- Joined
- May 14, 2010
- Messages
- 4,333
TL|1308666615|2950985 said:Did you ask if these were newer material, if they have orange, for shots in artificial light? If not, I would pass on most of these. I hate to say it, but I honestly think you should give up looking for a Mahenge online. I don't think you'll find what you want unless you spend a fortune, and even then, you might not get somethng great. Everything I'm seeing as of late is too orange, too purple, not saturated enough, and certainly overpriced because they're living off the hype of the older material, which was much finer. I think to get a great Mahenge, or any nice red spinel, you need a gem afficionado to help you out (and to cover your back so a vendor won't try to pull the wool over your head), and you really need to see many stones in person, otherwise, you'll be spending a foturne on S&H charges. Most vendors don't even know what a good mahenge is (as I have found out the hard way), so how are you expected to know?
If you can't get to a gem show to see many in person, then you'll never know. You can't tell by photos alone.
The search for a fine mahenge is reminding me of the search for a fine paraiba tourmaline. Most people, and many vendors, have never seen a good one in person, so they hype the mediocre material, and to make a hefty profit as well. It's really frustrating, I'm sorry.
BTW, the Swala one looks the most promising, but if he can't provide photos in artificial fluorescent light, I would pass on it. That photo could be heavily photoshopped, or taken in the absolute most optimal lighting conditions.
I hate to be blunt, but you're looking at very high priced stones, so when that happens, I'm a bit more honest. I feel I can help someone save more heartache and $$$ that way. I know it's not what you want to hear, but I get really sad seeing someone make the same mistakes over and over again. You really need to build your eye for color when searching for a fine red spinel, or any fine red stone. I feel that red is one of the most difficult colors to search for, and unless you've seen a great one in person, you'll never know.
BTW, if you want me to just "shut up and go away," I can do that too, I won't be offended (seriously!!). I know my comments can sometimes be harsh and annoying, but I do it in the best interest of the people here. However, I know I can be really annoying.![]()
IndyLady|1308683889|2951215 said:I like the color of the trillion.
TL, I both agree and disagree with you.
I agree that its important to develop your own eye, and that the Mahenges around now, for the most part, aren't quite as good as what you'd find a few years ago. Same goes for rubies, and a few other gem varieties. It does help tremendously to see fine gems in person; gem shows and some jewelry stores will carry higher end gems will help you do that.
That being said, I don't think that gem buying is quite as difficult and elusive as you make it out to be--if it were, we'd never actually be able to buy anything!
IndyLady|1308692675|2951317 said:Right--not as gem varieties are as elusive as others.
You often have strong criticisms of gems when posters ask for advice--I don't get it. You seem to have high standards, and encourage posters to find better gems than they've posted, without any actual direction towards a better gem. Perhaps I would understand if your collection consisted of a few 'museum quality' pieces, but you have gems from all price ranges and varieties and rarities--not all are as saturated as you expect others to purchase. I do admire your collection, I don't agree with the criticisms that you post; sometimes they are helpful, but many other times they are more confusing than not.
Arcadian|1308699980|2951406 said:Bright Ice, FWIW, the ones you recently posted look more hot pink than red. I guess I'm a little confused now? Are you looking for red, or do you want a hot pink or as red as you can get?
-A
Chrono|1308658664|2950929 said:1. Nicest of this batch of pictures. Could be a little sleepy, and while saturation is good, there's something a little off to me that I can't quite put my finger on. It is still worth a further inquiry to AJS though.
2. Not bad, but since I know what you are looking for, I'd say it is lacking saturation.
3. Probably from Pala, correct? It looks really desaturated. It's not a spinel that screams Mahenge to me, although it looks a little better in the last picture.
4. The Swala spinel is very hot, but lately, I've been wondering about their photography...
bright ice|1308700168|2951410 said:Arcadian|1308699980|2951406 said:Bright Ice, FWIW, the ones you recently posted look more hot pink than red. I guess I'm a little confused now? Are you looking for red, or do you want a hot pink or as red as you can get?
-A
More of a hot pink but some red is fine.
Arcadian|1308701310|2951433 said:Have you spoken with Eric about the saturation of this stone? There's a definite difference between the pictures for sure. I've liked all the stones Ive bought from Swala so maybe I'm the wrong person for this, BUT, Eric has always been forthcoming about the colors of his stones. We've had plenty of conversations about stones and I always felt I could ask him anything about them without coming off as a total coocoo![]()
-A
bright ice|1308702018|2951441 said:Arcadian|1308701310|2951433 said:Have you spoken with Eric about the saturation of this stone? There's a definite difference between the pictures for sure. I've liked all the stones Ive bought from Swala so maybe I'm the wrong person for this, BUT, Eric has always been forthcoming about the colors of his stones. We've had plenty of conversations about stones and I always felt I could ask him anything about them without coming off as a total coocoo![]()
-A
Thanks Arcadian.
Eric is very slow to respond to e-mails and then they are not complete responses. Have you spoken to him via phone?
TL|1308666615|2950985 said:Did you ask if these were newer material, if they have orange, for shots in artificial light? If not, I would pass on most of these. I hate to say it, but I honestly think you should give up looking for a Mahenge online. I don't think you'll find what you want unless you spend a fortune, and even then, you might not get somethng great. Everything I'm seeing as of late is too orange, too purple, not saturated enough, and certainly overpriced because they're living off the hype of the older material, which was much finer. I think to get a great Mahenge, or any nice red spinel, you need a gem afficionado to help you out (and to cover your back so a vendor won't try to pull the wool over your head), and you really need to see many stones in person, otherwise, you'll be spending a foturne on S&H charges. Most vendors don't even know what a good mahenge is (as I have found out the hard way), so how are you expected to know?
If you can't get to a gem show to see many in person, then you'll never know. You can't tell by photos alone.
The search for a fine mahenge is reminding me of the search for a fine paraiba tourmaline. Most people, and many vendors, have never seen a good one in person, so they hype the mediocre material, and to make a hefty profit as well. It's really frustrating, I'm sorry.
BTW, the Swala one looks the most promising, but if he can't provide photos in artificial fluorescent light, I would pass on it. That photo could be heavily photoshopped, or taken in the absolute most optimal lighting conditions.
I hate to be blunt, but you're looking at very high priced stones, so when that happens, I'm a bit more honest. I feel I can help someone save more heartache and $$$ that way. I know it's not what you want to hear, but I get really sad seeing someone make the same mistakes over and over again. You really need to build your eye for color when searching for a fine red spinel, or any fine red stone. I feel that red is one of the most difficult colors to search for, and unless you've seen a great one in person, you'll never know.
BTW, if you want me to just "shut up and go away," I can do that too, I won't be offended (seriously!!). I know my comments can sometimes be harsh and annoying, but I do it in the best interest of the people here. However, I know I can be really annoying.![]()
bright ice|1308700168|2951410 said:Arcadian|1308699980|2951406 said:Bright Ice, FWIW, the ones you recently posted look more hot pink than red. I guess I'm a little confused now? Are you looking for red, or do you want a hot pink or as red as you can get?
-A
More of a hot pink but some red is fine.