Bi color tourmaline

[packrat]

Does anyone have a ring w/this type of stone? I know tourmalines aren''t the hardest, but I don''t wear my rings all the time, so I figured it would be ok! I''ve been looking at some on different sites mentioned here and am in love with the colors and how they fade into one another. I thought it would make a pretty original ering for whenever I get around to changing mine. Also, I''ve not seen hardly any round cuts in my browsing..is that b/c the other cuts show off the colors better?

 

[Lady_Disdain]

Most bicolours are cut along the crystal, to optimise the effect of the two colours. A round stone would either me too small to show off the colours or waste a lot of the colours. Sometimes, this can be exagerated, ending up with a very, very long, skinny stone which can hard to design and more delicate.

If you are looking for one, be specially aware of synthetics being passed off as natural, specially too sharp boundaries between the colours. David at http://tiptopgem.com/ tells his too good to be true bicolour story in his blog.

 

[packrat]

Thanks for the link! I''ll check that out later tonight. I''m not in the market right now for one, but I''ve been oogling them at different places to see different colors..some are really light and some are darker..trying to decide what I really like. I''ve looked on ebay and much as I''m proud of some of the killer bargains I''ve gotten for my kids'' clothes or books, I''m too new and unsure of myself to buy a gemstone from there. Some I''ve looked at and thought, hmm..it looks like the colors meet in an exact straight line-maybe it can happen, I don''t know, but it looks odd to me regardless. I''ve seen some on there that there''s a picture of the stone on a hand, and I can see the fingers thru the stone. Like this one http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&item=370059025725

I think that is such a pretty stone, but I''m unsure of the see-through aspect.

This is the one that made me want to look more into the bi color.
http://www.ajsgems.com/gemstones/Tourmaline/Bi-Color-Tourmaline-948613529-2046340395.html

The setting I found that I like so much is for a round stone..so I guess if it can''t be made for a different shape, then I''ll have to decide if I want to find a different setting altogether or go w/a different gemstone, like green tourmaline.

 

[packrat]

This is the setting I like:
http://www.dimendscaasi.com/build/step1.asp?prodID=1A3G

Do you think something like that could be modified to work for an octagon, emerald or cushion? I don''t know that I''ve seen half bezels on anything other than round. Would it look nice?

 

[Lady_Disdain]

I like AJ´s bicolour! Very nice indeed.

I think that you would have to get that ring custom made to have it fit a square. I don´t see how to get a straight sided gem there. I don´t see a technical probem for a square half bezel, but I think it may look rather odd, since the half bezel would mess with the simmetrical sides.

 

[packrat]

Thanks LD! I've been looking on ebay at them today, since there's a lot to look at, to give me an idea of shapes and colors. Would I be better off picking a setting I like first and then contacting someone to find a stone to fit? I like the half bezels sooo much-the one I posted earlier, and then I did find a different shape too, since there's not a plethora of round bi colors to choose from: http://www.adwar.com/products/styles/17539L/view

Or have someone find the stone and make a custom setting both? Thinking "custom" makes me afraid of the price, tho there's no harm in finding out!

Edited to say Thanks again for helping me! I get to looking at stones and settings on the internet and go crazy bookmarking everything and sending links to my best friend..I feel like a monkey, freaking out over shiny, sparklie things. Nice to have a place to go to ask questions!