gingersnap
Rough_Rock
- Joined
- Dec 11, 2009
- Messages
- 67
...but hi! I''ve been lurking for who know how many months and have finally given in to the temptation to join up.
I''m going to give you a bit of a backstory on me. I can be a bit long winded, so skip to the end for my dangerous question if you wish!
I found this site when my fiance and I decided to go for it and buy a ring
I became horribly obsessive over anything sparkly and ring shaped. Initially I had figured that I would end up with a white diamond engagement ring, that being the traditional thing to do. And, diamonds are quite sparkly (as you may have noticed). However, two things turned my attention to coloured stones instead. One, the first place I go when entering a jewelry store is straight to the blue stones (then orange... and red... and green...). Two (and I will not lie) the price. Ironically, i think I ended up spending a little more on my sapphire engagement ring than I would have a diamond one just because I was getting exactly what I wanted.
I learned a lot in the process of shopping around and this place was very valuable in giving me enough information to help me decide exactly what I wanted. I decided, from reading posts on this forum, to go with someone who does custom work.
Well, fiance doesn''t much like the idea of buying a stone without seeing it (and dealing with all the shipping stress) so i started looking for a local jeweler. Turns out the picture I pulled off the net as my dream ring belongs to a local custom jeweler! I was over the moon! Although his site has a huge emphasis on diamonds, it turns out he''s quite a sapphire nut. He was more than happy to source me a center stone. I had been nervous about asking for a sapphire from a place that seemed to deal primarily in diamonds, but I''m glad I did! He did a good job.
So, what i learned from this whole adventure is that sapphires are extremely fun to buy. And these forums are extremely fun to read. And that yes, i do like coloured stones as much as I think I do. So much so that I think I want to start a collection. (Yes, lifetime project, yay) I found a few very cheap gems (both in cost and quality) that I bought, and I enjoy them very much. They are loose, and I am unsure what to do with them (maybe find a cheap setting and play around with mounting them? I saw this mentioned previously here) they may remain loose. Loose gems are... very sexy :p But since I am new to this whole thing, buying cheap gems that I can enjoy seems to be the safest way to start up collecting. I get a thrill out of showing my friends "See, *this* is a sapphire too!" "But it''s orange!" they say.
So, onto the dangerous question. Is there anyone here who has found a decent place online to buy very cheap gems (for cheap thrills)? I''m talking 20$ or less. Looking for a place that will ship what they say they''ll ship, an honest dealer. Suggestions? I have gone through the coloured vendor list, but as far as I can tell, it is just a list of sites selling gems, not nessesarily a tried and true vendor list. Anyone have a favourite?
I''m going to give you a bit of a backstory on me. I can be a bit long winded, so skip to the end for my dangerous question if you wish!
I found this site when my fiance and I decided to go for it and buy a ring
I learned a lot in the process of shopping around and this place was very valuable in giving me enough information to help me decide exactly what I wanted. I decided, from reading posts on this forum, to go with someone who does custom work.
Well, fiance doesn''t much like the idea of buying a stone without seeing it (and dealing with all the shipping stress) so i started looking for a local jeweler. Turns out the picture I pulled off the net as my dream ring belongs to a local custom jeweler! I was over the moon! Although his site has a huge emphasis on diamonds, it turns out he''s quite a sapphire nut. He was more than happy to source me a center stone. I had been nervous about asking for a sapphire from a place that seemed to deal primarily in diamonds, but I''m glad I did! He did a good job.
So, what i learned from this whole adventure is that sapphires are extremely fun to buy. And these forums are extremely fun to read. And that yes, i do like coloured stones as much as I think I do. So much so that I think I want to start a collection. (Yes, lifetime project, yay) I found a few very cheap gems (both in cost and quality) that I bought, and I enjoy them very much. They are loose, and I am unsure what to do with them (maybe find a cheap setting and play around with mounting them? I saw this mentioned previously here) they may remain loose. Loose gems are... very sexy :p But since I am new to this whole thing, buying cheap gems that I can enjoy seems to be the safest way to start up collecting. I get a thrill out of showing my friends "See, *this* is a sapphire too!" "But it''s orange!" they say.
So, onto the dangerous question. Is there anyone here who has found a decent place online to buy very cheap gems (for cheap thrills)? I''m talking 20$ or less. Looking for a place that will ship what they say they''ll ship, an honest dealer. Suggestions? I have gone through the coloured vendor list, but as far as I can tell, it is just a list of sites selling gems, not nessesarily a tried and true vendor list. Anyone have a favourite?