Pls help me find a Nice large RED gemstone for my momma!

[LadyNewton]

I am looking for a nice, large and bright red gemstone pendant for my mom's birthday.
She likes this design but is open to others if the shape of the gem is different.

As i can't afford a large ruby which would cost me a king's ransom i'm thinking of semi-precious red gems like garnet and zircon. are there any other gems i could look at for something that large yet affordable?

i've shortlisted 2 gems as of now - a round garnet, and a red zircon. still looking for a stone that really 'pops', does not have any dark areas and shines, shines, shines!

pls let me know if you have any ideas or comments!

 

[chrono]

What is your size requirement and budget? The two you posted will probably end up on the darker side in tone when viewed in person.

 

[LoversKites]

How about the round spessartite here? http://www.stevorocks.com/

Not sure if its big enough though.
Zircon will sparkle more.

 

[pregcurious]

I agree that a round spess would work for a pendant. It your mom is not excited about garnets, maybe try a red tourmaline. They tend to be more pinkish.

 

[Starzin]

How about the round spessartite here? http://www.stevorocks.com/

Not sure if its big enough though.
Zircon will sparkle more.

Hehe - Good find LK, you even get a bit of the original rough with it to show people! At nearly 8mm in a halo it should be plenty big enough. Depends how well it is polished, garnet can be surprising dispersive!

 

[chrono]

Rubellite or even a rhodolite might be good alternatives to consider, with rhodolite being very budget friendly.

 

[SPSGuy]

If you don't mind a more orangey color maybe Fire Opal for something affordable and pretty unique?

Otherwise your best bet is some form of Garnet, either Almandine for a darker color or Pyrope for lighter - or Rhodolite as someone suggested above for something verging on pink (but there are redder varieties out there).

 

[T L]

Bright red you probably won't find for a good price unless its a be-treated ruby, or a synthetic. Most of the stones shown here are very dark, extinct, or brownish, not bright red. I'm not sure if that's what you wanted, but if you want bright red on a budget, it's going to be very difficult to find anything except what I mentioned.

Rubellite was mentioned, but it can turn very brownish in some lighting, so beware of color shifts as well.

 

[the_mother_thing]

Here is a bright red spinel on DB for sale. http://diamondbistro.com/category/234/Spinel/listings/39583/Strawberry-Red-Spinel.html

 

[SparkliesLuver]

I find this Malaya Garnet to be very pretty and I love the unique shape.

4.46 ct. - An Imperial Malaya Garnet from Lindi Tanzani. This one measures 9.414 mm and is an eight sided design. The stone has some very fine silk that can not be seen with the eye, but gives the stone a slightly softer look, therefore the 8/10 rating for clarity.
Color: 9/10 Clarity: 8/10 Brilliance: 5/5 TQR: 9.0

http://www.precisiongem.com/Gemstones/Gemstones/rapidcart/redgarnet.html

 

[deskjockey]

That is a lovely garnet... wow.

I also found this spinel on Yvonne Raley's page... it's on the orangey side of red, not precision cut, but neat:

https://www.etsy.com/ca/listing/198600830/burmese-red-oval-spinel-239-carats?ref=shop_home_active_15