Cab v faceted questions

[packrat]

So..one of the things I want to work on next is, a yellow gold lotus. Aaaand I want SO bad, a color like AJ''s purple spinel. Is this a hard color to find, and is spinel my best bet to find it in?

With the lotus..sometimes some of the stones don''t fill out the bottom part as much, and I just happen to like it better when they do. That made me wonder if I would be better off finding a cab for the setting-but do cabs come in that color, and would they have the reddish purplish flashes, not being faceted? Cabs are kind of glowy..would it glow those colors?

Thanks for your help!

 

[kas baby]

I think cabs and faceted stones are kind of hard to compare, like apples to oranges. They have very different effects. Take my ruby cab, for instance, in sunlight- man does that baby glow! but it doesn't "flash", b/c there are no facets, KWIM?

It seems to me that you would be happier with a cab in combination with that setting- which btw is fabulous. What kind of stone were you looking for? an amethyst? I believe some can come in a more reddish purple, but you're talking to an amateur stone lover here

ETA: I just love this amethyst from Master Cut Gems, though I believe you're looking for something more reddish?
http://mastercutgems.com/index.php?page=viewgem&id=5758
just throwing ideas out there

 

[Indylady]

I don''t think that a cab will glow any color other than the main body color of the cab, unless its faceted with a buff top, but then you would still be left with the problem of not filling out the basket.

If you''re looking for purple spinels, I recently saw a few pinkish-purple spinels on Gemrite. You might also contact Gene from Precision Gem to ask him if he has any more of the same rough.

As far as filling out the basket, a smaller faceted gem might make it less obvious that the basket is filled out, or perhaps you''d prefer a gem that has a shallower cut to help out with this (shallower cut=lower sitting stone=more in basket).

 

[chrono]

You are not likely to get flash from cabochons due to their buff rounded surface. It will only glow or show its body colour and that''s it.

 

[T L]

Did you ask Gene if he had any more of that material? I think the violet, purple, and blue spinels are best faceted since rarely does the color ever get vivid, and they sparkle like crazy when well cut. If you like that color, and you want a cab, perhaps a nice amethyst will do. Amethysts do not have the luster or RI of a spinel, but they can have intense purple color, so that''s a better idea for a purple cab IMHO.

 

[ma re]

If you''d like "a cab that sparkles", maybe something done in a rose cut would be what you''re after, but they''re so rarely used on colored gems that you''d have to get it custom cut. But if that''s not a problem for you, there''s the idea. As far as color, you might even look into some rhodolites, cause eventhough this is not their "ideal" color, they sometimes come in very similar shades, and you might even get flashes of pink from it. Not to mention that such a rhodolite, being a less than ideal color, would certainly not break the bank, even if quite large in size.

 

[packrat]

shhh i''m in stealth mode cuz i''m at work.

Thanks for the replies everyone! Sally does do a rose cut cab- citrine ring

I''m in Explorer so not sure if I did the link right...anyways, I think I would either do something like that or think about having a different setting and having a regular faceted stone. I just can''t get enough of the pictures of AJ''s spinel, so maybe I''d be better off going the route of a regular stone in a different setting.

It''s not something i''m able to do immediately, but hopefully by Spring. I like to plan ahead, and I''m glad for the help in my musings!