teach me about color

[cemrn]

Teach me about color saturation. Are there good places on the web to learn about this? Take a purple amethyst for example. Is there a preferred standard or you go believe you should go with what color appeals to you. Is there a bad color in that stone? That is just one example but please use any gem to explain this to me. I feel like I really only understand diamonds!

 

[chrono]

http://www.awesomegems.com/gemfacts.html#top
This website has a pretty good explanation of what to look for for specific gem types and also how colour is graded via the GIA Munsell colour chart. Even if some vendors do not use this chart, it is a good way to learn about how colour is broken down (hue, saturation and tone). Of course, you should buy what appeals to you but it is also very good to understand the trade or market preferred colour so that you know generally what pricing is to be expected. For most gemstones, a medium dark tone with intense saturation commands the very highest prices but there are always exceptions. Untreated stones are also better valued than the treated version when all else is equal (carat weight, colour and etc).

 

[iLander]

I've put together a little graphic using NSC pictures. I tried to find stones with differing saturation levels, but there really weren't any, so here's some with different levels of grey and black overtones. But close enough for government work, anyway. The middle one has the best saturation, with very little black tones. The one on the right is darker, but not because there is more blue, it is darker because it has more black. So bad saturation. The one on the left has less blue, so lower saturation (has a little grey, but we're ignoring that for this purpose). Saturation is the amount of the actual Color in a stone, not it's tone. Tone is caused by black or grey. Ask yourself, "if I took out the black, what color would it be?" That's the saturation.

Also, I like the site below a lot for gemstone reference. It depresses me though, because none of my stones ever look as good as theirs.

http://www.gemstone.org/gem-by-gem/gem-by-gem.html

I don't have any idea what the association does, but I'm happy to wander around in their library.

Also, I just ask TL, she knows EVERYTHING. . .

 

[cemrn]

Thanks I hope to get a chance to look at these sites tonight. The next 2 days I''m in a conference so I can''t peek at PS. I contacted Gene about cutting an asscher for me. I am wanting a 7.5-8mm stone. He said he had some pink tourmaline we might be able to do something with, Waiting to hear more. I plan to go with a simple LOGR baguette setting

 

[chrono]

http://www.palagems.com/home.htm
Pala has many wonderful resources including some basic buying guides for the more popular gemstone varieties which include pictures.

http://www.palagems.com/quality_4cs.htm
I love this as it actually shows gems as examples for tone, hue and saturation. It also talks about the other Cs like cut, zoning, clarity and etc.

 

[movie zombie]

richard wise''s Secrets of the Gem Trade. fab reference book.

mz