Ever buy gems in cuts you dont like because of a good price?

[RedSpinel]

They dont give you a whole lot of room in the topic title bar, so I will re-ask the question in a manner that may be easier to understand. Have you ever been in a situation where you were offered a stone that was cut out of very nice material, that you really like, at a great price, but it is cut into a shape you dont really care for, so you buy the stone anyway? Or maybe you find some material that you really like, in an undesirable cut, but you feel that you wont see that same color or grade of material anytime soon, so you buy it anyway.....

I like most cuts, including some of the newer, fancy cuts as long as the shape accents the brilliance of a gem. I really like a nice Portuguese round, or any brilliant or modified brilliant cut, other than heart shapes. If it was up to me, I would never buy a heart shaped gem. But then several years ago I found a nice, clean, ideal colored Tsavorite garnet with little to no extinction at a great price...........But...........It was heart shaped modified brilliant stone! To be honest, the fact that it was heart shaped became a non-issue in my mind, even though I dont like that shape, because I really liked the material and the price was very good. So I bought it without a second thought. Still wish it wasnt heart shaped though!

 

[Michael_E]

Re: Ever buy gems in cuts you dont like because of a good pr

Yes, buying shapes that you don't like at a low price is a great way to buy stones for re-cutting since you can see what's inside the stone and easily do most gemological tests to assure yourself that it is what it is supposed to be.


In your case of not liking the heart and losing too much in a re-cut due to the cleft you are probably better off making a custom setting which makes the stone look less "heart-like". For instance you could make a bezel which covers the cleft in a creative way, (it's harder to do this with prongs, but one could imagine a prong at the cleft which was large and had a tip shaped like some symbol which had meaning to you). Can you post a picture of the stone?

 

[T L]

Re: Ever buy gems in cuts you dont like because of a good pr

They dont give you a whole lot of room in the topic title bar, so I will re-ask the question in a manner that may be easier to understand. Have you ever been in a situation where you were offered a stone that was cut out of very nice material, that you really like, at a great price, but it is cut into a shape you dont really care for, so you buy the stone anyway? Or maybe you find some material that you really like, in an undesirable cut, but you feel that you wont see that same color or grade of material anytime soon, so you buy it anyway.....

I like most cuts, including some of the newer, fancy cuts as long as the shape accents the brilliance of a gem. I really like a nice Portuguese round, or any brilliant or modified brilliant cut, other than heart shapes. If it was up to me, I would never buy a heart shaped gem. But then several years ago I found a nice, clean, ideal colored Tsavorite garnet with little to no extinction at a great price...........But...........It was heart shaped modified brilliant stone! To be honest, the fact that it was heart shaped became a non-issue in my mind, even though I dont like that shape, because I really liked the material and the price was very good. So I bought it without a second thought. Still wish it wasnt heart shaped though!

I dislike heart shapes intensely, but one of my favorite gems is a heart shape because the color is magnificent, and the price was too good to pass up. I wear it every day, and I adore that gem so much, I added extra prongs to it because I'm terrified of losing it. It's a fat heart too, so not even a nicely shaped one.

I'm also not too keen on ovals, but I have lots of those too. You'll find for rare material, its usually cut in a certain way because the material is so rare and cannot be cut for beauty, but for weight instead. Burmese rubies are typically cut horribly and in ovals or rounds because of this.

Oh by the way, be careful buying a gem for recutting it, as saturation can be lost.

 

[lambskin]

Re: Ever buy gems in cuts you dont like because of a good pr

Yes. I wanted a cushion ruby but ended up with an oval. I wanted a round blue sapphire but ended up with a square cut. Both stones are gorgeous. I bought a heart shaped peridot although I do not like the heart cut but the stone is beautiful.

 

[distracts]

Re: Ever buy gems in cuts you dont like because of a good pr

I always thought I didn't like trillions. One of my favorite rings now is a trillion... it's a mint garnet in the most perfect color and it's amazingly sparkly.



So yeah, I'm now much more open to buying gems in shapes I may not be too keen on if I like everything ELSE about the stone.

 

[RedSpinel]

Re: Ever buy gems in cuts you dont like because of a good pr

I always thought I didn't like trillions. One of my favorite rings now is a trillion... it's a mint garnet in the most perfect color and it's amazingly sparkly.



So yeah, I'm now much more open to buying gems in shapes I may not be too keen on if I like everything ELSE about the stone.

I like trillions. I like that mint garnet too. Is it a light Tsavorite? Are they any less expensive than medium Tsavorites?

 

[the_mother_thing]

Re: Ever buy gems in cuts you dont like because of a good pr

My alexandrite is a pear, which wasn't my first choice in cuts really ... But the color just grabbed me and never let go, and the price was good. But i wouldn't dream of recutting it, even though it has a window. It is currently being set (after over a year of jeweler woes, design issues, etc) and it should be finished in the next week or two.

 

[marymm]

Re: Ever buy gems in cuts you dont like because of a good pr

In the past I bought quite a few trillion-cuts because I loved the color (Mahenge Spinel, Ceylon blue Sapphire, Orange-y Yellow Zircon, several Tanzanites), and I paid to have several of them set into rings... as it turns out, though, I just don't wear them due to the trillion shape, so I've sold/am selling them. Now I don't even consider buying trillion-shaped gemstones, regardless of color or price.

 

[LoversKites]

Re: Ever buy gems in cuts you dont like because of a good pr

I haven't done it yet but I would definitely do it in the future.

 

[endless_summer]

Re: Ever buy gems in cuts you dont like because of a good pr

For a color that I didn't think I was going to readily run across again that I loved and a fairly clean stone, I would consider shapes that were out of my comfort zone - it would really depend on whether I had something particular in mind when I ran across the stone or if I stumbled across it and fell in love with it. If I were looking for something specific, I would skip it because the compromise would likely bother me. But, if it were a beautiful stone in a shape I hadn't considered before (oval, trillion), I would try to picture it in a setting first, and if I still liked it, then go for it. I just wouldn't want to have a bunch of stones that I wouldn't set because of their shape. I can appreciate unset stones, as I have a few now, but I know that I probably won't be in a position to collect stones - for now, the goal is to create a few nice pieces that I regularly wear, which makes me more patient and less willing to compromise.

 

[JewelFreak]

Re: Ever buy gems in cuts you dont like because of a good pr

I'm not a trillion fan either, but your setting, Distracts, makes that stone look so great. It's one of my fave rings on PS. Trillions aren't easy to set gracefully, imho; yours gets A+++ for that. And the rose gold is perfect w/the stone.

I've been tempted a few times to buy a stone in a shape I'm not crazy about, but no matter how great the color, I know I wouldn't wear it. I can't imagine any stone fabulous enough to make me buy a marquise, for instance; definitely not my thing.

 

[endless_summer]

Re: Ever buy gems in cuts you dont like because of a good pr

I always thought I didn't like trillions. One of my favorite rings now is a trillion... it's a mint garnet in the most perfect color and it's amazingly sparkly.



So yeah, I'm now much more open to buying gems in shapes I may not be too keen on if I like everything ELSE about the stone.

Distracts - I had to say it - I love, love, love your mint - it is fantastic, and your setting made it into such a beautiful piece! If I were ever to have a trillion, your ring would certainly be my inspiration piece

 

[Lisa Loves Shiny]

Re: Ever buy gems in cuts you dont like because of a good pr

Honestly never. Maybe I am too old and set in my ways. lol

 

[the_mother_thing]

Re: Ever buy gems in cuts you dont like because of a good pr

I can't imagine any stone fabulous enough to make me buy a marquise, for instance; definitely not my thing.

I used to agree, but then I saw this style marquise ring, and decided I WILL have one similar to this one day, but ideally with three marquise stones bezeled vs one.

 

[mochiko42]

Re: Ever buy gems in cuts you dont like because of a good pr

I have(/had?) oval-phobia because of the dreaded 1/2 & 1/2 extinctions and poor cutting on many ovals, but recently I bought this...


Also coming around to marquise and rectangles depending on the setting and gem, although I'm still not attracted to heart shapes, trilliant/trillion and overly elongated rectangles & ovals.

 

[endless_summer]

Re: Ever buy gems in cuts you dont like because of a good pr

I have(/had?) oval-phobia because of the dreaded 1/2 & 1/2 extinctions and poor cutting on many ovals, but recently I bought this...


Also coming around to marquise and rectangles depending on the setting and gem, although I'm still not attracted to heart shapes, trilliant/trillion and overly elongated rectangles & ovals.

That's beautiful! What is it? It looks like it wouldn't suffer from half-half nearly as much as more elongated shapes, if only because it's not a skinny oval (I like the thicker ones best). Nice find!

 

[Indylady]

Re: Ever buy gems in cuts you dont like because of a good pr

If the color and price are right, yes.

 

[Marlow]

Re: Ever buy gems in cuts you dont like because of a good pr

by RedSpinel » 28 Jun 2014 22:28
Written by distracts » 28 Jun 2014 20:59:
I always thought I didn't like trillions. One of my favorite rings now is a trillion... it's a mint garnet in the most perfect color and it's amazingly sparkly.



So yeah, I'm now much more open to buying gems in shapes I may not be too keen on if I like everything ELSE about the stone.



I like trillions. I like that mint garnet too. Is it a light Tsavorite? Are they any less expensive than medium Tsavorites?

----------

"Merelani Mint" is a grossular coloured by Vanadium - "Tsavorite" too.
In my opinion it is not a pale tsavorite - a pale "tsavorite" is a light green grossular. Cheap pale grossular has a bit iron and chrome - Mint garnet/ Merelani Mint has a very low iron content ( responsible for a yellow touch) and low chrome. The result is this bluish mint green

In my opinion Merelani mint like this little trillion is UNDERRATED and you cannot compare it with pale grossular or light green Mali garnet. One of the most beautiful gems - yes - I am a fan!!!

 

[mochiko42]

Re: Ever buy gems in cuts you dont like because of a good pr

I have(/had?) oval-phobia because of the dreaded 1/2 & 1/2 extinctions and poor cutting on many ovals, but recently I bought this...


Also coming around to marquise and rectangles depending on the setting and gem, although I'm still not attracted to heart shapes, trilliant/trillion and overly elongated rectangles & ovals.

That's beautiful! What is it? It looks like it wouldn't suffer from half-half nearly as much as more elongated shapes, if only because it's not a skinny oval (I like the thicker ones best). Nice find!

It's a Mozambique cuprian tourmaline!
It doesn't have any 1/2 &1/2, which is great. I'm slowly overcoming my oval dislike thanks to rovals and fat ovals.

 

[chrono]

Re: Ever buy gems in cuts you dont like because of a good pr

Yup, did so for ovals (I dislike ovals), trilliants and I would do it for a heart, if necessary. The colours are really nice and I know I won't find this colour(s) again, so I bought them. The ovals and one trilliant are set. I haven't found the right design for the other trilliant yet.