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Embassy Emeralds- anyone out there?

T L

Super_Ideal_Rock
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Well my chip happened on the break facet, but it may be disguised on any pavilion facet. If you are truly worried about surface fractures, I would deal with an emerald dealer that understands these concerns, and will find you a stone with minor or better treatment, and/or no table/crown facet fractures.

Also avoid emeralds with dark spot like inclusions. They dramatically lower value. I see them more in Brazilian stones though.
 

EmeraldEmpress

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@T L, I didn't notice any dark spots in the photos of these, but of course would need to verify in person.

Should EE respond back to me, I'll be sure to ask specifically about any surface-reaching inclusions/fractures on the table/crown.
I think I'd be "ok" with the ones on the pavilion.
 

EmeraldEmpress

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This dealer has amazing emeralds, but I don’t know anything about them, so at the very least you can see fine quality to get an idea of what you like. He has lots of videos. Still photos are terrible at capturing true emerald beauty, and even then, no video does them justice.

https://instagram.com/b.g.stones?igshid=1da2o4fk8qzsp


Update: I have also contacted this dealer ([email protected])
Curious to see what their price-point is for what I'm looking for and also how good their Customer Service is. Their response time has to be better than EE.....
 

T L

Super_Ideal_Rock
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Update: I have also contacted this dealer ([email protected])
Curious to see what their price-point is for what I'm looking for and also how good their Customer Service is. Their response time has to be better than EE.....
Keep us posted. You can also message them through Instagram. Again, I know nothing about this company. I just like what I see.

This is another company with gorgeous emeralds right out of Columbia. Again, I know nothing about them. They provide a website on their Instagram profile too. It seems they deal only in emeralds.

https://instagram.com/muzoemeralds?igshid=1f02wlqp7ca9k

In this link, he talks about treatment and lab reports.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BtlIt2QgDww/?igshid=13u58317yckb1
 
Last edited:

EmeraldEmpress

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@T L, lol and I've just contacted George....
We'll see what happens next and what I find out!
 
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T L

Super_Ideal_Rock
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Good luck, I hope one of these vendors works for you. We really need a recommended emerald vendor that specializes in them.
 

EmeraldEmpress

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Update: I've heard back from George @ IEEX
([email protected])

The quality seems to be there in the stones, reflected in the pricing- $3k per carat
 

T L

Super_Ideal_Rock
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Update: I've heard back from George @ IEEX
([email protected])

The quality seems to be there in the stones, reflected in the pricing- $3k per carat
Did you hear back from bg?

What are you intending to do? How was it dealing with George?
 

EmeraldEmpress

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@T L, I haven't heard from [email protected] yet.... And nothing more from Embassy Emeralds either....

George was very nice, and I appreciated his quick response (which I'm finding is harder and harder to come by when making jewelry purchases.. )

$3k a carat is too excessive for earrings, in my opinion/for my purposes. I'm thinking I don't need super fine color quality for my earrings. I'd like a nice medium-toned green without fractures that would cause issues.
 

T L

Super_Ideal_Rock
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Those are gorgeous! Thank you for sharing!
I am looking for something more "daily wear" set in 4 simple prongs, preferably large emerald cut squares.... Those pears would be stunning for a dressed-up look though.
What is “large?” Emerald can be cost prohibitive unless you sacrifice color and/or clarity (more fractures).
 

EmeraldEmpress

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What is “large?” Emerald can be cost prohibitive unless you sacrifice color and/or clarity (more fractures).

I'd like 3 carats, or close to it, total weight for the set of earrings and really like the chunkier look of the square for my ears for this particular set.
 

T L

Super_Ideal_Rock
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I'd like 3 carats, or close to it, total weight for the set of earrings and really like the chunkier look of the square for my ears for this particular set.
Even two carat total weight stones will look substantial. Considering the face up size of beryl is nearly twice that of corundum, if you get smaller, but higher quality gems, they will pop.

Quick question, did Embassy Emeralds go silent after you brought up lab reports to them?
 

mellowyellowgirl

Ideal_Rock
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Sooo sorry to hijack but @T L can you tell me a few more stones that have good face up size. I know corundum is hopelessly small for its weight.
 

T L

Super_Ideal_Rock
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Sooo sorry to hijack but @T L can you tell me a few more stones that have good face up size. I know corundum is hopelessly small for its weight.
Opals are enormous for their carat weight. I recently set my three carat opal and it’s 10x14mm in size. I’m not sure about black opals though, I’m primarily talking about crystal opals. Beryls are less dense as mentioned. I can’t think of anything else off the top of my head but you could look up gem density tables (specific gravity) to learn more.

I think zircon and spessartite are even more dense than corundum, so they face up very small.
 

lovedogs

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Opals are enormous for their carat weight. I recently set my three carat opal and it’s 10x14mm in size. I’m not sure about black opals though, I’m primarily talking about crystal opals. Beryls are less dense as mentioned. I can’t think of anything else off the top of my head but you could look up gem density tables (specific gravity) to learn more.

I think zircon and spessartite are even more dense than corundum, so they face up very small.
Zircon faces up tiny for it's ct weight!! Learned that while searching, I need to be looking at larger CT weight than I'm used to in order to get the same mm size.
 

mellowyellowgirl

Ideal_Rock
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Zircon faces up tiny for it's ct weight!! Learned that while searching, I need to be looking at larger CT weight than I'm used to in order to get the same mm size.

I didn't realise that. They are so affordable I bought big ones so they didn't notice:lol:
 

prs

Brilliant_Rock
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@mellowyellowgirl the following table shows the specific gravity of various gemstones followed by the ratio of that sg relative to diamond.

Aquamarine 2.71 0.77
Diamond 3.52 1.00
Emerald 2.73 0.78
Garnet 4.15 1.18
Opal 2.10 0.60
Peridot 3.38 0.96
Rhodochrosite 3.57 1.01
Rhodolite 3.85 1.09
Rubellite 3.01 0.86
Ruby 4.01 1.14
Sapphire 3.99 1.13
Spessartite Garnet 4.15 1.18
Spinel 3.59 1.02
Tanzanite 3.35 0.95
Tourmaline 3.07 0.87
Tsavorite Garnet 3.65 1.04
Zircon 4.33 1.23

So aquamarine, emerald, tourmaline, and especially opal are quite light, but garnet, ruby, sapphire, and particularly zircon are heavy. The lighter the gem, the bigger the face up size per carat.
 

EmeraldEmpress

Shiny_Rock
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Even two carat total weight stones will look substantial. Considering the face up size of beryl is nearly twice that of corundum, if you get smaller, but higher quality gems, they will pop.

Quick question, did Embassy Emeralds go silent after you brought up lab reports to them?

@T L, I'd like to cover most of my earlobe with the larger square, that's the look I'm aiming for... hope I can pull it off. The EE stones would work... I think....

As far as EE going silent, they have been poor communicators from the get-go, they didn't go silent once something was brought up, but rather don't seem keen on doing internet business, which is odd b/c they do not have a brick-and-mortar store, per my understanding. So... the only way to do business is to do so online, and yet they take a week in between emails to respond- and that's with me following up 2 or 3 times. At one point they said "sorry we missed your email" and responded and I wanted to be like you mean EMAILSSSSSSS- b/c I've sent 3 that have gone unanswered. I last emailed them on 5/2, no answer, followed up again this afternoon 5/8, but that's typical for them it seems. I mean tomorrow, 5/9 is a full week of them ignoring me/seeming unconcerned about doing business.
 

EmeraldEmpress

Shiny_Rock
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Thank you so much @prs

That's brilliant!!!!

Sorry @EmeraldEmpress. Resume normal programming:D

LOL no worries at all, it was very informative and good to know! Thanks for asking ; )
I had a similar experience with my sapphire, when it arrived and I opened the box it was SO much smaller than I had expected lol, but I still love it nonetheless ; )
 

T L

Super_Ideal_Rock
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Maybe internet business is a very small part of EE’s sales. Maybe they’re a large supplier to bigger companies, so you’re at the bottom of their food chain. Still, the lack of communication really puts me off.
 

EmeraldEmpress

Shiny_Rock
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Maybe internet business is a very small part of EE’s sales. Maybe they’re a large supplier to bigger companies, so you’re at the bottom of their food chain. Still, the lack of communication really puts me off.

Agreed, it is certainly off-putting, esp. when I'm seriously interested in a set of their stones.
It's also just so odd, they market their quick response time to customers on their website:
"We’d love to hear from you. Please feel free to email us using the form below. We’ll make every attempt to respond to every question, comment, complaint, or request within one day or less."

and this is even better, again listed on their website:
"We are an internet business, open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. But we are a small business and often our work is conducted at times outside the typical 9-5 work day. This gives us a great amount of freedom in our schedules allowing us to conduct business operations at any time of day, any day of the year. We regret any inconvenience this may cause our customers, but we promise to be remarkably prompt and responsive to any questions or concerns you may have. Please do not hesitate to email them to us. You can expect a quick response by email or by phone, usually within hours." <- USUALLY WITHIN HOURS... are you kidding me?!?!?
 

voce

Ideal_Rock
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Agreed, it is certainly off-putting, esp. when I'm seriously interested in a set of their stones.
It's also just so odd, they market their quick response time to customers on their website:
"We’d love to hear from you. Please feel free to email us using the form below. We’ll make every attempt to respond to every question, comment, complaint, or request within one day or less."

and this is even better, again listed on their website:
"We are an internet business, open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. But we are a small business and often our work is conducted at times outside the typical 9-5 work day. This gives us a great amount of freedom in our schedules allowing us to conduct business operations at any time of day, any day of the year. We regret any inconvenience this may cause our customers, but we promise to be remarkably prompt and responsive to any questions or concerns you may have. Please do not hesitate to email them to us. You can expect a quick response by email or by phone, usually within hours." <- USUALLY WITHIN HOURS... are you kidding me?!?!?
Haha, I work at a small company that hasn't updated their website in years. I bet that statement on their website was also written years back, and probably there was one employee who was remarkably prompt who has left the company, and the company now provides horrible service and probably doesn't even realize that that's what their website claims.
 

EmeraldEmpress

Shiny_Rock
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Haha, I work at a small company that hasn't updated their website in years. I bet that statement on their website was also written years back, and probably there was one employee who was remarkably prompt who has left the company, and the company now provides horrible service and probably doesn't even realize that that's what their website claims.

What's terrible is that it's all written by the owner, Garrett.
He is the one who has emailed me, sparsely though.


From their website: (so you may be right, this may have all been written in 2005....)

"About Us

Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Garrett Fifer and I am the founder of Embassy Emeralds. I founded Embassy Emeralds in 2005 with the goal of building a successful business by bringing high quality Colombian emeralds at good prices to those who share the same appreciation for these captivating green treasures.

My vision for Embassy Emeralds is simple. I intend for us to become your trusted source for Colombian emeralds. Quality stones, pricing, service, and attention to the customer will be the things you remember about your buying experience with us and we will do everything necessary to ensure that this is the case. We buy only high quality emeralds in Colombia and only from reputable sources and I personally handpick each stone to ensure each one measures up to my high standards of quality.

Embassy Emeralds wants to earn your business."
 

voce

Ideal_Rock
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I'm speechless. :eek-2:

Personally, I'd rather do business with anybody else than someone who makes false claims like that.
 
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