Hot blood red spinel?

[pearcrazy]

I just won an Ebay auction for a "hot blood red spinel" 1.55 carats. I''ve never heard that term before. I''ve seen "pigeon''s blood red" a bit. The picture looks rather like a stoplight red color. I am hoping that it will be a bright crimson red with no orange or purple tones.

So is "hot blood red" a common descriptive term or was the seller listening to a Foreigner tune when making the posting?

 

[belle]

pearcrazy...i''ve never heard of "hot blood red" spinel, but that means absolutely nothing in terms of relevance to it''s possible usage in color terminology....
will you be posting some pics when you get it? i hope so!!

congrats on your win!!

 

[pearcrazy]

Hopefully I can get it to upload. Here goes:

 

[diamondlil]

I''ve never heard that term before either. I''ve been trying to learn about red spinel in the last couple of months and have watched several on eBay. I hesitate in bidding since I don''t trust the photos or wording to acurately describe the color. Congratulations on your win though. When you receive the stone, please let us know how close in color to the photo the stone is and post some pics for us.

DiamondLil

 

[pearcrazy]

I''ve been looking and learning for a couple of months too. I recently lost out on a similarly colored pear shaped spinel so I was glad to have won this one. I have more difficulty finding the ones that are a crimson red as opposed to a pinkish or orangish red. Here''s the specs. I''ll have a home picture when the stone arrives.

1.55 VVS1 "hot blood red" AAA spinel
Burma/natural untreated 7x6x4.5mm

 

[pearcrazy]

Side view

 

[diamondlil]

The picture looks beautiful, Pearcrazy. I would love a high quality blood red ruby (my birthstone) for a 3-stone ring using diamond sidestones, but since that is too much for my pocketbook, I was thinking a red spinel would do the trick. I''m going to a gem show in April and hope to see and compare stones in person.

What do you think about blue spinel as an alternative to blue sapphire?

DiamondLil

 

[widget]

Wow...Pearcrazy...that''s just gorgeous!

I''ve never purchased a gemstone from ebay...too leery...but your stone makes me think I should start looking there!!

Congrats!

widget

 

[pearcrazy]

Lil, I''d been looking into the blue spinel too since a blue sapphire is my birthstone and I too want a 3 stone ring. I just found a blue sapphire for about the same price as a spinel a couple of weeks ago on Ebay and took the plunge. It has arrived and is very pretty but a tad darker than I wanted. I probably should have passed on this red one but the color just captivated me. Now I''m thinking I need a 3 stone ring in red AND blue. Keep your fingers crossed. Here''s the blue sapphire I won a few weeks ago. My mom has graciously given me her .5 ctw diamond stud earrings that she never wears to be mounted as sidestones for one of the rings.

2.05 carat cornflower blue AAA sapphire
Heat treated
VVS to IF
8.8x6.3x4
African origin

Ughhh, picture won''t attach, let me try again later

 

[pearcrazy]

Trying again!

 

[diamondlil]

Wow, that sapphire looks very nice! It does not look too dark in the picture. Did it turn out darker in person? That''s why I am so leery of buying a colored stone on eBay, but the prices are very good. I almost bid on a few red spinels a month or so back, but I think I''ll wait until after the gem show in April. Either I''ll come home with something then or at least have a better feel for what to look for and how much I''ll need spend on something that looks decent. At the last gem show I went to, I did look at a couple of red spinels that were absolutely breathtaking. Of course the prices were well over a grand, and I''m not willing to go that far on this particular ring so I need to focus more on budget stones.

I too am looking for about a 2 to 2.50 ct fat oval, either red or blue spinel to look like ruby/sapphire. I have diamond earrings that I could use as side stones as well. I have a yellow gold Tiffany Etoile wedding ring that I''d like to wear the 3-stone with. I have the vision in my head, but my budget is limited (too many other projects in the works -- both jewelry and house that is).

DiamondLil

 

[valeria101]

Whatever lighting was used to take the picture of the sapphire... was strong enough to shine throught the stone (see the blue spot under the lower side of the girdle). The brighter blue is "brilliance" - imagine what happens under lower light

If you like the dark ones, why not though.

 

[pearcrazy]

It does show some pretty flashes of blue in bright light and outside but the blue is darker than I wanted. Still, it''s a clear sapphire and I can''t see any inclusions. I paid about $125 for it so I''m not feeling too disappointed. The spinel was in the same ballpark so no biggie if it isn''t perfect either.

 

[belle]

ooooh....pearcrazy, those both look amazing!! did you get them from the same seller? ....you''re making a good case for the validity of ebay gem purchases!

 

[Sagebrush]

"hot blood red" I love it. Has no gemological or traditional meaning at all but sounds good, doesn''t it? Most red spinel will have a distinct orangy secondary hue. I have been looking for the fabled ruby spinel or balas ruby for years and have only found two or three, that is, a truly visually red spinel with 15% or less secondary hue. Bought one on this trip to Burma.

Right now, spinel is the hottest gem in the Bangkok and Burma markets. The spinel dealers have gotten rich according to my contacts. Certainly the prices on these stones are up 50-100% in the last few years. And, deservedly so, spinel was "the dealers stone" that never seemed to catch on in the market but, now seems to have done just that.

As for ebay, you gotta be kidding! I''d rather buy sight unseen from and Indian Dealer from Jaipur. But, hope, as they say springs eternal in those of you who think that somehow your going to steal a great stone on ebay. In my experience, very fine stones cost. Oh, I have gotten a deal or two (maybe three now that I think about it) but in every case because I knew more than the other guy, had done my homework and bought without hesitation when I saw an opportunity.

The old saying is true. If it looks too good to be true, it is.

 

[pearcrazy]

Date: 3/29/2005 8

0

8 PM
Author: Richard W. Wise

''hot blood red'' I love it. Has no gemological or traditional meaning at all but sounds good, doesn''t it? Most red spinel will have a distinct orangy secondary hue. I have been looking for the fabled ruby spinel or balas ruby for years and have only found two or three, that is, a truly visually red spinel with 15% or less secondary hue. Bought one on this trip to Burma.

Right now, spinel is the hottest gem in the Bangkok and Burma markets. The spinel dealers have gotten rich according to my contacts. Certainly the prices on these stones are up 50-100% in the last few years. And, deservedly so, spinel was ''the dealers stone'' that never seemed to catch on in the market but, now seems to have done just that.

As for ebay, you gotta be kidding! I''d rather buy sight unseen from and Indian Dealer from Jaipur. But, hope, as they say springs eternal in those of you who think that somehow your going to steal a great stone on ebay. In my experience, very fine stones cost. Oh, I have gotten a deal or two (maybe three now that I think about it) but in every case because I knew more than the other guy, had done my homework and bought without hesitation when I saw an opportunity.

The old saying is true. If it looks too good to be true, it is.

Ah yes, I was waiting for one of the "experts" to chime in and shake their finger at me!! Well, Mr. Wise, I''m not looking for an investment quality stone and I certainly wasn''t kidding myself about snagging such. I''m looking for a decent looking red stone free of huge inclusions to mount in a pretty ring with some donated diamond sidestones recycled from a pair of uncertified (HORRORS!) diamond stud earrings of my mothers of who- knows- what quality. I''m sure good stones DO cost a lot to those who know what a good stone looks like. I personally do not know nor do I care. If the spinel is orangish, oh well, I''m not out a pile of money. What I do know is that I''ve yet to see a ruby that looked good enough to catch my eye without costing well over $3000. I''m not looking to spend that kind of money for a ring that I''ll only wear on occasion. For my cheap little red spinel, with donated diamonds and basic 14k gold setting I think I can come up with a cute little right hand ring that I will enjoy wearing now and then. I''m not looking to score the crown jewels and I had no illusions of doing such. Just a sparklie little trinket.

As far as Ebay goes, so far my DH and I have snagged some really good deals. Most recently a bicycle that retailed in a local bike shop for almost $1500 for $745 (including shipping). So, it''s all a crap shoot. If I get burned on my purty little bauble then c''est la vie, if it''s even close to the photo then I''ll be pleased.

 

[lonewoodminer]

Hi all

Those stones look great, the red spinel certainly looks spectacular and I agree that the sapphire looks fine in the photo - hope you have fun with them. Well done with your buys. Ebay certainly has some great deals - it is just fun to buy a bargain that suits the purpose. And I must admit there is some real value quality product out there if you search I know this from direct experiance.


Cheers Andrew Lane
www.aussiesapphire.com.au

 

[AGBF]

That's it...don't worry, be happy, pearcrazy! I, too, have gotten stones off eBay and been happy with them! I once posted photos here on Pricecope of four rings I had made from inexpensive topazes and a cherry red fire opal. I think the topazes (unlike your lovely spinel) cost $3.00 or $4.00 each, but I thought they looked gorgeous!!! I like your happy attitude!

I found the thread where I posted my rings!

rings from eBay stones

Deb

 

[diamondlil]

Right on, Pearcrazy!! And I love eBay too!!!!!

DiamondLil

 

[Sasori]

I''ve got a piece of sapphire from them before. (see attached)

Do note that their stone turn out darker than pic.

As for connoisseur stones, i can''t afford, so aint much of a choice around.

Regards
Ryan