Help me find a Tsavorite

[tsavoritegirl]

Hi guys!

I''ve been browsing the forums for years and can''t thank you enough for the education I''ve received via your postings. I recently became engaged and knew that no other stone but a Tsavorite would do for my engagement ring.

I have some questions that I haven''t been able to find the answers to:

Is Tsavorite available in an Asscher/step cut? If so, is this a good cut for the stone?

I''m getting conflicting pricing as far as gem prices are supposed to go. Generally speaking, what is a typical range per carat for a medium to medium dark green stone (similar in colour to Pandora II''s stunning e-ring)?

Thank you so much.

 

[hay joe]

This stone is at AJS.

 

[T L]

Date: 2/28/2010 10:29:34 PM
Author:tsavoritegirl
Hi guys!

I've been browsing the forums for years and can't thank you enough for the education I've received via your postings. I recently became engaged and knew that no other stone but a Tsavorite would do for my engagement ring.

I have some questions that I haven't been able to find the answers to:

Is Tsavorite available in an Asscher/step cut? If so, is this a good cut for the stone?

I'm getting conflicting pricing as far as gem prices are supposed to go. Generally speaking, what is a typical range per carat for a medium to medium dark green stone (similar in colour to Pandora II's stunning e-ring)?

Thank you so much.

A clean stone with strong to vivid saturation and medium to medium dark tone willl be around $1800 to $2500K for a stone around two carats from what I've seen. As the size goes up, the price goes up exponentially since tsavorite is not easily found in large sizes. If you're looking for something around a carat, the price will be much less, maybe anywhere from $500 to $1200. It depends where you find it. Above three carats, it can be thousands of dollars. For example, it's not unheard of to see prices around $20K+ for a five carat stone of good saturation and medium to medium dark tone. It can be less for stones of lighter tone and/or less optimal satuartion and/or SI and lower clarity.

I personally would not want any dark stone in an asscher since it's a deep cut, and it might cause extinction for a medium to medium dark stone. Asschers also face up smaller. The Ajsgems stone shown in the above thread is a lighter tone than the optimal medium to medium dark that the trade prefers, and some people would not consider that true tsavorite color. You want to also make sure it doesn't shift color to a more yellow green in certain lighting. Some tsavorites tend to have a noticable color shift in some lighting. Pure green and slightly bluish greens are the preferred color. Yellowish greens are not considered top color.

I'm sure someone will chime in with more information on tsavorites than I can provide. There are lots of tsavorite fans on Pricescope.

 

[tsavoritegirl]

Thank you!

After spending more than a few hours searching for Tsavorites, I think I''m going to go with the more common cushion cut.

I''m looking in the carat size of .75 to 1.00, or about 5mm-ish (I''m very petite), which I''m having more of hard time finding. Stones in the quality and colour range I''m looking at tend to be from 1.15 carats and up.

 

[Pandora II]

The last one I looked at that was the same colour as mine was a 1.22ct oval from Palagems that was priced at $2200 if that helps at all.

I'm not sure about a stepcut - I think a cushion or oval is a better idea.

Please try and see plenty IRL to get an idea of the colour that you like - not just in photos. I saw one last week which looked similar to mine in the photo, when I saw it in person it was a lot more yellow toned and looked quite garish when I put it next to my e-ring stone. Not that it wasn't a beautiful stone in it's own r ight, it just wasn't what I imagined from the photo.

I also have a pair of drop earring with ten 1ct tsavorites. Only one of the stones is close in colour - the true blue-toned ones are hard to find and look a lot more like fine emeralds in colour.

Thanks for the kind comment on my ring - and good luck with the search!

 

[T L]

Date: 3/1/2010 5:29:05 AM
Author: Pandora II
The last one I looked at that was the same colour as mine was a 1.22ct oval from Palagems that was priced at $2200 if that helps at all.

I'm not sure about a stepcut - I think a cushion or oval is a better idea.

Please try and see plenty IRL to get an idea of the colour that you like - not just in photos. I saw one last week which looked similar to mine in the photo, when I saw it in person it was a lot more yellow toned and looked quite garish when I put it next to my e-ring stone. Not that it wasn't a beautiful stone in it's own r ight, it just wasn't what I imagined from the photo.

I also have a pair of drop earring with ten 1ct tsavorites. Only one of the stones is close in colour - the true blue-toned ones are hard to find and look a lot more like fine emeralds in colour.

Thanks for the kind comment on my ring - and good luck with the search!

A lot of tsavorites photograph badly, looking a lot less saturated than IRL. Green is extraordinarily difficult to photograph, so this doesn't surprise me. My tsavorite has a lot of blue, but it doesn't come across at all in photos. Therefore, I agree that the OP should also look at stones IRL. You may think one is gorgeous, but when you compare to a top stone like Pandora's, it probably isn't as nice. Most photos are notoriously uncharacteristic of deep green stones IMO. You may think you don't see yellow in a stone for example, but when you comare it to a bluer tsavorite, the yellow becomes very apparent.

Pandora's ering is very beautiful in the photos, so I can only imagine it's 10x nicer in person.

Here's a nice little buying guide on tsavorite, but even their photographs of top stones do not look representative of top stones with that bluish cast. Good tutorial though.

http://www.lapigems.com/tsavorite_buying_guide.asp

 

[chrono]

You might be able to find some tsavorites in a step cut but not in an asscher cut unless you commission a custom cutter. Even then, the stone will probably be smaller than you expect because of the depth needed, plus a little more expensive because of the carat weight needed to maintain the face up size you hope to get. In addition, I advice against a medium dark asscher cut stone because you probably won’t be able to admire the steps and windmill as much as in a medium or medium light toned tsavorite. Price per carat will vary depending on the size you want. I agree that pricing will go up exponentially once you hit the 2 ct mark and upwards. Your decision to go with a cushion cut is a good idea. Depending on quality and the vendor selected, a 1 ct cushion can be anywhere from several hundred to $1K thereabouts.

 

[StonieGrl]

Bridges Tsavorite.

As you will not have to fork out as much money as someone with a bigger hand needing a larger stone, I would go with the ''name'' brand for tsavs.

And if it makes you feel any better, the Bridges are extremely nice people who have a wide variety of stones and are very patient in discussing them.

 

[T L]

Some reputable dealers of fine tsavorite are.

www.swalagemtraders.com
www.tsavorite.com (the Campbells site that StonieGirl recommends)
www.lapigems.com

I have heard good things about all three sites, although I have not purchased from them myself.

You can try palagems too, but you have to go through a jeweler to get pricing information.

 

[MakingTheGrade]

I have a .9ct tsav that''s a rich med dark, so it is possible to get that richness is small petite stones!

 

[Colored Gemstone Nut]

Tsavorite garnet which Wink got for me about 3 years ago.
I wanted a top notch stone and he got me one.
The stone is a 1.17 ct. tsavorite and Wink got it from Palagems for me.

$1700 per carat....

Pricing per ct. can be higher or lower depending on the source, quality, and more importantly the depth of color....

May I ask what your budget is??

 

[Gailey]

Rough Rock,

Here''s a couple that are available:

Cushion by Peter Torraca
Asscher by Roger Dery

Both gentlemen come highly recommended by many people here.

 

[MakingTheGrade]

Oooo Gailey, that asscher tsav is yummy! Any idea what the price tag on that is?

 

[Gailey]

Date: 3/1/2010 10:24:57 PM
Author: MakingTheGrade
Oooo Gailey, that asscher tsav is yummy! Any idea what the price tag on that is?

I do have an idea of what it costs because I enquired. As Roger doesn''t publish his prices I don''t feel comfortable sharing it. What I will say is, Roger is a thoroughly nice gentleman and very approachable. I will also say it''s a lot less per carat than some of the others mentioned so far.

It is very similar in colour to the square emerald cut that I eventually got from Peter Toracca. I have to say though, in some ways I have buyers remorse because I think had I seen this cushion from Peter I would have wanted that one more.

 

[T L]

Date: 3/1/2010 10:59:21 PM
Author: Gailey

Date: 3/1/2010 10:24:57 PM
Author: MakingTheGrade
Oooo Gailey, that asscher tsav is yummy! Any idea what the price tag on that is?

I do have an idea of what it costs because I enquired. As Roger doesn''t publish his prices I don''t feel comfortable sharing it. What I will say is, Roger is a thoroughly nice gentleman and very approachable. I will also say it''s a lot less per carat than some of the others mentioned so far.

It is very similar in colour to the square emerald cut that I eventually got from Peter Toracca. I have to say though, in some ways I have buyers remorse because I think had I seen this cushion from Peter I would have wanted that one more.

Gailey,
I like the stone you have now. This one from PT seems a bit sleepy and not as fine in color (more of an olive cast to it). Maybe it''s a bad photo. Yours is more of a minty color, true, but I really like it. Darker tone is not always necessarily better if the saturation is lacking. Even the the asscher, although lighter tone and sleepy, is a better saturation than this cushion.

 

[Pandora II]

Date: 3/1/2010 9:13:22 PM
Author: Colored Gemstone Nut
Tsavorite garnet which Wink got for me about 3 years ago.
I wanted a top notch stone and he got me one.
The stone is a 1.17 ct. tsavorite and Wink got it from Palagems for me.

$1700 per carat....

Pricing per ct. can be higher or lower depending on the source, quality, and more importantly the depth of color....

May I ask what your budget is??

That is how I sourced mine - Palagems via Wink.

Mine is 1.42ct and price per ct was similar.

Very beautiful stone!

 

[chrono]

Gailey,
I prefer your square emerald cut mint/tsavorite from Peter over the cushion you posted. In comparing your stone’s vendor picture to this cushion’s vendor picture (I presume the photography conditions are similar as Peter took both pictures), while the tone of your step cut is lighter, it is also livelier and more saturated than the cushion. Perhaps you prefer tsavorites with a darker tone?

 

[tsavoritegirl]

Update: I have my feelers out to Peter Torraca and Bridges. Peter Torroca has a stone I'm very interested in. Waiting for him to get back to me is killing me.

I called Peter Torroca who sadly informed that the stone I was looking was sold. He has my contact info, but told me it could take months to find the rough to make make an Asscher for me.

I'm willing to wait, after all what's a few months of waiting for just the right stone when I'm going to be wearing it everyday for the rest of my life.

 

[Harriet]

Tsavoritegirl,
I'm sorry to have to tell you that the Bridges are wholesalers, not retailers.

Stoniegrl,
Please stop misrepresenting the Bridges as retailers.

 

[Gailey]

Date: 3/2/2010 9:24:29 AM
Author: Chrono
Gailey,
I prefer your square emerald cut mint/tsavorite from Peter over the cushion you posted. In comparing your stone’s vendor picture to this cushion’s vendor picture (I presume the photography conditions are similar as Peter took both pictures), while the tone of your step cut is lighter, it is also livelier and more saturated than the cushion. Perhaps you prefer tsavorites with a darker tone?

Actually "Buyers Remorse" is way to stronger term, because I do love my stone and it is my all-time favourite cut. But something about that cushion struck me. I guess I''m not like most who post here in that more often than not I will prefer something that is not deemed to be of optimum colour. That said, my monitor doesn''t show an olive cast to Peter''s cushion.

 

[Harriet]

I don''t see any ''olive'' either. As far as I know, tsavorite has two modifiers -- yellow and blue. If anything, the stone is yellow (to some degree) - Green.

 

[LD]

Date: 3/2/2010 3:08:04 PM
Author: Harriet
Tsavoritegirl,
I''m sorry to have to tell you that the Bridges are wholesalers, not retailers.

Stoniegrl,
Please stop misrepresenting the Bridges as retailers.

Harriet - it is possible to buy direct from the Bridges.

 

[Harriet]

Are you referring to buying via their website? If so, the website is meant for industry use and is, unfortunately, ambiguous. Try placing an order through it.

 

[LD]

No. I know that they do/did sell to customers direct. Granted, it's not an every day occurrence I suspect (and even less now I would think) but if you knew people it was perfectly possible - just as you know them and have bought from them direct?

 

[chrono]

Date: 3/2/2010 3:24:12 PM
Author: Harriet
I don't see any 'olive' either. As far as I know, tsavorite has two modifiers -- yellow and blue. If anything, the stone is yellow (to some degree) - Green.

Harriet,
I believe that when the colour description of olive is mentioned, it is the low to medium level of saturation that makes the green stone appear olive.

 

[Harriet]

LovingDiamonds,
You are correct in that it is NOT part of their business practice, particularly now. They may make an exception for high-end collectors, I'm not sure.

 

[LD]

Harriet - I know you like Tsavorite so why don''t you give the poster the benefit of your knowledge and suggest a few places to buy? I''m not even going to suggest anywhere because I don''t like the medium dark that others favour (and much prefer Chrono''s stunner)!

 

[Pandora II]

Ditto to Harriet on the Bridges not selling retail. I tried it!

They enquired as to whether I was an individual or a business and the best they could do was offer to point me in the direction of some appropriate vendors. This was a while back, but as far as I'm aware they remain wholesalers.

My advice is to get one of the vendors here to source you something. I particularly like working with Wink at www.winkjones.com and Rick Martin at www.artcutgems.com

Rick is a fount of knowledge on garnets (and opals). I believe both he and Wink can source from places like Palagems.

 

[Harriet]

TsavoriteGirl,
Another place to try is: www.paraibainternational.com. I have a vibrant pair of mediums from them. If you don't find what you're looking for on their website, just give them a call and they'll find it for you.

LovingDiamonds,
Can you think of any other sources? You've liked gems far longer than I have.

 

[T L]

Gailey once put together a collage of different tsavorites with varying tones and saturations. It was in another thread, but I can''t find it. I thought that was so helpful of her. It wold be nice if she could link to it here. *hint hint*