katharath
Ideal_Rock
- Joined
- Mar 5, 2013
- Messages
- 2,850
Just about a couple of weeks ago, I saw (with help from a post from Chrono!) an amethyst that Gary Braun over at finewater gems had sold. I'd recently been ammy hunting, and was disappointed to see that Gary's gem was sold before I even had a chance to view it, lol.
Chrono and a couple of other boardies encouraged me to contact Gary, to see if he had any of the same rough with which to cut something similar. I did, and he did. Part of why I started a new thread here rather than just adding this gem to my usual thread (where I posy my new additions) is that I felt like it deserved its' pwn thread, and I also wanted to call attention to Gary bc I received what I considered to be excellent service from him.
I've now purchased gems from a few of the recommended vendors, and I've noticed that some vendors definitely have better customer service than others. I was VERY pleased with my entire experience with Gary, so I wanted to share.
I began by asking him about what ammy rough he had available, and I told him that I wanted to stay within a budget of $250 for this gem if possible. (The other ammy that he'd just sold was $275). Gary was quick to reply and very agreeable; he said that he would choose out a nice piece and that I should be able to get a gem within the same general size parameters as the one he had just sold. I think I said something to him about wanting it at least 2.5 cts but that anything over that would be lovely.
Gary said that he was in the middle of house renos and that it may take 2-3 weeks to get it finished up. So, I was suitably surprised when I had a message from him almost exactly one week later saying that the gem was complete and ready to ship!! He sent over completed pictures, I paid the balance owed, and he shipped it the very next morning. I had the gem in hand approx. 10-11 days after placing my commission with him! He answered all messages and questions very promptly and courteously. And I also very much appreciate being treated so well when I'm a new customer buying a relatively quite inexpensive gem, when all is said and done. that type of thing is important to me.
And the BEST part...my gem turned out to be a wonderful 4.70 cts! I was THRILLED at the larger size, and Gary stuck to the price he had quoted me, not asking me to pay any more, even though the rough yielded a good carat or more over what I was expecting in size.
Onto the gem specs and pics. It's Gary's specialty round cut, 4.70 cts, 11 mm across and the depth was approx. 7.8 mm I believe? The rough is older, Namibian stock. The gem looks quite different when viewed in different lighting - showing noticeable blue tones in daylight, but in indoor lighting I usually see more of the very deep purple with the reddish tints, etc.
First are Gary's pics:
Chrono and a couple of other boardies encouraged me to contact Gary, to see if he had any of the same rough with which to cut something similar. I did, and he did. Part of why I started a new thread here rather than just adding this gem to my usual thread (where I posy my new additions) is that I felt like it deserved its' pwn thread, and I also wanted to call attention to Gary bc I received what I considered to be excellent service from him.
I've now purchased gems from a few of the recommended vendors, and I've noticed that some vendors definitely have better customer service than others. I was VERY pleased with my entire experience with Gary, so I wanted to share.
I began by asking him about what ammy rough he had available, and I told him that I wanted to stay within a budget of $250 for this gem if possible. (The other ammy that he'd just sold was $275). Gary was quick to reply and very agreeable; he said that he would choose out a nice piece and that I should be able to get a gem within the same general size parameters as the one he had just sold. I think I said something to him about wanting it at least 2.5 cts but that anything over that would be lovely.
Gary said that he was in the middle of house renos and that it may take 2-3 weeks to get it finished up. So, I was suitably surprised when I had a message from him almost exactly one week later saying that the gem was complete and ready to ship!! He sent over completed pictures, I paid the balance owed, and he shipped it the very next morning. I had the gem in hand approx. 10-11 days after placing my commission with him! He answered all messages and questions very promptly and courteously. And I also very much appreciate being treated so well when I'm a new customer buying a relatively quite inexpensive gem, when all is said and done. that type of thing is important to me.
And the BEST part...my gem turned out to be a wonderful 4.70 cts! I was THRILLED at the larger size, and Gary stuck to the price he had quoted me, not asking me to pay any more, even though the rough yielded a good carat or more over what I was expecting in size.
Onto the gem specs and pics. It's Gary's specialty round cut, 4.70 cts, 11 mm across and the depth was approx. 7.8 mm I believe? The rough is older, Namibian stock. The gem looks quite different when viewed in different lighting - showing noticeable blue tones in daylight, but in indoor lighting I usually see more of the very deep purple with the reddish tints, etc.
First are Gary's pics:
And Gary was a total pro! I may need to take more pics in natural lighting though, it looks most of the ones I posted here are indoors, and it really does look different as the lighting varies. Lovely stone!
I saw this thread over the weekend but was too swamped to post and I felt that it deserved a good look and drool session before I typed my response. Gorgeous red + blue modifiers, huge size and the cutting is superb! Love the high crown and extra facets.
Ok - perhaps overkill, but it is a fabulous stone! I am totally enamoured by it... hmmm... I'm very intrigued 
300x240.png)