When you want an emerald....

[LittleRed]

When you want an emerald but want a stone with strength suitable for everyday wear, what would you get?

My guess is a Tsavorite Garnet or an Afghanistan mint Tourmaline. I’ve been perusing the recommended seller’s sites for a few days now and can find pretty, but pale, emerald colored green gems, but I’m not finding rich, medium toned saturated colors.

Is anyone up for an emerald green hunt? Pictures and links would be helpful.

I did find a pretty one on IG, but they all seem to sell as soon as they are posted.

Thanks!

 

[Gemobsessed]

When you want an emerald but want a stone with strength suitable for everyday wear, what would you get?

My guess is a Tsavorite Garnet or an Afghanistan mint Tourmaline. I’ve been perusing the recommended seller’s sites for a few days now and can find pretty, but pale, emerald colored green gems, but I’m not finding rich, medium toned saturated colors.

Is anyone up for an emerald green hunt? Pictures and links would be helpful.

I did find a pretty one on IG, but they all seem to sell as soon as they are posted.

Thanks!

Hehe funny I’ve bought both in the search of an emerald. Do post what you saw on IG!

 

[LittleRed]

Hehe funny I’ve bought both in the search of an emerald. Do post what you saw on IG!

Did you feel satisfied with them that they met your emerald desires?

The tourmaline I saw was on Jeff Davies IG on which he posted today. I went back to get a screen shot and I was surprised that it no longer appealed to me. Well, it’s very pretty and I’d love to have it, but I realized it wouldn’t actually satisfy my emerald color desires. That’s strange how coming back to something after the initial excitement has passed helps me see more clearly.

It was this one. See? Not very emerald... but maybe on the right track.

 

[Gemobsessed]

Did you feel satisfied with them that they met your emerald desires?

The tourmaline I saw was on Jeff Davies IG on which he posted today. I went back to get a screen shot and I was surprised that it no longer appealed to me. Well, it’s very pretty and I’d love to have it, but I realized it wouldn’t actually satisfy my emerald color desires. That’s strange how coming back to something after the initial excitement has passed helps me see more clearly.

It was this one. See? Not very emerald... but maybe on the right track.

Yes I was quite happy because emeralds are often very included and inclusions bother me.

It’s nice but the colour isn’t that saturated. The colours should be richer.

You’re very right about going back to see it for a fresh look. I’ve realised I get enticed by deals and only if I can’t stop thinking about it, do I take the time to push the button.

 

[Jopdrop]

If you're chasing an emerald, I don't think a tourmaline will satisfy you, they don't have the "glow" of an emerald. I do have a few included tsavorites that come close, but even they still are very different.

 

[LittleRed]

Yes I was quite happy because emeralds are often very included and inclusions bother me.

It’s nice but the colour isn’t that saturated. The colours should be richer.

You’re very right about going back to see it for a fresh look. I’ve realised I get enticed by deals and only if I can’t stop thinking about it, do I take the time to push the button.

That’s great for you and they are beautiful! It’s nice you kept looking until you found exactly what you wanted. I’m sure that’s very satisfying. Did you find them by looking over and over at the recommended sellers’ sites?

 

[LittleRed]

If you're chasing an emerald, I don't think a tourmaline will satisfy you, they don't have the "glow" of an emerald. I do have a few included tsavorites that come close, but even they still are very different.

I know either stone will be different in some way. That’s ok, I think, as I’m mostly after the emerald color. Though that could change as my search continues and I fine tune what I want.

 

[Gemobsessed]

That’s great for you and they are beautiful! It’s nice you kept looking until you found exactly what you wanted. I’m sure that’s very satisfying. Did you find them by looking over and over at the recommended sellers’ sites?

I was pretty obsessive about it yes
Looked over and over and asked some special people to keep a look out for the material for me too. I understand what you mean by emerald colour and not necessarily the glow. The glow is gorgeous of course but the cost is pretty high and I always feel like if I get a good cut then the stones I get will be sparkly enough. One day though I will get a Zambian emerald. They are cleaner and more reasonable I’ve heard!

 

[Gemobsessed]

I know either stone will be different in some way. That’s ok, I think, as I’m mostly after the emerald color. Though that could change as my search continues and I fine tune what I want.

I would say you get great Tsavourites at great deals. You should consider those. Check out the usual sources and you’ll find easily enough as long as you are okay with a good native cut. Precision cut tsavourites are hard to get.

 

[LittleRed]

Am I correct in thinking this gem is a bit dark and bottom heavy? I’m thinking I am correct, but I don’t know for sure. I’ve been looking and looking and it’s all starting to blur. Though I am certain I love this shape!




My goal is to have something like this:

Any emerald I get will be set in yellow gold, but if I could find a more every-day-wear stone similar to an emerald in color, I’d love a platinum setting. I think everything about this ring is beautiful. Even the bokeh is great!

Thanks!

 

[Bron357]

The best gem for everyday day wear that is the most durable is, and always will be, diamond. It is by far and away the most durable.
Depending on your setting I think you can have an emerald.
If your emerald is a radiant / square cut and is set in a full bezel it will be well protected.
No gemstone, even diamond, is bomb proof. You shouldn’t be wearing your rings while doing housework, gardening, working on your car etc to prevent damage.

 

[daneshpastry]

How about a green sapphire? Montana maybe?

Not sure if I'm allowed to discuss on this forum - but a lab-grown emerald will also be a bit more durable than a mined emerald due to it (probably) not having much in the way of inclusions/flaws/fissures that weaken the structure of the stone.

 

[suzanne2]

These are two lovely examples. The first is an emerald and the second is a tsavorite. I think in this case the tsavorite is the richer of the two. When you get into the very high-end stones you are only able to tell the difference by the inclusions...but I may be biased. I love tsavorites!

 

[mrsgreeneyes]

Am I correct in thinking this gem is a bit dark and bottom heavy? I’m thinking I am correct, but I don’t know for sure. I’ve been looking and looking and it’s all starting to blur. Though I am certain I love this shape!




My goal is to have something like this:

Any emerald I get will be set in yellow gold, but if I could find a more every-day-wear stone similar to an emerald in color, I’d love a platinum setting. I think everything about this ring is beautiful. Even the bokeh is great!

Thanks!

I feel like we are on very similar quests! This is my inspo:



I think you are going for a more medium-tone look than I am, though. What is your budget? And what dimensions are you hoping for? If I come across anything that matches your criteria while I hunt for my evergreen I'll be sure to pass them along!

 

[tonysgeko]

Littlered, found a pic of a green tourmaline *but* after finding out that they are softer than emerald, i go hmmm. Why tease you with it when you are better off with emerald. I saved it just in case you want to see the color. Let me know so i can upload the pic.

 

[mellowyellowgirl]

I am a lover of all things green and I think there is something so rich and glowy about the green of an emerald that can't be substituted.

Don't get me wrong I'm a green tart but there is just a look to an emerald that is different.

Any stone can be chipped and if you hit your hand the wrong way when wearing a diamond they can chip too so I'd just get an emerald if you want an emerald. Just don't wear it when doing physical work!

Here is my 0.76 one aided by a double halo.


Or get a cheap and cheerful emerald necklace to amuse yourself with while you hunt!

 

[LittleRed]

I am a lover of all things green and I think there is something so rich and glowy about the green of an emerald that can't be substituted.

Don't get me wrong I'm a green tart but there is just a look to an emerald that is different.

Any stone can be chipped and if you hit your hand the wrong way when wearing a diamond they can chip too so I'd just get an emerald if you want an emerald. Just don't wear it when doing physical work!

Here is my 0.76 one aided by a double halo.


Or get a cheap and cheerful emerald necklace to amuse yourself with while you hunt!

I do wonder if I’d be satisfied with a substitute. I’ll have to mull this over.

Your cheerful emerald necklace is fun! Where might I find something like that? I haven’t come across anything like that before. It’s pretty and I’d love to combine a necklace like that with pearls. Emeralds with pearls...

 

[Gemobsessed]

Am I correct in thinking this gem is a bit dark and bottom heavy? I’m thinking I am correct, but I don’t know for sure. I’ve been looking and looking and it’s all starting to blur. Though I am certain I love this shape!




My goal is to have something like this:

Any emerald I get will be set in yellow gold, but if I could find a more every-day-wear stone similar to an emerald in color, I’d love a platinum setting. I think everything about this ring is beautiful. Even the bokeh is great!

Thanks!

It is a bit dark and bottom heavy. The shape is nice but the cut isn’t great. For tourmaline the cut needs to be extra good to be sparkly. I’ve seen something similar lately but bigger- 2 carats or so. I would suggest asking Troy Richardson at excess designs for for what he has. You can find him on Facebook and take my reference. That is in case you are still interested in Tourmaline and not emerald.

The emerald example is very pretty.

 

[Gemobsessed]

Littlered, found a pic of a green tourmaline *but* after finding out that they are softer than emerald, i go hmmm. Why tease you with it when you are better off with emerald. I saved it just in case you want to see the color. Let me know so i can upload the pic.

From what I understand emeralds are more brittle than tourmaline. I’m not so sure. Could you share what you know?

 

[mellowyellowgirl]

I do wonder if I’d be satisfied with a substitute. I’ll have to mull this over.

Your cheerful emerald necklace is fun! Where might I find something like that? I haven’t come across anything like that before. It’s pretty and I’d love to combine a necklace like that with pearls. Emeralds with pearls...

Here is the site where I bought my necklace.

https://www.mineralminers.com/html/fctbeads.stm

Unfortunately I bought the mid priced range one but if you ask I'm sure PSers can find you a beaded necklace!

 

[tonysgeko]

Gemobsessed, here's the article where it states the hardness on the mohs scale for emerald https://www.gia.edu/emerald Here's the link to tourmaline https://www.gia.edu/tourmaline
Beautiful emerald mellowyellowgirl.

 

[qubitasaurus]

I think the hardness refers to how easy they are to scratch. There are other factors to consider also such as whether the material chips easily, whether it is prone to clevage planes and for emeralds the type and degree of treatment is important too (was the treatment stable such as a polymer filling which will hopefully help glue it together, and degree of treatment which tells you about the number of surface reaching inclusions and how extensive they are). So in a sense you could both be right. Important thing is budget, expected degree of wear and tear (do you really want a 10k stone which can chip easily if you work with your hands all the time?), and desired size. I don't think there will be a good dupe for an emerald so if possible I would aim for one with minor treatment, and a nice glow and try to be sanguine about potential chips down the road.

 

[Rubybrick]

The best gem for everyday day wear that is the most durable is, and always will be, diamond. It is by far and away the most durable.
Depending on your setting I think you can have an emerald.
If your emerald is a radiant / square cut and is set in a full bezel it will be well protected.
No gemstone, even diamond, is bomb proof. You shouldn’t be wearing your rings while doing housework, gardening, working on your car etc to prevent damage.

I second full bezel, I wanted to wear mine a lot so chose smaller stones in case I chip one it isn’t too catastrophic to replace...

 

[Gemobsessed]

I second full bezel, I wanted to wear mine a lot so chose smaller stones in case I chip one it isn’t too catastrophic to replace...

Totally agree! My jeweller refused to bezel mine because she felt it was a risk

But I really wanted the same.

 

[T L]

Some fine chrome tourmalines are more pure green, as are tsavorites. However nothing can really imitate the color of a fine Muzo green emerald. The finest ones, if you have the pocketbook, come with minimal to faint enhancements, and these enhancements, if using something like opticon, are stable. Emeralds, with proper careful wear, taking it off when doing chores at sleeping, and NO ultrasonic cleaning, are durable enough for daily wear. If you're hard on your jewelry, I wouldn't wear any stone daily, even a diamond.

 

[T L]

These are two lovely examples. The first is an emerald and the second is a tsavorite. I think in this case the tsavorite is the richer of the two. When you get into the very high-end stones you are only able to tell the difference by the inclusions...but I may be biased. I love tsavorites!

Emeralds photograph poorly. I love tsavorite as well, but I never saw one that matched the finest emerald. The above emerald is nice, unfortunately, it would have to be viewed in person to see its true magnificence. The above tsavorite doesn't have the slightly bluish component of the emerald, although some tsavorites do, but again , it's just not the same. I guess I am biased too!

 

[tonysgeko]

I feel like the wrench that gets thrown in the gears like in the movies but found this pic of a green tourmaline and wanted to share.

 

[tara3056]

Green is my favorite color - pure Crayola green to slightly bluish green, that is. Not yellowish or olive like peridot. So I have tsavorite earrings, a ring, and most recently a pendant, along with a collection of small Russian Demantoids, and some un-set green to blue-green tourmalines. I don't own any emeralds yet, but fully intend to one day because I adore them too. Believe it or not, 1 or 2 of my Russian Demantoids come the closest to certain qualities of emeralds - a couple have nearly the right color, not as bluish as some, but a pure vibrant green with a slight blue modifier. The demantoids have the famed "glow" which none of my other green stones can match, and some that have more of the horsetail inclusions can even slightly mimic how emeralds are typically at least a bit included/glowy. But this does not help you at all, because Russian Demantoids of the right color and size are rarer than hen's teeth, many more times expensive that emeralds, and probably even more fragile. (The sparkliness of demantoids and tsavs also usually lets a viewer know right away that they are not emeralds.)

For that matter, I do not believe fine tsavorite to be any less expensive than good emeralds these days, unless we're talking truly top of the line Muzo material. Go look at Embassy Emeralds - I find them fairly priced and no more expensive than similarly sized tsavorites.

In the end, I believe that if you want an emerald, you should buy an emerald and baby it. When you love emerald, really, nothing else will do. Nothing else can match that glowy, slightly bluish, intense green that catches eyes from a long distance. Some blue-green tourmalines are lovely but I've yet to see one that can compete with an emerald, with the possible exception of a fine greenish Paraiba (but again... wayyyyy more rare and expensive than emerald).

TLDR: Just get an emerald

 

[LittleRed]

Green is my favorite color - pure Crayola green to slightly bluish green, that is. Not yellowish or olive like peridot. So I have tsavorite earrings, a ring, and most recently a pendant, along with a collection of small Russian Demantoids, and some un-set green to blue-green tourmalines. I don't own any emeralds yet, but fully intend to one day because I adore them too. Believe it or not, 1 or 2 of my Russian Demantoids come the closest to certain qualities of emeralds - a couple have nearly the right color, not as bluish as some, but a pure vibrant green with a slight blue modifier. The demantoids have the famed "glow" which none of my other green stones can match, and some that have more of the horsetail inclusions can even slightly mimic how emeralds are typically at least a bit included/glowy. But this does not help you at all, because Russian Demantoids of the right color and size are rarer than hen's teeth, many more times expensive that emeralds, and probably even more fragile. (The sparkliness of demantoids and tsavs also usually lets a viewer know right away that they are not emeralds.)

For that matter, I do not believe fine tsavorite to be any less expensive than good emeralds these days, unless we're talking truly top of the line Muzo material. Go look at Embassy Emeralds - I find them fairly priced and no more expensive than similarly sized tsavorites.

In the end, I believe that if you want an emerald, you should buy an emerald and baby it. When you love emerald, really, nothing else will do. Nothing else can match that glowy, slightly bluish, intense green that catches eyes from a long distance. Some blue-green tourmalines are lovely but I've yet to see one that can compete with an emerald, with the possible exception of a fine greenish Paraiba (but again... wayyyyy more rare and expensive than emerald).

TLDR: Just get an emerald

Thanks! You might be right - just get an emerald.

Do you have any pictures of your green/blue-green family? It all sounds so beautiful!

 

[daneshpastry]

Look at this beauty: https://loupetroop.com/listings/loo...ne/unheated-forest-green-sapphire-1-dot-51-ct