All that glitters is not gold…

CFRDIACRCR2 3CFRDIACRCR52 1CFRDIACRCR82 1CFRDIACRCR62 3CFRDIACRCR72 1CFRDIACRCR61 1CFRDIACRCR53 3CFRDIACRCR45 3CFRDIACRCR36 3CFRDIACRCR32 1CFRDIACRCR28 2CFRDIACRCR11 1

…because sometimes it is diamond!! I’ve had these promised for so long and I have finally got them sorted, weighed, photographed and listed. This is opaque, coloured diamond in a wonderful array of colours; I have soft pinks and silvers, acid yellows and greens, reds, browns and golds. They are all quite small – don’t be fooled by the pictures, which have blown them up well beyond their actual size. This has also had the effect of accentuating any inclusions and colour zoning. Now, you might like the odd inclusion (I do) in which case that might be disappointing. Or you might not, in which case feel free to cheer. Either way, they are very pretty, and despite being opaque they do have that quintessential adamantine glitter. Prices from $10.25 up; to shop, click here:

http://www.joopygems.com/categories/calibrated-rose-cuts-and-cabochons/diamond/coloured-diamond.html

Blue heaven

CFRTUQ15 3CFRTUQ25 1CFRTUQ41 2CFRTUQ48 3

I’ve been quiet for a few weeks, but I have been rushed off my feet, first of all attending a couple of GIA labs here in Hong Kong, relating to gem grading and identification, but secondly trying to get a whole lot of new stock photographed and listed. First up is more turquoise freeforms. I had some of these back in the spring and they just flew out of the shop, so I have re-stocked in larger quantities. This is US turquoise, stabilised with resin or oil. This is a very common practice with turquoise as it is a very porous kind of stone and so the stabilisation improves both the durability and the appearance of the stones, as it helps them to take a better polish. These freeforms are mainly polki cut – that is rose cut on one side and tabled on the other, although I do have some rose cut with flat bottoms. I always think polki cut is a great way of getting a lot of stone for your money and certainly they are always popular, fitting in well with a contemporary, individual feel to your designs. I’ve got them in a good range of shapes, sizes and therefore prices. Prices from $7.75 – click here to buy.

http://www.joopygems.com/categories/freeform-rose-cuts-polki-and-cabochons/turquoise-freeform.html

Confident, sophisticated, expressive, calm…

Tanzanite 3mm rose cut cabochonTanzanite 4mm rose cut cabochonTanzanite 3mm rose cut cabochonTanzanite 3mm rose cut cabochon

Apparently all words associated with the colour blue, and you can add to that ‘rare’ and ‘desirable’, because what we have here is tanzanite; beautiful, serene, periwinkle blue. New in stock I have plenty of 3mm rose cut cabochons, and a certain number of 4mm rose cut cabochons. This material is sublime; eye clean with superb lustre and the faceting is perfect and precise. Hence the not so many of the 4mm. I think that this is bound to go fast, not wanting to sound like a used car salesman, but it’s not so easy to find clean and reasonably priced tanzanite in these cuts. And these are reasonable; the 3mm rose cuts are $5.50 per stone and the 4mm rose cuts $17.50 per stone, all in USD. Tanzanite is from Tanzania, which contributes to a rather fluctuating supply, and is a relative newcomer to the world of cut stones, not being discovered until the 1960s. It is routinely heat-treated, as unless it has undergone some natural heating at its point of origin (which is rather unusual) it is generally a brownish colour in its natural state, and these stones are indeed heated. Shop now, to get your hands on these beautiful, sparkling gemstones.

Indigo Iolite

6mm iolite rose cut round cabochon6mm iolite rose cut round cabochon

Also new in stock I have 4mm and 6mm rose cut iolite, at $3.15 and $13 per stone respectively. An interesting stone, with its pleochroic qualities; an indigo blue face-up colour (ideally!), but demonstrating browns, greys and yellows from different angles. In fact I have sometimes had customers contacting me to tell me their iolite is faulty, so clearly grey is it when viewed from the side. No, not faulty, just the nature of this fascinating stone. Legend has it that is was known as the ‘Viking Compass Stone’, and that thin slivers of the stone served as glare reducers and polarising filters that helped Viking marine navigators locate the sun on cloudy days, and therefore locate their own position. It’s a beautiful stone, taking it’s name from ‘ios’, the Greek for ‘violet’. It’s a fairly hard stone, at 7-7.5 on the Mohs scale, and for those who are interested in such things, not treated. It can’t be heat treated as it has a relatively low melting point so would not withstand the kind of heat that, say, sapphire would be subjected to to intensify its colour. This material is slightly included but has a good, saturated indigo colour. Click here to buy!

Finally Freeforms!

freeform pic 3

‘Finally’, because I’ve had these a long time and it’s taken me forever to get them sorted! Each one individually weighed, measured, photographed, priced and then listed. And I have lots. Choose from Brazilian amethyst, citrine, chrysoprase, labradrorite, rainbow moonstone, pink opal – in a pale or a deeper pink, white moonstone and black spinel. This has become a really popular cut, and the fact that the stones are cut quite shallow means that it’s possible to have a large looking stone for a reasonable price. They look great in necklaces, set in window settings, or they make fantastic statement rings in either a prong or a bezel setting. Because they are random freeforms, it’s not easy to pair them up, but coming soon I have some really beautiful translucent chrysoprase freeform pairs which would make great earrings. I’m currently sold out of turquoise – that sold out as soon as I listed it, but I do have some more on hand which I will be listing as soon as possible. They are also versatile, cut with a table on one side and rose cut on the other, you can set them either way up. Hard to choose a favourite  – I love the pale pink opal, as it is so delicate, like the colour of a French manicure or perhaps more romantically, alabaster. Labradorite is always a favourite and I adore citrine for its bright, sunshine qualities. They are all lovely. Grab them while you can, because these do tend to go quickly. And why not check out my newsletter for an offer that makes them even more irresistible! There’s an offer in the newsletter every month; why not sign up on the ​Joopy Gems homepage to make sure you don’t miss out?

Welcoming back ‘old friends’

Finally back in stock I have some labradorite in sizes and cuts that customers have been clamouring for. These are labradorite 5mm round cabochons at $1.75 per stone, 5mm honeycomb faceted cabochons at $2 per stone and 6mm honeycomb faceted cabochons at $3.50 per stone. I am not quite sure what the problem has been with re-stocking these; I think it is just quite hard for my suppliers to get hold of nice quality rough. Such a lot of labradorite on the market is not nice; full of cracks with almost none of the highly desirable labradorescence. Since it is my opinion that a labradorite without good flash is like a blunt pencil (pointless) I’ve waited it out until now and finally I have some nice quality stones in large quantities, so I shouldn’t run out for a while! Feel free to buy like crazy!