Something in the mail

[MakingTheGrade]

Excited

It looked to be the light blue that I love, and I''ll probably be receiving it on monday. So excited!!!! I hope it''s what I''m looking for.

Hehe, so excited! Just had to share with someone. My fiance doesn''t get why little shiny rocks make me happy, lol.

 

[marcy]

Can''t wait to see it.

 

[MakingTheGrade]

Here are 2 vendor pics in daylight. I don''t think the pictures sell the brilliance so well, but the vendor said it was a bright stone so I''m hoping it''ll be very lively and sparkly in person (crosses fingers). I LOVE this color though

 

[MakingTheGrade]

#2
(I hope Michael E doesn't mind me sharing pics, I'm just very excited! He's been great with all my questions, very nice guy. This one wasn't cut by him btw, lol.)

 

[Stone Hunter]

Nice color. What type of stone is it?

 

[Gailey]

Hey MTG, a Michael E stone - wow! We don''t see enough of his work around here, he is a very clever man. Are you going to let him set the stone for you? He makes lovely jewellery as well as cutting the stones.

Now I''m going to tread carefully here. Where did you see his stone advertised? Do you have a link to his website. If you saw the stone advertised on another forum, don''t mention it here, otherwise we will both be in trouble. But I really would like to see more of Michael E on Pricescope.

 

[MakingTheGrade]

Date: 4/23/2009 10:17:33 AM
Author: Stone Hunter


Nice color. What type of stone is it?

It's a sapphire

Hehe, I'm hesitant to say it's a "Michael E" stone since he didn't cut it himself. It is a native cut stone which wasn't recut because it does the stone justice as it is. One of these days I'm sure I'll buy one that's actually cut by the master himself, lol. Still, it's a start. I may send it back to him one day to set in a ring, but first things first, lets see if I like the stone I'd also have to save up to get the ring I'd want made from it.

I found the stone advertised on another forum by chance when trawling google, lol. Sorry I can't be more helpful without breaking the rules. He does have a website though:
http://www.gemshoppe.com/

 

[MakingTheGrade]

Hey Gailey,
I''m sure if you email him privately through his website, he''d be happy to point you to where you can find pics of current inventory

 

[D&T]

MTG,,, that looks so beautiful, That color is awesome! and a sapphire huh? I would have never guessed, but I don''t know my gems well enough anyways.... yet

 

[MakingTheGrade]

Thanks DT, it's actually been hard to find a light blue sapphire, most of them get heated to get a darker blue color. But I like them bright, light, and sparkly!

 

[chrono]

That''s an interesting bright sky blue sapphire - different but very sweet looking.

 

[loriken214]

YAY....MTG...I can''t wait to see it IRL!!!!

Lori

 

[MakingTheGrade]

Hehe, thanks Chrono and Lori, I appreciate the empathetic enthusiasm. Whenever I squeal and tell my fiance I have something in the mail he just kind of shrugs and goes "ok, I don't have to pick it up do I? I hate the post office line".

I really like unusual colors/atypical examples of some stones. I feel like it gives it more personality, lol. And to be honest, I'm not a huge fan of the sleepy kashmir blue or the deeper ceylon blue. Luckily for me, the lighter color ones that I like are easy on the wallet!

 

[MakingTheGrade]

Just for completion, here''s the vendor photo with diffused fluorescent light. It''s a very different blue than the daylight pics, so I''m very interested to see what it looks like in person.

 

[Linda W]

Love the color MTG, can''t wait to see pictures when you receive it.

 

[MakingTheGrade]

It came on saturday
The color is lovely I think, it''s not ideal sapphire blue, but I like them on the lighter side. But the sparkle factor isn''t quite where it needs to be for me. I might just not be used to the "native" step cut.

Here are some pics though if you''re interested The post office isn''t open today, so I''ll observe it today, and see if I still want to return it tomorrow (sometimes it takes awhile for me to make up my mind, lol).

 

[MakingTheGrade]

Some hand shots for size reference.

 

[T L]

Very pretty!! Nice cutting as well.

 

[MakingTheGrade]

I think I''m torn because when I compare it to my pad or malaya, it doesn''t glow or sparkle as much as they do. Am I comparing apples to oranges here?

 

[chrono]

It looks so much more vivid in the vendor's pictures. There's nothing wrong with a non-desired shade such as a lighter blue as long as the colour is good. Your picture doesn't do much for me. There are native cuts out there that are good; this one might just not fall into that category. A padparadscha is also a sapphire so if it sparkles to you, then you have an idea how a sapphire behaves/reflects light. This is one stone I would not mind returning because it does not live up to the vendor's pictures..

 

[MakingTheGrade]

Thanks Chrono!
I took some more pics of it with my pad and malaya, although the new sapphire is much more photogenic than I thought it''d be. He''s starting to grow on me.

 

[MakingTheGrade]

Some of it''s better shots:
I can seem what Dreamer was talking about with the camera amping up the electric blueness somehow.

 

[MakingTheGrade]

In terms of stats, it's an unheated sapphire, 1.2 ct, 6.8 x5.7.

 

[chrono]

MTG,
Are you saying that even your own pictures are better looking than the real thing?

 

[MakingTheGrade]

Just the last 2 were more electric than in person.

 

[chrono]

A thought just occured it me about the apparent lack of sparkle when you mentioned it is unheated. Have you louped it? Do you see any microscopic inclusions scattered thougout the sapphire? If so, that might affect the light return of the stone.

 

[MakingTheGrade]

There are some very tiny little bubbles and some very fine silk.

It does sparkle, just not as much as I thought it would. But then again, I don''t think blue sapphires are necessarily known for their sparkle per se?

In any case, there are pros and cons to the look of the stone. I like the color, and the native cut and microscopic inclusions kind of give the stone a very organic, earthy feel which I like. Reminds me of a river stream in spring It''s not the stone I was looking for for my project, but I might add it to the collection as an educational stone since it has very typical microscopic inclusions, light untreated sapphires have been hard to come by, and I wouldn''t mind adding a native cut to the collection for comparison. And 150$ isn''t very pricey for this kind of thing.

Haha, still...I could return it and get something from Barry''s drop next month instead...lol. Choices, choices.

 

[D&T]

hmmm. looks pretty... If you are torn, then my thoughts are to return it, imo... if I already have second thoughts I usually know that I''m not "in love with it" and regret it later, because something else will appear later for you... just a thought?

 

[LtlFirecracker]

That looks like a nice sapphire, I can't wait to see real life pics.

ETA: I should have scrolled down before I posted. I am interested to see if you keep it or not.

 

[MakingTheGrade]

Date: 4/26/2009 5:10:55 PM
Author: D&T
hmmm. looks pretty... If you are torn, then my thoughts are to return it, imo... if I already have second thoughts I usually know that I''m not ''in love with it'' and regret it later, because something else will appear later for you... just a thought?

I''m kind of weird in that I very rarely love a gem the first time I see it, lol. They tend to have to grow on me a bit. I definitely have gems that I absolutely love now, that I wasn''t sure of at the beginning. I''m kind of indecisive, haha.