GliderPoss]

@arkieb1 - on my visit to Australia, I wanted to buy a gold coin with sapphire nuggets in it, but I had hard time explaining what I wanted to the locals. The moment i’d say, “it is national, purely Australian”, people would tell me, “oh, apples? Apples are everywhere,” leaving me bewildered. So now I call Australian opals “apples”.

Took me a moment to get this but now I can't stop laughing.... #Kath&Kimaccent

 

[icy_jade]

Was browsing and saw this. So beautiful...



Just sharing eye candy...

 

[IcePhoenix]

Talking about eye candy Oscar Heyman has an Instagram pic of a black opal ring that is absolutely to die for