Mixed Lots

[luckynumber]

Do you buy mixed lots of stones from anywhere?

If so, from where?

There seem to be lots on gemselect, but don''t look very well cut.

I need some 3-4 mm stones in different colours for fun projects...

thanks PSers...

 

[luckynumber]

ok, so no one buys lots then?

 

[T L]

Mixed lots are typically "throw away" stones that vendors can't sell separately, so they put them together so that it makes it more attractive to the buyer. Typically mixed lots consist of very low grade stones. I personally would only use them for fish gravel.

 

[lavatea]

LOL...fish gravel.

luckynumber, are you thinking of having a key made like FrekeChild''s? Because I was drooling over it earlier, and then I saw your post. I think even "throwaway" stones would be cool in a design like that.

 

[Arcadian]

I don''t tend to buy mixed lots of stones, but some do and/or get they get them as a gift...they can be very lovely.

Dana over at mastercutgems.com has some suites of stones that may fit your budget since he''s having a sale.

litnon.com also has some interesting stones for 25 and under. I''m happy with the stones purchased there.


-A

 

[T L]

Date: 1/4/2010 7:28:34 PM
Author: tourmaline_lover
Mixed lots are typically ''throw away'' stones that vendors can''t sell separately, so they put them together so that it makes it more attractive to the buyer. Typically mixed lots consist of very low grade stones. I personally would only use them for fish gravel.

Wow, I was harsh, wasn''t I? Let me clarify. When I think of mixed lots, I think of those JTV, or ebay mixed lots of blue topaz, amethyst, citrine, and other cheap ugly gems that go into a huge parcel. Ugh!!

I''m sure some dealers have better quality suites of gems.

 

[marcy]

My first mixed lot of stones cost me about $30 for 100 ct of flawed or imperfect gems. Some were chipped, scratched but I thoroughly enjoyed playing with them. I ordered up a second 100 ct of gems that were not flawed for about $50. I got them from jewelz.com and while none of them went in to any jewelry it got my collection started. I put them all in a crystal dish and enjoy just looking through them sometimes. Stones I have removed from jewelry or ones I''ve bought and never used end up in in my dish as well.

 

[luckynumber]

that''s the problem ladies, most of it IS fish gravel!

I want good stones, just a lot of little ones, good enough to set.

 

[Lady_Disdain]

Try Dana at Mastercutgems. He sent me some nice little melee stones which are certainly good enough to set.

 

[chrono]

Lucky,
Most mixed lots I’ve seen aren’t pretty; they are often either too light in saturation, too dark and gray/brown or have odd shapes mixed in together. Some vendors do sell decent parcels but those tend to be rare. I once purchased a very nice lot of 3 mm or 4 mm trillion tsavorites but returned them after finding out that the price to set them ala DBTY was more than what I wanted to spend.

 

[gingersnap]

Date: 1/4/2010 11:09:20 PM
Author: marcyc
My first mixed lot of stones cost me about $30 for 100 ct of flawed or imperfect gems. Some were chipped, scratched but I thoroughly enjoyed playing with them. I ordered up a second 100 ct of gems that were not flawed for about $50. I got them from jewelz.com and while none of them went in to any jewelry it got my collection started. I put them all in a crystal dish and enjoy just looking through them sometimes. Stones I have removed from jewelry or ones I''ve bought and never used end up in in my dish as well.

You... are my inspiration

I remember reading a thread a long time ago about a little crystal dish full of cheap little guys and I thought it was the best idea ever. I still think it''s the best idea ever

One day! Sadly I''ve had to lock down on my budgets, so there will be no more cheap gem purchases any time soon.

However, i randomly came across a jewelry store that was closing down (they were changing the focus of their business... not going out of business) selling off their loose stones for cheap. So although I don''t have any recommendations for anything online, keep your eyes open on classifieds for random announcements like that in your area. You never know what you might find! It''s mostly useful if you''re not looking for something in particular, but you probably won''t end up with anything amazing either.

 

[marcy]

Date: 1/5/2010 12:02:22 PM
Author: gingersnap

Date: 1/4/2010 11:09:20 PM
Author: marcyc
My first mixed lot of stones cost me about $30 for 100 ct of flawed or imperfect gems. Some were chipped, scratched but I thoroughly enjoyed playing with them. I ordered up a second 100 ct of gems that were not flawed for about $50. I got them from jewelz.com and while none of them went in to any jewelry it got my collection started. I put them all in a crystal dish and enjoy just looking through them sometimes. Stones I have removed from jewelry or ones I''ve bought and never used end up in in my dish as well.

You... are my inspiration

I remember reading a thread a long time ago about a little crystal dish full of cheap little guys and I thought it was the best idea ever. I still think it''s the best idea ever

One day! Sadly I''ve had to lock down on my budgets, so there will be no more cheap gem purchases any time soon.

However, i randomly came across a jewelry store that was closing down (they were changing the focus of their business... not going out of business) selling off their loose stones for cheap. So although I don''t have any recommendations for anything online, keep your eyes open on classifieds for random announcements like that in your area. You never know what you might find! It''s mostly useful if you''re not looking for something in particular, but you probably won''t end up with anything amazing either.

Thanks Gingersnap. My little dish makes me smile. I have pulled out many stones to play with on a setting to see what color / shape of stone I might like. Good idea to watch for jewelry stores closing down. I found a gorgeous rhodolite at a local jewelry (about 8 x 12 mm) that was marked $42. I bought it on the spot and had it made in to a ring.