Could anyone please give me your opinions on these Sapphires

[SapphireShopper]

Hi guys,
I'm in need of your expertise .
Could you guys kindly assess these two sapphires and give me some feedback on them?

1.21 carat Oval Natural Blue Sapphire
25959 - This 1.21 Oval Blue Sapphire is sold exclusively by James Allen

www.jamesallen.com

1.31 carat Oval Natural Blue Sapphire
22365 - This 1.31 Oval Blue Sapphire is sold exclusively by James Allen

www.jamesallen.com

Thank you in advance!

 

[lovedogs]

I wouldn't buy gemstones from James Allen. They are good for diamonds, but not for gemstones. They dont have any real certificates (just their own in house one, which is pretty useless), and they dont sell well cut or top color sapphires.

What is your budget, color preference, size preference, shape, etc? We can help you find something much better.

I would look at the "trusted dealers" sticky to see the list of vendors that we recommend .

 

[voce]

Both of these are too dark for me, and the top one has a window. I agree, James Allen sapphires don't come with certificates from a lab; I would never buy from James Allen.

 

[lovedogs]

Here are some options from gemfix that I much prefer:

Round Natural Blue Sapphire Modified "Roulette" Cut | 1.09cts - Gemfix

Round Blue Natural Sapphire Modified Brilliant Cut 1 carat

gemfix.com

Round Natural Blue Sapphire Modified "Roulette" Cut | 1.06cts - Gemfix

Royal Blue Natural Sapphire Round Modified Brilliant Cut 1 carat

gemfix.com

Oval Natural Blue Sapphire Modified Portuguese Cut - Gemfix

Blue Natural Sapphire Oval Portuguese Brilliant Cut

gemfix.com

I was operating under the assumption that your budget was 2K, but if it goes up to 3K then this one might work too:

Oval Modified Portuguese Cut Natural Blue Sapphire 2 carats - Gemfix

Royal Blue Natural Sapphire Oval Modified Brilliant Portuguese Cut

gemfix.com

 

[pokerface]

"Natural" sapphire means pretty much nothing these days when sapphires are routinely subjected to high heat/beryllium treatments. Guarantee that the James Allen sapphires fall into this category and are of extremely low value.

 

[Rfisher]

Agree with previous assessments of JA for colored stones.
Gemfix is super easy to deal with if you are located in USA.
@MainSequence did an awesome vendor vs owner pic comparison of some gemfix blue sapphires, so you can get an idea of how to ‘read’ his photos.

Vendor pictures and owner pictures of PS stones

Baby’s first zircon. Kind of love it. Seems to sparkle more in lower light. 1.55 carat from hilur of gemrockauctions.

www.pricescope.com

 

[SapphireShopper]

Thank you all! I appreciate all your help.
Now I'm actually trying to buy a sapphire engagement ring.
So I want to buy it with a setting

BTW is this any better?

1.07 carat Oval Natural Blue Sapphire

24397 - This 1.07 Oval Blue Sapphire is sold exclusively by James Allen

www.jamesallen.com

 

[chroman]

Many jewelers will set stones they didnt sell - finding a nice sapphire is the hard part.

You likely can find a local jeweler to handle the setting. It’s not required to get the stone and setting in one shot.

 

[lovedogs]

Thank you all! I appreciate all your help.
Now I'm actually trying to buy a sapphire engagement ring.
So I want to buy it with a setting

BTW is this any better?

1.07 carat Oval Natural Blue Sapphire

24397 - This 1.07 Oval Blue Sapphire is sold exclusively by James Allen

www.jamesallen.com

The sapphire is the most important part of the ring, and you can easily get a setting from a local jeweler and have them set a stone. None of the james allen options will be high quality. Definitely figure out the sapphire first and setting second.

 

[Rfisher]

Congratulations on your upcoming engagement.
What are your/ your intended’s priority on a sapphire?
How super specific is the wanted blue color?
If it shifts to a violet or a muddy grey in certain lighting- is that an issue?
If it sparkles in some lighting but doesn’t in others is that an issue?
If it only looks somewhat like the vendor picture in very bright focused light is that an issue?
If you can see flaws or naturals or no color areas to your naked eye is that an issue?
If half of the stone ‘blacks out’ a majority of the time, is that an issue?
If you don’t get the finished ring by Valentine’s Day is that ok?
If any of the above matters (and you both don’t care to really know the extent of treatment) order the stone loose for you to view in your multiple daily environments. You’ll pay to ship back and forth but you’ll know what you are getting (appearance wise) before it becomes unreturnable.
Know the 25% off is still no bargain.
As for the setting - my question would be if they custom make it to the shape of the stone. The same setting just can’t fit shape of stone #1 the same as stone #3.

Best wishes

 

[Rfisher]

Who knows a vendor that upfront sells BE treated blue sapphires, so OP can compare the price?

 

[whitewave]

Are you truly set on James Allen given we don’t recommend it?

What is your timeline?

How about if we guide you and show you how to buy a stone and then have it made into a ring.

I just sent my yellow sapphire off to David Klass in LA who is making a halo ring for me.

Or is James Allen good enough for you?

 

[whitewave]

Have you checked diamonds by Lauren? I really like David’s sapphires and he usually has rings ready to go.


What about this one?

1.65 ct Unheated Violet-Blue Sapphire

1.65 ct Unheated Violet-Blue Sapphire

www.finewatergems.com

1.65 unheated $1980.00


Oh, one last thing, sapphires face up very small. Have you seen a 1.3 carat in person?

What setting do you like?

 

[pokerface]

A quick search on ebay reveals thousands of "natural" blue sapphires that look exactly like the ones being sold by JA, starting at $.01: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Natural-Ro...725379?hash=item263074e8c3:g:uQwAAOSw7rReFH~i

 

[chroman]

In addition the gemfix suggestions from lovedogs and the finewater from whitewave above, I’ll toss out this:

Gemstone Search- Pearlman's Jewelers

 

[Bron357]

Hi, James Allen sapphires and setting are nice but they are way too expensive for their quality.
if the thought of finding a sapphire and then a setting and then someone to set it all is too much, there are better options for a new, ready to go ring.
Diamonds by Lauren is a highly regarded vendor. Not only are her gemstones excellent quality, her settings are stunning. so for your money you get a much better sapphire and a higher quality setting.
this is an example, the sapphire is 1.6 carats plus another .60 carats of diamonds.

 

[SapphireShopper]

Hi All!
Thank you again for your input.
I'm not set to buy the James Allen one,I just didn't know any better.

Congratulations on your upcoming engagement.
What are your/ your intended’s priority on a sapphire?
How super specific is the wanted blue color?
If it shifts to a violet or a muddy grey in certain lighting- is that an issue?
If it sparkles in some lighting but doesn’t in others is that an issue?
If it only looks somewhat like the vendor picture in very bright focused light is that an issue?
If you can see flaws or naturals or no color areas to your naked eye is that an issue?
If half of the stone ‘blacks out’ a majority of the time, is that an issue?
If you don’t get the finished ring by Valentine’s Day is that ok?
If any of the above matters (and you both don’t care to really know the extent of treatment) order the stone loose for you to view in your multiple daily environments. You’ll pay to ship back and forth but you’ll know what you are getting (appearance wise) before it becomes unreturnable.
Know the 25% off is still no bargain.
As for the setting - my question would be if they custom make it to the shape of the stone. The same setting just can’t fit shape of stone #1 the same as stone #3.

Best wishes

Thank you!
I'm looking for a saturated blue ( not too dark, but not light).
I don't mind if I finish after Valentine's day.
I'm actually worried that the actual sapphires aren't faithful to the images/ 360 views.
But sadly I'm not in US ( I'm actually in Japan), so moving things back and forth might be costly.
Again thank you very much!

 

[icy_jade]

Then why buy in the US? Surely you can buy from Japan. Can you visit the ongoing Jewellery show to buy/look? Will give you a much better idea of what you like/ what sapphires are like in real life

Visit｜International Jewellery Tokyo (IJT 2026)

Japan's largest jewellery trade show in January. This page provides info on visitor registration, interpretation services, FAQs, etc.

www.ijt.jp