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Kismet

Kismet

Ideal_Rock
Joined
May 6, 2005
Messages
2,991
So I've started talks about having a pendant made that's similar to an Art Deco piece that I saw for sale. It would be bezel set in white gold or platinum with a diamond halo and one additional (super secret!) element that I won't currently go into.

That being said, which would look better in a Deco piece: a moonstone cab or a faceted blue tourmaline?

In construction, I think the only differences between the two would be that the moonstone would need a closed and darkened back and the tourmaline would need an open back.

This is my only picture of the moonstone. It would be the round one.
kiz-acspurch2008.jpg

And this is the blue tourmaline
kiz-bluetourm7.jpg
 
When I think Art Deco, I tend to think of ruby red, sapphire blue and emerald green. Moonstones are a better fit to me as they have also been used at around that time. I agree that to highlight the glow, it needs to have a closed back.
 
moonstone-art-deco-diamond-pendant-08211-4184.p00.jpg

I think this would be a great way to set your round moonstone and there is no need to close the back. This is great Art Deco piece.
 
Here's a horribly blurry cell phone pic that I took of both stones. I think that a darkened back would bring out the best in the moonstone. The vendor picture and the picture SQ posted both have a black background to show off the moonstone at its best.

The tourmaline isn't anywhere near as dark as the cell phone pic makes it out to be, it is much more like the original picture I posted of it.

1027101209.jpg
 
Art Deco was inspired by the opening of King Tut's tomb and the motifs and lines of Art Deco come directly from that. I believe that the moonstone is the best choice of the two. Platinum was the preferred metal of Art Deco, so if platinum is not in your budget argentium, regular silver, white gold/palladium, are your 'correct' metal choices.

The Wall Street Journal: How to Buy Estate Jewelry/Victoria Gomelsky: Jewelry bearing the hallmarks of the Art Deco movement, which emerged around the mid-1920s, clean-cut lines, all-white surfaces of diamonds on platinum, and exotic, Egyption motifs inspired by the discovery of King Tutankhamen's tomb in 1922...
 
[quote="StonieGrl"]Art Deco was inspired by the opening of King Tut's tomb and the motifs and lines of Art Deco come directly from that. I believe that the moonstone is the best choice of the two. Platinum was the preferred metal of Art Deco, so if platinum is not in your budget argentium, regular silver, white gold/palladium, are your 'correct' metal choices.
.[/quote]


That's interesting, now that you've pointed it out I can see the influence.
 
Moonstone, I'd say.
 
i'm so curious about what the pendant will look like. I like moonstone but there is something about the tourmaline that i love so I would do that one!
 
StonieGrl said:
Art Deco was inspired by the opening of King Tut's tomb and the motifs and lines of Art Deco come directly from that. I believe that the moonstone is the best choice of the two. Platinum was the preferred metal of Art Deco, so if platinum is not in your budget argentium, regular silver, white gold/palladium, are your 'correct' metal choices.

The Wall Street Journal: How to Buy Estate Jewelry/Victoria Gomelsky: Jewelry bearing the hallmarks of the Art Deco movement, which emerged around the mid-1920s, clean-cut lines, all-white surfaces of diamonds on platinum, and exotic, Egyption motifs inspired by the discovery of King Tutankhamen's tomb in 1922...
Click to expand...

A little off track here about the influence of Egyptian culture on the Art Deco era jewellery – I’m curious that this is a period of platinum and white metals when the Egyptian influence should have made high karat gold popular instead.
 
I hate to be contrary but the art deco movement was not in response to the opening of Tut's tomb. Art Deco was a new generation of people turning their cheeks to what their parents liked, which was art nouveau. Art deco was a modern design driven by cubism and the industrial revolution. Egyptian revival was in response to the opening of Tut's tomb.
 
Another vote for Moonstone! I think they are so elegant, and are perfect for the art deco designs.
 
I don't turn to the wall street journal for their cultural acumen. They've been wrong so many times with dire results even in their area of alleged expertise. I agree with Chrono that if Deco was influenced by TUT it should be all about high karat gold as it was with the Egyptian Revival style that appeared right after the opening of Tut's titanic trilliant tomb, as Treen has told.

Moonstone, of course
 
Of course TWSJ is not a jewelry publication. It merely published a "How To" Guide and buying and evaluating estate jewelry was one of the chapters. I'm sure you know so much more than Sotheby's and Christie's experts.

Sigh.

Re the design aesthetic and the use of platinum, it's a question of influence versus what you can only seem to focus on: Verbatim application. Yup, everything King Tut influenced should be yellow gold because he had so much in his tomb.

That's okay, halo rings galore for EVERYBODY!
 
Moonstone without a shadow of a doubt.
 
Stonie, I think you are taking this personally. I dont think that clarification of the defining characteristics and direct antecedents of a design period are inappropriate to this discussion and they certainly arent meant to disparage you in any way. Your style and sensibility are unquestionably valued in this forum, at least by me. No one was saying or acting like they know more than the experts at the auction houses (though they too may not be the pinnacle of authorities). Stating that gold gold gold is emblematic of the Egyptian Revival is not a vote for the endless procession of haloed :saint: stones, not that there's anything wrong with them.
 
Stonie,
My intention is to begin a discussion about metal types, designs and things related to the Art Deco era while we are on the topic. It is not meant in any way to question your knowledge or anyone else’s. I am certainly no expert on this and wish to learn more by questioning.
 
Kismet I vote for moonstone.

Hi Stonie
I didn't mean to make you angry regarding my comment on Art Deco vs. Egyptian revival. I don't know everything, never said I did, never will. However, I am competent in identifying aesthetic movements across the century and I do have a valid point. I have never worked for Sotheby's or Bonham's or Christie's but I have handled antique jewelry since childhood. I agree that most Deco pieces were made in platinum and I also agree that most Egyptian revival pieces are in high kt gold. Just as a Pennsylvania German Kass can have the same ogee bracket foot of a Philadelphia Chippendale chest on chest, of the same era.... But completely different.
 
+1 Moonstone...because I love them and I think they look good with Art Deco style
 
I don't mind the discussions about Art Deco vs Egyptian Revival vs whatever. Right now I'm leaning towards to moonstone, more because I'm worried the tourmaline would be too deep.

My jeweler has come up with a solution to the super secret element but it does involve a synthetic stone. Although appropriate for the period, it does rather go against the grain. I'm waiting to hear back about the all natural options and how much more expensive they would be.
 
See, the beauty of a moonstone is this sheen. So you can not combine it with opals which will either blend in or be "killed" by the moonstone. Same for pearls. Then going down the color palette. A very dark ruby which is very small, and the pendant consisting of two parts, ruby being in the upper part (I hope everyone understands what I mean) could work. Same with dark garnet, not red but with purple in it. The stones have to be smaller than the moonstone, but they can even be faceted (not necessarily cabs). Orange? Me-eh... Yellow will kill the stone. Green? Dark emerald - no, light will clash. Blue sapphire, either dark cab or very small faceted one (could even be light) could be OK. Amethyst in my view will not work unless it is a very small cab. on top.
A small diamond or CZ could be a decent combination. Any big stone will definitely draw the attention away from the moonstone. James Meyer's settings could be great, but he does not do custom work...
Ergo, either a dark synthetic ruby, or a sapphire, or somethin diamond-ish, preferably cabbed. A delicate pink cab. could work as well.

Just my guesses. And there will be two parts, the stone will be smaller than the moonstone and likely on top.
Did I guess right?
 
crasru said:
See, the beauty of a moonstone is this sheen. So you can not combine it with opals which will either blend in or be "killed" by the moonstone. Same for pearls. Then going down the color palette. A very dark ruby which is very small, and the pendant consisting of two parts, ruby being in the upper part (I hope everyone understands what I mean) could work. Same with dark garnet, not red but with purple in it. The stones have to be smaller than the moonstone, but they can even be faceted (not necessarily cabs). Orange? Me-eh... Yellow will kill the stone. Green? Dark emerald - no, light will clash. Blue sapphire, either dark cab or very small faceted one (could even be light) could be OK. Amethyst in my view will not work unless it is a very small cab. on top.
A small diamond or CZ could be a decent combination. Any big stone will definitely draw the attention away from the moonstone. James Meyer's settings could be great, but he does not do custom work...
Ergo, either a dark synthetic ruby, or a sapphire, or somethin diamond-ish, preferably cabbed. A delicate pink cab. could work as well.

Just my guesses. And there will be two parts, the stone will be smaller than the moonstone and likely on top.
Did I guess right?
Click to expand...

I'm afraid you're not close at all.
 
Kismet, can I continue playing this game? I love mysteries...
So... a garnet doublet/any doublet? A mirror-like surface behind the stone? A rhinestone?
A doublet, I think...
(Ran out of ideas). The last "super-secret" thing I can think of is a poisoned needle like in Bordgias rings... Wrong period, though... :lol:
 
crasru said:
Kismet, can I continue playing this game? I love mysteries...
So... a garnet doublet/any doublet? A mirror-like surface behind the stone? A rhinestone?
A doublet, I think...
(Ran out of ideas). The last "super-secret" thing I can think of is a poisoned needle like in Bordgias rings... Wrong period, though... :lol:
Click to expand...

Heh, of course you can continue playing. Unfortunately, all those guesses are incorrect.
 
the moonstone set in a spherical pendant with the radius of the sphere matching the radius of the moonstone's surface with the balance of the surface of the sphere being pavé with sinfullythetic blue sapphire.
 
I'm intrigued, because I was thinking of a ruby cab and moonstone combination for my own pendant.

I'll take a wild stab, jadeite?
 
Plastic! It could be in any color or form. Or glass - moonstone is soft so the pendant can be set in glass; it has to be worn with care anyhow.
Of interest, I just read that Art Deco was the period of Prohibition - I never realized it.
OK, I shall make my last bet... lab-grown opal.
 
VapidLapid said:
the moonstone set in a spherical pendant with the radius of the sphere matching the radius of the moonstone's surface with the balance of the surface of the sphere being pavé with sinfullythetic blue sapphire.
Click to expand...

You're going to have to draw me a picture for that design because I'm not grasping it. But *ding* you're the winner in the synthetic contest. It is synthetic sapphire but not blue.
 
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