Grey Spinel for e ring - picking and buying stone/setting?

[Kikyo5622]

Hello I just joined the forum to ask questions, but I have been oogling rings here for a few months

My boyfriend and I are getting engaged soon (we are a very casual couple who discuss this freely - we have been together for 5 years, friends for 10 years). I am picky picky picky so I said I would pick my own stone/ring - he can foot the bill (looking at a $1k-2K budget total).

Anywho, browsing rings for months, and I fell in love with grey spinels It still has the sparkle of the traditional diamond ring, but has that stormy, steely sort of character to it. I love them - they are very "me"

I especially love the grey spinels that I've seen posted by Frekechild *drool* - watching her youtube vids to see how they behave, I think I'm leaning towards a cut and color like her darker Barry cut spinel.

I suppose my question is, I don't really know anything about selecting stones, or settings that flatter the stone, etc... I have zero experience and zero knowledge (other than what I learned reading the sticky post for newbies to picking colored stones ). If I wanted a stone like the Barry cut, do I just contact that jeweler for pricing on a similar stone? Can you only purchase pre-cut stones or can you tell a jeweler what you are looking for and they can obtain an uncut spinel and cut it?

Aaand more questions (sorry!) I really like this band - https://www.etsy.com/listing/126399398/diamond-engagement-ring-setting-split?ref=favs_view_1

I assume I can send them the stone for a "custom order" and they can set my stone in this band?

I know this is the millionth question , but in your professional opinion is there anything unflattering about the band or setting I have chosen that would take away from the beauty of a grey spinel?

Sorry for bombarding you guys with so much text :X and thank you for being patient with me... I don't feel like I verbalize well what I want because I have no experience at all (so excited and no idea what to do!) I just want my buying experience to go smoothly...

 

[mochiko42]

Re: Grey Spinel for e ring - picking and buying stone/settin

Welcome from one PS newbie to another and congratulations on choosing a non-traditional e-ring. (I have a blue-purple CC sapphire myself)

Although I have far less experience that most PS'ers, having gone through the experience a few months ago, here are the first things I would recommend:


1. Decide on budget.
2. Decide on what type of stone (which you've done , and the shape/cut you prefer (round, oval, cushion, emerald cut, asscher, marquise etc)
3. Decide on a type of setting you want. (could be at the same time as choosing stone or before/after)
3. Research PS religiously (the recommended CS vendor list was so helpful in my own search) and narrow down a list of stone and setting vendors.
4. If you're getting a custom setting, reach out to a few different vendors, not only to compare prices, but to find which vendors you feel really understand what you want and are willing to go 110% for you. Even if you're usually a pretty laid-back person (which I tend to hope I am), you will be shocked at the amount of back-and-forth and revisions that will take place between you and the setting vendor. This also goes for the stone vendor, if you're not just picking something from their current inventory. So it's really important to find someone who you can communicate with effectively over email (and hopefully are also easy to get along with during the process too; it should be a fun and memorable experience!).
5. I wish I had known earlier about the Pre-loved forum and LT, DB --- great to hang out there to see if you can pick up any bargains!
6. For custom cutting, some vendors do sell rough and offer custom cutting services. Check out the sticky thread for recommended gemstones vendors. Also, if you can't find the right stone on the vendors' website, it doesn't hurt to email them with your requirements to see if they have anything in their inventory that you might like but isn't on their website (most will reply you very quickly, e.g. in 1-2 days)

Congrats again and good luck!

 

[deskjockey]

Re: Grey Spinel for e ring - picking and buying stone/settin

When I was looking, I just went through the entire PS recommended vendor list (seriously, every. single. one.) and searched them repeatedly (several times weekly) to find stones similar to what I wanted. Go figure I stumbled onto "the one" rather randomly and it turned out to be someone not even on the list *grin* But I'd recommend just going out, finding everything you can similar to the stone you liked so much, bookmarking them all, then winnowing down from there.

And of course, if you like the one Barry cut, absolutely email him My email correspondance with him over a pretty little garnet was a treat. Even if he doesn't have what you want, it will be pleasant and likely educational

 

[minousbijoux]

Re: Grey Spinel for e ring - picking and buying stone/settin

Sheesh, where's Freke when you need her?! OP: have you searched the term "grey spinel" or "platinum spinel" here? It should return many threads on them, from which you can glean the likely vendors to contact. The one who has seemed to have the most grey spinels recently is Jeff Davies, though there was a rush on them recently (thank you Freke ) and he has raised his prices considerably. My inclination with him is to wait a bit and his prices might come back down when demand subsides.

You have received really good advice from the other posters. For me, I think of the ring as the perfect combination of the stone and the setting, so I would start by thinking about what is the finished look you seek. Do you want big/small stone, art deco/modern, delicate or solid, gold/white metal, ready made/bespoke setting. Then try on rings and such to find what feels right to you in terms of finger coverage and width/depth. These are the things that typically slow folks down when they get started and realize they did not account for the size of the stone and the setting, making it so big, etc. If you come back with inspiration rings that helps a lot and typically from there, you start getting recommendations from other members as to the best sources. Once you have an idea of the type of finished ring, then you will know the size/shape of the stone. Its always a good idea to start with the stone and then buy the setting, rather than the other way around. Typical places to seek good grey spinels, Multicolour, JD as already mentioned and ebay (believe it or not, you can still sometimes find them fairly inexpensively). I would also check in with Uppergems.

HTH.

 

[FrekeChild]

Re: Grey Spinel for e ring - picking and buying stone/settin

I actually had my Barry spinel listed for sale recently, and it just sold.

If you want a Barry cut round, you're likely going to have to go to Barry to get it.

If you just want a gray spinel, you can shop around a bit, but it's going to take some practice because gray spinels are halfway to impossible to photograph properly, so you might not get it right the first time. What can look medium gray on the camera can turn out to be almost black in person, and vice versa.

A jeweler will probably not be able to easily source a gray spinel, they are not popular and not common. Most jewelers I've had contact with think that spinels are exclusively synthetic. Only lapidaries can cut stones, but there are lapidaries all over. You can tell a lapidary what you want, and they can work to get what you're looking for.

That ring is very pretty. Any stone would go nicely in it. I would find a stone first and then figure out a setting. Do you plan to wear a wedding band with it? I would assume that one to go with that ring would have to be custom made.

Seeing as how you've picked a colored stone for an engagement ring, I'd caution you that typically the search can take quite some time if you have very specific parameters. It sounds like you have the color set, and you want it cut like a Barry round. What size do you want? These are things to start thinking about, and things we can help you with.

Congratulations on your upcoming engagement!

Feel free to ask as many questions as you want.

 

[T L]

Re: Grey Spinel for e ring - picking and buying stone/settin

OP: have you searched the term "grey spinel" or "platinum spinel" here? .

They use the term titanium and silver to denote grey spinel as well.

You can find a lot of titanium, platinum, silver and grey spinels (all basically grey spinels) on ebay through a wide variety of dealers that have good standings (check toolhaus.org for all ebay feedback though). I would probably go that route, and try to find one that has a large depth. Someone like Jerry Newman can recut it for you. They're pretty affordable stones as well. Good luck.

I probably wouldn't pay more that $50/carat for a native cut stone.

 

[carmen1]

Re: Grey Spinel for e ring - picking and buying stone/settin

I was going to say that I thought I had recently seen Freke's dark grey spinel ring for sale, guess you just missed it.

Julia B on Etsy seems to have grey spinels frequently: https://www.etsy.com/shop/JuliaBJewelry?section_id=14594008&page=1

And Jeff Davies seems to regularly post grey spinels on his eBay auctions: http://stores.ebay.com/Fine-Gemston..._fsub=14&_sid=122712575&_trksid=p4634.c0.m322