Sharing My CS

[kimpnoth]

I wanted to share some of the CS jewelry I have acquired. Sally of Heart of Water Jewels led me to Price Scope (not the other way around) and now I'm fiippin' hooked. But I am done for a while.

My first purchase was from Sally. I trusted her on the sapphire and she did right by me. But after that purchase, I thought I should know more about what I was doing, and came to PS for more education.

I am not a blingy person. Solitary stones in solid settings are what I like. I also seem to like darker stones, with an internal life.

Here is my sapphire from Sally''s stock, in a setting created from my ideas. Stone is .97k, with "features", a little silky, but a lovely, vivid blue. I would call it cobalt blue.

 

[kimpnoth]

Next are two stones from an infrequent PSer, bought on LT. Gingercurls, this is what happened to your stones.

First is a grayish purple spinel, modified ascher. The second is an almost burgundy spinel. I liked the ascher best when still in it's box, but now that both are set, I find I prefer the burgundy more. That may change. I have the cutters and stats -- but they are buried in pile of papers some where. One was a Rick Martin, the other a Dan Stair, I believe. The ascher is around 1K, ~ 5.9 the cushion 2.14 ~ 5 x 7, I think. um, the red ring is a $7 Kohls purchase, we think the stone is irradiated quartz. Although, I really like the stone. It's just a little too orange.

Hmm, well, these turned out to be only the red spinel pics. Grey- purple in next post.

 

[kimpnoth]

Gray purple

 

[kimpnoth]

Next, Jackson Crossroads amethyst from The Gem Trader ebay shop. Really inexpensive, not a great cut, some zoning. But the zoning almost disappeared with setting, the color is pretty good. There are some blue flashes, and it scratched an itch while I look for a better one with a great cut. 8 mm.

 

[kimpnoth]

And last, a reddish purple spinel from Westview gems. 8 mm, Portuguese cut bottom. From the Mahenge region, but not what would be considered a Mahenge here. Good performance in low light. It almost glows from within. The other ring in one picture is a Sally HOW tourmaline in the gumdrop setting. It has some internal features that make it sparkle and have internal rainbows.

 

[kimpnoth]

Last one.

 

[Acinom]

You have such a nice gem collection. Thanks for sharing!!!
I love the subdued and chique colors of your stones. Fabulous

 

[mochiko42]

Thanks for sharing! I'd be interested to see more photos of the sapphire ring by itself and a profile shot too, if possible (I think the photo was of it in a stack)? Please?

oh, was it you who bought the rubellite gumdrop ring from Sally? I had that Etsy listing bookmarked for the longest time, that is a gorgeous ring!

 

[kimpnoth]

Mochiko,

Yes, I bought the rubelite gum drop. I had my eye on that forever. I loved the basket and the prongs.

These are Sally's pictures of the sapphire -- much easier than my trying to get close-ups. She's also a much better photographer.

Thanks for asking.

 

[kimpnoth]

Re: Sharing My CS and Lesson Learned

Thank you Mochiko and Acinom. I know my style and stone choices are not mainstream for this forum, but my taste in general is not mainstream. I am proud that the stone color in almost all my stones is discernible in low light. Sorry that my photography skills stink.

Acinom, subdued? Interesting way to describe it.

I wanted to change the title of this topic to "Sharing My CS and Lessons Learned", but editing a topic title doesn't seem to be an option. If it is somewhere convoluted, please let me know.

Lessons Learned:

1) I want stones that are at least 8 mm
2) I like stones with personality
3) I'm OK with interesting inclusions that lend depth to a stone
4) Stones change once set
5) I have to set the stones and wear them to learn -- I can't get the full feel of the stone by carrying it around in box or setting on the back of hand or in my palm
6) I want to wear my jewelry, not baby it or take out for special occasions only.
7) It is doubtful (but not impossible) that I will ever spend more than $1200 on a stone.
8. I'm satisfied with what I have now (just a tourmaline or two to set yet) and can wait and look and slowly consider other purchases
9) I'm learning to tell when a stone is well cut
10) Color is still a bit illusive for me (secondary hues, gray, brown, oy), but I'm learning
11) Color intensity vs tone is still a struggle (but I still like darker stones with depth)
12) Gem vocabulary is still a struggle, I get the concepts, but attaching the correct term is still hit or miss
13) I will frequent this forum to continue to learn, and if I ever learn enough to share the knowledge, maybe even chime in now and then

Thank you all for all the many threads and posts -- there is no way I could have found or learned all this information on my own or in a book.

Best

Kim

 

[chrono]

That's a lovely starting collection and thank you for also sharing your experience with us.

 

[minousbijoux]

Excellent lessons learned - thanks for sharing. You have done an excellent job in complimenting the stone in every setting you've had made.