Not everyone''s cup of tea...

[T L]

Freke,
Cool stone, like a silver blue color! I love the way Barry cuts, and his polish on the stones. Enjoy your rough gems!! Now THOSE look like jolly ranchers!!

 

[MonkeyPie]

Freke, it''s GORGEOUS! That color is crazy, I bet it sparkles just like a diamond. We need to meet up again so I can see all these pretties you''re collecting! I''d love to see it in a white gold bezel...mmm.

What do you plan to do with the pink spinel rough? That would be really fun to play with.

 

[glitterata]

Date: 1/24/2009 9:37:06 PM
Author: FrekeChild

glitterata, I''m thinking just in a really simple solitaire in white metal. However, I''m considered rose gold too. What would you do with it?

Freke, I have a similar-colored spinel (not as nicely cut, though!!) and when I tried it in a couple of antique platinum settings with single cut diamonds, it looked out of this world. The gray harmonized with the platinum and the diamonds gave it an extra mysterious wonderfulness, somehow. It wasn''t quite the right size, or I would have set it in one of them. One of these days...

So before you make up your mind, pop your treasure in a plat setting with pave and see what you think.

 

[Linda W]

Liz, I LOVE it!!!!! What a gorgeous stone that it and it looks like it sparkles like crazy!!!!! I bet you can''t wait to set that baby!!!!!!! Barry did a beautiful job cutting that stone.

 

[FrekeChild]

Thank you for all of your wonderful compliments!!! I had a discussion with a friend tonight about it, and she and I came to the conclusion that I should get my other gray (my almost black Dan cushion) set in rose gold, and I should set this in some kind of white metal.

I come back with more pictures!

 

[FrekeChild]

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[FrekeChild]

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[FrekeChild]

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[FrekeChild]

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[FrekeChild]

Last one with my ering...under incandescent light where my ering looks the grayest. But you can see even just the smallest size difference here--the ering stone is 6.5mm and 1.2cts while the new gray is 1.6cts and 7mm.

 

[FrekeChild]

So I took it with me into our bathroom because we have a small fluorescent light in there that makes my ering turn purple--the gray did NOTHING. Stayed the same. I'm fascinated. I can't wait to see it in daylight--so lets hope for sun tomorrow! In real life there are no blue or purple undertones to it--it's very gun metal gray, but the dispersive flashes light it up like a flashlight. Barry told me after he cut it that the spectral flashes were amazing and even in the last email he said that this sucker sparkled like crazy every time he took it out. And apparently he kept forgetting how sparkly it was so it surprised him every time.

I took two videos of it in motion and I wish I could share them with you guys, because they do the stone much more justice.

As for the spinel rough, I think it's just going to hang out...maybe in a dish with my cheaper stones. I'll have to look into it.

And MP Any time my dear!!! But you're going to have to bring that upgrade!!!

And glitterata Do you have any pics of the stone you have? I love the gray stones. They are so cool.

 

[jewelerman]

When you get done playing with it remember what your mother taught you...share with others!...im next! send it anytime!

 

[ma re]

Freke...videos...youtube?...wanna see...thanks

Over and out.

 

[ma re]

Just saw it''s uploaded, thank you very much for sharing!

Wow, talk about a good polish! It really stands out from the usual glassy-looking stones, just because of the polish. And a lively stone it is too; Very nice!

 

[hoofbeats95]

What is the you tube link? I MUST see!

 

[ma re]

Date: 1/25/2009 8:43:26 AM
Author: hoofbeats95
What is the you tube link? I MUST see!

There''s two; this one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-pJaKFEGmY

and this one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_yzqaKgD7Do

 

[coatimundi_org]

Cool stone Freke!

 

[dancingflame]

Very groovy spinel.

 

[platinumrock]

Date: 1/25/2009 9:05:17 AM
Author: ma re

Date: 1/25/2009 8:43:26 AM
Author: hoofbeats95
What is the you tube link? I MUST see!

There''s two; this one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-pJaKFEGmY

and this one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_yzqaKgD7Do

Thanks for the links! The stone looks even more beautiful on video. Cool!

 

[glitterata]

Date: 1/25/2009 2:22:38 AM
Author: FrekeChild
And glitterata Do you have any pics of the stone you have? I love the gray stones. They are so cool.

Here you go. One gray spinel with a blue zircon:

Same gray spinel (I think), perching in the setting I ended up using for my Infinity diamond:

Another gray spinel in that setting:
http://www.pricescope.com/idealbb/files/decoltgrayspin1.jpg

I think this is the first gray spinel again:

I like mine a lot. But I ADORE yours!!!!!!

 

[LtlFirecracker]

Love them, that is a nice surprise.

I just got my first spinal ever, and it was from BB. I love it, and now I see why you are such a fan.

 

[FrekeChild]

LMAO I think it's so funny that you hunted them down ma re. Problem with having it be around the camera is that it reflects the black of the camera like CRAZY, which is why it's hard to get a picture of the true color. Luckily the sun is out today, so perhaps I'll try there.

Thanks guys for all of the compliments, I'm really excited about it because it's exactly what I had in my head. Only sparklier! Which is never a bad thing!

glitterata How many gray spinels do you have? And are they in any settings? I love the brightness of the zircon with the storminess of the spinel. And I think white metal is the way to go.

Ltl Pics? What color did you get? And BB is lovely to work with and his stones are just amazing.

 

[VRBeauty]

Freke: Your spinel is beautiful -- I love the unexpected blue flashes.

I have a gray tourmaline that I love for much the same reason. To me, seeing sparkle and flash come from a gray stone is just so unexpected.

 

[FrekeChild]

VRBeauty PICTURES?!

 

[LtlFirecracker]

I got the stones the day before I left to spend a month on the other side of the country. I didn''t have time to get pics and I didn''t bring spinal since I am living in a hotel. I will take pics when I get home in about 10 days.

 

[VRBeauty]

Date: 1/25/2009 4:16:55 PM
Author: FrekeChild
VRBeauty PICTURES?!

EEK! I should have seen that one coming!

Well, I finally got a digital camera, but my poor old computer (ME operating system, as in Millenium Edition, for the youngsters among us

) is so unstable that I don''t dare load the programs I''d need share the pics with PS. This computer is on its last legs though, so one of these days....

Thanks for the challenge!

 

[MoonWater]

Freke I love it and I want one!!!! And stop being such a tease!

 

[TravelingGal]

That is very cool Freke...will be neat to see how you set it!

 

[glitterata]

Date: 1/25/2009 2:07:30 PM
Author: FrekeChild

glitterata How many gray spinels do you have? And are they in any settings? I love the brightness of the zircon with the storminess of the spinel. And I think white metal is the way to go.

Freke, just the two--but I see that I didn''t post the picture of the second one properly.

A few years ago these gray spinels were easy to find and very cheap. I think mine were in the $20 range. I haven''t set either of them, but one of these days I will.

In real life, the zircon was so much sparklier/fierier than the spinel that the combo didn''t flatter either of them. It made the zircon look gaudy and the spinel look dull. I bought the second gray spinel thinking I would put both gray spinels in that bypass setting together, but the second one one has pinky-purply undertones and the first one has bluish undertones (I know this isn''t the right technical term, but I hope you know what I mean), and they weren''t an equivalent intensity. So they sort of clashed too.

Someday I will find a setting just for that bluer gray spinel.

Way back when, someone started a thread for us gray gemstone admirers. I can''t seem to find it. I think it was what inspired me to look for my first gray spinel.

I wonder whether Barry could find & cut me a twin of yours? It''s just soooo wonderful.

 

[Brown.Eyed.Girl]

Woohoo Freke!!! I love love love that spinel - aren''t Barry''s cuts fantastic? And that color is awesome - I''m tempted to e-mail him to see if he has more

It''s going to look so cool (both figuratively and literally?) in white gold - would you consider a bezel or half-bezel? I can definitely see it in a more modern setting. Yay!