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Please help me choose between these two sapphires :)

katharath

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Hi all,

I have two sapphires in my possession, and I'm having a hard time choosing between them. I really like them both. They are both Ceylon, almost the same face up size (less than .5 mm difference, .3 to be exact). One is heated, the other is not; that doesn't matter overly much to me though. The price point is similar per carat, but one costs about $200 more because it weighs slightly more (which shows not in face up but in a heavier, though not oddly looking, bottom).

My "issue" is that one of them is basically the exact color I really want, but the other is close to the color I want, plus it has a noticeably better cut. The one that has the better color has a nice cut, especially for a sapphire; but the other has a VERY nice cut, and it has gorgeous sparkle. The one with the better cut goes between looking nice and looking really beautiful, depending on lighting (in sunlight it deepens up to a more vibrant blue) - but it never really closes up, and looks at minimum decent in most all situations. The one with the better color looks AMAZING in good to ideal lighting situations, but closes up much more easily. It never really looks black, but it looks just ok a lot of the time; whereas the better cut sapphire looks better more often. If that makes sense, lol.

I do have a bit of a preference, but I would like to hear your opinions. Obviously I don't *have* to choose either one, but I do like them both a lot. They are not cheap stones, both at or over the $1k mark, and any gem that I spend $1k on is a gem that I take seriously. I want to make the right choice, which is why I want help, lol!

I'm thinking that I'll probably set the one I choose in a 3 stone ring, with a pair of OECs that I've been saving for a special project (@5 mm each, 1 ctw, H/I, Si, if I remember right).

I'm including a ton of pics. I'm curious which sapphire YOU would choose; and keep in mind that I'll most likely set it with the diamonds that I'm showing. (Unfortunately I couldn't get the diamonds to look their best in these pics, you'll just have to trust that they look better IRL).

We'll call them Sapphire one and sapphire two.

Sapphire one: .91 cts, 5.7 mm, untreated, the lesser of the two by $200. Also the better cut. Ceylon.

Sapphire two: 1.16 cts, 6 mm, heated, more expensive by $200, better color, Ceylon.

The pics show them at their best, IMO. But please keep in mind that although sapphire two has a better color, sapphire one looks better a higher percentage of the time due to the cut.

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katharath

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Pics, see captions for info

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chrono

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I know you aren't done posting pictures but I'd rather the super duper cut sapphire right off the bat. I knew it from that single picture alone; the other looks dead-ish in comparison and my personal preference is medium blue with lavender, which makes my choice highly biased. :lol:
 

katharath

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Pics with diamonds!! All sapphire one here (pic one it's the centered one)

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katharath

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Sapphire two w/diamonds.

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katharath

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Ok, I think that's enough pics for now... Definitely look forward to any replies :)
 

katharath

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Chrono|1466204959|4045255 said:
I know you aren't done posting pictures but I'd rather the super duper cut sapphire right off the bat. I knew it from that single picture alone; the other looks dead-ish in comparison and my personal preference is medium blue with lavender, which makes my choice highly biased. :lol:


I truly appreciate your answer. I'm not going to say where I'm leaning yet bc I don't want to bias anyone, but thank you SO much for weighing in!!
 

NKOTB

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I'm with Chrono.
 

lilmosun

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For me, the ideal cut stood out immediately and is a much better match with European cut of the diamonds (and I love the color).
 

lovedogs

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DROOOOOOL! Sapphire 1 by a mile! That mix of blue/lavender makes my heart sing, and it's just so well cut that it blows the other one out of the water (obviously just IMHO, so hopefully you aren't offended if you were leaning the other way :doh: )

I just feel like when they are posted side by side sapphire 1 takes center stage because of how firey and unique it is. Of course neither are "bad", obviously the color of sapphire 2 is more "ideal", but I personally prefer blue/purple, so I'm biased in that regard.

No matter what you do it'll be gorgeous, but for me it would be no contest :)
 

katharath

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lovedogs|1466207714|4045269 said:
DROOOOOOL! Sapphire 1 by a mile! That mix of blue/lavender makes my heart sing, and it's just so well cut that it blows the other one out of the water (obviously just IMHO, so hopefully you aren't offended if you were leaning the other way :doh: )

I just feel like when they are posted side by side sapphire 1 takes center stage because of how firey and unique it is. Of course neither are "bad", obviously the color of sapphire 2 is more "ideal", but I personally prefer blue/purple, so I'm biased in that regard.

No matter what you do it'll be gorgeous, but for me it would be no contest :)

No no no, no worries about offending me!! Very much appreciate your thoughts!
 

katharath

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lilmosun|1466206789|4045266 said:
For me, the ideal cut stood out immediately and is a much better match with European cut of the diamonds (and I love the color).

This is just the kind of thing I wanted to know, thank you!
 

katharath

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NKOTB|1466206584|4045265 said:
I'm with Chrono.

Awesome, I'm so glad you checked in and added your opinion!! You know I value it :)
 

CaraMish

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Absolutely Sapphire One, because of the lovely cut and lighter colour. :love:
 

Niel

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So in the best light I like #2, but when it's not at its best I don't prefer it. In all lightings I like #1, and prefer it in most lightings

So #1
 

marymm

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katharath, oh golly, I understand what you (and other posters) are saying about Sapphire One, but I'm totally and completely crushing on Sapphire Two ... 1000% .... the color mostly but also the 6mm size ... to the point where I did a quick mind check of my bank balance to see if i could swing Sapphire Two if you choose Sapphire One (FWIW, I'm not kidding).

While I think Sapphire Two looks good with your diamond side-stones, I do agree Sapphire One looks better in your 3-stone combo.
 

katharath

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CaraMish and Niel - wonderful, thank you both for taking the time to post!

Marymm - I love your post bc I have to admit, I completely get the admiration for sapphire one, but I was a bit surprised that sapphire two didn't get a little love also :). Since you seem very interested in this one, I will tell you now - it will most likely be available. I have to return the sapphire I don't choose to the vendor, but I'm fairly certain you could work something out with her for this sapphire if you want it. If you want to discuss this further, you can contact me through my LT listings (there's a link to them in my most recent preloved thread, I'm sure if you did a search you could easily find it).
 

katharath

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I really appreciate these responses, believe me, they are helpful.

Ok, I'll be completely honest - sapphire one is my choice too. I was pretty sure already, but I wanted to hear unbiased responses from the PS crowd :) I got these yesterday, and spent a lot of time looking at both. I really like to sleep on bigger purchases like this too. This morning when I got up and looked at both again, I immediately thought "sapphire one for sure!!". But then I spent a long time looking at them again today, and sort of confused myself to the point where I felt like confirmation of my choice would be good. And keep in mind, these are really only "the good" pics. Sapphire one does show more gray for sure, especially in harsh indoor lighting. But to be honest I don't really care, lol. AND I have a pair of 5 mm sapphire studs and a 6.75 mm bezel sapphire pendant that this new one will be joining; those sapphires are all untreated, so I'm happy to keep that going and have a full untreated sapphire suite. Also it's the cheaper one, lol!! So that's good too.

I guess one issue was that I know that the color of sapphire two is more ideal, and I sort of feel like I "should" like it best. And it really is a pretty sapphire. But as several of you said - I also LOVE the blue/lavender look, more than the deeper blue. It's just a personal preference thing.

Thank you all so much!!
 

ilovegemstones

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I just saw this thread! Sapphire one for sure! Amazing cut and colour. Congrats Kat!
 

katharath

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ilovegemstones|1466215728|4045303 said:
I just saw this thread! Sapphire one for sure! Amazing cut and colour. Congrats Kat!

Thank you, I'm very excited!! :)
 

katharath

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For those wondering (I've received a couple of messages asking, silly me, I don't know why I didn't post the vendor, apologies!!) - vendor is Yvonne Raley.
 

chroman

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I'm liking #1 in most all but the harsh daylight shots, where it shows its gray and #2 holds its color. Otherwise it looks so alive! But I think I'm like 70% for 1 and 30% for 2, not a landslide. There is no bad choice!

If marymm doesn't grab this, maybe one of the folks currently hunting for an ER sappire will.
 

minousbijoux

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Yup, agree - you had me at the first photo. Love the cutting, love the color. What good is the perfect color if it looks far from perfect a lot of the time?
 

caf

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Sapphire 1. Much prettier. Better cut. You will enjoy this stone more. More personality.
 

xcacaox

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Seems like 1 is about the sparkles and 2 is about the colour!
I like 1 when it's by itself or with other coloured stones, but I actually like 2 more when it's side-by-side with the diamonds! (I think it works, cos the diamonds sparkle a lot in themselves, and sort of "bling up" the center stone more.)
So I guess I'm rooting in for 1 in general, 2 if you set it like you showed - diamond-sapph-diamond.
 

Lisa Loves Shiny

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I like sapphire 1 for the cut and the color is very nice. Number 2 has a velvety color which I find very attractive. Taking in account that setting the sapphires will darken them a bit, I would choose number 1.
 

Sungura

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Hi Katharath

For this application I like sapphire one more. I think Sapphire two would look better in a three stone where the diamonds were smaller (maybe 3.5 mm) and also very white. Your OECs seem warmer white to me but maybe that's just the photos

Excited for you. I love the classics blue sapphire with diamond combo
 

Sungura

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Katharath
If you yearn for the color of Sapphire 2 then think about getting a smaller one someday and make a stacker. I bought the 4mm unheated Ceylon that Yvonne had a while back because it had that ideal color that I can never see myself paying for in a larger size. Just 1mm smaller and the prices go down significantly

Your OECs are lovely





(Edited to correct a typo)
 

katharath

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Sungura - I think I know EXACTLY which smaller sapphire you got from Yvonne, it was so beautiful. You and I think alike, lol.

LisaRN - you're right, it's that velvety color that made this choice so difficult!

xcacoax - yes, definitely a choice between "great color, decent cut" and "almost as good color but great cut", lol

Caf - I think you're absolutely right!

Minous - I have a ~7 mm sapphire that has amazing color but so so cut. It only looks amazing about 25% of the time bc of this. It frustrates me even though I love it and wear it almost every day (pendant). So I think this time I should definitely choose the best cut, it will bring me the most happiness. Thanks for your always valuable thoughts!

Chroman - you nailed my dilemma pretty well :). Thanks for adding your opinion!
 

Sungura

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I meant to also say that since Sapphire 1 is untreated I find it more special and likely more rare. You will have more chances at a stone like Sapphire 2 heated in the future so passing it up at this time can possibly be easier
 
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