Tanzanite, why so low?

[Translucent]

Hello everyone,

Hmmm......just got my (stone)greedy little hands on some fancy round cut, med dark, predominantly violet 9.47 carat tanzanite.
Very clear with some almost negligible wear on the underside. Teeny weeny ding on underside also.

Seller wants 600 Can. per carat. Why so low? Or is it?

l wanted to post a pic ,but wouldn''t you know it, the camera battery is dead. Arghhhh. Soon. Soon.

The colour is oh so lovely if you like more violet. I do. When I saw the stone, it floored me.

Oh, the possibilities, the joy, the "look what I got" of it all. All I can do is hope!

 

[Kaleigh]

OH I want to see it, sounds very pretty. Good luck!!!

 

[MJO]

My guess is that since tanzanite rose so much in price over the last couple of years alot of people that bought it low want to sell thinking that the market will correct and the price will go back down. My guess is that this seller or the person they are selling the stone for bought it a couple of years ago when the wholesale price was $125/ct in Thailand. I would tell them that I wouldn''t take it unless it was polished and then reweighed.

$600/ct is about the average on ebay.

 

[Translucent]

That''s very interesting MJO! I was also under the impression that round cuts were a bit more expensive than the others.
The seller assures me that 600 Can. = 450 US ? is low. Are the e-bay ones pretty decent? Do they ever have stones in
approx. the same size? Well, this has got me a-thinking.

I don''t think the seller will go for the repolishing. Actually, I''m pretty sure he won''t. He''s a "here''s the fabulous stone, now
pay me the money" type guy. Boy this is hard.

He also showed me a natural ruby of stunning colour(really really).
It''s about 6.something carats, emerald cut. The ruby has a streak of blue in one corner. Strange but doesn''t detract
from the saturated red. The cut is soooooo bad. Corners are out of wack. Wants 64 big ones. I told him I''d pass
up that deal! Nontheless, it was a curious ruby.


Should have that pic soon, Kaleigh.

 

[MJO]

Oh $600 Canadian is a different story. I thought you meant $600 US. That''s a good price if it''s an AAA grade.

 

[Translucent]

Well, here''s the rock in question.......she''s a little more violet than what the photo shows.

You can see the tiny ding when illuminated from behind, like when I put her on the microscope pad.

Apparently she was appraised by Wienstein in Toronto at 15 K. Can that be??

 

[valeria101]

Appraisal values don''t mean much... it seems that the "norm" is to have the appraisal value (at least) twice the price.

That picture is not very professional (understandable, it is hard to photograph gems). It shows very deep color for tanzanite, but it could be anything.

All it takes is to trust their return policy

 

[Translucent]

Yes, it certainly is a crappy picture. I''ll try again. The colour is pretty much like the tanzie in MJO''s magnificent
tanzie and demantoid pendant except a little more on the violet side. It''s not dark at all.

Is there any difference pricewise if the stone leans more toward violet? The colour saturation is very good.

At 450 per carat US, the price would be substantially lower than the evaluation. And that''s why I''m a bit hesitant.

 

[MJO]

Color doesn''t matter except for personal taste. Saturation and tone with a pure color is what counts. $450 is cheap.

 

[Translucent]

Date: 4/14/2005 12:13:21 AM
Author: MJO
Color doesn''t matter except for personal taste. Saturation and tone with a pure color is what counts. $450 is cheap.

I guess it''s "all systems are go" for that stone. How very true about personal taste regarding colours. As for myself, I tend
to like a bit more of the violet. And, after all, the stone is to be mine! All mine...mine ,mine(Translucent rubs her hands
together and then tries to get a grip on herself).

I never thought to dare mention the repolishing of the stone to this seller. I did, and it appears to be no problem.
Thanks MJO.

 

[Kaleigh]

Good for you!!!

 

[MJO]

Hi Translucent,

Wear it in good health. What are you going to make out of it?

 

[flopkins]

I have heard that the blue tanzanites command the highest price, so if this one has strong violet, maybe that will depress the price... personally i love the violet!!

 

[MJO]

Hi Flopkins,

That used to be the case before the mine floods 5 years ago but since then the color doesn''t matter.

 

[belle]

translucent,
that is a nice looking stone you have there!!!

to second mjo, what will you do with it?

 

[loupe]

Rough Rock,

The color does matter in tanzanite and directly affects the per carat price whether you are buying or selling. Yes, the photograph could be better but, hey! I commend you for trying. Tanzanites are strongly pleochroic and are difficult to photograph. Never hesitate to ask for repolishing, all they can say is no.

Just like diamonds,there is not one price for any gemstone. Prices vary according to market conditions, who is selling and why, online or store front seller, etc. In Tucson, AZ this year, tanzainte dealers went begging because the price has risen so much that buyers could get nice blue sapphires for the same per carat prices, in some venues. Tanzainte is brittle compared to sapphire and it also was initially marketed as a less expensive alternative to blue sapphire. That''s changed so the buyers looking for that lovely violet blue have returned to sapphire. Volatile market, volatile pricing.

Appraised values are not as simple as portrayed in this thread. Verbal opinions of value are not worth the paper they are written on! As you can see from your initial question, you got several opinions. And they are good solid ones from people that, I think, are hip deep in buying and selling. This has to do with location as much as the experience of the writer. In the US, jewelry appraising is not regulated except by the organization that an appraiser belongs to and your appraiser better belong to one of several national and international groups. A professional appraiser researches appropriate markets, writes it down and signs the report. Every report must have a stated purpose and function. Yes you pay for this. The upside to this exercise is the professional is bound by a code of ethics, has to adher to report writing standards and can get into big trouble for throwing numbers around without factual basis. Find a professional independent appraiser if you wish to insure your tanzanite.




"Gold there is, and rubies in abundance, but lips that speak knowledge are a rare jewel."

 

[Translucent]

Thank you everyone for your kind help!!

Ahhhhh....now, what to do with this rock? I want a pendant, but my jeweler friend wants to make
me a ring. I''m personally afraid of wearing it as a ring, but my friend assures me she can make a
beautiful yet protective setting.

Anyone have any ideas? I''m not very conventional. I like odd things.

Now if only I could get my hands on some nice demantoid(still drooling over your pendant, MJO).

 

[valeria101]

10 carat round in a ring ! That''s HUGE

What setting do they have in mind ? "protective" usually means allot of metal.

 

[Translucent]

Yeah, almost 10 carats does seem big! Yet my favorite cocktail ring happens to sport an 18 carat round topaz.
Granted, the topaz''s colour is smooth and neutral, and this tanzie will most definitely blaze.

I also hate really heavy rings. I''ll have to sit down with the jeweler and see what she means by "protective".
I''m liking the pendant idea more and more. Yes, more and more.

What other stones could I use in the pendant?

 

[MJO]

I wouldn''t use it for a ring unless it was to wear occassionally. My sister has a tanzanite ring that has really taken a beating. Even Bezel set would only protect the girdle. My sister''s stone has been chipped at the meeting of the facets to the table. I would use it as a pendent and if you need a pair of matching slightly lighter violet 7.7mm rounds as earings let me know. I just received some on approval. The price is right.

 

[valeria101]

Date: 4/17/2005 11:16:6 PM
Author: Translucent

What other stones could I use in the pendant?

A pack of not so great pictures on GOG show a funky pendant constructed to look good both face up and bottom up (first on this page). Perhaps the very model is not what you want, but the idea to make the piece look nice all the 3D way sounds appealing.

Next to violet-blue, I would probably try yellow or green for contrast if diamond-white just would not do this time. Colored pave would be quite a treat, IMO.

Just an idea

 

[loupe]

Translucent,

How about a pearl enhancer that can also double as a pendant on an Omega?

Karen








"Gold there is, and rubies in abundance, but lips that speak knowledge are a rare jewel."

 

[MJO]

Karen

I had previously posted this peal enhancer I had made for my wife. It doubles as a pendent. Is this what you are talking about?

Tanzanite 20cts.

 

[Translucent]

Ana, ooooh coloured pave is a nice idea. I''ll have to play around with some little green stones.........

MJO, wow 20 carats! Nice with the pearl entourage. Lucky wife. I''m convincing mysef that my hubby
has nothing to complain about. Yet.

Could you send me more info about the rounds.

Karen, it would be good for that pendant to double as a pearl enhancher. I wonder if it would be okay on some
mixed peacock tahitians. I don''t own any white pearls.

 

[loupe]

MJO,


Yeah, baby! But keep in mind that it should be convertible to a simple Omega. So, I was thinking along the lines of no surround.

Oops! It''s not my jewelry. I get a little carried away once we start talking about pretty things.


Karen



"Gold there is, and rubies in abundance, but lips that speak knowledge are a rare jewel."

 

[loupe]

Translucent,

Just plunk that rock next to the pearls and look at it. No one can be a better judge of how it looks than you. I would be inclined to NOT put any melee or other gemstone with the tanzanite. Just metal. You can go waaaaay overboard with other gemstones stuck around this gem. The message gets mixed, and most of what you put with this will be overwhelmed.

MJO''s idea is great if you are only going to wear the enhancer with pearls of a similar luster and color. It''s a lovely piece but as you said, you don''t have white pearls. I was thinking of using it more than one way.


Karen









"Gold there is, and rubies in abundance, but lips that speak knowledge are a rare jewel."

 

[MJO]

The best green stones for pave IMO are tsavorites. They come in lighter and darker shades of green. Have a high refractive index and are pretty tough stones. I'll take a picture of the pair of rounds tonight and post them.

 

[MJO]

Karen,

I had that peice made so my wife could wear it on a chain if she wants. The pearls are not flashy so they don''t take away from the stone. Did you see the other tanzanite pendent I had made. This one only works with that chain. The picture is under the topic Tanzanite and Demantoid Necklass. My spelling was off that day (as ussual).

 

[loupe]

MJO,

Both are lovely amd serve as excellent examples of what you can do starting with a big rock. However, Translucent said she doesn''t have white pearls, sooooooo, my suggestion is that ''less is more''. The more you put around a gem, the more you limit the wearing possibilities. Green stones are a great contrast but what if you are wearing something that doesn''t work with blue and green? What if they are so small, it ends up looking fussy. See my point? Anyway, this is academic, Translucent will do what she wants in the end.

Karen




"Gold there is, and rubies in abundance, but lips that speak knowledge are a rare jewel."

 

[cali_jewelry]

Hi Karen,

i''m new to this site, but i''m a big fan of tanzanite too. anyway, i agree that tanzanite does not complement all colors, but i find it works well with diamonds and white gold or silver. i bought a tanzanite and diamond ring recently, much more modest in size than the large stone you guys are discussing, but i love love love mine nonetheless... got mine at diamond of eden

- Meghan