Found my Alexandrite

[rimshotsnap]

After searching for a long while for a stone for an e-ring (started with emeralds, then tsavorite, and now I've settled on my stone: http://www.ebay.com/itm/281752380298

I was pretty nervous buying from eBay, but I received the stone today and love it. The video definitely uses strong lighting, but the color change is pretty striking teal to purple. Very hard to capture on camera, unfortunately. The iPhone pic below makes it seem more grey than it is in person.

Price was significantly cheaper than I could find elsewhere, so I feel like I got a very good deal. Now comes the next fun part, which is working with my jeweler to make a setting from scratch.

Thanks for all the wisdom I've gained from these forums. Will definitely share pictures of the finished ring.

 

[minousbijoux]

Congratulations, that's awesome! Do you think the vendor's photos and video were a fair representation of what you see in hand? Does it appear to have the same bright color teal and the strong color change? Its hard to tell from your pic, but we'd love to hear your opinion.

 

[rimshotsnap]

The bright teal is spot on--exactly what the stone looks like in daylight. In the video, the stone turns bright pink when held up to a candle. I didn't try that exercise, but at night with the lights on, I'd call the stone bluish-purple. Still a pretty stark change; the entire stone clearly becomes a different color. I haven't seen many alexandrites in the flesh, so I can't really say whether this is a mild/moderate/strong color change compared to others.

I wouldn't hesitate buying from that vendor again, but don't expect a teal-to-bright pink stone!

 

[Cognition]

Sorry, I am not trying to ruin your party, but their pics concern me (especially this one):

http://www.ebay.com/itm/0-53-ct-AIGS-CERTIFIED-NATURAL-BRAZIL-100-COLOR-CHANGE-BLUISH-GREEN-ALEXANDRITE-/281748996225
http://www.multicolour.com/detail/?1982830177

 

[minousbijoux]

Sorry, I am not trying to ruin your party, but their pics concern me (especially this one):

http://www.ebay.com/itm/0-53-ct-AIGS-CERTIFIED-NATURAL-BRAZIL-100-COLOR-CHANGE-BLUISH-GREEN-ALEXANDRITE-/281748996225
http://www.multicolour.com/detail/?1982830177

Wow, good catch, Cognition. That is indeed quite concerning.

 

[chrono]

I highly recommend returning the stone if you can for reasons that I don't want to state for fear of hurting your feelings.

 

[rimshotsnap]

I'm a big boy, you can tell me the truth. What should I know?

The stone came with an official GIA certification, so I wasn't all that concerned about authenticity. Maybe I should be?

 

[chrono]

It's not the authenticity; it is the low quality of the alexandrite. It has a huge window and the colours are very drab.

 

[rimshotsnap]

I really appreciate the honesty. I probably didn't make it clear from my initial post, but I was in fact looking for feedback on the purchase despite my enthusiasm. I suppose it's back to the drawing board-- I can still return the item, no problem. I definitely want to make sure I don't get suckered and find the best quality stone for the price that she will love.

 

[chrono]

Thank you for not being offended. Let's try again to get something of better quality. I take complete breaks on weekends and so if you post anything then, I probably won't see it until Monday. I would stick with Multicolour for alexandrites and if pressed, he sometimes takes offers. Finewatergems has an alex or two at times.

 

[minousbijoux]

I'm not quite sure I understand? OP: I asked you about the color and you indicated that what you see in hand is a bright teal that changes to a purple? Is this not so? I agree about the window, but since high quality material in general is quite scarce, many alex are windowed. Not saying I would keep this stone (if your photo is representative of what you see, I would not), but I need more info to give you a definitive answer one way or the other.

 

[GregS]

I don't think the OP's picture is that far off from the vendors photo. It's showing quite a bit of gray in the vendors photo as well.

David Wein of Multicolour would definitely be your safest and best bet.

Here's a few that might be worth your time...

http://www.multicolour.com/detail/?/details/alexandrite/yax232aa/&930512007

http://www.multicolour.com/detail/?/details/alexandrite/yax715ag/&930512007*

http://www.multicolour.com/detail/?/details/alexandrite/yax725ab/&930512007

I starred the octagon as it's my favorite, the color change looks to be the best and it's the least expensive of the 3.

 

[rimshotsnap]

Perhaps my problem is that I haven't seen much high quality alexandrite in person. I received a few other stones from gemsny to compare, and I liked my current one better. I've also seen synthetic alexandrite, which is far more exciting, but I don't expect the real stuff to look anything like that. I agree that the stone I have is on the grey side, though I still find it pretty. However, based on your feedback, I do believe I can do better.

Thanks for pointing me in the direction of a few stones. The pictures do look nice. What do you all recommend I do? Order a few stones from multicolor to compare and keep the one I like best? I'm not yet in a time crunch, but need to start making decisions pretty soon.

I truly appreciate the guidance.

 

[GregS]

It all depends on who the stone is for. Is it for you and if so what do you like?

Assuming your budget is $2500, I'd recommend getting a small stone with the best color change you can find. That's where the value is in Alexandrite.

 

[the_mother_thing]

I bought my Alex from Multicolour/David, and found the process to be quite smooth. I felt my Alex was pretty close to true to pictures/video also, except it did darken up a bit when set, which I knew would happen given I chose to bezel it. Just thought I would add an MC customer review here in case OP decides to go that route.

 

[rimshotsnap]

Thanks for the additional feedback.

Well, I went ahead and ordered the cushion posted above from multicolour. I agree it appeared to have the nicest colors without getting into another price bracket. We'll see! It's definitely on the small side... but I suppose it's not all about size

I will definitely post another update once I receive the stone.

Boy, what an education this has been!

 

[the_mother_thing]

Thanks for the additional feedback.

Well, I went ahead and ordered the cushion posted above from multicolour. I agree it appeared to have the nicest colors without getting into another price bracket. We'll see! It's definitely on the small side... but I suppose it's not all about size

I will definitely post another update once I receive the stone.

Boy, what an education this has been!

Can't wait to see your Alex! Wishing you much patience in photographing it. Alex is notoriously hard to capture color accurately! I just snapped this one of mine from MC outdoors, in indirect morning light. I have found my cell phone (note3) actually captures the color the closest/most accurate of all my photographing devices. And it's actually a bit more vibrant/rich-green color in person than even this picture represents, but it's bezeled, so ... loose, however, it was a bit more teal in natural daylight. But I love it! And it's my favorite CS piece to wear because I love seeing it behave differently in various environments. I hope you/your intended love yours as much, and can't wait to see how you set it!

 

[rimshotsnap]

That is a GORGEOUS ring! I'm almost wishing I ended up with a pear shape so I can steal your design

 

[GregS]

That's great, post pictures when you get it.

 

[LD]

After searching for a long while for a stone for an e-ring (started with emeralds, then tsavorite, and now I've settled on my stone: http://www.ebay.com/itm/281752380298

I was pretty nervous buying from eBay, but I received the stone today and love it. The video definitely uses strong lighting, but the color change is pretty striking teal to purple. Very hard to capture on camera, unfortunately. The iPhone pic below makes it seem more grey than it is in person.

Price was significantly cheaper than I could find elsewhere, so I feel like I got a very good deal. Now comes the next fun part, which is working with my jeweler to make a setting from scratch.

Thanks for all the wisdom I've gained from these forums. Will definitely share pictures of the finished ring.

I'm afraid that this is a low grade Indian Alex (with a huge window). The daylight colour shows too much grey and I suspect that it has only a very weak colour change. I am so sorry to be rude about your stone but the clue to its quality is in your own post where you've said "price was significantly cheaper than I could find elsewhere". Good Alex is NEVER cheap and always priced accordingly. If you want a good stone then, unfortunately, you have to pay for it. If you look at my avatar, that's one of mine in the incandescent lighting. Please don't be too disheartened though because it's all a good learning curve and all this learning will help with future purchases.

 

[rimshotsnap]

Obviously, there is a big value difference between high and low quality stones, but where would you say the eBay stone falls? I find the daylight color to be very pretty, though the color change leaves something to be desired. And yes, I can see the large window. Is this a middle of the road Alex, or very poor quality?

Lastly, how much would you say it's worth? I was just offered a discount by the seller. I doubt I will keep it (at least until seeing what the Multicolour stone looks like in comparison), but just curious what you all think.

 

[rimshotsnap]

So... today I received my Alex from Multicolour, and I have to admit I am disappointed. I will post pictures later, but I think part of the problem is that I'm having a hard time capturing accurate pictures with my iPhone.

In natural light, the new stone has more "dark" shades black or deep purple, which gives it an interesting look and I suppose means higher quality. It doesn't have a window and seems to be a slightly more shimmery (in a mirror sort of way). The color change isn't that different from my original stone: Indoors, it changes to a slightly deeper purple.

Overall, though, it doesn't seem that different in daylight or using indoor lighting. On top of that, it is $500 more expensive and less than half the size.

Now I am completely confused, since I was pretty optimistic about this stone. I'm leaning toward sending it back. But then I'm not sure whether I should keep my other stone, use the nice tsavorite I bought earlier before I got on the alex kick, or find a new stone altogether.

Proposing is stressful enough - I'd love some good common sense judgment from the lovely people on this forum!

 

[VirginiaZee]

I'm sorry that the stone in hand is disappointing, it's tough to be so excited to see something and then be disappointed when you finally get it. I admit to keeping stones I thought were "okay" in the hopes that they'd grow on me... rookie mistake, they haven't. And for a purchase like this, I personally think you and (she!) should love the stone.

That said... why alex? You mentioned considering other colored stones as well. From what I've read, really nice alex can be tough to find at anywhere near a reasonable price (and even then the stone will most likely be on the tinier side).

So... what color are you looking for? (And are you sure she wants to wear that color for an e-ring?) What size/shape are you looking for? What's your budget? (Sorry if I missed answers to any/all of these!)

 

[LD]

So... today I received my Alex from Multicolour, and I have to admit I am disappointed. I will post pictures later, but I think part of the problem is that I'm having a hard time capturing accurate pictures with my iPhone.

In natural light, the new stone has more "dark" shades black or deep purple, which gives it an interesting look and I suppose means higher quality. It doesn't have a window and seems to be a slightly more shimmery (in a mirror sort of way). The color change isn't that different from my original stone: Indoors, it changes to a slightly deeper purple.

Overall, though, it doesn't seem that different in daylight or using indoor lighting. On top of that, it is $500 more expensive and less than half the size.

Now I am completely confused, since I was pretty optimistic about this stone. I'm leaning toward sending it back. But then I'm not sure whether I should keep my other stone, use the nice tsavorite I bought earlier before I got on the alex kick, or find a new stone altogether.

Proposing is stressful enough - I'd love some good common sense judgment from the lovely people on this forum!

Ok - a couple of questions first! Have you read my post about Alex? It was meant as an educational post as we see lots of people who think they have inherited an Alex and it's not. Anyway, there's other information in here you may find useful [URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/have-you-really-got-an-alexandrite-read-this-first.179784/?hilit=Alexandrite']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/have-you-really-got-an-alexandrite-read-this-first.179784/?hilit=Alexandrite[/URL]

Next - what's your budget? I'm afraid that's a critical question with Alex.

Now then, in terms of the two stones you have in hand. The most important thing to remember is that an Alex is valued by the strength of colour change primarily. It should look beautiful in both its green and purple colourway (not just one of them). Next up you're looking for clarity (typically you see some inclusions in Alex), cut and size and then locality.

So, looking at what you've written The first stone is fairly low quality for the following reasons (1) weak colour change (2) cut and (3) the stone looks good in one light and just ok in the other. With the stone from Multicolour it sounds like it has a better cut and also a marginally better colour change - that accounts for the price difference.

Bear in mind that the price of Alex has risen and risen and risen and risen and I don't think I've ever seen it fall. Great stones are hard to find and are NEVER cheap. A seller will never let go a good stone because they know its worth.

Time and time again I see people say "why do you want an Alex? Have you seen one? You'll be disappointed" and the reason for this is the majority have never seen a good specimen. Once you see one you KNOW why you'd want one!!!!! The first really good one I bought (years ago), I happened to open at night sitting on my bed and when I opened the package my first thought was "why have they sent me an amethyst" - the colour change was SO strong. Once I realised what I had I couldn't wait to see it in daylight!

So, I'm afraid if you want an Alex, you may need to dig deep in your purse. If you let me know your budget, I'll have a look and see what I can find in your price range.

 

[rimshotsnap]

All great questions--thank you for your responses.

Why alexandrite? Several reasons. I really like the "metaphor" for my relationship with my girlfriend. I understand (over-simplified, I realize) the alex forms when there's chromium and beryllium present together, and typically these are found in separate kinds of rocks not usually found together. My girlfriend and I come from two different countries (we met while I was traveling), and generally our whole relationship seems improbably the way alexandrite forming seems improbable. She would like the durability and the blue/green/purple colors. She likes things that are unique, and very few others would have a stone like this. Those are my primary reasons for choosing alex.

My budget for a stone is around $3500. I would consider going up to 4K for the right stone. It's possible my issue is simply that I can't afford an alex that looks good, in which case I need to shift my focus elsewhere. I LOVE the daylight color of Jenn's ring, and an amethyst purple indoors would be lovely. And a stone in the 0.5 ct range or above should be large enough--size is not critical. And honestly, pretty much any shape will do--I have a jeweler who will make any cut look beautiful.

The last dilemma is that I am running short on time. I am proposing in mid September, so I probably need to start the building in earnest in the next couple weeks.

I really appreciate all your help!

 

[VirginiaZee]

Why alexandrite? Several reasons. I really like the "metaphor" for my relationship with my girlfriend. I understand (over-simplified, I realize) the alex forms when there's chromium and beryllium present together, and typically these are found in separate kinds of rocks not usually found together. My girlfriend and I come from two different countries (we met while I was traveling), and generally our whole relationship seems improbably the way alexandrite forming seems improbable. She would like the durability and the blue/green/purple colors. She likes things that are unique, and very few others would have a stone like this. Those are my primary reasons for choosing alex.

I love the symbolism of an alex for you and your girlfriend (and what a cool story about how you met!)! I was only asking about why you wanted alex (for this ring) to gauge if it was the color(s), the uniqueness, symbolism, etc. etc. Hopefully I didn't offend (sometimes how I mean to write something isn't quite, um, how it actually comes out on the screen).

 

[Coralfish]

A minor suggestion -

Colour Change Garnet. They are stunning and can have an electric purple scintillation in mixed light that is really dramatic and stunning. You can also get a marvellous colour change. But they are not as hard of course. (7-7.5)

I think if you have your heart set on an alex an alex you must get. But in case you want the 'matching' earrings one day

I don't know this company but found a picture of the type of CC I am talking about

http://www.moregems.com/blog/Color-changing-alexandrite-like-garnet/#.VbbyuLXbzpo

Yes, they really can be that good ...!

Also, maybe email David with exactly what you are after. As others have said, he is the person to ask re. alex. Perhaps he can draw up a shortlist of candidates and do a group video/handshot for you?


Finally... it's okay to love your original alex... you seemed to really like it. But it's also great to know all your options and get the considerable wisdom of everyone here before making your decisions.

 

[Coralfish]

Thank you Diane!

 

[the_mother_thing]

Rimshot - Sorry the MC Alex isn't turning you on. It is a bear to photograph! My iPad pics of mine only manage to capture somehwat close to the incandescent light, and returns the same result even in daylight (shows the incan. color). I, too, love the symbolism for your choice in Alex, and I agree that contacting David or Yvonne with your budget and requirements - would probably prove helpful in seeing more options. May be some of the previous posters will stumble upon something and post it as well. Keeping my fingers crossed for you!

 

[rimshotsnap]

Thank you all for your advice. I have contacted David and Yvonne (Yvonne already wrote back, and seems like she will have some options), and I have also traded emails with a fellow from Pala Gems in Southern California. Has anyone done business with them? A reputable local jewelry shop suggested them. They seem to have nice stones, but return policy is for store credit only, which is a major turn-off. I've been probing on that a bit to see if there's wiggle room.

I've learned so much from all of you in this process, I can't really say thank you enough. Finding the right stone is almost as hard as finding the right person to marry! I will post more information once I receive some more specific options and would appreciate your ongoing help