What stone(s) should I consider for a special project?

[SparkliesLuver]

Hi, everyone.

I'm embarking on a special project: to create a ring in honor of my son. Granted, he's only turning 2 this summer, but (without getting too gushy or detailed), he's brought immense joy into our lives. We're completely blessed to have him, and he'll be our one and only. I've included a candid picture.

Initially I thought I wanted moonstone, as that's his birthstone. I had two from Barry, and albeit beautiful, I just felt underwhelmed. My son is cheery, outgoing and full of life, and for some reason it didn't click for me. I'm now considering a colored stone, but it has to be vivid and bright and full of personality (ie., some inclusions are okay). The rubellite in Brad's recent drop is a good example of what I'm initially thinking, plus a red stone would play off his red hair. But I'm sure there are stones out there that I'm not familiar with, so I don't want to overlook anything.

Here are some details, but I doubt they'll be too helpful:
-No time frame
-Durability is totally open (as I want the stone to dictate the type of ring it'll be)
-Budget is probably less than $5k for the whole ring
-I've even thought about doing a two-stone ring - one for him and one for me - but I'm not sure

What colored stone(s) would you suggest? Thank you!

 

[T L]

Awww, what a cutie. I vote for something that matches his red hair.

Perhaps Mexican fire opal???

 

[chrono]

SL,
Will he eventually inherit this piece? If so, I would not go overboard with the ring design because he probably wouldn't appreciate a lady's ring style. Guys are also notoriously hard on their hands and would be better off with a more durable stone like alexandrite, chrysoberyl, sapphire and perhaps spinel unless you go the cabochon route, which opens up your options greatly. Maybe something fun like a cat's eye or star?

 

[SparkliesLuver]

Thank you, TL. Ohhh, see, I hadn't considered that. I'll put that on my list!

 

[SparkliesLuver]

The overall answer is yes, Chrono. However, I don't have expectations once he has it. Meaning, he could wear it, give it to his future wife, admire it in a jewelry box or have it re-made into something else.

I've always admired cat's eyes and stars, so I would love one, but I don't know much about them, truthfully. I just sort of go by looks/my gut feeling. Any advice on those would be appreciated.

ETA: Who was it that had a cat's eye chryso? I remember someone here had an outstanding example. Something like that might work!

 

[Acinom]

What a cute little guy!!!! He seems so happy and cheerful.

Would you consider stacking rings to represent your son, your husband and yourself? I have 3 stackings rings to symbolize my 2 boys and husband. The oldest is very social and peaceful and I had a moonstone ring made that has many underlying colors. My youngest is very wild and lively and for him I had a cab chrysoprase made. My boys really love the symbolism . A chrysoprase would match the liveliness of your boy as well. Or indeed a beautiful rubellite.

And ah, the endless possibilities:
- one beautiful symbolic ring
- 3 fun stackers to symbolize your family
- a bypass ring, symbolizing mother and son.

 

[SparkliesLuver]

Thank you, Acinom. Indeed he is (95% of the time).

My tourmaline ring has a surprise stone for my husband and son, so I really want this ring to just be about him or the two of us. Hope that doesn't sound awful.

The chrysoprase is a good idea - I've looked at them before. I'll add that as I need to look again. I believe Doug has a good selection of cabs. By the way, your stacking rings are lovely! I've seen them before but didn't realize their meaning. Very cool.

The bypass ring is a strong contender.

 

[ElleK]

Spessartite? That's exactly what his hair made me think of!

 

[dk168]

I like the idea of the bypass ring, to signify mother and son.

Yellow always cheer me up, and I love all yellow flowers, including buttercups and daisies even though they are weeds.

My favourite colours are raspberry/cerise/fuchsia and lime/bright green, as demonstrated by the colours of my car.

Therefore, if I were to get a bypass ring for this project, I would go for a yellow chrysoberyl or a tsavorite as one of the stones, and the second stone would be a raspberry spinel or ruby, or a rubellite tourmaline.

Good luck with your project, what fun!

DK

 

[marymm]

Not sure this is your style, or that you are considering cabochons... but I immediately thought of this ring which I happened to come across the other day - there's something about the bright cab and the egg-y setting that says to me "happy and joyous" - https://www.ylang23.com/product/man...do?sortby=newArrivalsDescend&refType=&from=fn

 

[pregcurious]

I would wait until this goes on sale, and put in a plain solitaire setting. He can reset it as he likes, and it is durable enough to be worn everyday.

http://www.africagems.com/cushion-orangesapph-g2k-3894.html?gclid=CL6c5_jg-8QCFdgPgQodn2YAHw

 

[Siameseroo]

What a beautiful idea! A high quality opal could be spectacular! They are magical with amazing colour play and patterns.

 

[ilovegemstones]

He is so beautiful and happy! I would definitely go with a spessartite to go with his gorgeous hair! Sorry you wanted the rubellite too!

 

[minousbijoux]

Oh my, I LOVE him! What a cutie! I love his (somewhat) toothless grin with what are undoubtedly some new teeth you are proud of! He is one of the devilishly cute guys who are so darn cute that if they were mine, they would get away with a lot!

The first thing I thought, after reading your description of him was sphene. As you know, its a soft stone, but the way you describe him as cheery, outgoing and full of life, that has GOT to be sphene! He is darling. I hope your ring turns out half as great as him.

 

[PreRaphaelite]

I second Pregcurious's suggestion of Orange Sapphire. I'm a ginger myself and it's a great stone (my mum has one set in white gold pavé and I covet it)! Durable, infinitely resettable, and so full of life and energetic sparkle. 10/10

 

[pregcurious]

My main concern about the orange sapphire would be the brown modifier, but it may still look good.

 

[T L]

What a beautiful idea! A high quality opal could be spectacular! They are magical with amazing colour play and patterns.

Wow, that is gorgeous, looks like fireworks are going off in there.

 

[agingsparkle]

Here's a similar orange sapphire for not a lot more that doesn't mention any brown http://www.africagems.com/orange-sapphire-cushion-g2k-92599389.html

 

[NKOTB]

I also love the idea of a spess or orange sapphire. He's a cutie!!!

 

[pregcurious]

Here's a similar orange sapphire for not a lot more that doesn't mention any brown http://www.africagems.com/orange-sapphire-cushion-g2k-92599389.html

I prefer this too, and it looks like it has a better cut. Great find!

 

[lilmosun]

what a cutie...and immediately, I thought "spessartite"...but if this is a stone you want to give to him later, I was thinking a stone with a color that compliments. Does he have a favorite color? Maybe you could pick a color and look at stones together. Whenever you wear it, you can call it "his" because you did it together. He'll always remember and treasure it for the memory.

 

[bling_prism]

He is sure one happy little bubs! I can imagine your joy just by waking up to his cheery smile! I would go for a spess too! Good luck in finding one that tunes with him!

 

[SparkliesLuver]

ElleW: that's the orange stone I was trying to remember the name of! Yes, so thank you. Is it true that the really vibrant ones are hard to come across though?

DK: Thanks for stopping by! Yellow is definitely a good color. Would you pick a chryso over a yellow sapphire? I've never seen a chryso in person so I'm not familiar with them - just from all my readings on here.

marymm: I appreciate the suggestion and link. How nice! I like the warm, sunny feeling of the stone. I haven't fully decided yet if I want a faceted stone or cab, but I will save this. Thank you!

Thanks for the link, preg! That's gorgeous. I haven't ever looked at an orange stone. Is there anything I should keep in mind? Do most have brown in them? Meaning, is it really rare to find one without that?

ricezo: where did you find that?! Holy moly, that's gorgeous.

ilovegemstones: Aw, thank you. Yes, I'm going to start researching those this weekend. haha No need to be sorry. I'm happy it stayed in the PS family - that way I can still see it when you post tons of pictures!

minousbijoux: Thank you so much for your comments. You're too kind. It's funny you mention sphene. I found one over a year ago that I loved, and wish I would have bought it, but at that time I didn't know what I'd do with it. I hadn't thought of them since, so I'll definitely keep those on my radar. Hm, I wonder if it's still for sale...

InsecureSweetGirl: Thank you for chiming in, especially since you're a fellow red-head. Do you, by chance, have any pictures of your mom's ring? I'd love to see it.

agingsparkle: Ah, thank you! Yes, that one is a bit different. I've never seen an orange sapphire IRL so that may be a stone I have to order just so I know if I want to continue in that direction.

NKOTB: I feel like those are two great options. And of course I'm not familiar with either. But that's okay - I'm up for some serious research! Aw, thank you. <side note: I think you mentioned you were interested in the hot pink sapphire from Gene - the one he's re-cutting. I spoke with him yesterday about it, among other things, and it's going to be in the five figure range. Hope you still want it - I'd love for it to stay in the PS family! >

 

[SparkliesLuver]

Here are two from Roger that I eyed last night. He sent me the details, and unfortunately they're both a little too expensive.

I almost thought the orange sapphire was a spess. Is that a good thing? Is this what a spess should look like? Trying to understand the differences/similarities between them.

 

[dk168]

I went for a chrysoberyl as I believe they are cheaper than sapphires, and I personally like a touch of green as often seen in chrysoberyls.

They are supposed to be quite durable and suitable for every day wear. I learnt the last bit from here recently, and they are now on my CS radar, especially a green/grey cat's eye.

DK

 

[SparkliesLuver]

lilmosun: Thank you. Ah, that's true. Good thinking. He's actually really into yellow, but I'm sure that'll change; however, he does have a pretty sunny disposition, so it fits. That's very true. Hm, I wonder if I should wait and do it when he's older then.

bling_prism: haha Most of the time, he actually really is. He usually makes me laugh every morning, so I cannot complain at all by waking up that way! Thank you for chiming in.

 

[SparkliesLuver]

I do remember Chrono mentioning the price of them is still under the radar, so I can see your point, DK. I don't mind the green either so I'll definitely look at those.

Oh, good! Secretly, I'd love to have something I can wear all the time - as he sometimes likes to rotate a ring around my finger - so it'd be neat to start that association. However, it's okay if it doesn't work out that way.

 

[SparkliesLuver]

Oh, this fat pear is also quite intriguing...or is there too much brown? I'm not that good at seeing brown yet.

 

[pregcurious]

There is brown, but it is not showing to much for my taste. I'm not sure if you want to hunt down "trade ideal" or just pick one that is close and that you love. The more pure and vivid the orange, the higher the price (assuming all else is the same).

If you are open to spess, there were a few being sold on FB at Fine Faceted Gems and Cab Market for less than $200 at 6.5 mm, which is a good ring size. It is hard to judge the color from the photos because of the reflections. I am also not familiar with the seller, but perhaps others may chime in. It's well priced, and at this price point, I would be willing to take a risk and send it to AGL.

 

[SparkliesLuver]

Thanks for the eye, preg. You know, for this, I'm not sure. There's a part of me that wants to hunt down the trade ideal but yet another part of me wants to find something I love and that speaks to me. Maybe they'll be one in the same, I'm not sure.

I'm not on FB. Are the ones toward the bottom more "trade ideal"? Or is that just showing how the color can vary within spess (from more yellow to orange)?