Swore off opals, but you are all incorrigible enablers...

[jordyonbass]

Edit -

Re. Brightness scale, I've seen B1-B5 with B5 being brightest, B1-B7 with B1 being brightest, B1-B7 with B7 being brightest... Last I saw the Opal Association of Australia recommended using words like SUBDUED and VIVID because the numbers were confusing everyone. For me as long as the vendor explains what their scale is, I'm good with it.

Disclaimer: Opal Association of Australia is reputable, but isn't exactly an unbiased non-profit - it was founded by a vendor (Seda actually). There is no universally-accepted opal evaluation authority. But the opal situation is still miles ahead of the pearl industry so... I temper my complaints.

As an Aussie Opal vendor, I have to say that @yssie has hit the proverbial nail on the head here. This is one of the things that has been most troubling for Aussie Opal Vendors when clients come to us expecting their Opal to have the same kind of certification as a Diamond or even a Sapphire.

@yssie has seen what has happened with Aussie Opals some from of the most reputable vendors when sent to some of the most reputable gem labs. To say that blunders were made could not be understated more

 

[fredflintstone]

1、Opals under light are very different from those under natural light, so be sure to look at pictures or videos in natural light when buying opals online. 2、The true red play-of-color of black opal is extremely rare, most of the so-called red is orange, pay attention to distinguish. 3、The play-of-color of most opals is not clear under natural light. If you can see clear colored patches under natural light, it will have a very amazing performance under the light.4、 The same opal below is under led lights and Natural light by the interior window, this is a true red-colored opal, not orange

While I agree with most of what you wrote, people need to see videos of Opals under natural & artificial light. Most of us wear our jewelry indoors.

Reds pop out the most under natural sunlight, but red can under LED and fluorescent too and that orange can change into red under sunlight. Also, Opal's play of color gets extremely bright under natural sunlight, but that play of color shrinks under sunlight too.

Then there are Opals that look best under low light conditions.

Opals are individual creatures, no one Opal behaves exactly like another. That is why you can have a million Opals and still not have them all.

 

[minousbijoux]

As an Aussie Opal vendor, I have to say that @yssie has hit the proverbial nail on the head here. This is one of the things that has been most troubling for Aussie Opal Vendors when clients come to us expecting their Opal to have the same kind of certification as a Diamond or even a Sapphire.

@yssie has seen what has happened with Aussie Opals some from of the most reputable vendors when sent to some of the most reputable gem labs. To say that blunders were made could not be understated more

@jordyonbass always great when you post - truly insightful and informative.

@landscape: I see what you mean by red vs. orange red. That opal has RED red and is absolutely gorgeous!

 

[Autumn in New England]

@landscape and @Starstruck8 Great insight and even greater opals! Thank you for sharing!!

 

[Catmom]

I can't wait to see it once you get it! I love opals.

 

[yssie]

This is not really a mystery (except for the bit about white opals...). Opals are intrinsically directional. For the stone and viewpoint fixed, for each position on the stone, there is a small range of magic lighting angles at which the position displays its best colour, and lots of other angles at which it doesn't.

In this video, the camera and stone were fixed, and the stone was lit by a moving flashlight. Different parts of the stone turn on and off as the flashlight moves. (Apologies for the unstoppable gif - I don't know how to upload a video.)

In a good stone (i.e. a better one than this...), different parts of the stone have different optimal lighting directions, So with any sort of directional lighting (whether hard and pin-like or soft but directional, some parts will be on, and they will show good contrast with parts that are off.

But with even, broad-angle lighting, the effects of the 'good' angles and the 'bad' angles are averaged together, so there is very little contrast. (If all the frames in my video were averaged, the result would be close to a uniform grey over the whole stone.)

I have to plead guilty to posting hero shots... This is the same stone in a shot I posted earlier. You can see by the shadow that the lighting is softly directional.


I'm not sure why white opals should be different (if indeed they are) - they are not my favourites, and I have little experience of them.

First bolded part - makes sense to me! (And that’s a great visual with the flashlight, thanks for sharing that!)

Second bolded - yeah, I doubt whites are any different in actuality. It’s probably just that my eyes aren’t judging as well, because the brightness differential between colour play and stone body is more muted to begin with.

 

[landscape]

@landscape: I see what you mean by red vs. orange red. That opal has RED red and is absolutely gorgeous!

Thanks.I'm guessing you've also looked for real red.The play-of-color with an orange main color， Although it looks like red, if it is put together with real red, there is still a big difference.

 

[landscape]

@landscape and @Starstruck8 Great insight and even greater opals! Thank you for sharing!!

Thanks

 

[Timor]

I can't wait to see your opal when it arrives, hope it looks as stunning IRL!
I recently fell into the opal hole as well and just got two white/crystal opals that I'm expecting this week, so excited to see a fellow opal lover with stones coming

 

[lilmosun]

A lot of good information here.

@Autumn in New England - your Opal looks incredible - can't wait for you to post more once in hand.

 

[Autumn in New England]

A lot of good information here.

@Autumn in New England - your Opal looks incredible - can't wait for you to post more once in hand.

Thank you! Hoping she impresses!!

 

[cocotate]

Just a random comment while waiting for the highly anticipated opal update. I got very curious to try the Matcha KitKat bar imported from Japan after the few mentions under this thread. I say don't bother! I spent quite a bit for the overly expensive imported minibars ($25!) and the taste was completely underwhelming and disappointing with hardly any matcha taste. This is coming from a ceremonial matcha tea lover no less. Curiosity got me as always on this forum..

 

[yssie]

Just a random comment while waiting for the highly anticipated opal update. I got very curious to try the Matcha KitKat bar imported from Japan after the few mentions under this thread. I say don't bother! I spent quite a bit for the overly expensive imported minibars ($25!) and the taste was completely underwhelming and disappointing with hardly any matcha taste. This is coming from a ceremonial matcha tea lover no less. Curiosity got me as always on this forum..

Oh no!! Maybe you got an old batch!? All my experiences with them have been… Well, let’s just say that I’m all too familiar with excessive shipping! The matcha isn’t strong at all, but should just enough to bring the chocolate down from induces-cavities-spontaneously…

You’ve just got to try them once more to be sure!

(Disclaimer: I have the palate of a five year old, and in my world view there is no such thing as “too sweet”)

 

[icy_jade]

Oh no!! Maybe you got an old batch!? All my experiences with them have been… Well, let’s just say that I’m all too familiar with excessive shipping! The matcha isn’t strong at all, but should just enough to bring the chocolate down from induces-cavities-spontaneously…

You’ve just got to try them once more to be sure!

(Disclaimer: I have the palate of a five year old, and in my world view there is no such thing as “too sweet”)

I’m a made in Australia or UK kit kat person. Find the Japanese kit kat not chocolately enough.

Btw if you ever visit Singapore, we have japanese kit kat everywhere. Sometimes in the regular supermarkets, but certainly always in specialty choc stores and Don Don Donki.

 

[cocotate]

Oh no!! Maybe you got an old batch!? All my experiences with them have been… Well, let’s just say that I’m all too familiar with excessive shipping! The matcha isn’t strong at all, but should just enough to bring the chocolate down from induces-cavities-spontaneously…

You’ve just got to try them once more to be sure!

(Disclaimer: I have the palate of a five year old, and in my world view there is no such thing as “too sweet”)

The expiration shows 2023.03 on the package so I assume it's not too stale? It tastes like any white chocolate-covered wafer and it seems very similar to Witch's Brew green KitKat bars often sold during Halloween. I thought perhaps my taste buds may be desensitized to matcha so I had my husband who hates matcha try it and he couldn't detect any matcha either and said it was just bland.

I may try the dark green tea version if I could find it at an Asian store later but I refuse to pay the premium online price again!

The most amazing thing to taste is those green tea cakes you can find at Japonaise cake stores. Those are incredible...

 

[yssie]

The most amazing thing to taste is those green tea cakes you can find at Japonaise cake stores. Those are incredible...

I shall have to find some of these

That’s too bad about the Kit Kats. I didn’t think that where they were manufactured could make a difference - but now, actually, as I’m typing this out, I think I remember another thread about different products from the same brands that had radically different ingredients lists in different countries

 

[cocotate]

I shall have to find some of these

That’s too bad about the Kit Kats. I didn’t think that where they were manufactured could make a difference - but now, actually, as I’m typing this out, I think I remember another thread about different products from the same brands that had radically different ingredients lists in different countries

This is the back of the package I tried.
Product of Japan.
You'll LOVE Japonaise cakes.

 

[2Neezers]

@Autumn in New England Omi Prive posted this gorgeous opal, diamond and tourmaline ring and I thought I’d share since I think I remember you liking three stone rings. Something like this with your opal and rubies would look amazing!!

 

[cocotate]

A lot of good information here.

@Autumn in New England - your Opal looks incredible - can't wait for you to post more once in hand.

Hi @lilmosun
I very much admired the 5.6ct opal ring you showed us back in 2019

Any Opal lovers out there? Show and Tell please.

After @T L mentioned in a post above that Welo opals are both beautiful and affordable, I headed over to opal auctions and ordered this opal. I loved that the pattern looked like little bits of layered confetti :D. It’s hard to photograph, but looks pretty much the same in person as the vendors...

www.pricescope.com

From all the opals I've seen, that stone seems the closest match for Missy's opal. Could you show us more of that beautiful stone?

 

[lilmosun]

Hi @lilmosun
I very much admired the 5.6ct opal ring you showed us back in 2019

Any Opal lovers out there? Show and Tell please.

After @T L mentioned in a post above that Welo opals are both beautiful and affordable, I headed over to opal auctions and ordered this opal. I loved that the pattern looked like little bits of layered confetti :D. It’s hard to photograph, but looks pretty much the same in person as the vendors...

www.pricescope.com

From all the opals I've seen, that stone seems the closest match for Missy's opal. Could you show us more of that beautiful stone?

Thank you but my opal would pale compared to Missy's iconic Cartier piece. Hers is a black opal whereas mine has a lighter body tone. As such, the colors, especially the blues, are more intense in her piece and to die for. But I am happy with my opal - the play of color and bright flashes can be seen throughout the stone regardless of lighting. So glad you like it!

@Autumn in New England - have you receive your beauty yet?

 

[cocotate]

Thank you but my opal would pale compared to Missy's iconic Cartier piece. Hers is a black opal whereas mine has a lighter body tone. As such, the colors, especially the blues, are more intense in her piece and to die for. But I am happy with my opal - the play of color and bright flashes can be seen throughout the stone regardless of lighting. So glad you like it!

@Autumn in New England - have you receive your beauty yet?

I actually doubt that. You have a very nice stone and I hope to see more of it on a dedicated thread one day. Just like many others on this forum, I've been downloading Missy's opal photos (below) and noticed certain things as I learned more about various types of opals over the years. Yours is a similar type based on comparisons with her older photos.

The BOOK... of VENDOR BOXES

@scoutfinch has received a stunning set by Caysie. Her set arrived in a beautiful wooden duo-box.

www.pricescope.com

Show your gems that look good in all lighting

Since so many gems have a color shift or change that some people deem less desirable, this thread is devoted to your less moody gems, the ones that look great in cloudy weather, sunlight, fluorescent light, other incandescent/artificial light. I’ll start with one of my moonstones. When fine...

www.pricescope.com

Black Opal Ring Opinion

I saw this black opal ring at the flea market this weekend. It was quite beautiful in its coloration and was solid, not a doublet according to the vendor. It was surrounded by a halo of old mine cut stones, so definitely antique, maybe Victorian. While it caught my eye, I decided to pass since...

www.pricescope.com

Singing the Blues

Hi there gemstone lovers. Care to share your blues? Blue is my favorite color and I can never get enough. Sadly I don't own that much blue in bling but that's the beauty of PS. You get to enjoy lots more beautiful pieces than if you weren't a PSer. So pretty please go ahead and sing the blues...

www.pricescope.com

Opals photograph very differently based on lighting differences alone. An example of this is also clearly shown with the Australian solid opal pairs in the below thread, just as in many of my duds. It's the photography/edit that puts on the extra glamour. I also learned not to chase embellished rainbows after wasting thousands of dollars.

Any Opal lovers out there? Show and Tell please.

Second try! Find it fascinating that opals look so different, yet all are opals. Top: Peruvian, Mexican ‘water’ opal Bottom: Black, Black, Mexican ‘fire’ opal I think the left most opal pattern is called “ flagstone,” but not sure. In any case, I love the orange and blue in it. What a...

www.pricescope.com

 

[LilAlex]

I got very curious to try the Matcha KitKat bar imported from Japan after the few mentions under this thread. I say don't bother! I spent quite a bit for the overly expensive imported minibars ($25!) and the taste was completely underwhelming and disappointing with hardly any matcha taste.

So here's the thing: it's still a KitKat! Expectations must be tempered. I mean I love great chocolate and I love KitKats -- and they are pretty much unrelated. Oh, and this is coming from someone who, with friends, used to scour a very large East Coast city looking for every exotic new flavor of PopTarts. Not because they were good -- they were awful in unique and fascinating ways. All the permutations of frosting and filling. My mouth burns a little just thinking about it.

 

[mellowyellowgirl]

So here's the thing: it's still a KitKat! Expectations must be tempered. I mean I love great chocolate and I love KitKats -- and they are pretty much unrelated. Oh, and this is coming from someone who, with friends, used to scour a very large East Coast city looking for every exotic new flavor of PopTarts. Not because they were good -- they were awful in unique and fascinating ways. All the permutations of frosting and filling. My mouth burns a little just thinking about it.

I cracked up at your comment! I've been gifted all kinds of crazy KitKat flavors and yup...... It's still a KitKat at the end of the day!

 

[cocotate]

So here's the thing: it's still a KitKat! Expectations must be tempered. I mean I love great chocolate and I love KitKats -- and they are pretty much unrelated. Oh, and this is coming from someone who, with friends, used to scour a very large East Coast city looking for every exotic new flavor of PopTarts. Not because they were good -- they were awful in unique and fascinating ways. All the permutations of frosting and filling. My mouth burns a little just thinking about it.

Tou·ché. I relate and agree.

Since I've transitioned to all organic for health, I've been indulging in occasional organic Frosted Toasters (Pop Tarts) from Trader Joe's. Strawberry is the best one.

Funny story - after watching Grave of the Fireflies and sobbing a good bit, I had to try the Sakuma drops for myself. While ordering the imported good, I noticed some bizarre flavors and had to order some along to satisfy my curiosity. I spent a good amount of money exploring the flavors at the time and still have some of the remnants left below to show. As for the recent Japanese KitKat exploration, I liked the strawberry one the best again, but it's still a KitKat.



"Expectations must be tempered."
We can say that knowing much better retrospectively now, yet curiosity and desires had to be appeased. $$$$$ and times wasted for wild goose chase...

 

[Autumn in New England]

@Autumn in New England Omi Prive posted this gorgeous opal, diamond and tourmaline ring and I thought I’d share since I think I remember you liking three stone rings. Something like this with your opal and rubies would look amazing!!

Thank you for the inspiration, my friend!! Geez that's lovely...

 

[Autumn in New England]

So here's the thing: it's still a KitKat! Expectations must be tempered. I mean I love great chocolate and I love KitKats -- and they are pretty much unrelated. Oh, and this is coming from someone who, with friends, used to scour a very large East Coast city looking for every exotic new flavor of PopTarts. Not because they were good -- they were awful in unique and fascinating ways. All the permutations of frosting and filling. My mouth burns a little just thinking about it.

I can't believe I used to eat them right out of the foil every day in school. The brown sugar ones were my jam!

 

[Autumn in New England]

@Autumn in New England - have you receive your beauty yet?

The vendor is headed to the mine this coming Wednesday, so we're holding off on a final decision until I can weigh all of my options. Thank you for asking!!

 

[yssie]

@cocotate I have some japonaise cakes coming my way… From a local-to-my-office bakery with excellent reviews

 

[mellowyellowgirl]

@cocotate I have some japonaise cakes coming my way… From a local-to-my-office bakery with excellent reviews

Oh can you take a photo for me plzzzzzz?

I don't know what they are!

 

[Autumn in New England]

I absolutely love how this thread has devolved into one about sweets. I ate 4 of these guys tonight.

Milk Chocolate Pecan Clusters | Clusters | Nuts.com

Milk chocolate pecan clusters (turtles) from Nuts.com are milk chocolate, pecan, and caramel goodness. Great prices and ready to ship.

nuts.com