Report on Mint Tourmaline from new vendor

[Jeweljunke]

Received my stone from ebay seller Caratsgems. Here is the ebay contact story and a picture they used in their listing of this stone:



From: jeweljunkeme
To: caratsgems
Subject: Request to change an order: jeweljunkeme sent a message about 1.99CTS MESMERIZING LUSTER NATURAL MINT GREEN TOURMALINE
Sent Date: Mar-20-12 09:22:09 PDT
Dear caratsgems,
Hi, I need to cancel this transaction. I do not believe it is tourmaline. I see feedback that says a stone of yours tested as quartz, and this stone also looks like your green prasiolite and also looks like your green topaz. Please cancel now, without the trouble of sending and me sending it back. Thank you, Dian- jeweljunkeme

From: caratsgems
To: jeweljunkeme
Sent Date: Mar-20-12 09:41:00 PDT
Dear jeweljunkeme,
Hi Dian,
There is a feedback stating that a stone tested as quartz but I got the stone checked for the client has it was tourmaline. I can get the stone tested for you from a Reputable Lab and send you picture of the Certificate. I hope that is fair enough. I do not mix up stones but like to deal in a variety of stones. There is a difference in Prasiolite and Green Topaz. I hope we can sort this out.
Regards
Dean- caratsgems

To: caratsgems
Sent Date: Mar-20-12 11:13:42 PDT
Dear caratsgems,
Hi, AIGS or GIT would be acceptable labs for the report. If you can do that and send my the report, then yes, that would be ok. But I do NOT trust all labs, or in house reports. AIGS or GIT.
Best regards, Dian - jeweljunkeme

From: caratsgems
To: jeweljunkeme
Sent Date: Mar-20-12 20:39:05 PDT
Dear jeweljunkeme,
Hi Dian,
I am willing to get the stone certified from AIGS for you but the certificate charges will be $45 to $50 for AIGS. If I pay for that, I am left with no profit at all,Infact I loose money. How about I certify the stone from AIGS and if it's Tourmaline as I have mentioned you pay for AIGS charges and if it is not what I have stated, I bear the full cost for it. I hope this will be fair enough.
Regards
Dean- caratsgems

From: jeweljunkeme
To: caratsgems
Sent Date: Mar-21-12 05:31:07 PDT
Dear caratsgems,
Hi Dean, Per the AIGS website, a Brief Report costs 1,200 baht or about $39.00 us. I am willing to split the difference. (I should not have to prove what a stone is, you should as the seller), so I would pay for the stone if it checks out to be what you say. BUT, I want a photo of the actual report before I pay. There has been some warnings of forged reports going around. So I would want to see the report number before I pay. Fair? (sorry to be so untrusting, but I am tired of being cheated. and yes, I should have had this conversation with you before I did BIN. sorry about that. so if you want to cancel, that is ok also.)
Best regards, Dian- jeweljunkeme

Dear jeweljunkeme,
Hi Dian,
Thank you for your understanding. I fully understand the situation with fraud on Ebay and I am trying to work something out with a new Page to certify all my stones as well. AIGS report is about Bht. 1200 and I checked with today from the Lab. I will go with what you have offered. I will get the stone certified first. Once I get it from AIGS, I will send you the photo of the certificate and you can track it with AIGS webiste as well. That should be fair for both of us and I would like to ahead with the transaction.
Regards
Dean- caratsgems

========================================

HERE ARE THE PHOTOS OF THE STONE I TOOK TODAY. I am very happy I stood my ground. The stone is really very lovely, better than the photos I took, IRL. In my opinion, if this vendor took more true to life photos, they would sell more. I will check this vendor out again, but I will always insist on a cert from now one from ANY vendor. There is just way too much 'tom foolery' going on in the world.

 

[Enerchi]

Nice tourmaline! Glad you stood your ground - you were firm and polite, which I think makes all the difference. Liked your offer to split the difference, that showed good faith. I'm glad it worked out! Very exciting!


so.... what are the plans?

 

[GemFever]

Nice stone! Very pretty color.

Thanks for posting your exchange with the vendor. I think I wouldn't have the guts to interact with a seller to this extent. Somehow, I find them intimidating (especially once they have my money). But after reading this, I may be a little more brave

 

[T L]

Leave it to a PS'er to do their homework and protect themselves!! Well done!

 

[JewelFreak]

Good job & nice color. I'm cheering you for not backing down & doing it pleasantly. Win all around!

--- Laurie

 

[Jeweljunke]

Thank you. I love the little bit of blue in the stone. Of course it will be a ring (you know, because I just don't have enough rings - yeah right!).

And I've decided...that if a vendor does not want to send a stone to get it cert-ed, to a reliable lab, then they just don't want my $.

 

[VapidLapid]

I am so glad to heat this worked out so well. The stone looks radically better in your photos than the vendor pic. From the vendor pic alone I never would have thought there to be a blue tone. Glad you stood your ground.

 

[smitcompton]

Hi,

Nice going. You showed us the way.

Annette

 

[pregcurious]

Great job!

 

[Barrett]

Bravo!!!

 

[bluenights]

I'm not so sure about this vendor...
I offered a $100 stone, but had to cancel it due to certificate reasons, then they list that stone immediately after cancel $50 higher than previous listing price.

 

[Jereni]

Nice job, and lovely stone! I'm jealous, I am dreaming of a mint green stone of my own...

 

[EmmaJoy]

wow, that stone looks fantastic IRL. I'm impressed with how you handled yourself. I'm still very confused about how one should act with this cert thing. I have a stone on ebay that I'm LOVING. It fits an old setting of mine and everything. The seller has a GIT cert saying it's a copper bearing tourmaline. I contacted the seller and he said he would extend the return period, but if the stone were not certed as copper bearing earth mined, he would not refund the cost of the cert as well.

What should I do? It's not an incredibly valuable stone. But I don't want to get ripped off. (Sorry to threadjack )

 

[chrono]

How odd - usually if the stone turns out to be NOT as advertised when verified by a lab, the vendor pays the cost of the memo, not the customer.

 

[Jeweljunke]

I'm sure the experts here will correct me if I'm wrong, but I think a GIT cert comes with the gemstone sealed inside with the cert and states that if the seal is broken it might not be the stone inspected? Anyway, ask the seller if the stone is sealed into the cert. After that, if this seller does not want to either pay for half the cost of the new cert or insists that you pay for it, I would look elsewhere. Would you mind telling us who the seller is? Maybe someone here has had dealings with them. Also, it may be that the seller feels he already paid for the GIT cert and feels he should not have to pay for another, different cert.