Uh Oh! What did I do now!!

[Gemobsessed]

okay so I really thought I was done with the gem buying for now. I really did!! I was trying to clear some of the excess, returning stones that didn’t resonate with me.

And then I saw this deep blue aqua! I just couldn’t not buy it! I thought it was so so rare and in the light seems to change from one shade of blue to the other. Please share your valuable opinions

Here’s a YouTube link, please play in 1080p

 

[tkyasx78]

Looks good! Pendant or ring??

 

[icy_jade]

Looks great! Size?

 

[Gemobsessed]

Looks good! Pendant or ring??

Always ring for me. I have a beautiful mint garnet pendant which I am constantly unhappy with because I can’t see it, lol

 

[Gemobsessed]

Looks great! Size?

Perfect size 7.45 mm! It will be almost the exact same size as my favourite ring, so I’m so very excited that this one works out!

 

[Acinom]

Looks good! Very nice colour

 

[Frost]

Wow, that's really some saturation for an aqua there. Nice color, nice shape & cut.

 

[pwsg07]

Please ask for cell phone photos. Sometimes, the video is not accurate. I bought from this vendor before.

 

[Gemobsessed]

Please ask for cell phone photos. Sometimes, the video is not accurate. I bought from this vendor before.

Uh oh what did you buy and what happened? Messaged you on insta

 

[Gemobsessed]

Looks good! Very nice colour

Wow, that's really some saturation for an aqua there. Nice color, nice shape & cut.

Thank you. I hope it is as it seems in the video. Any watch outs with aqua you feel?

 

[theredspinel]

Thank you. I hope it is as it seems in the video. Any watch outs with aqua you feel?

My 2 cents.. be aware it's heated. I can see a bit of extinction. It's still beautiful!

 

[Gemobsessed]

My 2 cents.. be aware it's heated. I can see a bit of extinction. It's still beautiful!

Noted ! I’ll ask the vendor about the heating. The extinction though- I’m not sure how to judge. Could you share how you spot it?

 

[theredspinel]

Noted ! I’ll ask the vendor about the heating. The extinction though- I’m not sure how to judge. Could you share how you spot it?

With the heating, currently (as far as I'm aware - and I looked into aquamarines a good year or so ago), no labs can detect it.

Generally by eye though a very strong blue with a lack of grey or green hint, is indicative of heating. Plus, the problem with heating is it's known to fade over time.

Due to there currently being no tests to detect heat treatment and it not being stable (and me wanting that deep saturated blue without any grey) I had to put that project on a pause

It's hard to tell with your aqua because it does have a tiny greyish cast but... just an fyi for you because I know the vendor has listed it as treatement free.

As for extinction it's hard to make out on a video (and all stones have some extinction) but i only mentioned it as it looked like this one has a little more then usual. I'll screenshot what I'm seeing and attach it to next post.

 

[theredspinel]

This highlighted yellow bit that's black, is giving no light return. It doesn't dissappear with the turning of the stone which makes me think it's the bad extinction. Not the type that is normal with every stone - some facets will return light whilst others dont due to the angle of the stone but here it doesn't seem like that area will ever return light properly due to cut maybe.

In the pic above it's face on and still have quite a bit of extinction.

 

[chrono]

Heating in aqua is normal and stable. I’m not sure where @theredspinel is getting the info from. Probably confusion with irradiation?

I do not consider that area extinction but some sort of obstruction. If you follow that particular facet as it turns, it lights up and darkens. Because only the top side remains dark as the stone is turned (different facets), there’s some sort of obstruction there, probably shadowing from the camera.

 

[alene]

I saw they posted a bunch on LT and thought the color was beautiful. Hope it looks just as nice in real life!

 

[marymm]

Can't wait to hear what you think when you see this Aqua in person! I too was captivated by the color, and I hope it meets/exceed expectations!

 

[smitcompton]

Hi,

I have never heard that heating in aqua is unstable. Heating removes the green In a stone. This richer blue is usually more expensive--santa Maria -the most expensive aqua. the color is lovely. I noticed it myself on LT. Chrono knows what she is talking about. I do believe that JohnB's photos may look better than in real life. Just make certain there is a return policy. Color is beautiful.

Red S-- You may be confusing aqua from a gemstone in the same family called Maxi which does fade over time.

Annette

 

[Gemobsessed]

This highlighted yellow bit that's black, is giving no light return. It doesn't dissappear with the turning of the stone which makes me think it's the bad extinction. Not the type that is normal with every stone - some facets will return light whilst others dont due to the angle of the stone but here it doesn't seem like that area will ever return light properly due to cut maybe.

In the pic above it's face on and still have quite a bit of extinction.

Heating in aqua is normal and stable. I’m not sure where @theredspinel is getting the info from. Probably confusion with irradiation?

I do not consider that area extinction but some sort of obstruction. If you follow that particular facet as it turns, it lights up and darkens. Because only the top side remains dark as the stone is turned (different facets), there’s some sort of obstruction there, probably shadowing from the camera.

Hi,

I have never heard that heating in aqua is unstable. Heating removes the green In a stone. This richer blue is usually more expensive--santa Maria -the most expensive aqua. the color is lovely. I noticed it myself on LT. Chrono knows what she is talking about. I do believe that JohnB's photos may look better than in real life. Just make certain there is a return policy. Color is beautiful.

Red S-- You may be confusing aqua from a gemstone in the same family called Maxi which does fade over time.

Annette

Well I think I’m less worried about heating and a bit more about the extinction. It does have a return policy but I hope it works out. I was looking for a blue tourmaline and this popped up and I thought let me try. It’s harder too. I’m hoping that the darkness is camera reflection because almost all their cuts have the same darkness. So many gems having severe extinction by such master precision cutters..... Seems bit unlikely but the only way to know foe sure is to see it in real life. I’ll report back with pics!

 

[Gemobsessed]

I saw they posted a bunch on LT and thought the color was beautiful. Hope it looks just as nice in real life!

Can't wait to hear what you think when you see this Aqua in person! I too was captivated by the color, and I hope it meets/exceed expectations!

Thank you I do hope I made the right choice! Can’t wait to receive it

 

[Gemobsessed]

Well I think I’m less worried about heating and a bit more about the extinction. It does have a return policy but I hope it works out. I was looking for a blue tourmaline and this popped up and I thought let me try. It’s harder too. I’m hoping that the darkness is camera reflection because almost all their cuts have the same darkness. So many gems having severe extinction by such master precision cutters..... Seems bit unlikely but the only way to know foe sure is to see it in real life. I’ll report back with pics!

So I asked two master cutters in the US about the extinction. One said it’s probably the camera. The other said that when a cutter wants to bring out the best color in a lighter stone, a lot of the time a few of the facets will be cut a little too deep to do just that. Those facets that aren't quite so bright still bring out the deep blue color.

It’s a really interesting viewpoint. Maybe in real life then I won’t mind it too much. I really appreciate learning about this now because this gem is new to me.

 

[Lisa Loves Shiny]

Please ask for cell phone photos. Sometimes, the video is not accurate. I bought from this vendor before.

I agree with this statement.

 

[theredspinel]

Heating in aqua is normal and stable. I’m not sure where @theredspinel is getting the info from. Probably confusion with irradiation?

I do not consider that area extinction but some sort of obstruction. If you follow that particular facet as it turns, it lights up and darkens. Because only the top side remains dark as the stone is turned (different facets), there’s some sort of obstruction there, probably shadowing from the camera.

Chrono, yea you're right I double checked it and it's the irridation that's not permanent. Thanks for that catch!

@Gemobsessed, can't wait to see pictures once you get it, the colour and possible extinction has me so intrigued!

 

[Frost]

Thank you. I hope it is as it seems in the video. Any watch outs with aqua you feel?

Like chrono already explained above, it's not proper extinction per se... The stone will most likely light up okay if given a fair chance (i.e. unobstructed daylight). You can pretty clearly see the separate areas lighting up with ease as it turns and it does look like there's something in the way of it.

It seems to be an asscher top with a modified brilliant bottom; maybe a barion brilliant bottom. That should be quite nice to the eye in almost any material. There are of course always areas of extinction in any stone (short of it being totally silky and vivid but then say goodbye to brilliance), but a bit of it here and there helps achieve the impression of brilliance. It's nothing abnormal (as long as you don't have a half-dark stone).

What I think the cutter meant was that if you cut a deeper pavilion overall, some lighter colors become darker in tone which makes the overall color seem deeper. That is true. But it does not usually impact extinction if the cut is otherwise balanced in symmetry and the body color of the stone isn't zoned; to the contrary, there are sometimes examples where if you cut a deep pavilion with tons of tiny facets on it, the end result is often an almost 100% light return face-up and a much deeper color than it otherwise would have been. Commonly seen in sapphires and sometimes they look gorgeous. Saw a pink just like that today. But such cuts often aren't very sellable (monumental rings projecting a metre off the finger that come with a licence to carry aren't in vogue. I've seen stones that would poke people's eyes out if set).

It's a very impressive color in the video, I'm curious to see what it's gonna look like when you get it...

 

[Gemobsessed]

Like chrono already explained above, it's not proper extinction per se... The stone will most likely light up okay if given a fair chance (i.e. unobstructed daylight). You can pretty clearly see the separate areas lighting up with ease as it turns and it does look like there's something in the way of it.

It seems to be an asscher top with a modified brilliant bottom; maybe a barion brilliant bottom. That should be quite nice to the eye in almost any material. There are of course always areas of extinction in any stone (short of it being totally silky and vivid but then say goodbye to brilliance), but a bit of it here and there helps achieve the impression of brilliance. It's nothing abnormal (as long as you don't have a half-dark stone).

What I think the cutter meant was that if you cut a deeper pavilion overall, some lighter colors become darker in tone which makes the overall color seem deeper. That is true. But it does not usually impact extinction if the cut is otherwise balanced in symmetry and the body color of the stone isn't zoned; to the contrary, there are sometimes examples where if you cut a deep pavilion with tons of tiny facets on it, the end result is often an almost 100% light return face-up and a much deeper color than it otherwise would have been. Commonly seen in sapphires and sometimes they look gorgeous. Saw a pink just like that today. But such cuts often aren't very sellable (monumental rings projecting a metre off the finger that come with a licence to carry aren't in vogue. I've seen stones that would poke people's eyes out if set).

It's a very impressive color in the video, I'm curious to see what it's gonna look like when you get it...

Thank you, that’s a very clear explanation. All that remains is to see it in hand! I’ll report back. Also you’re right it’s a barion cut