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Whiteflash- Esperanza Visit 2-5-2016

diamondseeker2006

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It is hard to put into words how wonderful this weekend in Houston was! I still cannot believe my name was drawn to go (thanks PS!)! Bright Ice, tyty333, and Andelain joined me there, and we had the pleasure of meeting up with some Houston PSers, Alpha238, Kroshka, and MrKroshka! We arrived in Houston on Friday and Alpha238 kindly picked up three of us who arrived close together at the same airport, and Andelain came from a different airport a little later. We stayed in a beautiful area of Sugar Land just a short walk from Whiteflash! There were great restaurants right near the hotel (loved Escalante and Lasagne House), and we literally enjoyed every waking minute! Lots of fun and laughter!

On Friday morning, we began the day meeting Debi Wexler for breakfast. She is just a lovely person and really made our visit so special! After breakfast, we went with her to Whiteflash's beautiful showroom and offices. Our first stop was to see the amazing Esperanza diamond, which was the main reason for our visit! If you haven't heard of the Esperanza, it was a rough diamond found in Arkansas in 2015 and expertly cut in the US by master diamond cutter Mike Botha of Embee Diamonds. More about the famous diamond here:

https://www.gemsociety.org/article/master-diamond-cutter-mike-botha-takes-esperanza/

The Esperanza is on tour at a select number of AGS Jewelers in the US, and Whiteflash is one of the few selected to showcase the stone. Whiteflash generously wanted to share this experience with diamond lovers from PS and offered a drawing of members who were interested in going.

After time viewing and even getting to try on the famous diamond (very carefully, I might add!), we had lunch at Whiteflash and met many of the wonderful people who work there! It was a pleasure to spend time with Brian Boyne (Texas Leaguer) who is so knowledgeable and genuinely nice, too! In fact, every person there was extremely nice, from sales, photography, production and bench, management, shipping, receptionist, and various other staff members. I could name many of them, but because I don't want to leave anyone out, I am just going to refrain from doing so here. After lunch we had a tour of the entire facility which is top notch in every way! Then we tried out some mega diamonds (thanks Brittany!) and some other diamond jewelry, which was a LOT of fun! (I will start another thread in Show Me the Bling to show some of the jewels we viewed at WF and various places over the weekend. My wireless isn't working, so I will need to wait and download my phone photos tomorrow.)

Our little excursion was initially planned for 11:00-1:00, but we were told we could stay as long as we liked. You can imagine what that meant...we were there until they closed at 5:00pm!!! I am just going to post a couple of pics for now as it's been a long day of travel, and I just have a couple of pics of the Esperanza I borrowed from Bright Ice. I am sure the others will come and post some of their favorite pics, too! (I am going to suggest that we not post a pic of anyone else's face, but by all means post your own, if you wish!)

On Saturday, Kroshka and MrKroshka graciously served as our tour guides to some fabulous antique jewelry stores and finally a short visit to Cartier and VCA before another wonderful dinner back in Sugar Land at Perry's Steakhouse. Pics and more details from that trip will be in the other thread.

I need to say one more thing, though. The highlight of the weekend was not diamonds. It was people. Wonderful people. Friends old and new. True hospitality. It's what keeps some of us here on PS for years. I am thankful for Pricescope for many reasons, but as much as I love fine quality diamonds and jewelry, sharing this hobby with such wonderful people is the greatest treasure!

Thank you SO much, Whiteflash! :appl: :appl: :appl: :appl: :appl: :appl: :appl: :appl: :appl:

esperanza1.jpg

esperanza2.jpg
 

MissGotRocks

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Welcome back! Your trip sounds like lots of fun and we can't wait to see pictures of the jewelry! Get some rest first - sounds like a whirlwind weekend!
 

Andelain

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diamondseeker2006|1454904867|3988243 said:
.....
I need to say one more thing, though. The highlight of the weekend was not diamonds. It was people. Wonderful people. Friends old and new. True hospitality. It's what keeps some of us here on PS for years. I am thankful for Pricescope for many reasons, but as much as I love fine quality diamonds and jewelry, sharing this hobby with such wonderful people is the greatest treasure!

Thank you SO much, Whiteflash! :appl: :appl: :appl: :appl: :appl: :appl: :appl: :appl: :appl:

This sums it up well. From WF making the arrangements, and having a really nice gift basket waiting for each of us, to breakfast with Debi, the day with the whole WF crew, to getting to hang and have a great time with fellow PS'ers. What fun we had both nights going out to dinner, then back up to my room for some wine, bling show & tell, and just plain camaraderie. Great times with great people! :appl: :appl: :appl: :appl:

Ladies, I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did!
 

VRBeauty

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I'm glad you all had such a wonderful time! Looking forward to seeing more pictures!
 

Crazie4Cuts

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Thank you for sharing your wonderful trip and picture! So memorable for all! One day hope to visit WF in person! Looking forward to seeing more pictures!
 

FancyIntense

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Sounds like so much fun. I need a pic fix though :cheeky:
 

MarionC

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DS, you put into words exactly how I feel about PS. The bling is great, but it is the people that keep me coming back.
I'm so glad you had a great time seeing the "Big Diamond" and TL and everyone else at WF and all the good people from PS.
Thank you for the in depth report of your experience!
Looking forward to more photos :appl:
 

missy

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Jimmianne|1454936524|3988303 said:
DS, you put into words exactly how I feel about PS. The bling is great, but it is the people that keep me coming back.
I'm so glad you had a great time seeing the "Big Diamond" and TL and everyone else at WF and all the good people from PS.
Thank you for the in depth report of your experience!
Looking forward to more photos :appl:

Exactly how I feel too. The amazing people here are the real gems. :appl: :appl: :appl:

So glad you ladies had a wonderful time and a great GTG and of course I am looking forward to more pics. Ooh la la so beautiful. :love:
 

kathley

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What an exciting experience...I am happy for you! Looking forward to more pics!
 

Sundial

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How exciting DS!!! You are like the official ambassador for Pricescope! Thanks for sharing your experiences with us and I look forward to seeing more pictures.
 

Tourmaline

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What fun!
 

Andelain

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esperanza-pendant.jpg

:appl: :appl: :appl: :appl: :appl: :appl: :appl: :appl: :appl:
 

PintoBean

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Wow!!! Sounds like an awesome trip!!!!! :appl: :appl: :appl: :appl: :appl:
 

Veltiesmom

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Amazing!!! So much fun! :love:
 

sarahb

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Thank you for your report DS, I would love to go hang with WF for the day, I'd get in sooo much trouble! :naughty: My father who was a career office in the USAF said it was the people, not the place, that made each assignment special, & it sounds like your experience was the same with all the wonderful PSer's & friends at WF.

Cant wait to see all the pics of everything. The Esperanza is pretty, its hard to visualize the scale, it looks quite long to me. What a find to pull that one out of the dirt that day!! & a huge thank you to WF for making it all possible! :appl: :appl:
 

tyty333

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DiamondSeeker2006 summed it so well...I'm going to add my 2 cents though!

I'd like to say that I'm going to keep this short and sweet but, I'm telling you, it's just not possible. If you take anything away from this post let it be that the Esperanza diamond is truly unique, beautiful and of historic importance to the U.S. and to those who love and appreciate diamonds, but more on that later!

The other thing you should take away is that Whiteflash is a quality company full of kind, caring and genuinely nice people. More on that later too!

Esperanza is 4.6 carat AGS graded D/IF (yes, D/IF!) She is cut into a triolette. Very 3 dimensional which gives her lots of personality. The setting is also very 3D to show off her best side (which happens to be all three)! Getting to try her on was a real treat. You feel like you can't move your neck and you are very conscious of every move you make. Luckily, we had one of Whiteflash's photographers to take some "real" pictures of us. (Thank you E!) They also had a copy of the AGS grading report which was of interest because it showed the unusual faceting pattern. Getting to experience Esperanza was an opportunity one would never think possible and this stay-at-home mom can't thank Whiteflash enough for such a beautiful experience.


What can I say about Whiteflash? These are truly nice people that not only provided us with a great experience but they treated us like good friends. Bryan "Texas Leaguer" provided us with a grand tour where we got to meet everyone! We got to see everything from the showroom with more settings than I ever knew they carried, to receiving/shipping where everything is filmed and well documented, to the very cool photography room where they take their lovely pictures and videos, as well all their shots used to evaluate their stones. We also got to see where the jewelry is finished, the stones are set and everything is polished and made ready for the lucky owner. We got to meet their gemologist, and were treated to a wonderful lunch complete with a poem written by Judi about Esperanza and its visit to Whiteflash. We also got a preview of the new Whiteflash interface. Stay tuned for that! After lunch we were free for the day to do as we wished. Do you think we were ready to leave Whiteflash? No way! We consumed their whole day and they were so kind to answer all our questions and show us anything we wanted to see. Truly a day not to be forgotten!

I also felt so lucky to FINALLY meet some Pricescopers! Diamondseeker2006, Bright Ice, Andelain, Alpha236, Kroshka
and MrKroshka! All lovely people who made the trip so much fun! So glad we got to do it together!

A big thank you to all the folks at Whiteflash who made our trip so memorable! A special thanks to Debi Wexler and Bryan Boyne. Debi is a real jewel with a very inspirational story and Bryan is the true gentleman we all known and appreciate on-line. Many thanks to you both, as well as the whole Whiteflash family! :wavey:
 

Andelain

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I'll add more details later, but I just got to add this about WF right now. I'd made the comment to Debi that I don't wear my 'D' ACA a lot lately, because I've gained weight and it seemed to go to my hands first, and the ring had gotten tight. She told me to take it off, and she passed it to Leon, asking him to size it up for me while we walked around. Now it fits perfectly again, and I'm rocking it proudly! :appl: :appl: :appl:

Brian walked around a bit sporting it on his pinky, and I had to admit it looked great on him. Almost as good as it looks on me! :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
 

Arcadian

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:appl: Thats an awesome report and I can't wait to see more pics!
 

kroshka

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Mr. Kroshka & I also wanted to chime in and give a big hearty thank you to Debi Wexler, Brian Boyne, and the entire awesome crew (from sales & consulting, production, jeweler benchmen, photography & videography, shipping & receiving, and the whole enchilada) at Whiteflash. We had a wonderful time on our visit, and although we were not able to make it until later in the afternoon because of work schedules, we still got the wonderful tour of Whiteflash and got to see all the cool behind the scenes processes as well as some time with the beautiful Esperanza. It really was an amazing experience and it gave us a whole new appreciation for all of the work, effort, and importance each department and team member provides. Whiteflash really rocks :appl:

And what more can I add, other than to say it was lovely to meet and spend time with Pscope folks! Mr. K and I had such a good time laughing, dining, and looking at sparklies with y'all. We hope you enjoyed the Houston Bauble & Bling Tour. Pics to come of some of the pretties!

Kroshka
 

kenny

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Wow! How cool!

Color me green ... with envy. =)
 

m-2-b

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Sounds like a lot of fun was had by all, thanks to the generous folks at WF! Can't wait to see all of the pics! :appl:
 

yennyfire

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Sounds like an amazing trip, from beginning to end. So glad that you got to share it with such special people. That diamond is just fabulous!! Wow!
 

canuk-gal

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HI:

The gem is regal and ya'll were treated like royalty. Fitting! :appl: :appl:

cheers--Sharon
 

Dancing Fire

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Sounds like a fun trip for all!... :appl:
 

Andelain

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esperanza1.jpg

:love: :love: :love: :love: :love: :love: :love:
 

Andelain

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esperanza2.jpg

esperanza3.jpg
 

Andelain

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kroshka|1454969012|3988518 said:
Mr. Kroshka & I also wanted to chime in and give a big hearty thank you to Debi Wexler, Brian Boyne, and the entire awesome crew (from sales & consulting, production, jeweler benchmen, photography & videography, shipping & receiving, and the whole enchilada) at Whiteflash. We had a wonderful time on our visit, and although we were not able to make it until later in the afternoon because of work schedules, we still got the wonderful tour of Whiteflash and got to see all the cool behind the scenes processes as well as some time with the beautiful Esperanza. It really was an amazing experience and it gave us a whole new appreciation for all of the work, effort, and importance each department and team member provides. Whiteflash really rocks :appl:

And what more can I add, other than to say it was lovely to meet and spend time with Pscope folks! Mr. K and I had such a good time laughing, dining, and looking at sparklies with y'all. We hope you enjoyed the Houston Bauble & Bling Tour. Pics to come of some of the pretties!

Kroshka

"Houston Bauble & Bling Tour", :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

And yes, I sure did love it! Enjoyed meeting both of you, too! :wavey: :wavey:


And did I say how much I liked this.............. :mrgreen:

pearpendant.jpg
 

Texas Leaguer

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You all were wonderful guests!

Your enthusiasm for Esperanza and the passion for diamonds that we all share made for a celebration that none of us will ever forget.

We appreciate so much the folks that came and all those who have been enjoying the event from afar.

esperanza-pink.jpg
 

Andelain

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Love that pic! :love: :love: :love: :love: :love:


BTW, I'm still waiting for my 'special' pics. ;-) :mrgreen:
 

girlyglam

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What an awesome trip for some wonderful PSers!!! Sounds like it was a great time!
 
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