A recent jewelry-themed thread reminded me I'm on a site with a ton of girls, so I can talk about JEWELRY!!
What is your favorite stone? Do you prefer cut gemstones or more organic polished stones?
I recently dropped off one of my loose stones to be set in a pendant. It's a rutilated quartz- round cut, about 12 mm wide, and has golden rutile in one direction down the center (about 7 mm wide). I had it set with some small yellow quartz... we'll see how it turns out. It might be better in some organic-looking setting.
My all time favorite stone is zircon. No, not the "fake diamond" stuff (although way back in the day, that's what they used), but zircon. It is doubly refractive, so each facet shows up twice, and if cut at the right angles, shoots off some prisms prettier than any you've seen in a diamond. The problem is it's fragile and hard to find in colors other than neon turquoise blue (from heating, I think...).
Labradorite is my second all-time favorite. It's like an opal on crack. It's a more organic stone and I've never seen it cut.
I have a soft spot for a pretty royal blue sapphire, and Montana sapphires. I also have a few cut stones in my collection that are neon orange/salmon, chartreuse, and natural crystals, but they are too soft to set... they're just to look at.
A nearly clear grass-green emerald is an amazing sight, too.
There are tons more that I adore, but those are my main favorites. What about you guys?
What is your favorite stone? Do you prefer cut gemstones or more organic polished stones?
I recently dropped off one of my loose stones to be set in a pendant. It's a rutilated quartz- round cut, about 12 mm wide, and has golden rutile in one direction down the center (about 7 mm wide). I had it set with some small yellow quartz... we'll see how it turns out. It might be better in some organic-looking setting.
My all time favorite stone is zircon. No, not the "fake diamond" stuff (although way back in the day, that's what they used), but zircon. It is doubly refractive, so each facet shows up twice, and if cut at the right angles, shoots off some prisms prettier than any you've seen in a diamond. The problem is it's fragile and hard to find in colors other than neon turquoise blue (from heating, I think...).
Labradorite is my second all-time favorite. It's like an opal on crack. It's a more organic stone and I've never seen it cut.
I have a soft spot for a pretty royal blue sapphire, and Montana sapphires. I also have a few cut stones in my collection that are neon orange/salmon, chartreuse, and natural crystals, but they are too soft to set... they're just to look at.
A nearly clear grass-green emerald is an amazing sight, too.
There are tons more that I adore, but those are my main favorites. What about you guys?