Top color aquamarine..

[Indylady]

Could someone point me to ''ideal'' colored aquamarine? I haven''t been able to find a good article on aquas, and haven''t seen to many around in general. Are there any PS''ers with aquas? Ellen''s Leon aqua comes to mind, but not many others.

 

[baby nurse]

That''s a great question. Ellen''s aqua is in a class of its own. I wish it was easier to find that kind of quality!

 

[movie zombie]

if i remember right, richard wise''s book covers this topic and currently its the blue that''s "in"....it changes periodically to the "greener".

mz

 

[Harriet]

Santa Maria in Brazil is one of the most famous localities for aquamarine. I believe the mines are closed, though.

 

[Barrett]

you want to see the finest colored aquas..or real close..check out Mr. Eli's aqua..he had some at Tuscon this year..come from his own mine..i have been trying to get rough from him for awhile....hard to get much better..I will link one stone but check his other aquas..I chit chatted with him yesterday and today and told him to put up some more as he only had one up..I will be damned if he didn't put up more real expensive ones..you catch him in Tuscon you can snag some good deals or call him direct..don't know why he even sells on ebay..he never sells anything..lol..he is not very computer savy so probably does because it's easy
here is one..good color
http://cgi.ebay.com/Mimosomines-Deep-Blue-faceted-Aquamarine-Emerald-cut_W0QQitemZ250594403929QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLoose_Gemstones_1?hash=item3a58972659

Here is another he had mentioned these to me before..calls them "double blue" not really sure what the term means..check out the blue in the facets as they reflect..looks as good as many spinels and/or tourmaline in the facet reflections
http://cgi.ebay.com/Mimosomines-Double-Blue-faceted-Aquamarine-Oval-shape_W0QQitemZ250611301530QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLoose_Gemstones_1?hash=item3a5998fc9a

 

[Barrett]

If TL doesn''t like some of these i am going to shoot myself

 

[T L]

Date: 4/7/2010 11:37:47 PM
Author: amethystguy
If TL doesn't like some of these i am going to shoot myself

You better get your gun loaded. They remind me of greyish blue topaz.

Unfortunately, aqua is one of the few gems that is valued by tone rather than saturation of color. It's rare to have a saturated blue stone. Most aquas are very greyish, and I've never seen a strong saturation of color in any unless it was photoshopped to death.

 

[Barrett]

sigh..lol..one day i am going to sneak to your house and fill your car with aqua crystals..ahahahahah,..I just love that blue as the stone turns in the video in the facet reflections..looks like the camera angle is real bad..Mr. Eli is not the best with computers or camera..I sure hope that stone doesn't have a massive window like it looks

 

[T L]

Date: 4/7/2010 11:48:11 PM
Author: amethystguy
sigh..lol..one day i am going to sneak to your house and fill your car with aqua crystals..ahahahahah

I have several already, it's my birth stone, and I never wear them.

Here's my 8 carat I never wear. Too grey for my taste. My cuprians are far more saturated.

If you're looking for some darker toned stones, paraibainternational.com and africagems.com has a large and expensive selection. Check AJSgems.com too. Sorry to put a damper on things, aqua is one of my least favorite stones and I always try to talk people out of them. LOL! I'm bad.

 

[VapidLapid]

That first one i thought looked like a cough drop and the second was I guess just so badly cut no light could get back out of it. That third one though was too nice never to wear! I think I remember hearing that naturally they are greenish blue but that heating drives off the greenish component making them the more marketable blue. I like the greenish ones that look like seawater

 

[T L]

Indy,
These are ideal aquas. Why, do you ask? Well, look who's wearing them. She also has a brooch, earrings, a bracelet and a tiara to match. These were given to her by the state of Brazil as a gift.

 

[Indylady]

Are darker/deeper tones more valued than light tones? Is there such a thing as "too dark"?

 

[T L]

Date: 4/8/2010 12:06:44 AM
Author: IndyLady
Are darker/deeper tones more valued than light tones? Is there such a thing as 'too dark'?

Yes, darker/deeper tones are more valued than light tones. It's one of the few gems that's rated based on tonality alone, and I don't get that. I never saw an aqua that was too dark where it went black, kind of like a dark spinel or sapphire, but I have seen aquas that are too grey. Regardless of the grey, which keeps the price point down on almost every other blue stone, dark toned aquas are much more expensive than light toned ones.

Look at the pricing on Paraibainternational for example, lots of very dark grey stones going for very high prices.

 

[VapidLapid]

Look at the grin on her face. She is trying soooo hard not to fall over from the weight of those stones!
This is my little aqua. 16something carats. Not ideal but it is mine

 

[Arcadian]

http://litnon.com/images/gems/21931.jpg

the only problem is that its 47K.


-A

 

[T L]

Vapid,
Are you having that cut? I prefer the greenish blue ones as well (I have one too, and I wear that one!!). I think that would be a nice candidate for a cut stone.

 

[OUpearlgirl]

Arcadian, that one you posted makes my heart hurt it''s so beautiful!

 

[VapidLapid]

Oh yes TL I am certainly going to cut it. It is clean as a whistle and a nice meaty shape for decent yield.

 

[Barrett]

wow..that 47k sucker is tops..damn..

 

[VapidLapid]

TL if that is your birthstone then you must have just had a birthday, so
HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

 

[T L]

Date: 4/8/2010 12:27:54 AM
Author: VapidLapid
TL if that is your birthstone then you must have just had a birthday, so

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Oh, thank you Vapid!!

Indy,
Are you on the hunt for an aqua?

 

[Indylady]

A little. Kismet''s milky aqua cab and Ellen''s Leon, and Bob Kast''s new aquas got me really interested in aquas. I''d seriously love a milky cab like Kismet''s.

 

[arjunajane]

Date: 4/8/2010 12:58:11 AM
Author: IndyLady
A little. Kismet''s milky aqua cab and Ellen''s Leon, and Bob Kast''s new aquas got me really interested in aquas. I''d seriously love a milky cab like Kismet''s.

Don''t forget Coati''s aqua asscher!

 

[chrono]

The very finest aquamarine hopes to look like a blue topaz but with a pricetag that is beyond belief compared to a blue topaz. Ok, so I’m being very harsh on aquamarines too because they just don’t have a lot going for them with their low RI (glassy and see through) and mostly low saturation (washed out and/or strong gray component).

 

[Gailey]

Date: 4/8/2010 12:02:45 AM
Author: tourmaline_lover
Indy,
These are ideal aquas. Why, do you ask? Well, look who''s wearing them. She also has a brooch, earrings, a bracelet and a tiara to match. These were given to her by the state of Brazil as a gift.

That''s my Mum! If I''m good she let''s me borrow them once in a while!

 

[Gailey]

Date: 4/8/2010 12:58:11 AM
Author: IndyLady
A little. Kismet''s milky aqua cab and Ellen''s Leon, and Bob Kast''s new aquas got me really interested in aquas. I''d seriously love a milky cab like Kismet''s.

Ooh, I''ve seen a nice milky aqua cab, just this week.

http://www.gemstone.de/

Horrible website, you have to go through all of the stones one by one. Good job it''s nice eye candy.

 

[Gailey]

Date: 4/8/2010 2:02:52 AM
Author: arjunajane

Date: 4/8/2010 12:58:11 AM
Author: IndyLady
A little. Kismet''s milky aqua cab and Ellen''s Leon, and Bob Kast''s new aquas got me really interested in aquas. I''d seriously love a milky cab like Kismet''s.

Don''t forget Coati''s aqua asscher!

I think I like Babystep''s the best.

 

[PumpkinPie]

Date: 4/8/2010 12:02:45 AM
Author: tourmaline_lover
Indy,

These are ideal aquas. Why, do you ask? Well, look who''s wearing them. She also has a brooch, earrings, a bracelet and a tiara to match. These were given to her by the state of Brazil as a gift.

Wow - those are a fabulous shade!

 

[Kismet]

Date: 4/8/2010 12:22:26 PM
Author: Gailey

Date: 4/8/2010 12:58:11 AM

Author: IndyLady

A little. Kismet's milky aqua cab and Ellen's Leon, and Bob Kast's new aquas got me really interested in aquas. I'd seriously love a milky cab like Kismet's.

Ooh, I've seen a nice milky aqua cab, just this week.


http://www.gemstone.de/


Horrible website, you have to go through all of the stones one by one. Good job it's nice eye candy.

The sugarloaf one? That is pretty sweet.

ETA: Once you page through the newer gems, it's mostly in alphabetical order so it's not too far to get to aquamarine. Good thing you're not looking at zircons.

 

[Swala Gem Traders]

IndyLady,

The darker the better; aquas are never too dark... Pure blue, without yellow, without green, is what you should be looking for. That''s mainly why they are heated by the way.
Aquas should be clean.

Good luck!