ISO: Red ruby or blue sapphire... Is this possible?

[lumpsy]

Hello - I recently discovered this forum and am hoping for some help.

I am hoping to get my mom a natural red ruby or a blue sapphire ring for Mother's Day. A few years back, my mom had all her jewelry stolen during a home burglary so I've always hoped to replace some of it. I had originally set aside $500 for her Mother's Day gift. As I continue to search and browse, I am thinking I'm being unrealistic in that budget. I did find this ring that seems like it is too good to be true: http://www.etsy.com/listing/158382348/natural-98ct-vvs-sapphirediamonds?ref=related-14.. (Additionally I think my mom would prefer a bigger sapphire since I remember her previous stones being larger).

I'm also been trying to learn enough to purchase a loose stone and have it set. I have been reading up on all the beginner threads for CS, trying to take a crash course in getting educated on CS buying. Does doing this offer any cost savings? Thank you!

 

[lumpsy]

Here are some loose rubies I've found. It says they are cut. However I don't see a lot of faceting. Are these supposed to be recut after purchase?

http://blazengems.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1_27&products_id=290

http://blazengems.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1_27&products_id=318

This one is a garnet, but looks to be a pretty color: http://www.customgemstones.com/GARNET/ga1648.html..

Are any of the above good deals?

 

[lumpsy]

And then here are some Sapphire options I've found:

http://www.litnon.com/index.php?page=viewgem&id=9932

http://www.litnon.com/index.php?page=viewgem&id=9930

http://www.litnon.com/index.php?page=viewgem&id=8662

http://www.litnon.com/index.php?page=viewgem&id=9503

And the following two don't have as symmetrical of cuts:

http://mastercutgems.com/preview.php?cat=291&id=7437

http://mastercutgems.com/preview.php?cat=291&id=7428


As a side note, I do understand that I'll get what I pay for. However wondering if I can stretch my dollars somehow to get my mom something she'll love. If buying her a ring is not a realistic option that would be great to know also. Thanks!

 

[chrono]

What is your requirement for the corundum? If you go with a lead glass filled ruby, it requires more care but a filled and diffused gem makes it very pretty yet affordable.

[URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/corundum-sapphire-and-ruby-treatment.175354/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/corundum-sapphire-and-ruby-treatment.175354/[/URL]

 

[chrono]

Here are some loose rubies I've found. It says they are cut. However I don't see a lot of faceting. Are these supposed to be recut after purchase?

http://blazengems.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1_27&products_id=290

http://blazengems.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1_27&products_id=318

This one is a garnet, but looks to be a pretty color: http://www.customgemstones.com/GARNET/ga1648.html...

Are any of the above good deals?

They aren't deals but fairly priced. The rubies are faceted; rubies typically don't have busy faceting due to inclusions. The garnet is on the dark side and will not look as nice indoors.

 

[lumpsy]

What is your requirement for the corundum? If you go with a lead glass filled ruby, it requires more care but a filled and diffused gem makes it very pretty yet affordable.

[URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/corundum-sapphire-and-ruby-treatment.175354/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/corundum-sapphire-and-ruby-treatment.175354/[/URL]

Thank you Chrono. I haven't finished reading through the post you linked. I'm at work and technically should not be educating myself on colored stones. Having not finished reading, my initial thoughts are I don't want to get my mom something that requires too much care. I guess I need to figure out the balance between value / more time and care involved vs more expensive but perhaps more durable.

 

[lumpsy]

Okay so I'll rule the garnet out. Thanks! I'm am worried about purchasing a loose stone and getting it set. It seems like I'd have to go custom and I have no idea what the cost of that would be.

 

[chrono]

For your budget, you don't have to go custom and I'm sure you can find a pretty yet reasonably priced stone. In terms of wear and forget, I would opt for a heated blue sapphire.

http://www.litnon.com/index.php?page=viewgem&id=9932
Looks to have a medium sized window, which is the middle area that will be see-through and "dead" looking.

http://www.litnon.com/index.php?page=viewgem&id=9930
Too much darkness at the ends for me but could be a nice looking sapphire under bright light conditions.

http://www.litnon.com/index.php?page=viewgem&id=8662
The middle portion looks like a black hole but the outer edge has a wonderful colour.

http://www.litnon.com/index.php?page=viewgem&id=9503
A very non-traditional blue green colour and on the dark side, not to my taste but could be to others.

 

[chrono]

These are better looking and better cut that the Litnon sapphires.

http://mastercutgems.com/preview.php?cat=291&id=7437
It should fit into a standard 8 x 6 mm oval setting. Again, this colour is very non-traditional.

http://mastercutgems.com/preview.php?cat=291&id=7428
Another non-traditional colour but it looks more evenly spread rather than splotchy. I'm guessing the open culet will be less obvious in person and this will fit a standard 6 mm round setting.

 

[lumpsy]

Thank you Chrono! You've been so wonderful about responding and very helpful. I had to step away yesterday and not think about sapphires vs rubies and custom vs stock and etc yesterday... too overwhelmed. Today I took another look and found this one: http://mastercutgems.com/preview.php?cat=251&id=7103.. It looks like there are "speckles" in the stone.

Anyway then I started pricing out semi-mounts which the least expensive I could find was $300. So that plus a $300-400 stone plus setting and sizing fees is do-able but maybe I shouldn't be so ambitious with my first colored gem purchase?

I'm perusing estate rings currently. The drawback here for me is it's a leap of faith that what the seller says is actually what you're cutting.

I'm thinking more and more I should just give her herbal medicine... at least with that gift, the herbalist tells me what to get and that's that... But yes I did not want to put more effort into the gift this year so I guess I'll slowly keep reading through the helpful threads you posted. Thank you so much for all your help!

 

[MollyMalone]

Do you know your mother's ring size, lumpsy -- and would you share with us what kind of mounting/finished ring you're thinking of (e.g., contemporary, traditional, vintage/antique-y; what color of gold would be preferable; any opinion re accent stones)?

Don't give up on the ring idea just yet, please

 

[lumpsy]

Hi MollyMalone - Thanks for the comment and questions. My mom's ring size is 6. Her preference would likely be yellow gold. I'm basing this on the only other jewelry item I bought her which was a yellow gold diamond tennis bracelet. That was an easy (though painful on the wallet) purchase since she picked it out. When I was looking at semi-mounts, I was looking for ones that had diamond halos. She really likes Princess Di's, now Kate's ring. Obviously I can't get her that! Would that style be considered traditional?

This seller has a bunch of estate rings that I'm perusing: http://www.ebay.com/sch/m.html?_ssn=jewelerusa&_sop=15&_pgn=7&_skc=300&rt=nc.. Very vague descriptions though...

 

[MollyMalone]

Here's a 1.09 carat ruby ring I found on eBay. I am a rube when it comes to rubies, so until Chrono and others more knowledgeable than me can speak about the stone itself, here's why I thought it might be a good possibility:

* 18K yellow gold
* it's not a halo, but it still provides additional finger coverage; most of the accent stones are round diamonds, but baguettes are the east-west accent stones -- which I think makes the setting look more distinctive (and I'm not saying that just 'cause I'm biased towards baguette side stones)
* the diamonds are represented as G-H in color & VS in clarity... better than the diamonds used as accent stones in the typical, mall jewelry store rings
* size 6, so no re-sizing needed
* under $500
* seller's feedback on both eBay itself and toolhaus.org is 100%

The seller isn't letting me "lift" any pics from the listing (other than the miniscule thumbnail ones); here's the listing page:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/GORGEOUS-18K-1-09ct-Natural-Ruby-diamond-Ring-Sz6-/200940326875

 

[slksapphire]

mm,

this ring could be a good deal just due to the gold (i am assuming that is 18K as claimed) and diamonds (though i think it's also pretty hard to confirm the color and cut while set). but the chances of the stone being a quality ruby are slim to none (or even whether it is a ruby). the problem is there is just no way to know. the color looks pleasing to my eye and if you are ok with highly treated ruby, may be the best bet for your budget.

 

[chrono]

http://www.ebay.com/sch/m.html?_ssn=jewelerusa&_sop=15&_pgn=7&_skc=300&rt=nc
These look like the typical commercial/mall quality where the sapphires look inky.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/GORGEOUS-18K-1-09ct-Natural-Ruby-diamond-Ring-Sz6-/200940326875
I agree that the setting looks pretty and that the price is worth the setting itself. The ruby is photographed so that it hides the cut issues. I suspect a window the size of the USA but at least the colour looks somewhat decent if it is indeed a ruby and one assumes it has been highly treated or is a synthetic ruby/simulant.

 

[MollyMalone]

Oh, how nice to see comments from silksapphire and Chrono! I myself would be OK with getting the ring for a first-hand look because (a) the seller has a 14-day, no questions asked, return policy & (b) eBay's own guarantee gives you a 30-day window in which to file for a refund if the ring were to prove to be not as described (not 18K, lower quality diamonds, and a synthetic ruby/stimulant). But I understand why others might be reluctant to do so.

The problem with that Master Cut Gems ruby, mumsy, is that its 9 x 6 mm size would require a custom setting; 6 x 8 and 7 x 9 mm are the closest oval sizes in stock settings. Do you like the color of the Madagascar sapphires that Dana Reynolds (Master Cut) has been offering? If so, since the ones linked above have apparently been sold, reach out to Dana & ask him if he has any others that would fit into a stock setting. He is super nice (my first purchase from him, in November, was another of those kind of Madagascar sapphires; I'm quite fond of it) & may be willing to be flexible on price.

 

[chrono]

If you are open to pendants and these are already set, which helps out budget wise:
http://www.mineralminers.com/html/sapphire_jewelry.stm

Item: rbyj304_ruby pendant, 0.54 ct measuring 4.7 mm round from Mozambique for $438.25. Heat only, per MM. I've purchased from MM before and found their pictures reasonably accurate.

Item: sblj208_blue-sapphire ring, 0.97 ct measuring 6.5 x 5.3 mm oval supposedly from Sri Lanka for $634.50 in a buttercup setting. Heat only per MM but given the price, I won't dig too deep. A bit of green and probably a bit dark but I'm not complaining for the price. The setting is also understandably not to most people's taste.

I also see a few decent looking blue sapphire pendants but don't know if you are fine with those. Let me check out JuliaB and a few Etsy vendors to see what they have.

 

[chrono]

Understandably, the sapphire is only 5 mm and set in silver but it's inexpensive and looks decent for the price.
http://www.etsy.com/listing/106867238/blue-sapphire-gemstone-ring-september?ref=related-4

http://www.etsy.com/listing/174503444/068-carat-cornflower-blue-ceylon?ref=related-4
Has potential but the catch is that you must also get the setting from the same vendor, which actually can be a good thing in your case as long as she has something you like within budget.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/152498157/precision-cut-ceylon-blue-spinel-and?ref=related-5
Looks very dark but it's already set and very pretty, if you don't mind a pendant.

 

[1001smiles]

http://www.etsy.com/listing/174503444/068-carat-cornflower-blue-ceylon?ref=related-4
Has potential but the catch is that you must also get the setting from the same vendor, which actually can be a good thing in your case as long as she has something you like within budget.

Thanks Chrono. Don't mean to thread-jack, just wanted to clarify (hope I am not breaking any rules) that you don't need to get the setting from the same vendor (that's me ), that changed last year.

 

[chrono]

1001Smiles,
That's great news that that requirement has been relaxed and I appreciate the update/correction.

 

[lumpsy]

Oh wow, thank you everyone! Lots of options... how am I ever going to choose? I've got multiple windows open on my computer right now looking at all the pretty items you all found for me. Thank you!

I also learned that I have a star sapphire necklace. Funny I had no idea what it was. It's been sitting in my jewelry box for years with a broken clasp. My mom gave it to me when I was in high school. I'm wondering now if I should have it repaired and given back to her.

 

[1001smiles]

1001Smiles,
That's great news that that requirement has been relaxed and I appreciate the update/correction.

Sure. It's actually feedback from here that helped me change that policy. So always appreciate constructive criticism
Sorry for the threadjack...

 

[lumpsy]

Here's a 1.09 carat ruby ring I found on eBay. I am a rube when it comes to rubies, so until Chrono and others more knowledgeable than me can speak about the stone itself, here's why I thought it might be a good possibility:

* 18K yellow gold
* it's not a halo, but it still provides additional finger coverage; most of the accent stones are round diamonds, but baguettes are the east-west accent stones -- which I think makes the setting look more distinctive (and I'm not saying that just 'cause I'm biased towards baguette side stones)
* the diamonds are represented as G-H in color & VS in clarity... better than the diamonds used as accent stones in the typical, mall jewelry store rings
* size 6, so no re-sizing needed
* under $500
* seller's feedback on both eBay itself and toolhaus.org is 100%

The seller isn't letting me "lift" any pics from the listing (other than the miniscule thumbnail ones); here's the listing page:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/GORGEOUS-18K-1-09ct-Natural-Ruby-diamond-Ring-Sz6-/200940326875

Update on my search: Big thanks to everyone and special thanks to MollyMalone. I purchased the ring you found on ebay. It's supposed to arrive in the next few days. I guess my next step would be to get it looked at to ensure that what I purchased is accurate to the description. I haven't looked into appraisals vendors yet. Once I get the ring, I'll post an update. I'm very excited! I think my mom will love it!

 

[MollyMalone]

Fingers crossed for you, lumpsy!