Whence this cornflower blue?

[Richard Sherwood]

Nice stone, Widget. A beauty.

Georg, is that stone Sri Lankan, or Madagascar?

 

[Georg]

Thanks Richard,...
At least we are on the same page!,... I went to visit your website and I must say the ceylon stone I posted actually looks in real life more like the cushion on your web page,... To me that is the color!
No secondary hues!,... It is a shame how bad photograper (me) can screw up a GEM! Everybody please visit Richards web site to see the top color of blue sapphire!

Best regards
George

 

[Richard Sherwood]

Date: 1/13/2005 11:30:37 PM
Author: cflutist
Richard, can you post a picture of that ''10''? Would love to see it.

Here''s a 4 ct Kashmir, courtesy of Pala International, that I would rank a 9.5.

 

[cflutist]

Thanks Rich,

WOW

, that''s absolutely gorgeous. Now we know what to strive for.

 

[Georg]

Richard,
I admire your experience We sold it as Sri lankan, it was purchased with parcel from Sri Lanka . From reputable long established source. It had no inclusions with the exception of tini misroscopic crystal under the table so no chracteristic inclusion was found,.. I did send it to AGTA for treatment certiffication and it made it back as no treatments present,...
I know, it does look like Madagascar origin . Especially on this picture,...
Still awesome gem!
George

 

[Richard Sherwood]

Yes, an awesome gem. I love the Ceylons. Electric...

 

[Richard Sherwood]

Ana's cornflower. Awesome.

 

[Richard Sherwood]

Try that again.....

Hey Ana, can you get your flower to post next to the 4 ct Kashmir? I'd like to see how they look next to each other.

 

[Georg]

Awesome Kashmir!,...

This stone is worth pretty penny! ,...
Absolutely rare !,...
Look at the saturation!


George

 

[raddygast]

Hey Ana, can you get your flower to post next to the 4 ct Kashmir? I'd like to see how they look next to each other.

Here you go Richard. That stone is astounding. I actually think blue is my first love. I am continually torn between blue and red. And for some reason the purple that only amethyst can do, or should I say violet? Green, on the other hand, does nothing for me, though those chrome tourmalines are pretty amazing.

Anyway, the Kashmir stone and Ana's cornflower look like they were separated at birth.

 

[raddygast]

I just realized something. Maybe cornflower blue *does* refer to the ultimate Kashmir blue I had always assumed was the creme de la creme for sapphires. Perhaps the problem is simply jewellers using the term too loosely (like I have seen with pigeon''s blood). More specifically, maybe they are getting the hue position, but are a bit off on tone and WAY off on saturation. Most of the "cornflower" blues that I''ve seen have been hard pressed to rank even a "strong" or 5/6 saturation. Many were probably 4''s.

I''m almost glad I moved on to red stones, although they introduce a whole host of other problems (i.e. the public''s perception of them as "pink" instead of red, when the saturation is too low).

 

[Matata]

Oh my Richard, that sapphire does things to me that I can''t describe here. Ohhhh, myyyyy, gooodnessssss.

On another subject, Georg said "I am sure some may not agree with me but the truth is that "Cornflower Blue" is not a gemological term at all,... However It is being used within gem sellers and jewelers as a reference to high or ideal color of Sapphire,..."

And, I want to posit that it''s possible that consumers have an effect on terms for gem color. When I first read raddy''s post, I immediately thought of the cornflower blue I had in my Crayola box when I was a kid and I frequently describe to various sellers(clothes, jewelers) what color I''m looking for by referring to those crayons!

 

[Georg]

Here is another "cornflower beauty" Absolutely love this stone!

Courtesy of GeoGem.com

 

[widget]

Yummy, yummy, yummy!!!!

I could look at these blue sapphires all day long!

widget

 

[Richard Sherwood]

And yet another cornflower blue...

 

[Hest88]

You guys are so funny. I''ve never had a problem with the term cornflower blue, because I associate cornflowers with an intense, electric blue. I''d bet that most of the pale stones you''ve been seeing are called "cornflower blue" the way some maul jewelers call their yucky diamonds "ideal." It''s important to first find a jeweler who truly understands what you mean by cornflower blue before using that term.

 

[canuk-gal]

HI:

Is this "cornflower" blue?? Bought as a Ceylon Sapphire--my photos (taken inside at night) don''t do the color justice (looks blue naturally, and purple in photos)--but you can see it imperfections and all!

cheers--Sharon

 

[canuk-gal]

shamless self-promotion

......

 

[Colored Gemstone Nut]

Date: 1/16/2005 9:56:25 PM
Author: canuk-gal
HI:

Is this ''cornflower'' blue?? Bought as a Ceylon Sapphire--my photos (taken inside at night) don''t do the color justice (looks blue naturally, and purple in photos)--but you can see it imperfections and all!

cheers--Sharon

Hey Sharon:

It is hard to tell from the photo and of course lighting will also make a difference and what type of light you view your stone in.

As far as your stone be sold as a Ceylon, Ceylon stones have typically been described as "electric blue". Ceylon stones typically display color zoning when tilted or viewed from the side just as your second photo displays a little washing out of color. Most sapphires are cut with a little extra "Junk in the Trunk" to help bring a premium based on carat weight.

I think you have a unique ring, but based on the photo it doesn''t seem like your stone displays the "cornflower blue" typically seen in other stones.

 

[Georg]

Thanks for the "Bird " Richard !,..
Actually more birds have been reffered to as comparasement of color for high quality sapphire ,..
I remember having a Kashmir sapphire closely resembling the color of Pecocks neck.
Absolutely love that color! It is rich and classy dark but bright.
In my opinion that is the 15 on the scale from 1 to 10
George

 

[widget]

Let''s not forget other corundum....hot pink, ruby, yellow, etc...mounted in platinum, or course!

widget

 

[chantal990]

widget that bird looks like it has been made out of a great enamel job.

 

[Georg]

So what would the conclusion of this topic be ?,...
I guess "cornfower" is stil not a gemological term but the public loves to use it even they don''t exactly know what the color should look like,...
Flower #1 0r #2 or bird #1 0r #2,...
I senced the girls seemed to like the birds ,...
George

 

[Matata]

Girls like blue birds I suppose. But just so ya know, the bird Richard posted is an Indigo Bunting -- a whole other blue of a different hue

 

[chantal990]

Date: 1/17/2005 11:18:48 PM
Author: Matata
Girls like blue birds I suppose. But just so ya know, the bird Richard posted is an Indigo Bunting -- a whole other blue of a different hue

Aha!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The plot thickens

 

[Matata]

Oh, wait, wait....I haven''t gotten to the good part yet. There''s no blue pigment in blue bird feathers!!! It''s the way the light reflects off the feather barbules that makes ''em look blue. Take a blue feather out of the light and its true color is revealed to be grayish brown. Don''t think many of us here would like a grayish brown sapphire.

 

[Colored Gemstone Nut]

Date: 1/17/2005 11:18:48 PM
Author: Matata
Girls like blue birds I suppose. But just so ya know, the bird Richard posted is an Indigo Bunting -- a whole other blue of a different hue

With girls liking bluebirds so much I know what Regina''s next gift will be instead of a sapphire..

 

[valeria101]

With all the birds and flowers... it just seems that everyone on the planet just knows what spectacular color looks like without any refference at all (you know grades, color refference sets, advertising). ''Guess only the less stryking sapphire needs promotion, the nicer ones just scream out loud for everyone to hear.

 

[Georg]

Great,.. Matata seems to be the most experienced Bird expert ( love the indigo) and Ana cracked it again!,..
We just need to know the color of the screaming Blue color so Josh knows exactly what color will the bird be will be before giving it to Renata,...

Georg

 

[valeria101]

Date: 1/18/2005 1:19:56 AM
Author: Georg

We just need to know the color of the screaming Blue color

There may not a grading scale for blue gems, but just try some pet bird breeders'' or gardeners'' association - those guys face the same thankless hardship of pinning down what''s above and what''s bellow the winning color line

I just wonder if the cab driver test (Mogoc mentioned) is not the taughest to beat of all