Experts..Which Gem Cutting Books?

[Mara]

Greg and I are interested in reading about gem cutting--not just diamonds, but all gems. Experts, what are some books you may recommend for us to read & absorb...something we could understand but not too dumbed-down.




Thanks!

 

[DiamondExpert]

Here is a link to a few... http://www.gemworld.com/FacetBooks.asp

Although I don't cut, I have heard that Faceting for Amateurs by Vargas is the "bible" for many doing lapidary.

 

[Michael_E]

Mara,
Most of the books on gemcutting that I've read deal so intimately with the down and dirty details of cutting that they are downright boring to those that aren't actually cutting. If you really want books, the previously mentioned book by Vargas is good, as is ANY title by Sinkankas or Wykoff. Without actually cutting stones though it can be difficult to really understand how light bounces around in a stone, how to orient a stone to maximize the traits that you want, how to obtain a good polish on a difficult stone, etc. If you really want to have some fun get the program "Gemcad for Windows". This is GREAT ! It allows you to "cut" a virtual stone and then see how it performs in different light conditions. Here's the site:
http://www.gemcad.com/
If you want to get into cutting you might want to join the United States Faceters Guild, join their forum and learn more. Have fun!

Michael E.

 

[Colored Gemstone Nut]

Hi Mara,




www.faceters.com a site hosted and run by a talented faceter Jeff Graham which has some info and general resource guides on gem cutting and info...




Some of the books which he references on this site have a lot of the technical info like Michael E brings up, but might be fun to look at..

 

[Mara]

Great thanks for the tips everyone--will check them out!

 

[valeria101]

WOW!

Way to go Mara! By the way... do you know anything about the colored stone project of OctoNus?

 

[Mara]

Nothing at all Valeria! Greg and I just find the idea of cutting and how it's done very fascinating and figured that since it was doubtful we'd get any hands-on training without being serious about the trade....books would do as second best.

Greg always thought (before our diamond education while searching) that a faceted stone was just a fluke (e.g. they hit it right and it pops out perfectly...hee hee)....when in essence all the precision behind it is astounding.