[Jewelry making - Article 00601] - Re: [Orchid] Bezel setting faceted stones

[The Doctor]

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>         3) The only stones I have (facetted, that is) that are cut
>     with any imagination or style were cut by amateurs. 

    I also find this to be true, except in some extra fine, high-end
    stones. 

>         4)--Here's the rub-- there doesn't really seem to be a
>     consistent relationship between how good a stone looks and what I
>     paid for it. I would say that rarity (or perceived value) seems to
>     have more to do with price than beauty. But I am not yet buying
>     really high-end stones, and that may skew the results of my very
>     informal survey. 

    Your perception is similar to mine. And you'll probably find that
    the high-end stones you mentioned (presumably by high-end, you mean
    color and clarity), were cut to more exacting standards by high-end
    professional lapidaries. Commercial grades seem to be priced by
    stone lots that are "matched" by similar color with varying cut
    quality. Usually, the cut is matched by outline alone (round,
    square, etc.) and proportions vary greatly. Occasionally, I've found
    "matched cut" lots with table facets that are closely matched, but
    the rest of the proportions vary widely. These commercial grades do
    seem to be priced with little regard as to beauty. They simply look
    very similar to the inexperienced. 

>         I have a purple sapphire of about three carats that has an
>     unfortunate window in the bottom, but everywhere else in the
>     stone, it practically glows in the dark. If not for the window, I
>     probably couldn't have bought it for $100/carat, MOL. And, at the
>     time, I didn't see the window. An educated eye sees a different
>     world. 

    I'm curious to know if you plan to eventually re-cut this sapphire
    yourself? I'm not at all a world-class faceter, and would be nervous
    about it, myself. Isn't continuing education a wonderful thing? 

James in SoFl

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