Confession for Chrono

[LD]

As promised! Here I am, knocking on the vestibule door!!!!

Stats:
Gemstone: Spinel
Weight: 1.35 carats
Clarity: Eye Clean
Origin: Mahenge, Tanzania
Shape: Rectangle
Cut: Scissor
Treatment: Unheated
Size: 7.77 x 4.79 x 3.80 mm ( LxWxD )

I''ve had my eye on this for AGES but was taking my time, pricing up alternatives. Finally, yesterday I made up my mind and emailed Rung overnight. This morning I paid so it''s MINE! Yeah! It won''t be posted until Monday so it''s going to be a long wait

 

[AustenNut]

It''s a beautiful color. I look forward to seeing how you decide to set it!

 

[chrono]

Good morning and step right in; the door is always open. I am prepared to listen to all your gemstone sins. What? Only one today?

It is a gorgeous Mahenge (psst...did you get the 10% discount from AJS? I hope I’m not breaking any rules by mentioning this).

 

[Deia]

OOO I''m really looking forward to seeing your pictures for this pretty!

 

[MakingTheGrade]

Oooo....what a yummy pink!

 

[trishy]

well we will be waiting with you!!! that is gorgeous!! love that shade of pink

 

[D&T]

om gosh! beautiful cut and color,,, can''t wait to see IRL

 

[klewis]

Congratulations LD, it looks beautiful.
Ahhh, those feelings you''ll experience while you wait for your new gem to arrive. The excitment, anticipation and a dollop of apprehension as you track it''s progress online and picture it in its package speeding towards your address. I think they''re such an addictive mix of sensations. I''m envious.

 

[oddoneout]

Lovely colour.

 

[platinumrock]

Date: 11/13/2009 7:43:29 AM
Author: Chrono
Good morning and step right in; the door is always open. I am prepared to listen to all your gemstone sins. What? Only one today?

It is a gorgeous Mahenge (psst...did you get the 10% discount from AJS? I hope I’m not breaking any rules by mentioning this).

LOL Chrono, you are a nut! Why do I have this image in my head?

 

[Arcadian]

ooooo nice!

-A

 

[T L]

Very nice LD,
How are you planning on setting it?

 

[cushioncutnut]

that''s the best kind of confession I have ever seen!! I absolutely love the color...but the cut is really Kewl!! Setting ideas? I see a deco style with vertical baguettes!!!!

( heehee.. you''d think it was mine!)

I hope it knocks your socks off in person!!'';

 

[haagen_dazs]

wow this is beautiful
i am envious at some of you ladies budgets
i hope the actual stone is what you hope it is going to be
please do update this thread when you get the actual gemstone

 

[LD]

Thank you all!

I''m not sure how to set this one or what colour gold. I was surprised when I saw Arcadian''s thread with her Mahenge that there was a feeling that it may look good in yellow gold (which I hadn''t considered before) so I''m going to wait and see.

First job will be to get the UV light out and take some pics of the fluor. I REALLY REALLY hope it has fluor because this is what''s attracted me to the Mahenges in the first place! I love fluor!

 

[T L]

Date: 11/14/2009 7:19:34 AM
Author: LovingDiamonds
Thank you all!

I''m not sure how to set this one or what colour gold. I was surprised when I saw Arcadian''s thread with her Mahenge that there was a feeling that it may look good in yellow gold (which I hadn''t considered before) so I''m going to wait and see.

First job will be to get the UV light out and take some pics of the fluor. I REALLY REALLY hope it has fluor because this is what''s attracted me to the Mahenges in the first place! I love fluor!

I returned a Mahenge recently because it didn''t have fluor. It went extinct in sunlight. Now it''s one of the questions I ask when I''m considering one of these stones.

 

[LD]

Date: 11/14/2009 10:23:15 AM
Author: tourmaline_lover

Date: 11/14/2009 7:19:34 AM
Author: LovingDiamonds
Thank you all!

I'm not sure how to set this one or what colour gold. I was surprised when I saw Arcadian's thread with her Mahenge that there was a feeling that it may look good in yellow gold (which I hadn't considered before) so I'm going to wait and see.

First job will be to get the UV light out and take some pics of the fluor. I REALLY REALLY hope it has fluor because this is what's attracted me to the Mahenges in the first place! I love fluor!

I returned a Mahenge recently because it didn't have fluor. It went extinct in sunlight. Now it's one of the questions I ask when I'm considering one of these stones.

Oh no don't say that

I did ask the question and Rung said it was "neon". If this goes extinct in sunlight this wil be going back too. Thanks for the warning TL. Do you have any photos of the one you returned please? It would be good to see the Vendor's photo (if you don't mind) and then your review. Totally understand if you don't want to do so. x

Edit: Just found your thread so I'm up to speed now and now SERIOUSLY worried because when I think of "neon" I think Cuprian too. Soooooooo I think I'm going to be disappointed. Oh well, we'll see. Thanks again.

 

[T L]

Date: 11/14/2009 10:29:19 AM
Author: LovingDiamonds

Date: 11/14/2009 10:23:15 AM
Author: tourmaline_lover

Date: 11/14/2009 7:19:34 AM
Author: LovingDiamonds
Thank you all!

I''m not sure how to set this one or what colour gold. I was surprised when I saw Arcadian''s thread with her Mahenge that there was a feeling that it may look good in yellow gold (which I hadn''t considered before) so I''m going to wait and see.

First job will be to get the UV light out and take some pics of the fluor. I REALLY REALLY hope it has fluor because this is what''s attracted me to the Mahenges in the first place! I love fluor!

I returned a Mahenge recently because it didn''t have fluor. It went extinct in sunlight. Now it''s one of the questions I ask when I''m considering one of these stones.

Oh no don''t say that

I did ask the question and Rung said it was ''neon''. If this goes extinct in sunlight this wil be going back too. Thanks for the warning TL. Do you have any photos of the one you returned please? It would be good to see the Vendor''s photo (if you don''t mind) and then your review. Totally understand if you don''t want to do so. x

Edit: Just found your thread so I''m up to speed now and now SERIOUSLY worried because when I think of ''neon'' I think Cuprian too. Soooooooo I think I''m going to be disappointed. Oh well, we''ll see. Thanks again.

I would show you a picture, but everyone would recognize it. It was purchased instantaneously after I sent it back.

However, I do highly suggest that be a mandatory question whenever someone buys a Mahenge. I asked Eric of Swala about it, and he also concurred that top Mahenges should have UV fluor. That''s not to say that a lower quality Mahenge doesn''t have UV fluor, it could, but it should be mandatory with a top quality one.

I don''t know about you, but I did hear that the really top top color only comes in 2 carats and above, not sure how true that is either, but it''s also something to consider. The saturation of these stones increases with size, unlike some stones, like fine Burma ruby, which can pack a huge neon color punch even in a tiny stone.

When you get it, compare it next to your finer rubellites and tell me what you think as far as color is concerned when comparing the two. Just curious.

 

[LtlFirecracker]

Very pretty!! That is a nice confession to wake up to.

 

[LD]

Thanks TL. Will do. If it looks like my Rubellites then it will definitely go back.

I''ve been searching for a Mahenge for a while but nothing jumped out at me. Did see a couple from MC but ..... am glad I read your review first. I had copied and pasted about 20 that I liked into a document side by side and spent hours comparing them (which is probably useless because the Vendors all use different lighting conditions!) but I had fun anyway.

I think I sent Rung potty with all the questions I asked but she didn''t tell me anything that worried me about this one. I guess my reservation, before reading your post, was the actual cut. I''ve seen a couple of Emerald cuts on Swala and was about to buy one when was beaten to it so am not sure if the cut will affect performance in a Mahenge. It shouldn''t but I don''t know.

This has to be neon, fluoresce and grab me - otherwise it''s straight back on the next plane!

 

[T L]

Date: 11/14/2009 1:03:23 PM
Author: LovingDiamonds
Thanks TL. Will do. If it looks like my Rubellites then it will definitely go back.

I've been searching for a Mahenge for a while but nothing jumped out at me. Did see a couple from MC but ..... am glad I read your review first. I had copied and pasted about 20 that I liked into a document side by side and spent hours comparing them (which is probably useless because the Vendors all use different lighting conditions!) but I had fun anyway.

I think I sent Rung potty with all the questions I asked but she didn't tell me anything that worried me about this one. I guess my reservation, before reading your post, was the actual cut. I've seen a couple of Emerald cuts on Swala and was about to buy one when was beaten to it so am not sure if the cut will affect performance in a Mahenge. It shouldn't but I don't know.

This has to be neon, fluoresce and grab me - otherwise it's straight back on the next plane!

The problem is that the stone I returned didn't look AS good as my rubellite - LOL!! Even the ones that I saw at the gemshow were nice and came close, but and they were 2K/ct. LOL!! If it looks like your super neon red/pink rubellite, it's probably a nice stone. At least spinels are more durable and untreated. The MC.com ones didn't look as good as my rubellite either.

The gemshow vendor that was selling these Mahenge's for 2K/ct concurred that my rubellite was just as nice a color as his expensive stones. I ended up buying a really nice neon pink tourmaline from him instead. It looks just like a spinel with the lavender flashes it has. He had spinels with similar color, but they were much much MUCH more expensive per carat.

 

[LD]

TL I think you and I have been spoilt for neon-ness!!! I''m glad you got something that you''re happy with. The pink tourmaline sounds lovely - for some reason my pink tourms don''t do it for me and I veer towards the Rubellite colourway. I have a Wobito cut pink tourmaline snowflake and whilst the cut is lush the colour is just, errrr, boring! TBH I''m not a "pink" person but it''s the fluor of the Mahenges that''s pulling me! I''m such a sucker for fluor!

 

[T L]

Date: 11/14/2009 1:50:06 PM
Author: LovingDiamonds
TL I think you and I have been spoilt for neon-ness!!! I''m glad you got something that you''re happy with. The pink tourmaline sounds lovely - for some reason my pink tourms don''t do it for me and I veer towards the Rubellite colourway. I have a Wobito cut pink tourmaline snowflake and whilst the cut is lush the colour is just, errrr, boring! TBH I''m not a ''pink'' person but it''s the fluor of the Mahenges that''s pulling me! I''m such a sucker for fluor!

Most pink tourmaline has a brownish secondary or shifts to a more brown color. I wish you could see this one stone in person. It''s quite a very neon pink, not a hot pink, but a neon pink with a strong lavender secondary. I love it, and I have yet to see another pink tourmaline like it. I''ve posted pictures of it, but it''s more neon in person and has lavender/blue flashes coming off the facet edges.

 

[LD]

Date: 11/14/2009 4:00:59 PM
Author: tourmaline_lover

Date: 11/14/2009 1:50:06 PM
Author: LovingDiamonds
TL I think you and I have been spoilt for neon-ness!!! I''m glad you got something that you''re happy with. The pink tourmaline sounds lovely - for some reason my pink tourms don''t do it for me and I veer towards the Rubellite colourway. I have a Wobito cut pink tourmaline snowflake and whilst the cut is lush the colour is just, errrr, boring! TBH I''m not a ''pink'' person but it''s the fluor of the Mahenges that''s pulling me! I''m such a sucker for fluor!

Most pink tourmaline has a brownish secondary or shifts to a more brown color. I wish you could see this one stone in person. It''s quite a very neon pink, not a hot pink, but a neon pink with a strong lavender secondary. I love it, and I have yet to see another pink tourmaline like it. I''ve posted pictures of it, but it''s more neon in person and has lavender/blue flashes coming off the facet edges.

Oh WOW TL. Now that''s one I DO want to see. It''s the brownish secondary that drives me potty with pink tourmaline (and Rubellites). I''ve been incredibly lucky with Rubellites but not pink Tourms!

Maybe we could have an island planted mid-Atlantic for us blingaholics to meet and share!!!

 

[Arcadian]

LD, I think the white gold/yellow gold debate may just be the fact of skin tone + stone color. as for setting options, I will look into 22k on the head of the ring (because it will for sure be a ring

)

I did get to see my spinel briefly in sunlight (considering our crazy weather

) and it looks really really yumsious

There will be a time for it

Plus, evertime I thought about sending it back, I kept hesitating. Thats telling me to just go ahead and keep it because ultimately, I do love the color.

However, I do believe I''m going to save my pennies for a larger one...something in the 3ct range but for sure under 4! I''m sure I''m a bit addicted now.


-A

 

[LD]

You might be right about the metal colour Arcadian. It''ll be interesting to see how it looks on a different skin tone won''t it? TBH I thought it looked lovely and bright on your hand though!

It''s very addictive isn''t it? Hope you find your 3ct+

 

[T L]

Date: 11/14/2009 4:15:53 PM
Author: LovingDiamonds

Date: 11/14/2009 4:00:59 PM
Author: tourmaline_lover

Date: 11/14/2009 1:50:06 PM
Author: LovingDiamonds
TL I think you and I have been spoilt for neon-ness!!! I''m glad you got something that you''re happy with. The pink tourmaline sounds lovely - for some reason my pink tourms don''t do it for me and I veer towards the Rubellite colourway. I have a Wobito cut pink tourmaline snowflake and whilst the cut is lush the colour is just, errrr, boring! TBH I''m not a ''pink'' person but it''s the fluor of the Mahenges that''s pulling me! I''m such a sucker for fluor!

Most pink tourmaline has a brownish secondary or shifts to a more brown color. I wish you could see this one stone in person. It''s quite a very neon pink, not a hot pink, but a neon pink with a strong lavender secondary. I love it, and I have yet to see another pink tourmaline like it. I''ve posted pictures of it, but it''s more neon in person and has lavender/blue flashes coming off the facet edges.

Oh WOW TL. Now that''s one I DO want to see. It''s the brownish secondary that drives me potty with pink tourmaline (and Rubellites). I''ve been incredibly lucky with Rubellites but not pink Tourms!

Maybe we could have an island planted mid-Atlantic for us blingaholics to meet and share!!!

LD
I have lots of pictures throughout various threads in PS, and in the eyecandy thread, but they don''t do the stone justice. Check out my "Overcast Days" thread, it''s in there next to the violet tourmaline in the gem box. It''s very difficult to capture the neon of this stone and the lavender blue flashes that come from it. It''s mesmerizing and on my "next to set" list.

I would love to meet you one day. You are one of the most polite and knowledgable members on PS, and I am simply in awe of the comprehensive and beautiful collection you have amassed.

 

[marcy]

Great color.

 

[LD]

Date: 11/14/2009 5:16:35 PM
Author: tourmaline_lover

Date: 11/14/2009 4:15:53 PM
Author: LovingDiamonds

Date: 11/14/2009 4:00:59 PM
Author: tourmaline_lover

Date: 11/14/2009 1:50:06 PM
Author: LovingDiamonds
TL I think you and I have been spoilt for neon-ness!!! I''m glad you got something that you''re happy with. The pink tourmaline sounds lovely - for some reason my pink tourms don''t do it for me and I veer towards the Rubellite colourway. I have a Wobito cut pink tourmaline snowflake and whilst the cut is lush the colour is just, errrr, boring! TBH I''m not a ''pink'' person but it''s the fluor of the Mahenges that''s pulling me! I''m such a sucker for fluor!

Most pink tourmaline has a brownish secondary or shifts to a more brown color. I wish you could see this one stone in person. It''s quite a very neon pink, not a hot pink, but a neon pink with a strong lavender secondary. I love it, and I have yet to see another pink tourmaline like it. I''ve posted pictures of it, but it''s more neon in person and has lavender/blue flashes coming off the facet edges.

Oh WOW TL. Now that''s one I DO want to see. It''s the brownish secondary that drives me potty with pink tourmaline (and Rubellites). I''ve been incredibly lucky with Rubellites but not pink Tourms!

Maybe we could have an island planted mid-Atlantic for us blingaholics to meet and share!!!

LD
I have lots of pictures throughout various threads in PS, and in the eyecandy thread, but they don''t do the stone justice. Check out my ''Overcast Days'' thread, it''s in there next to the violet tourmaline in the gem box. It''s very difficult to capture the neon of this stone and the lavender blue flashes that come from it. It''s mesmerizing and on my ''next to set'' list.

I would love to meet you one day. You are one of the most polite and knowledgable members on PS, and I am simply in awe of the comprehensive and beautiful collection you have amassed.

Goodness me, I am truly humbled by your incredibly kind words TL. I feel exactly the same way about you and as I live and breathe, your wonderul Spess''s sent me looking for an orange gemstone when they''re not even "me"!

I would truly love to see your collection, the Cuprians (stunning), the coloured diamonds (OMG!) and everything else!

I have seen your Overcast Days thread (never miss an opportunity to look at eye candy) but will have another look. I recall the violet tourmaline (I love them) but not the pink so will go and have a look now! Thank you for pointing me in the right direction.

 

[LD]

Date: 11/14/2009 5:25:03 PM
Author: marcyc
Great color.

Oh let''s hope so Marcy!!!!