In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinction

[Aphrone]

Hello experts - I am a looong-time lurker and a first-time poster. I have finally saved up my pennies to buy a stone for a pre-existing setting, and I'm leaning toward a Montana sapphire. The stone needs to be a 7 mm round (plus or minus .1-.2 mm) and I like silvery/denim blues and green-blues. My budget is $1300 tops, and I'd love to spend less.

I'm thinking I will max out the credit card and buy 2-3 stones from one vendor so that I can see the top candidates in person. As I narrow down the short list, I'm wondering if this stone has some extinction, or if my novice eyes are fooling me.



Of course, if anyone has any other stone suggestions, I am all ears! I am looking at a few other Montana sapphires at Gemfix too.

Here is the setting, by the way - it's currently occupied by an aquamarine. I actually like the color of the aquamarine but the cutting (Portuguese?) creates a kind of vortex effect with a "hole" at the bottom and, the more I time I spend on Pricescope, the more it bugs me.

 

[chrono]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

I do not consider that extinction since it is in small "spots" throughout the stone, not a huge black spot / area. What you are seeing is scintillation contrast. I think it looks dark or obvious because the stone is light coloured, so the contrast stands out more strongly.

What you are seeing with the aquamarine is a characteristic of the material itself. Aquamarine is a stone with low refractive index and will show windowing with very little tilt angle. The lapidary tried to minimize it by adding lots of facets to add more sparkle and life.

 

[Aphrone]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

Thank you! It sounds like I could keep this particular sapphire on the list and maybe see how it looks in person. It's good to know that the look of the aquamarine is due to the nature of the stone; I feel a sneaking fondness for it but that vortex effect is exactly what I'm looking to avoid in its replacement.

 

[JewelFreak]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

Love that setting. A Montana (or anything else!) would look beautiful in it. The one you posted, I agree with Chrono, doesn't show extinction, but it does on my monitor have some green; some people like that, others not so much. (I do.)

Gemfix has a few others, and you might take a look at Gemart http://www.gemartservices.com/for-sale.html. Don't know if any of his are the size you need.

Finding just the right sapphire is sometimes quite a search. I'd hope Montanas might be easier than others, being in less demand, but that old law always comes up -- that they disappear just when you want one. I'd write Andrew at Gemfix & ask if he has some that are not on his site, too.

Hope you'll post photos of the ring when it has its new stone! It'll be a knockout.

--- Laurie

 

[Aphrone]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

Thanks for the kind words about the setting! It is in fact my first engagement ring, purchased by my now-husband (pre-Pricescope) as an antique with an "excellent" diamond. An appraisal six weeks before our wedding revealed it to be a (nice) antique reproduction with a diamond that would make a Pricescoper's eyeballs bleed - "good" cut, O color, I3 with crown-breaking feathers! In a mad scramble and with the help of a much better local jeweler, we were able to sell the diamond and buy a whole new engagement ring, but we kept this setting and the jeweler popped that aquamarine in for free.

Having learned my lesson, I've spent the past two years lurking, learning, and window-shopping, and I'm hoping (with the wisdom of Pricescope) to get a really nice stone that will erase the memory of that woofer of a diamond. I just wrote to Gemfix and will take a look at Gemart too.

 

[Jereni]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

Welcome and good luck with your search!

Gemfix has been the most abundant source of Montana's that I've seen - they always seem to have a bunch of pretty ones. I think your idea of buying several to compare is VERY good. I had the opportunity to visit Andrew this summer while in San Diego and maybe my expectations were too high, because I was underwhelmed by his stones in person. Most of the sapphires I saw seemed to have a gray quality to them that I did not like. BUT I also found the lights in his shop very difficult so if you order them and see them all on your hand together, that will def be the best way.

Good luck! Oh, I also occasionally see pretty Montanas on etsy. You may want to have a look.

 

[JewelFreak]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

By the way, Aphrone, your kitty is beautiful! What gorgeous markings.

Neat story about the ring, though tough on you at the time. We live & learn, don't we? You ended up with a very pretty setting, though, that will be so nice once you find The Sapphire.

--- Laurie

 

[movie zombie]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

I am not a fan of the style of cut on your aqua.......
I much prefer the Montana sapphire you are considering!
nice find!

 

[Aphrone]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

Thanks to all - I just ordered three sapphires from Gemfix and will post photos when they arrive!

 

[minousbijoux]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

It will be interesting to see how similar to, or how much they vary from, the photos and hand shots provided by GF. Looking forward to it, and hoping that "the one" is among them.

 

[NKOTB]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

I, too, hope The One is amongst the three, and am interested in how the pictures compare to what you see IRL, having never bought from Gemfix. It is a beautiful setting, no need to be distracted by a stone you're not happy with.

 

[Aphrone]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

There are now three stones headed my way, theoretically arriving Friday! I actually decided against including the one I posted initially, after the nice Gemfix people described it as "very dark." I will certainly do a photo shoot as soon as the sapphires arrive and post them for everyone's inspection/opinions. Thanks for everyone's help so far.

 

[chrono]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

Always good to heed a vendor's advice about a particular stone. One more day until Friday!

 

[Aphrone]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

So I just picked up the stones this morning, and they're all (to my eyes) lovely in person. I went directly from the post office to the jeweler, who thought they were all fine but favored Stone C, the smallest one, on purely mechanical grounds, arguing that it would be easier to set with the pavé prongs. So now I need your opinion. And it turns out that, yes, it is really hard to take good pictures! Mine are really bad despite repeated efforts.

Stone A: 7.1mm, heated, high crown (the jeweler thought that would make it especially hard to fit into the setting)






Stone B: 7mm, heated





Stone C and group photos in the next post!

 

[Aphrone]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

Ok, here's stone C, group photos, and my thoughts:

Stone C - 6.7mm, unheated





Group photos: (A, B, C, from base of my finger towards the knuckle)





Stone A is the biggest and the least expensive, and I really like the color. I love the high crown, which I couldn't capture in the photo, but the jeweler seemed to think that (and the size) would pose a setting problem.

Stone B is slightly greener, because of the yellow spot - it's a very cool effect.

Stone C is the smallest, and unheated (although that wasn't a priority for me). It's a very pretty blue, slightly bluer than Stone A, I think.

So what does everyone else think? I have more pictures, none fabulous, but can post them if anyone needs more evidence!

 

[kiwiflea]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

I like stone C for the colour but that is personal preference, do you think you have "the one" in this bunch or maybe need to look at others? Maybe he has other silvery blue stones you can look at that will work better in the setting you have?

 

[pregcurious]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

I love the high crown in the last pic. So gorgeous.

 

[chrono]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

I like C because of the colour and cut. The fact that your jeweller feels most comfortable setting this stone is another factor that would sway me towards C. The inclusions in A is distacting to me and appears to affect the sparkle / appreciation of the faceting in your hand shot. I am also not a fan of mixed colouration without a clear symmetrical pattern, therefore B does not appeal to me.

 

[Aphrone]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

I think we are hearing consensus around Stone C! Tempted as I am by the extra size of Stone A (I am a 7.5 ring size), I think it is the nicest looking of the three, and I certainly don't want to mess with the setting any more than necessary. I will take it to my jeweler today, and I will report back ASAP with the final ring.

Thanks to everyone for their help. I will say that the other two stones are both really handsome, despite the impression left by my wretched photos. Stone A is a beautiful storm-cloud color, and I think Stone B with the yellow spot would look really interesting in a cool modern YG setting. Just in case anyone's in the market....

 

[deskjockey]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

Late to the thread, but adding a vote for C

 

[Aphrone]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

Took Stone C to the jeweler, and I should have the ring in 2-3 weeks. Thanks again to everyone - I will post the final ring the minute I get it!

 

[minousbijoux]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

I too like C best of the three. That said, though, they are quite different from Gemfix's photos; in their photos, the stones look more intensely colored with greater saturation. It could be that your photos are taken in lower light, and if you took one in with intense light focused right on the stone (I.e., a studio-like setup), then the stones might look closer to theirs.

Can't wait to see the finished ring.

 

[Aphrone]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

Here is the finished ring - much earlier than expected! The sapphire looks a bit darker in the setting than it did unset, I think, but I love it - it reads most of the time as a storm-cloud or denim blue. It's super-sparkly and well-cut, to my amateur eyes.

I was very happy with my experience with Gemfix, by the way.

Thanks to everyone for your help and enthusiasm - I'm so glad this project is complete after many months of lurking and looking. I couldn't have done it without Pricescope's collective wisdom.

Pictures - with the iPhone, I'm afraid, but they give you a sense of the color at least:

 

[chrono]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

A perfect fit! It looks great too.

 

[Niel]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

Oh I love love love it.

 

[Aphrone]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

Thank you! I can't keep my eyes off of it. I'm also amused that, with the engraving and the denim-colored stone, the ring looks vaguely Western-wear now (I live in Texas). Maybe it's finally time to invest in cowboy boots to go with my Western sapphire.

 

[deskjockey]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

Love it! that came out great!

 

[livannie]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

So pretty!

 

[minousbijoux]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

You did really, really well. Lovely ring - I too love the stormy look to it.

 

[sunnybunny]

Re: In search of a Montana sapphire - question about extinct

So pretty. I love the color.