Sunstone Iolite

[Loves Vintage]

This pretty 2.13 is on its way to me from Brad. He also has 3.56 and 5.97 ovals. I tend to prefer smaller stones, so picked this one. I'll have to decide how to set it, though I've been toying with the idea of just copying lovesdogs' ring. There have been a few of these posted on here, so I thought I'd start a thread for this mini-trend (of which I am just a follower!) I will post photos once I receive it too.

 

[lovedogs]

HOORAY! So happy for you that you found one! It's absolutely gorgeous, and I think it would look incredible in the AK setting (haha maybe I'm biased...) But I'd be honored if you used that ring style. Bonus is that it was relatively affordable (approx 800 USD for 9ct gold), which was amazing given how perfect AK's work is.

I'm excited to see what you do with it!

 

[Acinom]

Yay!! Welcome to the Sunstone Iolite club. You have chosen a beautiful stone. It looks stunning in that pic.

I am looking forward to see how you will set it. Here's another vote for Lovedogs beauty by Alistair Kelsey. I love it a lot myself and I am considering setting my black opal in a similar setting in warm gold and perhaps diamond melee.

Inspired by dk and Lovedogs I have bought a Sunstone Iolite from Brad as well. I have never seen it in real life. It's currently being set by Alistair.

Lovedogs' beauty:

 

[Acinom]

DK's Sunstone Iolite from Brad:
5.77ct 15.6 x 11mm Sunstone Iolite with Haematite

 

[Acinom]

Here is mine. I am looking forward to see it in real life!

 

[Acinom]

I believe this one is from ilovegemstones:

 

[Loves Vintage]

Thanks guys! I'm not very well versed in any of this colored stone business, but I know what I like, and I do like these sunstone iolites!

lovesdogs - Wow that is a great deal, which makes it an even more attractive option for me! I do love that ring!

acinom - A black opal would look stunning in that yellow gold setting. You have such a good eye for these things! Thanks for posting all of the photos. So funny that you haven't seen your stone yet, but logistically, it makes sense that you haven't!

Has DK set her sunstone iolite?

 

[dk168]

No, I have yet to set mine, however, I have already decided on the design (ring size subjected to change):



DK

 

[Lisa Loves Shiny]

No, I have yet to set mine, however, I have already decided on the design (ring size subjected to change):



DK

 

[PickieBee]

Wait, do you wear that or eat it??? It looks like candy!

 

[Acinom]

Pickiebee:

dk: gorgeous design choice! Do I really detect prongs?

Here are some real life pics of Lovedogs' stunning ring:

 

[dk168]

I may live to regret it, however, yes, there are prongs!

DK

 

[dk168]

Ooo, I like Lovedogs' ring by AK!

DK

 

[Acinom]

Have you received yours yet, Loves Vintage?

Alistair Kelsey has set mine and it's on it's way to Europe. I will be able to collect the ring at the beginning of July.

The stats:
Sunstone iolite
Oval
4.18 ct
12.4 x 10 mm

The ring is made in 18 kt brushed and polished WG and RG by Alistair Kelsey

 

[Loves Vintage]

Acinom - It's so fabulous! What a truly innovative design! You will rock it, no doubt.

I did receive my SI. I still need to take pictures. I was a little surprised that it does not always display the "schiller effect," only at certain angles, which reveals how little I know about these stones. I talked through it with Brad and am pleased with the stone.

P.S. Hope to have my AK ring finalized soon too! Exciting!!

 

[Acinom]

Thank you Loves Vintage! And thank you for sharing your experiences with the stone. I had not even seen pictures of these stones prior to PS. What do you see when the schiller is not 'on'?

And hopefully your Alistair Kelsey ring will be ready soon. He has been swamped with work. Which is a good thing for a young and talented designer I guess.

 

[Loves Vintage]

I'd say it's quite opaquely purple. I had tried to take some photos, but could not get photos at a good angle. And, now, somewhat hilariously, I have completely misplaced the stone. I've been looking all over for it, but I have no idea where I put it! I do this sort of thing every now and again, hiding things from little kid fingers, and then forgetting where, so I am sure it will turn up soon. Otherwise, I'd have offered to take some photos for you!

 

[lovedogs]

Thank you Loves Vintage! And thank you for sharing your experiences with the stone. I had not even seen pictures of these stones prior to PS. What do you see when the schiller is not 'on'?

And hopefully your Alistair Kelsey ring will be ready soon. He has been swamped with work. Which is a good thing for a young and talented designer I guess.

The schiller shows best at an angle, and not as well straight on. When it's "off" you either see a black stone, or a purple stone (depending on the color of your stone overall). Essentially it looks more plain when the schiller is "off".

Happy for AK that he's swamped he deserves it. But obviously want to see your ring on your hand asap!

Oh no, loves vintage! I'm so sorry you misplaced the stone! I'm sure you'll find it soon

 

[Acinom]

Thanks for clarifying Loves Vintage and Lovedogs!!
Have you been able to find your stone Loves Vintage? I hope you find it soon.

 

[lilmosun]

Hopefully it appears soon Love Vintage!

I did receive my SI. I still need to take pictures. I was a little surprised that it does not always display the "schiller effect," only at certain angles, which reveals how little I know about these stones. I talked through it with Brad and am pleased with the stone.

Thank you for posting this. I have one and wondered if it wasn't a good example as the schiller wasn't as prominent face up as I expected. I like to collect interesting stones though so was glad to have one. What did Brad say that changed your mind about the stone? Are there certain styles of settings that show the schiller more? If I set mine, I may set it in sterling to see if it gets a lot of wear.

 

[lovedogs]

Ok, so I just took a ton of pics--7pm and dim sunlight here + overcast. Just wanted everyone to see all the "personalities" of the sunstone. Even when the schiller is the weakest, it's still kind of there in the background (hard to explain).




From the top down and angle view, I can't "turn off" the schiller. That's when it's at it's "best"



Can't really see it from the pics, but here I angled by hand "up" to block the light and purposefully turned "off" the schiller in the final three photos (labeled). This is what it looks like most often when it's "off", which is to say that the stone is dark, but you can see the pieces of schiller kind of like they are "hiding" under the surface.



The first pic in this one is the same as the final three in the last pic (hand tilted up to block light). Other ones are top down, and side view, which both show the schiller nicely.



The top left pic here I have my hand at an odd angle again to show you what it looks like when it's totally "off". It looks almost black from this angle, but that's because it's from the side.


Sorry for the super long post, but I think it's one of the coolest stone types (IMHO), and I want everyone to see the different personalities so they know what to expect.

 

[lilmosun]

Thank you...the pictures are awesome (and I can never stop looking at your ring). I guess I should give mine a better look to see its different personalities. I probably didn't play with it enough.

 

[Acinom]

Wow, that's a great post Lovedogs! This is really helpful.

Lilmosun: could you post pics of your Sunstone Iolite. I would love to see it.

 

[ilovegemstones]

I love you ring LovesVintage! It is like a galaxy on your finger! The 4 prongs are so perfect with it - like the 4 directions and the schiller specks are the constellations!

ETA
I have also lost my big cushion spess garnet. My 5 year old daughter loves orange and she was carrying it around with her in a box months ago. I hope both of our stones turn up!

 

[Loves Vintage]

Hi ilovegemstones - Well, I *wish* that were my ring, but it's LovesDogs, and one of my favorites here! (What ring size are you, by the way, LovesDogs, haha, j/k!) And, so sorry to hear about your spess garnet!! I do hope it turns up soon! I have a 5 year old daughter too! Related Story - When I ordered the SI, I actually mentioned to Brad that I was looking for a cheapie stone to add in for my daughter because I knew when my stone arrived, she'd be looking for one too! Or, really,that she'd be looking to share mine. Brad very kindly threw in a bright blue cab for my daughter for free. So NICE! Anyway, it worked. She loved it. And, yet, I managed to lose my stone anyway. It still hasn't turned up. I've been looking everywhere. It still might, but a lesson learned for me to slow down and be more careful. I'm sure your garnet will turn up!!
ETA: Have you taken your daughter to a gem show? I took my daughter to one that was super small and local, and she loved it. She's also quite happy to dig up sparkly rocks in the yard and has quite a collection!

LovesDogs - Thanks for posting all of those photos. Your stone is a real charmer. I don't think I saw as much schiller in my stone in as many angles.

lilmosun - Well, Brad didn't say anything about different settings. I guess I was just expecting schiller all the time, but he explained that's not the case, and I was good with that. He explained that the schiller is essentially small naturally occurring metal platelets that are all tipped to exactly the same angle - so they need direct lighting at that angle to flash. In fairness, I could have spent more time with the stone both in and outside to see if it behaved differently under different lights. I hope that helps.

Acinom - Great discussion, right? I do think you will be very pleased with your stone. You can see in AK's photos how the schiller displays at different angles. Can't wait til you get it so we can see more photos!

 

[ilovegemstones]

Sorry, I see that now! Eager to see pics of the stone when you find it! The scary thing is, my 5 year old said, "Mommy, would you be angry at me if it was in the garbage?" Of course I would not be angry with her. It was my fault for letting her keep it wrapped up in her special box. She just loved it so much! I think it will turn up. We went to a gem show with all three of our girls years ago but have not been recently. We did mine amethyst in Thunder Bay and are doing it again this summer!

 

[Loves Vintage]

Wow, neat! That must be a lot of fun!

Keep on looking for your lost stone! And, I'll do the same!

 

[Acinom]

Wow!! I can finally see a Sunstone Iolite in real life and I love it!! What an amazing stone. I love it when the shiller is on but I also love the subtleness when the shiller is low.

Today I collected my Alistair Kelsey ring. It's very big but I love it!

 

[Acinom]

More pics, showing the various moods of the stone:

 

[lovedogs]

ahhhhh! Acinom, I am in love with your ring! So substantial, but yet looks super smooth and comfortable to wear. Your sunstone itself is lovely, and definitely looks similar to mine insofar as it's "on" and "off" states. Are you thrilled with it? I love how different it is from your other AK rings, yet somehow it's so distinctly his style. He manages to be unique and also have a signature look. I have a super huge jewelry crush on him and hope he becomes wildly successful (but that I can still afford him )