Eightstar question

[EightstarKy]

Hold the Line!

Eightstar is still in Business it has just been taken over by a new owner. Same Stone, same cutting Technique, same master cutter, same machinery, same intellectual property, just different location. We bought the Eightstar company and moved it to Louisville, Kentucky where nothing has changed to the company except really the state.
The reason for Seng Jewelers as the only store on the eightstar.com is because when we took over and moved the facility, The was NO inventory. We have been crazily cutting stones in order to build up an inventory but they sell a lot in our Store, Seng, and it takes a very long time to cut the stones, therefore that is why Seng is the only agent on the site. We are trying our best to take care of this and we are very particular on Quality, first and foremost. The Eightstar name and its history is very very important to us and We will now take it on into the future and keep it at the top where the Eightstar name belongs.

 

[denverappraiser]

Hold the Line!

Eightstar is still in Business it has just been taken over by a new owner. Same Stone, same cutting Technique, same master cutter, same machinery, same intellectual property, just different location. We bought the Eightstar company and moved it to Louisville, Kentucky where nothing has changed to the company except really the state.
The reason for Seng Jewelers as the only store on the eightstar.com is because when we took over and moved the facility, The was NO inventory. We have been crazily cutting stones in order to build up an inventory but they sell a lot in our Store, Seng, and it takes a very long time to cut the stones, therefore that is why Seng is the only agent on the site. We are trying our best to take care of this and we are very particular on Quality, first and foremost. The Eightstar name and its history is very very important to us and We will now take it on into the future and keep it at the top where the Eightstar name belongs.

Thanks for the update and welcome to Pricescope. I look forward to seeing what you do with the brand.

A few questions from the above conversation just for clarity:
Are you manufacturing some or all eightstar branded stones in the US?
Do you anticipate selling eightstar branded stones through dealers other than Seng? As I recall, eightstar had a substantial dealer network in place throughout the country. Do you expect to be using all or some of those dealers or is the 'new' eightstar going to be sold through a different channel entirely?
Is the eightstar brand available to online shoppers (from Seng or anywhere else)? Do you expect this to change any time soon?

I wish you the best of luck with your new venture. I agree that eightstar has a wonderful history of fantastic products and I look forward to continued success under your management.

 

[AGBF]

Hold the Line!

Eightstar is still in Business it has just been taken over by a new owner. Same Stone, same cutting Technique, same master cutter, same machinery, same intellectual property, just different location.

I may be wrong, because this was all a very long time ago, but I thought Richard von Sternberg used to do the actual cutting himself. Does anyone else remember if this was the case?

I realize that Richard left Eightstar a little while before it was sold, so even if he had been doing the cutting while he was there, someone would have had to replace him. I have no idea who. Who is your master cutter, EightstarKy?

Deb/AGBF

 

[EightstarKy]

Hold the Line!

Eightstar is still in Business it has just been taken over by a new owner. Same Stone, same cutting Technique, same master cutter, same machinery, same intellectual property, just different location. We bought the Eightstar company and moved it to Louisville, Kentucky where nothing has changed to the company except really the state.
The reason for Seng Jewelers as the only store on the eightstar.com is because when we took over and moved the facility, The was NO inventory. We have been crazily cutting stones in order to build up an inventory but they sell a lot in our Store, Seng, and it takes a very long time to cut the stones, therefore that is why Seng is the only agent on the site. We are trying our best to take care of this and we are very particular on Quality, first and foremost. The Eightstar name and its history is very very important to us and We will now take it on into the future and keep it at the top where the Eightstar name belongs.

Thanks for the update and welcome to Pricescope. I look forward to seeing what you do with the brand.

A few questions from the above conversation just for clarity:
Are you manufacturing some or all eightstar branded stones in the US?
Do you anticipate selling eightstar branded stones through dealers other than Seng? As I recall, eightstar had a substantial dealer network in place throughout the country. Do you expect to be using all or some of those dealers or is the 'new' eightstar going to be sold through a different channel entirely?
Is the eightstar brand available to online shoppers (from Seng or anywhere else)? Do you expect this to change any time soon?

I wish you the best of luck with your new venture. I agree that eightstar has a wonderful history of fantastic products and I look forward to continued success under your management.

Thank you for your kind wishes,
ALL Eightstar branded stones are being manufactured in the US. Definitely. We do anticipate using the same dealers that bought into and believed in the Eightstar Diamond. We were just so far behind in Inventory when the red tape cleared up, that it was difficult for Eightstar to even keep up with the Seng store. It is available to be seen online but not really through the E-commerce venues only because of Territories for Dealers. (That and you can't really appreciate a Diamond without seeing it in person).
Thank you again and We are very excited to be on Pricescope and on the ground running!!

 

[EightstarKy]

Hold the Line!

Eightstar is still in Business it has just been taken over by a new owner. Same Stone, same cutting Technique, same master cutter, same machinery, same intellectual property, just different location.

I may be wrong, because this was all a very long time ago, but I thought Richard von Sternberg used to do the actual cutting himself. Does anyone else remember if this was the case?

I realize that Richard left Eightstar a little while before it was sold, so even if he had been doing the cutting while he was there, someone would have had to replace him. I have no idea who. Who is your master cutter, EightstarKy?

Deb/AGBF

No, Richard didn't do the cutting himself.
He had a father and son duo of Master Eightstar Cutters, but the Father died a few years ago but his son(our Master Cutter) is extraordinary in his cutting and his consistency is nothing less then the best.......

 

[kenny]

I'm so glad to hear the Eightstar will continue with the same recipe.
It is fantastic.
I've seen Eightstars live alongside a couple other top cuts like Whiteflash's ACA.
While the Eightstar is fantastic I just could not see paying around 40% more for it.
If the price was closer it would have been worth it to me to buy an Eightstar.
Still, I hope to accquire an Eightstar one day.

Just my 2 cents.

BTW, do you know the weight was of this Fancy Deep Blue Eightstar that's on Langerman's blog?
Do you know if that color was natural or treated?
Did it sell to a private party or can it be seen in a museum collection somewhere?

http://www.langerman-diamonds.com/blog/archives/2007/10

 

[AGBF]

No, Richard didn't do the cutting himself.
He had a father and son duo of Master Eightstar Cutters, but the Father died a few years ago but his son(our Master Cutter) is extraordinary in his cutting and his consistency is nothing less then the best.......

Thank you for your answer, EightstarKy. I am sorry to hear that his father has passed away, but am glad that you have retained the services the "son" master cutter!

Deb/AGBF

 

[AGBF]

BTW, do you know the weight was of this Fancy Deep Blue Eightstar that's on Langerman's blog?
Do you know if that color was natural or treated?
Did it sell to a private party or can it be seen in a museum collection somewhere?

If you cannot have that one, kenny, you can reward yourself with another colored Eightstar when you finish your treatments. That would give you something to look forward to! They could cut one of any size for you, I am sure!

Deb

 

[EightstarKy]

I'm so glad to hear the Eightstar will continue with the same recipe.
It is fantastic.
I've seen Eightstars live alongside a couple other top cuts like Whiteflash's ACA.
While the Eightstar is fantastic I just could not see paying around 40% more for it.
If the price was closer it would have been worth it to me to buy an Eightstar.
Still, I hope to accquire an Eightstar one day.

Just my 2 cents.

BTW, do you know the weight was of this Fancy Deep Blue Eightstar that's on Langerman's blog?
Do you know if that color was natural or treated?
Did it sell to a private party or can it be seen in a museum collection somewhere?

http://www.langerman-diamonds.com/blog/archives/2007/10

We're thinking that the blog stone was a Natural and it was around 1/2ct
as far as pricing goes, the price the dealer sells it for always depends on the individual markup that each store sets up, that is they're prerogative and We stay out of that, Our job is to Cut the Diamond with the Maximum amount of Fire possible and handcut it in the Great United States Of America.....

 

[kenny]

I'm so glad to hear the Eightstar will continue with the same recipe.
It is fantastic.
I've seen Eightstars live alongside a couple other top cuts like Whiteflash's ACA.
While the Eightstar is fantastic I just could not see paying around 40% more for it.
If the price was closer it would have been worth it to me to buy an Eightstar.
Still, I hope to accquire an Eightstar one day.

Just my 2 cents.

BTW, do you know the weight was of this Fancy Deep Blue Eightstar that's on Langerman's blog?
Do you know if that color was natural or treated?
Did it sell to a private party or can it be seen in a museum collection somewhere?

http://www.langerman-diamonds.com/blog/archives/2007/10

We're thinking that the blog stone was a Natural and it was around 1/2ct
as far as pricing goes, the price the dealer sells it for always depends on the individual markup that each store sets up, that is they're prerogative and We stay out of that, Our job is to Cut the Diamond with the Maximum amount of Fire possible and handcut it in the Great United States Of America.....

Please consider NOT staying out of it.
Because of the Internet and PS in particular the number of stupid customers who fall for marketing gobbleteegoop dribbling from the mouths of salespeople is falling.

I've never heard of a business owner selling a business because it made too much money.
I suspect Eightstar's sales being hurt by being overpriced was a factor in the former owner's decision to sell.

Please price Eightstar competitively.
I WANT ONE but will not buy at 40% premium.

 

[NARRISHKEIT]

I'm so glad to hear the Eightstar will continue with the same recipe.
It is fantastic.
I've seen Eightstars live alongside a couple other top cuts like Whiteflash's ACA.
While the Eightstar is fantastic I just could not see paying around 40% more for it.
If the price was closer it would have been worth it to me to buy an Eightstar.
Still, I hope to accquire an Eightstar one day.

Just my 2 cents.

BTW, do you know the weight was of this Fancy Deep Blue Eightstar that's on Langerman's blog?
Do you know if that color was natural or treated?
Did it sell to a private party or can it be seen in a museum collection somewhere?

http://www.langerman-diamonds.com/blog/archives/2007/10

We're thinking that the blog stone was a Natural and it was around 1/2ct
as far as pricing goes, the price the dealer sells it for always depends on the individual markup that each store sets up, that is they're prerogative and We stay out of that, Our job is to Cut the Diamond with the Maximum amount of Fire possible and handcut it in the Great United States Of America.....

Please consider NOT staying out of it.
Because of the Internet and PS in particular the number of stupid customers who fall for marketing gobbleteegoop dribbling from the mouths of salespeople is falling.

I've never heard of a business owner selling a business because it made too much money.
I suspect Eightstar's sales being hurt by being overpriced was a factor in the former owner's decision to sell.

Please price Eightstar competitively.
I WANT ONE but will not buy at 40% premium.

Small production, long cutting and planning times, cut in the United States.
Not enough marketing or technical info to highlight the differentiation of the Eighstar brand over other brands.

This all doesn't lead well to competitive prices or volume of sales.
Good Luck Eightstar gorgeous stones but the market has gotten much tougher and a different approach may be needed.

 

[yssie]

Kenny didn't you at one point own a painted ACA - the New Line ones?

 

[AGBF]

Kenny didn't you at one point own a painted ACA - the New Line ones?

I am not kenny (obviously). I own an ACA (albeit a small one). It is not "a painted one". What is a "painted one"? What is "the New Line"? What has been improved since I bought my ACA? Also: why are we discussing ACAs in an Eightstar thread? Do they, somehow, relate to Eightstars? I mean do they relate to Eightstars more than any other ideal cut diamonds do?

Link to the ACA I bought a few years ago:

http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-121243.htm



Deb/AGBF


Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend

 

[slg47]

Kenny didn't you at one point own a painted ACA - the New Line ones?

I am not kenny (obviously). I own an ACA (albeit a small one). It is not "a painted one". What is a "painted one"? What is "the New Line"? What has been improved since I bought my ACA? Also: why are we discussing ACAs in an Eightstar thread? Do they, somehow, relate to Eightstars? I mean do they relate to Eightstars more than any other ideal cut diamonds do?

Link to the ACA I bought a few years ago:

http://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-121243.htm



Deb/AGBF


Diamonds Are A Girl's Best Friend

I believe the ACA New Line is painted (my understanding is that these are not produced any more) and so are Eightstars.
https://www.pricescope.com/journal/visible_effects_painting_digging_superideal_diamonds article on painting

 

[yssie]

Hi Deb

Brillianteering (painting, digging) - girdle treatments that alter the look of the stone and light return by changing the angles at which crown and pavilion facets meet at the girdle

And my post - mostly a note of the fact that IMO the premium that the EightStar company charges is nothing short of exorbitant. There is certainly a mystique about these stones - much like the Hearts on Fire brand, actually - but I don't find crown painting to be particularly mysterious, if that is indeed the EightStar technique (EightStarSky?). That I couldn't actually find any info on their technique on the website doesn't impress or bedazzle me, it annoys me.

I recall Kenny's old thread about comparing New Line and Classic ACA types, and I would welcome an explanation of how the now-obsolete New Line and the EightStar differ, as my non-expert eyes don't see anything of note. I know Andelain has an EightStar from JbEG, I'd love to hear her thoughts too, sadly she hasn't posted in a long time

As slg said - I read that WF stopped producing them a long time ago, soon after GIA started going nuts on brillianteering.


Discussion of the old New Line here, incl description of the treatments that yield that blood red IS

 

[kenny]

Kenny didn't you at one point own a painted ACA - the New Line ones?

Um, I may have temporarily.
I have a crummy memory but it is all a matter of record on PS if you can get the search function the work.
I think I bought a 1 ct ACA that I compared to the 8* but I returned the ACA.

Later I bought a traditional 0.82 ct E VVS1 ACA which we still have.

BTW the Solasfera also has solid blood-red IS performance.
I think it is from having 10 sections squeezing out the contrast leakage triangles next to each arrow, as opposed to brillianteering.

All these super duper cut diamonds are so stunningly beautiful.

 

[Rhino]

Interesting. I wasn't aware of this Neil. Thanks for filling us in.

I hear GOG does not give pricescope discount, rather they said everyone gets the pricescope discount, therefore IMO, no one gets it. Is this true or did they just spin me?

This is no spin. We have many clients from around the globe and have been a bricks and mortar store for over 30 years. I'm not going to give one group of people a better price over another. That is partiality. I look at what my competitors are doing for the $$$ and for an apples for apples comparison match the PS discount price and give that to all my clients.

Do you think it would be fair if you sent your friend to me and I charged him more money because he didn't say a particular magic word? And if I did that for PS alone, how do you know that if you didn't say another different secret word that you'd get more of a discount but I wouldn't tell it to you unless you came to me via that venue?

To me its a head game and I don't play like that. I'm a straight shooter from the word go. Like one of my favorite broadcaster's says ... Welcome to the no spin zone. The spin stops here.

Kind regards,

I applaude your openess. I find this just isn't the case in a lot of businesses and having one price structure is a big part of open business policy in somethinig so hard to place a value on such as jewelry. The diamond itself however is easier to compare, being an almost commodity.

However I bet there are SOME magic words that get diamonds out of you cheaper... "Dad, you aren't going to make me pay the same as joe public for my graduation diamond are you?" might work.

Haha. Well ... if I was going to discount, I am known to discount based on customer attitude if there is any room.

 

[Rhino]

No, Richard didn't do the cutting himself.
He had a father and son duo of Master Eightstar Cutters, but the Father died a few years ago but his son(our Master Cutter) is extraordinary in his cutting and his consistency is nothing less then the best.......

Thank you for your answer, EightstarKy. I am sorry to hear that his father has passed away, but am glad that you have retained the services the "son" master cutter!

Deb/AGBF

Hi EightstarKY,

Wish you all the best with the 8*. It is a very nice product.

When I sold them Allison Von Sternberg herself was the master cutter. Is Dana, Richard's son still involved?

Kind regards,

 

[EightstarKy]

No, Richard didn't do the cutting himself.
He had a father and son duo of Master Eightstar Cutters, but the Father died a few years ago but his son(our Master Cutter) is extraordinary in his cutting and his consistency is nothing less then the best.......

Thank you for your answer, EightstarKy. I am sorry to hear that his father has passed away, but am glad that you have retained the services the "son" master cutter!

Deb/AGBF

Hi EightstarKY,

Wish you all the best with the 8*. It is a very nice product.

When I sold them Allison Von Sternberg herself was the master cutter. Is Dana, Richard's son still involved?

Kind regards,

No, Dana is not Involved anymore......
Thank you for the kind wishes.......

 

[fxtrader151]

8*KY

Hi, My wife wears an 8* I bought her back in 2002. It has "devloped" a chip on the edge that took with it a small piece of the diamonds underside. The entire chip is about the size of the tip of a ball point pin, maybe a little smaller.

But, it does make it where in a certain spot you can see straight through the diamond, and I think it has other negative effects as well. The diamond is 1.74 and is 7.73mm

We would like to see about having her stone recut/repaired. Can you tell me how we should go about that at this time? Is it possible to guess the dimensions of the fixed stone?

Thanks so much,

Chris

 

[denverappraiser]

Chris,

I don't think 8*KY is in the habit of monitoring this forum. You might want to contact them directly through the eightstar website.

 

[EightstarKy]

8*KY

Hi, My wife wears an 8* I bought her back in 2002. It has "devloped" a chip on the edge that took with it a small piece of the diamonds underside. The entire chip is about the size of the tip of a ball point pin, maybe a little smaller.

But, it does make it where in a certain spot you can see straight through the diamond, and I think it has other negative effects as well. The diamond is 1.74 and is 7.73mm

We would like to see about having her stone recut/repaired. Can you tell me how we should go about that at this time? Is it possible to guess the dimensions of the fixed stone?

Thanks so much,

Chris

please contact us: [email protected] if you have not already. I am sorry for the delay in responding if we have not spoken yet. we appreciate your patience and it is very difficult to "guess" the dimensions, weights,etc of a damaged stone without obviously inspecting it first. Thank you.
You might also want to check with your Eightstar Dealer that you bought it from....

 

[audball]

Interesting. I wasn't aware of this Neil. Thanks for filling us in.

I hear GOG does not give pricescope discount, rather they said everyone gets the pricescope discount, therefore IMO, no one gets it. Is this true or did they just spin me?

This is no spin. We have many clients from around the globe and have been a bricks and mortar store for over 30 years. I'm not going to give one group of people a better price over another. That is partiality. I look at what my competitors are doing for the $$$ and for an apples for apples comparison match the PS discount price and give that to all my clients.

Do you think it would be fair if you sent your friend to me and I charged him more money because he didn't say a particular magic word? And if I did that for PS alone, how do you know that if you didn't say another different secret word that you'd get more of a discount but I wouldn't tell it to you unless you came to me via that venue?

To me its a head game and I don't play like that. I'm a straight shooter from the word go. Like one of my favorite broadcaster's says ... Welcome to the no spin zone. The spin stops here.
Kind regards,

I didn't think it was possible, but I like you even more now!

 

[hiratop]

BTW, do you know the weight was of this Fancy Deep Blue Eightstar that's on Langerman's blog?
Do you know if that color was natural or treated?
Did it sell to a private party or can it be seen in a museum collection somewhere?
http://www.langerman-diamonds.com/blog/archives/2007/10

It's a 0.51 ct natural colour deep blue and it's in private hands.

 

[kenny]

BTW, do you know the weight was of this Fancy Deep Blue Eightstar that's on Langerman's blog?
Do you know if that color was natural or treated?
Did it sell to a private party or can it be seen in a museum collection somewhere?
http://www.langerman-diamonds.com/blog/archives/2007/10

It's a 0.51 ct natural colour deep blue and it's in private hands.

Thanks.
What a unique and fantastic colored diamond in every way!!!

If by any chance it's in your hands I'd love to see more pics.

 

[hiratop]

The stone is also on these pictures:
http://www.langerman-diamonds.com/blog/detail/305/Diamond-Vegas
http://www.langerman-diamonds.com/blog/archives/2007/10 (in "Colour Symphony")

 

[kenny]

Thanks hiratop.

I collect natural FCDs.
I'm also a connoisseur of diamond cut and have seen Eightstars live, so I really appreciate that Eightstar Fancy Deep Blue.
I understand it to be perhaps the most desirable diamond I've ever encountered, truly one in a zillion.

 

[hiratop]

It is a very nice diamond indeed. All the stones in "Colour Symphony" are 8*s, by the way.

 

[justin_thyme]

I'm a precious gem collector with more than 50 years of experience and training in gemology. On a daily basis I wear a 1.07 carat F-color internally flawless EightStar stud in my left ear. It's an absolutely astounding stone, worth every cent of the $16,000 I paid for it. Even in the dimmest lighting it flashes vividly, much more so than any of the other beautiful diamonds I have sported since 1972 (when my then-girlfriend pierced my ear, both of us under the heavy influence of fine tequila -- but that's another story ). Under magnification the stone is beyond amazing ... it looks like a flawless D-color even though I know it isn't. Yes, I could have bought a conventionally-cut stone of identical color and level of imperfection, for a far lower price. But among the many fine diamonds I have owned, larger and smaller, my EightStar remains unchallenged. It's great to know they're still being produced, no matter how rarely.

 

[Dancing Fire]

8* still in business?