Newbie needs an education and consolation

[Matata]

By summer, I want to have completed a custom made engagement ring/wedding ring. My stone preferences are spinel (red), tsavorite, or spessartite garnet. Spinel and tsavorite are tied for number one. Are there certain cuts that would yield more beauty from those stones? I want a cut that makes the stone "sing." I like the shape and cut of the stone in the link and will contact the cutter about whether such a cut is appropriate for spinel or tsavorite. Does anyone have advice about other cuts for these stones? The setting will likely be contemporary and I can''t decide between gold or platinum.

http://www.faceters.com/gemstones/images/mars2.jpg

 

[AGBF]

You may want to ask this question on the Colored Gems part of Pricescope where some of us who love color pass the time. I own a gorgeous red spinel and I cannot recommend them highly enough! Some of the world's most famous "rubies" are really red spinels. My stone was billed as glowing like a traffic light...and it does! I suggest you look at people (vendors) with the most beautiful stones if you want the most beautiful stone. I recommend Pala Gems as a source. They are not, themselves, retailers. They have a retail arm now, but I bought my red spinel through another on-line retailer, DBOF. I believe all retail jewelers are able to buy from Pala.

 

[AGBF]

I just took a look at your picture. That is not a cut I ever saw before. Did you want a stone with that much brown in it? (You didn't mention color, which is the most important factor in choosing a colored gemstone.) I love garnets, but garnets and spinels tend to be very different in color. What would be your ideal color?

 

[Matata]

Mortification. I thought I did post in the colored gems portion. The link I provided was for cut and shape sample only. If I get a spinel, I want one like yours, AGBF, the stop-light red is exquite and that's why I'm obsessing (perhaps unnecessarily) over the cut. I want something that reveals all the beauty such a stone has to offer. And I am a regular peruser of Palagems' inventory. I think the biggest difficulty for me, after acquiring the stone, will be the cut decision. There is an award winning gemcutter close to where I live with whom I have already begun discussions but I want to keep my options open.

 

[elmo]

You will not find new stock at Pala as they have said they are no longer importing goods from Myanmar while the trade ban is in effect, and the spinel color you want will almost certainly be Burmese. Other folks may have these though.

For Tsavorite, the "classic" shape (my preference) is emerald cut, but an oval or cushion will have more life.

 

[Matata]

Thanks for the reminder Elmo. That trade ban slipped my mind. I don't normally like emerald cuts but I agree that Tsavorite looks stunning cut that way. I'm fond of cushion cuts, don't like ovals, but do like the chubby trillion-like cut with the rounded corners.

 

[valeria101]

Given the large variance of color and clarity of colored stones, I don't know if anyone produced parameters for their cut... but it is not hard to tell better cuts from worse within a certain type (say cushion, rounds, etc). I guess some general rule would be: look for even color (face up), decent 'sparkle' with litle or no transparent area in the centre (you shoud not see right through the face of the stone), avoid stones with extra depth (this means that 1. you pay for weight you don't see, and 2. the cut enhances the color which the material itself might not really have to start with). Both spinel and tsavo should be eye clean, with some allowance for non-intrusive inclusions for large tsavorite...




Maybe have a gem custom cut? For an e-ring I would. Maybe take a look at jewelryexpert.com for a red spinel e-ring. And I have no idea which online shop would have MORE tsavo than multicolour (including some towards 10ct!). AJSgems post a couple of nice tsavo, but spinels... not really right now, maybe awesomegems (not large, some premium) and preciousgems (nice, but again no bargain). in both spinel and tsavo, palagems has an incrediblydiverse inventory, so you should know what to look for if you choose them, however, their 'buying guides' are quite nice and impartial to boot. Even if you do not end up buying online... it is still ok to take a look and get an idea. I guess...

 

[glitterata]

I'm fond of my cushion cut tsavorite. Here it is, set in an antique platinum setting from ebay, which doesn't quite fit it (the setting is for an oval) but looks better from a distance.

 

[glitterata]

Here's another view.

 

[Matata]

Valeria...thanks for your good advice. My intent all along is to go with a custom cut....I utterly lack knowledge about which cut best compliments which stone. I've done at lot of reading about cuts and shapes, some of it waaaay too technical, and find that a little bit of knowledge can be as daunting as a plethora of ignorance! My inner voice is telling me to buy a stone, take it to a local expert and let that person advise on the cut.

Glitterata -- that Tsavo is luscious, luscious, luscious....I'll never be able to make up my mind now.

 

[Michael_E]

Matata,
Any custom cut stone done by a competent cutter will "sing" when compared to a commercially cut piece. The design that you've linked to would be very nice as would a multitude of others. I, and most other serious cutters, also design and modify cuts using a great piece of software called "Gemcad". This allows us to get the best cut for any given piece of rough.
There are two things which you will want to give serious thought to in your project. The first is finding a piece of rough, or previously cut stone, which can be cut to your preferred design with minimal loss of weight. If you are buying the stone, make sure that you've got enough thickness in every direction to get what you want after it's cut. The second is a biggy... how will it be set ? There are lots of really neat cut designs available, but that's only half of the project, then you've got to set it into a mounting. The cut design you've shown is neat and would probably fit into an oval setting without much problem, but the ends will be "hanging" out into space and could be damaged if you are a very active person. A bezel setting would work to, but would have to be custom made. How do you want the finished piece to look?
These questions are not meant to dampen your enthusiasm, more to have you thinking about just how the whole piece will come together.
Here's a couple of pictures of some emerald cut profiles that have custom cuts, (I don't care for step cuts). These have such a long length to width ratio that the settings for them have to be made just for them.

 

[Matata]

Michael E,

I have a setting in mind that will need to be adapted to my stone. This is undoubtedly a custom piece all the way. I apologize for being obtuse in my original post. Unfortunately, I can't remember where on the web I found it but I have a paper copy I'm attempting to get scanned and will try to post the image soon.

 

[AGBF]

Glitterata,

That tsavorite could be the finest emerald! It is *gorgeous*! What is its story?

Michael,

What is a step cut? How are your custom cuts different from step cuts? (No diagrams, please! I am phobic. Just use simple words as if you were telling this to a child .)

 

[Michael_E]

AGBF,
A step cut can be on the crown or pavilion. When each level of cuts are parallel to the girdle from the outer edge inward you've got a step cut. From the side of the stone it sort of looks like a series of tilted steps. I've attached a pic from Jeff Graham's site, of a step cut tourmaline...I just love this blue-green color.

The only thing about these sort of cuts that I don't like is that they just don't have those tiny little flashes, like a hundred sparklers on the Fourth of July, you just get one big flash per side and that's it. They're still pretty though, especially when the color is like this !

 

[glitterata]

AGBF:

Thanks for the kind word about my tsavorite. I couldn't get the color to come out quite right. It looks a bit washed out in the picture. It's a hair yellower than your average emerald, and a whole lot sparklier, since tsavorites have a pretty high refractive index. It's also much cleaner than typical emeralds, although it has a couple of needles that you can see fairly easily if you know where to look. I bought it at a police auction for very little--nobody else was bidding, so I got it for the opening bid. Lucky me, nobody else had heard of tsavorites. It's about 1.5 carats, a native cut, but a good one--no windowing, no extinction, just nice happy, sparkly green.

I don't understand why tsavorites aren't much, much more expensive. The good ones are so gorgeous, and they're far rarer than most gemstones, including diamonds. I think a tsavorite is a great idea for an engagement ring. You can be sure nobody else will have one, and there are so many shapes and shades of green to choose from.

 

[AGBF]

Thank you for the explanation, Michael. If I can ever post the photos Pala sent me of tanzanite I will be interested in your opinion. One of them appears to be extremely faceted (yet another Portuguese cut). I am not used to stones that are that intricately cut. I am trying to think of the name of the cutter Wink Jones uses, the one who does a lot of concave faceting. The Potuguese cuts and his (why can't I recall his name?) are a little disconcerting to me. They aren't "typical". (Please don't tell me I don't like stones that "sing"! I am, myself, a singer! To like silent stones seems an ill fate indeed!!!)

(I do love the custom cuts you posted above, btw! What are those? When I see peachy stones I think: Paparadsha sapphires. But I really haven't a clue what they are.)

 

[Matata]

AGBF,

The cutter's name is Richard Homer. You can see some examples of his fine work at http://www.concavegems.com/Gem_Gallery/Gem_Gallery.html

 

[AGBF]

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On 11/21/2003 11:12:58 PM Matata wrote:

AGBF,


The cutter's name is Richard Homer.

Of course it is! Thank you Matata!! I experienced a blonde moment. (I refuse to have senior moments while I remain blonde.)

Deborah