What do you dislike?

[lavatea]

I hate marquise as a solitaire. I can handle it ok as a sidestone. I can''t say I hate any gemstones except treated ones, although I''m not a big fan of oranges.

I don''t like hearts much, but my husband gave me heart shaped peridot earrings which due to their setting I really like. Sadly, I have lost one. If it never turns up I will have the remaining one made into a pendant.

 

[lavatea]

Sorry, I thought I made that small enough.

 

[Arkteia]

I do not care for;

- tanzanites
- opals
- red irradiated tourmalines
- fluorite
- London topaz
- dark-green tourmalines
- "inky" sapphires

Among other things, I need to know more about:

- zircons
- color-change garnets, sapphires and spinel

I can forgive:

Any imperfection, provided the color is good and the stone is untreated. I''d take uncut rough over beryllium-treated stone any day!

 

[Kim Bruun]

Date: 1/8/2010 1:28:22 AM
Author: crasru
I do not care for;

- tanzanites
- opals
- red irradiated tourmalines
- fluorite
- London topaz
- dark-green tourmalines
- ''inky'' sapphires

I''m not too fond of inky sapphires or too dark green tourmalines either - much in the same way that the blackish tone typically seen in pyrope, almandine, and rhodolite doesn''t appeal to me.

But how can you not love tanzanite? That rich violet tone of blue is in my opinion one of the most beautiful and oppulent concentrations of colour on this planet. And opals? The best opals are a celebration of colour! But thank heavens we don''t all like the same thing!

 

[T L]

As for tanzanite, I will say this, it can be a beautiful color. My only issue with it, is that it''s too soft and fragile for rings. It''s unfortunate because there are many beautiful beautiful stones that I can''t wear in jewelry, sphalerite, rhodochrosite, sphene. I absolutely adore sphalerite, and it''s only a 4 on the Moh''s scale.

 

[Arkteia]

You know, TL, I was always thinking of a sphalerite. Hard to find one, and the colors are so different, and I presume it has to be well-cut too and it is difficult to cut. Not only soft, but several cleavage planes!

However, I have malachites with the same Mohr''s index and they wear fine, even in a ring. What do you think makes a difference?

On a side note: I mean to post a photograph of my green tournaline ring that I bought from a major jewelry store going out of business (never, never...but then, sometimes...). It looked gorgeous under the store''s lights, and I totally forgot that it is a day stone! I just want your honest opinion. Even if the stone is poor, I can eventually buy a round-cut stone for this setting, it is very delicate, so no pain here - but I want to know what you''ll say.

 

[Arkteia]

Opals are personal - I bought one in Australia, and had a lot of trouble with it. If you read opaluv''s post - her problem is 1/10 th of mine. So it is just an aversion reaction. Like you eat a bad ice cream and do not want to have any ice cream ever again.

 

[ma re]

TL, do you think stones like sphalerite could be set into jewellery if cut into buftops? I wonder. That kind of cut would be less risky for the setting procedure, while the stone would still maintain some brilliance (although considerably less scintillation). It would also be interesting to know if concave cuts could work for such material. Hm, food for thought...

 

[chrono]

Date: 1/8/2010 1:08:11 PM
Author: crasru
You know, TL, I was always thinking of a sphalerite. Hard to find one, and the colors are so different, and I presume it has to be well-cut too and it is difficult to cut. Not only soft, but several cleavage planes!

However, I have malachites with the same Mohr''s index and they wear fine, even in a ring. What do you think makes a difference?

On a side note: I mean to post a photograph of my green tournaline ring that I bought from a major jewelry store going out of business (never, never...but then, sometimes...). It looked gorgeous under the store''s lights, and I totally forgot that it is a day stone! I just want your honest opinion. Even if the stone is poor, I can eventually buy a round-cut stone for this setting, it is very delicate, so no pain here - but I want to know what you''ll say.

I suspect it could be the “fiber” within, much like jadeite isn’t that high on the MOH but due to its internal structure, it is a very tough stone/mineral.

 

[ma re]

Date: 1/8/2010 1:16:12 PM
Author: Chrono

Date: 1/8/2010 1:08:11 PM
Author: crasru
You know, TL, I was always thinking of a sphalerite. Hard to find one, and the colors are so different, and I presume it has to be well-cut too and it is difficult to cut. Not only soft, but several cleavage planes!

However, I have malachites with the same Mohr''s index and they wear fine, even in a ring. What do you think makes a difference?

On a side note: I mean to post a photograph of my green tournaline ring that I bought from a major jewelry store going out of business (never, never...but then, sometimes...). It looked gorgeous under the store''s lights, and I totally forgot that it is a day stone! I just want your honest opinion. Even if the stone is poor, I can eventually buy a round-cut stone for this setting, it is very delicate, so no pain here - but I want to know what you''ll say.

I suspect it could be the “fiber” within, much like jadeite isn’t that high on the MOH but due to its internal structure, it is a very tough stone/mineral.

Cabs always wear better than faceted stones of the same material and generally possess greater toughness (i.e. resistance to breakage, not scratching).

 

[T L]

Date: 1/8/2010 1:10:30 PM
Author: ma re
TL, do you think stones like sphalerite could be set into jewellery if cut into buftops? I wonder. That kind of cut would be less risky for the setting procedure, while the stone would still maintain some brilliance (although considerably less scintillation). It would also be interesting to know if concave cuts could work for such material. Hm, food for thought...

The other problem, and this includes tanzanite, is that any stone softer than silica, will easily get scratched. Silica (the mineral glass is made from) is so prevalant in dust particles and it''s so abundant, that even wiping down the stone will scratch or pit it. IMO these stones should only be kept in gem boxes, especially those with a softness of less than 6. JMO, but I am contemplating setting a sphene, but I''m really worried about micropitting and the like. I also have a cuprite, incredibly rare and soft, and it shall remain in a box. My benitoite will as well.

 

[Arkteia]

Sorry, Chrono, I am a total redneck who came to a tuxedo party. Totally embarassed about Moh - and I did read enough books and remember how the curve looks! I think it is sort of dyslexia - I am a very fast reader, but I read diagonally across the page and sometimes words get etched wrong in my mind. Please forgive me if you see it again - same happened with Mahenge spinel, and I saw it written so many times.

 

[Kim Bruun]

I'm not a big fan of heart-shaped stones either. They're just a little too corny for me. Even worse: I saw a sapphire cut to resemble a pair of lips. I think multicolour has it. Really tacky.

 

[Arkteia]

And here is what I dislike most of all: someone selling you totally misrepresented item and then saying, "we have been in the business for 60 years..." What should a customer assume? 60 years of forgery?

Also, when huge and most reputable websites post links to online auctions that have been deemed as "fraud" by Better Business Bureau. I ran into it once.

 

[jstarfireb]

I guess I''m getting off-topic a bit, but I actually have no problem setting soft stones in rings. I have a lot of tanzanite in rings, I recently set a zircon in a ring, and I just sent out a benitoite to be set in a ring.

 

[Mrs Mitchell]

Date: 12/27/2009 3:31:08 PM
Author: Michael_E
The only gem that I''ve ever had which I can definitely say I didn''t like was a peridot which was so brown that it was the color of a swamp. I had given a client a box of rough stones and asked her to pick one which she would like to have me cut and she picked what I thought was the worst looking thing I''d ever seen. It took me two days to cut it because I couldn''t stand to look at it for more than an hour at a sitting...it actually made me slightly nauseous looking at it. I got the thing finished, set it and when she came in she was REALLY happy with it. Going on and on about how she''d never seen a color like that and it was so unique. I had to wait until she''d left to start laughing, since I''d come up with where I''d seen that color before, but couldn''t mention it to her, (I''d thought about being down at the river where the geese congregate in the winter...they leave that color all over the ground

). That stone just made it very clear that everyone has different tastes, but it sure wasn''t my cup of tea !

I thought you looked a bit odd when I picked up my gorgeous brown peridot that day...

KIDDING! It sounds horrible!

I know a lot of people like them, but I do not care for colour treated diamonds. At all.

 

[Arkteia]

I think people like them because many celebrities wear "fancy" diamonds (which are real). Have you ever seen these sections in Vogue, Bazaar, etc. where they advise you how to dress like Jennifer Lopez on a budget? I think the phenomenon of color-treated diamonds is of the same kind.

 

[T L]

Date: 1/9/2010 4:49:40 PM
Author: Mrs Mitchell

Date: 12/27/2009 3:31:08 PM
Author: Michael_E
The only gem that I''ve ever had which I can definitely say I didn''t like was a peridot which was so brown that it was the color of a swamp. I had given a client a box of rough stones and asked her to pick one which she would like to have me cut and she picked what I thought was the worst looking thing I''d ever seen. It took me two days to cut it because I couldn''t stand to look at it for more than an hour at a sitting...it actually made me slightly nauseous looking at it. I got the thing finished, set it and when she came in she was REALLY happy with it. Going on and on about how she''d never seen a color like that and it was so unique. I had to wait until she''d left to start laughing, since I''d come up with where I''d seen that color before, but couldn''t mention it to her, (I''d thought about being down at the river where the geese congregate in the winter...they leave that color all over the ground

). That stone just made it very clear that everyone has different tastes, but it sure wasn''t my cup of tea !

I thought you looked a bit odd when I picked up my gorgeous brown peridot that day...

KIDDING! It sounds horrible!

I know a lot of people like them, but I do not care for colour treated diamonds. At all.

I think Dan Stair once cut a color he considered terrible, and he actually put it up on his site and entitled the photo "Ugly Tourmaline." Someone asked him why he called it that, and he said it was the color of a corpse!! LOL!! It still sold!!

I guess some people think ugly tourmalines are rare!! LOL!

 

[T L]

Date: 1/9/2010 4:28:08 PM
Author: jstarfireb
I guess I''m getting off-topic a bit, but I actually have no problem setting soft stones in rings. I have a lot of tanzanite in rings, I recently set a zircon in a ring, and I just sent out a benitoite to be set in a ring.

I used to wear a tanzanite, I was very very careful with it. You couldn''t see the abrasions with the naked eye, but with a loupe

!! Tons of micropitting every where.

 

[jstarfireb]

Yup, I guess what I mean is that if I can''t see it with the naked eye, no big deal! I should make an effort to be more careful with my rings, though...I wear a lot of the soft ones to work, which probably isn''t the best idea.

 

[LD]

Date: 1/9/2010 5:22:59 PM
Author: tourmaline_lover

Date: 1/9/2010 4:28:08 PM
Author: jstarfireb
I guess I''m getting off-topic a bit, but I actually have no problem setting soft stones in rings. I have a lot of tanzanite in rings, I recently set a zircon in a ring, and I just sent out a benitoite to be set in a ring.

I used to wear a tanzanite, I was very very careful with it. You couldn''t see the abrasions with the naked eye, but with a loupe

!! Tons of micropitting every where.

Now then Mrs TL - this is one of the rare occasions you and I will disagree.

I need to pull my underwear over my pants and go into battle for poor Tanzanite!

As you know I have one or two pieces. I do wear some rings daily. I am careful with them. I have only ever damaged one (my first Tanzanite - that I wore in the shower, in bed, at the gym, when doing gardening - you get the picture)!

It''s like everything else, if you''re not hard on your jewellery (and I appreciate some are) and you take a bit of care and don''t wear it as I did with my first one, a lovely Tanzanite can stay lovely, even if it''s scrutinised under a loupe. I guess it''s the same for good Emeralds!

 

[T L]

Date: 1/9/2010 5:40:07 PM
Author: LovingDiamonds

Date: 1/9/2010 5:22:59 PM
Author: tourmaline_lover

Date: 1/9/2010 4:28:08 PM
Author: jstarfireb
I guess I''m getting off-topic a bit, but I actually have no problem setting soft stones in rings. I have a lot of tanzanite in rings, I recently set a zircon in a ring, and I just sent out a benitoite to be set in a ring.

I used to wear a tanzanite, I was very very careful with it. You couldn''t see the abrasions with the naked eye, but with a loupe

!! Tons of micropitting every where.

Now then Mrs TL - this is one of the rare occasions you and I will disagree.

I need to pull my underwear over my pants and go into battle for poor Tanzanite!

As you know I have one or two pieces. I do wear some rings daily. I am careful with them. I have only ever damaged one (my first Tanzanite - that I wore in the shower, in bed, at the gym, when doing gardening - you get the picture)!

It''s like everything else, if you''re not hard on your jewellery (and I appreciate some are) and you take a bit of care and don''t wear it as I did with my first one, a lovely Tanzanite can stay lovely, even if it''s scrutinised under a loupe. I guess it''s the same for good Emeralds!

LD,
I heard rose gold has magical mystic properties (kind of like mystic topaz) that helps protect soft stones. You should try it!! LOL!

*runs away as LD looks for the nearest sledge hammer*

 

[LD]

Date: 1/9/2010 5:43:33 PM
Author: tourmaline_lover

Date: 1/9/2010 5:40:07 PM
Author: LovingDiamonds

Date: 1/9/2010 5:22:59 PM
Author: tourmaline_lover

Date: 1/9/2010 4:28:08 PM
Author: jstarfireb
I guess I''m getting off-topic a bit, but I actually have no problem setting soft stones in rings. I have a lot of tanzanite in rings, I recently set a zircon in a ring, and I just sent out a benitoite to be set in a ring.

I used to wear a tanzanite, I was very very careful with it. You couldn''t see the abrasions with the naked eye, but with a loupe

!! Tons of micropitting every where.

Now then Mrs TL - this is one of the rare occasions you and I will disagree.

I need to pull my underwear over my pants and go into battle for poor Tanzanite!

As you know I have one or two pieces. I do wear some rings daily. I am careful with them. I have only ever damaged one (my first Tanzanite - that I wore in the shower, in bed, at the gym, when doing gardening - you get the picture)!

It''s like everything else, if you''re not hard on your jewellery (and I appreciate some are) and you take a bit of care and don''t wear it as I did with my first one, a lovely Tanzanite can stay lovely, even if it''s scrutinised under a loupe. I guess it''s the same for good Emeralds!

LD,
I heard rose gold has magical mystic properties (kind of like mystic topaz) that helps protect soft stones. You should try it!! LOL!

*runs away as LD looks for the nearest sledge hammer*

*finds sledge hammer and starts looking for TL*

 

[T L]

Glad I live across the pond!!

*running!!*

 

[Kim Bruun]

Date: 1/9/2010 5:21:16 PM
Author: tourmaline_lover

I think Dan Stair once cut a color he considered terrible, and he actually put it up on his site and entitled the photo ''Ugly Tourmaline.'' Someone asked him why he called it that, and he said it was the color of a corpse!! LOL!! It still sold!!

Sellers use all sorts of descriptions to make a colour sound more appealing - champagne topaz and cognac topaz? Don''t that sound delicious for what is basically two different shades of brown?

But apparently, there is also a market for cadaverous tourmaline and guano brown peridot. On a related note, I think sellers should dispense with the pleasantries and rename London blue topaz Chernobyl blue topaz.

 

[RevolutionGems]

Sphalerite actually has 6 perfect cleavages. I have found that the cutting isn''t necessarily the problem, it is the polishing. If a facet is cut too close tro a cleavage plane, it can flake. Also, with it being so soft, ANY contamination on the polishing lab produces scratches.

That being said, sphalerite does cut a very beautiful stone. In the next few weeks, I will begin work on a 325+ carat rough of Spanish sphalerite. I have to do some test cuts first and I will freely admit I am terribly intimidated by this piece. I will try to document the cut as I do it.

 

[Harriet]

Turkish diaspore aka Zultanite.

 

[T L]

Date: 1/8/2010 1:10:30 PM
Author: ma re
TL, do you think stones like sphalerite could be set into jewellery if cut into buftops? I wonder. That kind of cut would be less risky for the setting procedure, while the stone would still maintain some brilliance (although considerably less scintillation). It would also be interesting to know if concave cuts could work for such material. Hm, food for thought...

With a stone with such a high RI, known for it''s amazing brilliance and dispersion, I don''t see the point cutting it in a bufftop. That''s would be akin to cutting a cabochon diamond

. It is a real pity with sphalerite. If it was a hard stone, I have a feeling it would cost a fortune.

 

[ma re]

Date: 1/11/2010 6:34:59 AM
Author: tourmaline_lover

Date: 1/8/2010 1:10:30 PM
Author: ma re
TL, do you think stones like sphalerite could be set into jewellery if cut into buftops? I wonder. That kind of cut would be less risky for the setting procedure, while the stone would still maintain some brilliance (although considerably less scintillation). It would also be interesting to know if concave cuts could work for such material. Hm, food for thought...

With a stone with such a high RI, known for it''s amazing brilliance and dispersion, I don''t see the point cutting it in a bufftop. That''s would be akin to cutting a cabochon diamond

. It is a real pity with sphalerite. If it was a hard stone, I have a feeling it would cost a fortune.

Not saying it would bring the best out of the material, just that it might make it easier to set and possibly wearable. Plus, diamonds don''t have color (at least white ones...), while sphalerites come in very nice shades which could create some pleasing effects even with a non-traditional cutting. Of course I understand it would probably be reserved for designer pieces or artsy jewellery so we''re talking limited market.

 

[RevolutionGems]

You have a good point Ma.

It moght be interesting to do a brilliant cut on the pavillion and a very low buff on the crown. It might be interesting and make the stone a bit less suceptible to damage.

I don''t usually cut cabs but a friend of mine does. Maybe I will try that out. Worst case scenario, I could always recut in a more traditional design.