Login
-
Recent Posts
- List of facts about tourmaline, an opinion
- No Paraiba in top ten list of most valuable/rarest or beautiful gemstones??
- #261 and a bright red cuprian smile
- Included bright sparkling red round. #261
- Getting threw the winter, 1/3 carat of fire
- The amount of lead in tourmaline.
- Color my world of tourmaline.
- Copper’s limited roll in coloring Paraiba/cuprian tourmaline.
Tags
- achroite
- afghan
- baby pink
- bi-color
- blue
- blue-green
- brown
- closed-c
- color-shift
- color dot
- cuprian
- cutting tourmaline
- dichroic
- dravite
- droplet-of-color
- emerald cut
- golden
- green
- green-blue
- hot pink
- IceT
- indicolite
- medium green
- Mozambique
- Namibia
- non-dichroic
- open-c
- orange
- outstanding
- oval
- pale
- pastel
- peach
- personal story
- pink
- purple
- purple-pink
- red
- rubellite
- seafoam
- shield
- unique
- verdelite
- yellow
- yellow-green
Recent Comments
- Romeo48065 on Laurellite a reverse color change tourmaline is unique.
- toadandspur on Outstanding Achroite with a Mystery
- Bruce Fry on Welcome to a World of Color in Tourmaline
- David Walsh on Paraiba/paraiba type tourmaline and treatments.
- rexguo on Laurellite a reverse color change tourmaline is unique.
Archives
- May 2019
- September 2018
- March 2018
- February 2018
- November 2017
- October 2017
- August 2017
- July 2017
- May 2017
- April 2017
- March 2017
- February 2017
- January 2017
- October 2016
- September 2016
- August 2016
- July 2016
- June 2016
- May 2016
- April 2016
- March 2016
- February 2016
- January 2016
- December 2015
- November 2015
- October 2015
- August 2015
- July 2015
- June 2015
- May 2015
- April 2015
- March 2015
- February 2015
- January 2015
- December 2014
- October 2014
- September 2014
- August 2014
- July 2014
- June 2014
- May 2014
- April 2014
- March 2014
- February 2014
- January 2014
- December 2013
- November 2013
- October 2013
- September 2013
- August 2013
- July 2013
Tag Archives: oval
An Oval by the Numbers
It has been a bit, but I finished a tourmaline gemstone today that is worth commenting about. The rough was a pretty average piece of dichroic brownish gold that had be reduced significantly to eliminate a major flaw. And I … Continue reading
Posted in Cutting Tourmaline, Dravite, Polishing Tourmaline
Tagged cutting tourmaline, dichroic, dravite, gold, golden-brown, oval, polishing tourmaline
Leave a comment
More tsaisite in my life?
Just finished a small, about 1/2 carat, oval from a sliver that my friend said was purported to tsaisite. (1/04/2014) It is the yellow that the trade has come to call tsaisite , but as I have posted before it … Continue reading
I wouldn’t call this anything, but mahogany or maybe golden brown, oval#299
Brown was suppose to be brown and then I got into mahogany. Now I am seeing storage boxes with golden brown on the back and I see the most wonder rich sultry mahogany under my yellowish florescent light. I check … Continue reading
One tall order of pure peach pink delight. oval.#296
When an oval is as deep as this gemstone is, you get pulled right down into its flashy depths. And this is no tall tale either. The proof is in looking at the pavilion and seeing a “super nova” cut … Continue reading
It has never been prettier riding the edge of red, oval.#295
This oval has a rather self effacing personality. She has too high a tone level, with its reddish implications, to be a hot pink and not quite enough size or tone level to be a red. Still she rides the … Continue reading
Darker pink with a touch of purple, oval.#294
This nice sized, medium plus tone level, pink has a purple wash. It is slightly included in the pavilion, next to the girdle. The inclusion does not flash and with this ovals rich tone level, I can not see it … Continue reading
Big Red is my name, Red is my game, Nigerian Rubellite Oval.#292
I will give you a hint. This large, 9.98 carat medium dark oval is red. It originated in Nigeria and made a trip to South Africa before showing up in Mars. Never needing to offer itself on the inter net, … Continue reading
A golden dichroic oval that is eye candy.#290
I like bright medium gold, like this oval has, in the tray. It doesn’t need bright light or even being that awake to pick it out and appreciate it. This oval has a significant amount of dichroism. The paler … Continue reading
Mixing yellow and pink for a peach oval.#287
This oval has a tender balance of color that I like to call dynamic. Depending on the light some tourmalines certainly shift and even change color. I think that it has not gotten the big play that Alexandrite gets is … Continue reading
The steam has been building and this is a hot pink oval.#286
This hot pink oval is in the zone and ready to grab you eye. It appears to be eye clean and has fine crystal. It is probably was part of a terminus since I see some parallel banding, when I … Continue reading
Medium dark tone level pink with a touch of purple, oval.#284
This oval appears to be very slightly included. Again the inclusion have no effect on the beauty of the gemstone. It has fine crystal, but its medium dark tone level and touch of purple moderates the stone’s flash. It is … Continue reading
This slightly included oval is in the red and doing well.#283
This is a great red tourmaline. It has the color and still has a medium dark tone level that is not too dense to flash and sparkle. This is nice and rare, Between the flash and the medium dark tone … Continue reading
Dichroic orangish pink oval with a bright clean look.#280
This is a nice bright flashy oval that is some combination of pink and orange. It is not dominated by brown and appears to be eye clean. The dichroism shows up as slightly darker ends, but is not that important … Continue reading
Brown did you hear me, I said brown, but not dull, oval.#279
I think this good sized oval is one of only two gemstones in the collection that deserves to be just called brown. It is obviously dichroic with its table being cut perpendicular to the principle axis (c). The a/b axis … Continue reading
Desatured orange I call mahogany, oval.#278
I usually don’t go too far over the edge when it comes to naming tourmaline’s colors and I have brown on this stone’s storage box, but the gem is too nice for such a bland term. This desaturated brownish orange … Continue reading
Dichroic orangish pink oval#277
This oval has darker ends and is obviously cut from dichroic material. Still the medium tone level does permit any problems with flash. The pink tends to dominate the richer toned ends while the orange tends to dominate the middle. … Continue reading
peach and pink with a dark modifier oval.#276
I guess because of the complexity of generating orange in tourmaline, nature has produced many desaturated hybrids that are not particularly attractive. I have been told that titanium is the cause of many of the less than desirable shades with … Continue reading
This oval is a bit of a raspberry, but not a thorn in my side.#275
Pink to red in tourmaline comes in the full array of shades probably only matched by lipstick colors. I hope to use my spectrometer to get a better understanding of its nuances. This darker, raspberry pink has just a touch … Continue reading
Dichroic medium toned pink with purple enrichment, oval#274
This pink is more complex than the average highly saturated pink gem. Its purple shade both darkens it and makes the color more dynamic. The ovals medium plus tone level and touch of purple reduces the flash level to a … Continue reading
Medium light pastel pink with great transparency, oval#273
The radiating flash of this nice pink oval seems to be very far from the table due to the gems great transparency. The gem has a medium light tone level and the pink might have just a speck of peach … Continue reading
A pink with the brawn to make a statement oval.#272
This moderately toned pure pink oval has a slightly flatter crown than usual. This makes a greetings that draws you into a wonderfully flashy and pure well of color. And for those lovers of tourmaline and those who would like … Continue reading
Eye candy alert, orange tang on the menu, oval beauty.#270
Some colors do not need much to get me going. Orange is one of them. An influential tourmaline expert once wrote that he questioned whether orange was a naturally occurring color in tourmaline. It certainly has not been a big … Continue reading
A bit of a brown shade on this richer golden oval.#269
This golden oval is a rich medium color with a wash or two of brown on it. Still it is not dominated by brown, but I would call it a dravite. It appears to be eye clean and with fine … Continue reading
Brown, long ratio oval, table perpendicular to principle axis. cuprain #268
I like this oval’s color. It is the closest to a pure brown in the collection. I does approach brown from the yellow side, but it has no pretenses of having a fancy name. It has a nice even color, … Continue reading
Posted in Cuprian Tourmaline, Dravite, Etc., Orange
Tagged brown-orange, cuprian, dravite, orange, oval, unique
Leave a comment
More gold in them thar hills, slightly included oval.#267
I am impress with the level of saturation of the gold in this oval. Not a touch of brown or green anywhere to be seen. It is slightly included, but is still a bright sparkling gemstone. It does not … Continue reading
Slightly included oval of medium toned pink glory.#266
This oval has a well saturate pink color in a medium tone level. It is slightly included without damage to the beauty of the gem. Its brightness is definitely above the normal, but not quite hot, but I am pretty … Continue reading
Nice sized oval in a fine medium tone level pink.#265
After looking at pink after pink because of the way my son organized about half the trays in the collection, it is surprising to think how rare a fine pink is in the world of gemstones. Put that on top … Continue reading
A pink oval with a touch of purple punch.#264
This bright sharp pink oval looses nothing from its touch of purple. I realize that violet overtones in pink tourmaline is not as highly esteemed as the pure pinks, but I like the little bit of different look. The oval … Continue reading
A deeper richer golden yellow oval that demands respect.#260
This golden oval is a darker breed of golden yellow, but it is still very open with its medium tone level. It is not dominated by drown and I would still not call it a dravite, but I am sure … Continue reading
Simply a great sparkling golden oval.#259
This stone will not brook with anything to do with color shifting or changing. It has a pure 24 karat, golden heart. It also appears to be eye clean and with fine crystal. Since it does not have even a … Continue reading
Golden brown shaded with orange oval.#258
This oval has a flatter crown and a nice open look. Looking into it gives a fine flashy view that appears to be eye clean. There is enough red in the golden brown that it drifts toward orange, which probably … Continue reading
Light toned pastel peach oval.#257
This oval has a lightly toned pastel peach color that is stable. It appears to be eye clean and with fine crystal. Nice properties lead to a bright flashy gemstone. It weighs .82 carats. Bruce
Pastel baby pink, sharp oval.#256
This pink oval appears to be eye clean and could not have a better, sharper crystal like appearance. It has a light tone level and weighs 1.34 carats. Bruce
A fine medium light oval with three rows of steps.#254
It takes a bit of effect to climb the three rows of steps that lead up to the table on this larger oval. But went you get there, you see a great pool of pink with just a little scatter … Continue reading
Nice oval with fine properties for a middle of the road pink.#253
Out side of a somewhat flatter crown, this oval is straight down the pink runway. When it landed, it came out eye clean and with a fine sharp look. It weighs1.10 carats. Bruce
Included, Oval, Laurellite, Cuprian, Elbaite from Mozambique.#945
This oval was actually the first Laurellite that I cut. It is not as colorful as her sister #944, since her color change goes from purple to more of a grayed blue, but she set me up to take action … Continue reading
Posted in Cuprian Tourmaline, Etc., Laurellite
Tagged blue-purple, bruce fry discovery, color change, cuprian, laurellite, Mozambique, oval, personal story, purple
Leave a comment
Achroite it is by a hair, oval.#740
Voting on whether an almost colorless tourmaline is an Achroite of just a member of the IceT group can get political. This very nice eye clean oval might just have enough to be a very very weak wheat, but the … Continue reading
Slightly included non dichroic blue green oval#737
This is a very nice and rather different blue green oval. It has a medium tone level and has a uniform color and tone level because it is not dichroic. It is slightly included beside the girdle, which has no … Continue reading
Lightly included, pastel yellow washed with green, oval. cuprian#419
This is another gemstone that I did not buy as cuprian, but my spectroscope uncovered the proper absorption curves. It is very clean for a cuprian tourmaline from Mozambique, with only a very few light inclusions that do not effect … Continue reading
Posted in Cuprian Tourmaline, Etc., Yellow
Tagged cuprian, green-yellow, Mozambique, oval, pastel, yellow
Leave a comment
Included, medium light toned, blue green oval.#1200
This is the last of the four ovals that I cut from a large included piece of rough. I have written about cutting this stone on another post about cutting included rough, if you would like to read more about … Continue reading
Posted in Cutting Tourmaline, Verdelite
Tagged blue-green, cutting tourmaline, green, medium green, oval
Leave a comment
Peach pink, eye clean, oval#1199
This oval appears to be eye clean and has fine crystal. It medium light toned pink with a touch of peach color is bright and flashy. It weighs 1.48 carats. Bruce
Bright medium light sea foam oval from Afghanistan.#1194
Sea foam is another color variety that will go out of my way to try and get as much out of it as I can. This small oval is too small to really get the full effect of the lightly … Continue reading
Small oval Namibian blue#1193
I don’t cut this small an oval very much anymore. For most colors a simple standard round brilliant and a ticket into the droplets of color is enough. But with a nice piece of Namibia blue, I go for the … Continue reading
Included purple oval with blue areas, Mozambique, cuprian#1192
This oval is pretty heavily included and the inclusions do effect its crystal quality and flash. Still it has the rare color purple and the added interest that it has blue areas in the gemstone. This stone pushes the cleanliness … Continue reading
Pale pink oval with frisky yellowish spot.#1188
This rough for this gemstone is from Nigeria and I have seen quite a bit of it. The body is a nice pink, but some faces of the crystal have a yellowish green layer on them that appears to have … Continue reading
Longer ratio pink oval, with sleek look of three rows of steped facets crown#1186
Sometimes all the parts add up to more than any individual part is valued. This oval appears to be eye clean with fine crystal, nice medium pink color and a longer ratio cut with a crown of three rows of … Continue reading
Included, long ratio, bright blue green, medium toned, oval.#1184
This is one of the ovals that I cut from a large piece of included rough. This stone has a moderate amount of inclusions, but is still bright and flashy. I have posted about cutting this oval in a post … Continue reading
Really sharp pastel yellow oval has been claimed by the IceT group.#1183
It was a close call, but the official ruling is that this yellow is both free enough of green, to be just a pale yellow and at the same time an IceT pledge. The stone has three rows of step … Continue reading
Included medium toned pastel blue green oval.#1172
This is one of four ovals that I cut from a large included piece of rough. I describe the work in another post that discusses the cutting of included rough. I hope that you would read that for more details … Continue reading
Included medium toned pastel blue green oval.#1171
This oval was cut along with three other ovals from a large piece of included rough. I have gone into quite a bit of detail about their cutting in a post discussing cutting included rough. So I would see that … Continue reading
Pink center and blue ends makes a different oval.#1160
A unique gemstone in this collection must have a interesting story. I cut away a good part of this oval’s story, when I preformed this oval. It had been a rather flat section of a watermelon tourmaline with a pastel … Continue reading
Long ratio oval in peach.#1156
This long ratio oval has that modern look of three rows of step cut facets on the crown. It appears to be eye clean and have fine crystal. Its pastel peachy color is quite pale and drifts into straw in … Continue reading
Great blue green with a few visible growth tubes oval.#1138
I really like this medium plus tone level of bright blue green color. The gemstone has one fault. There are a few quite visible growth tubes deep in the culet that parallel the sides of the oval. I remember thinking … Continue reading
Included pale gray oval#1137
This gemstone is just another little step to cover the world of color in tourmaline. Its pale gray color is rich enough to keep it from being achroite, but doesn’t give it much life. It is noticeably include in one … Continue reading
Darkly toned, dichroic blue green oval.#1136
The ends of this long ratio oval are darker than the middle of the oval because it is dichroic. Both colors work together well and are nice shades of blue green. The gemstone has a number of faint inclusion and … Continue reading
Included, rich, hot pink, oval#1135
This is a great piece of eye candy. This oval is hot and even if a bit more than the hoped for level inclusion are there, they just do not come threw the rich pink flash. It is surprising that … Continue reading
Another unstable pink peach oval has been sighted.#1130
Even before I set up my yellowish light and let the natural light into where I am posting, pinks, peaches, reds and oranges have been betraying me. I examine them after they have been cleaned and placed in their storage … Continue reading
Slightly include hotter pink oval#1121
This medium toned pink oval is hotter than most, but I would not call it a hot pink. It is lightly included which is typical of tourmaline in the hotter richer pink range. It is still a bright flashy gemstone … Continue reading
Medium light toned, two step on the crown, oval.#1114
This middle of the road pink oval does have a bit of a modern twist. It has two rows of steps for the crown. I have begun to cut more of these because they have been well received. It is … Continue reading
This pastel oval is in the pink and should be babied.#1113
This medium lightly toned baby pink oval is a nice size. It appears to be eye clean and has fine crystal. Now all this could indicate a gemstone from Afghanistan or Nigeria, but that can not be proven by its … Continue reading
Long ratio, hot pink pool with sparkles on the ends, oval#1104
This oval has as long a ratio of the length to the width (1.5 times) that I cut. The oval cut that I use,which is a lazy oval meet point design, although I don’t cut it in a completely meet … Continue reading
Lightly toned well saturated lavender oval, cuprian#41
The rough for the lightly toned lavender was cut from a large dark purplish red nodule that had been heated to lighten it. It would have probably gone completely light blue if the heating continued. The blue is from … Continue reading
Include sleep time purple with an attraction to me, oval#130
My principal dealer out of Africa still manages to pick up a few cuprian tourmaline pieces of rough (2013) and I keep spending too much for too little because of my purple addition. I bought the rough for this gemstone … Continue reading
Posted in Cuprian Tourmaline, Cutting Tourmaline, Etc., Laurellite
Tagged cuprian, cutting tourmaline, laurellite, oval, purple
Leave a comment
A galaxy of flashing stars in aqua blue heaven, oval
To me blue is a hue/color in tourmaline that is a complex issue. It is really not solved by limiting Indicolite or Indigolite (I hope I spelled that right because it is a name I never use) to pure blue … Continue reading
Delicate sea foam oval from Afghanistan.#162
A fine little oval that came with the sea foam lot from Afghanistan. I has a light tone level that doesn’t support the sea foam color very well, but it is very bright and eye clean. It weighs .83 carats. … Continue reading
Small oval of watery blue disposition.#104
This oval with a watery, medium toned blue, is one of the smallest ovals I have cut. The little, eye clean, gem is a pretty piece of blue with value. It is from Afghanistan/Pakistan. It weighs .43 carats. Bruce
Included Aqua Blue Oval#101
This medium light toned, aqua blue oval is full of tiny inclusions and a few fine feathers. They do effect the stone’s flash, but its pretty color shines threw. The stone’s fine color, medium light tone level and brightness still … Continue reading
Longer ratio oval with a step crown, that is a honey of a golden brown color #95.
NO picture for 95. In the “old” days, when tourmaline for the intrepid amateur cutter, was more available, one of my primary dealers out of Africa would send out emails on new finds of tourmaline. (and other gemstones). This posted … Continue reading
Rich pink with orange tones oval. #76
I posted this stone along with two others in a earlier post called “Red is not enough”. I was looking at all three stones under both a yellowish florescent light or an incandescent at the times. I waited to do … Continue reading
Yellow washed in green, cuprian oval. #71
This apparently eye clean and very bright oval is mostly yellow with a wash of green. I discovered, with my spectrometer, that it contains copper as a chromophore and that is interesting. But I don’t know how much difference it … Continue reading
Cute little golden oval. #40
I think this is the smallest oval in the collection. I cut it when I was working to see how small I could cut stones. It is a cute .40 carats golden moment. Bruce
Bright yellow green oval with a two step crown. #51
Yellow green is a wide venue that is full of excitement with tourmaline. This bright yellow green oval is toward the medium toned, yellow end. It appears to be eye clean and have excellent crystal. It maybe me, but I … Continue reading
Small baby blue oval#782
This small oval has a medium light pastel blue color. It appears to be eye clean and with fine crystal. The color is even and completely open because the stone does not display any dichroism. This flashy gemstone weighs … Continue reading
Shallow yellow oval with two tier crown.#781
This larger yellow oval is eye clean. It has a very nice medium tone level and the yellow is without a greenish overtone. The rough came from Del Gado Mozambique, which is the most northern state in Mozambique. The material … Continue reading
This oval is in the pink and ready to flash.#752
It is nice to see a pink oval that is eye clean and very bright and flashy, be an average stone in my collection. It is nothing new in color, but for those who love pink, this stone would be … Continue reading
Quite included candy orange oval, Brazil#550
This oval was cut from a piece of “salad” that I purchased from Brazil. “Salad” are low grade tourmalines that are faceted by native cutters. I got some just to see if I could get some different shades of color … Continue reading
Purple brown in a dark package, oval#546
This gemstone is an example of how you have to buy in the world of tourmaline rough to quest for color. I consider tourmaline to be a world of color possibilities. Opportunities appear which demand action because if you miss … Continue reading
Someone has to be in the middle of the bell curve, pink oval.#545
I would judge this pink oval to be an example of the most typical pink that is coming out of Africa at the moment (2013). It maybe a little larger at 4.36 carats and cleaner, eye clean, than most, but … Continue reading
Bright medium dark beautiful pink oval#544
Back in the middle of the road, pink oval. But it is really a beautiful middle of the road. No potholes here, just an eye clean gem of fine crystal that sets off a rich, brightly flashy, pink. The stone … Continue reading
A Red/Orange-Peach, deep oval.#542
Since I posted that I was using peach only in the pastel world this deeply cut oval is probably a medium toned reddish orange, but it still is really a deeper peach. Its pavilion is a “super nova” which takes … Continue reading
A medium pastel blue with a touch of gray oval cuprian#539
I did not buy the rough for this oval as cuprian. It was too early in the game. Later, I did not expect this somewhat different blue, with a touch of gray, to be cuprian because it does not have … Continue reading
Posted in Cuprian Tourmaline, Etc., Indicolite
Tagged blue, cuprian, Mozambique, oval, pastel, sapphire
Leave a comment
Slightly included smaller hot red/pink oval.#534
This longer ratio oval is a great piece of red/pink eye candy. It is slightly included, as you expect of a piece of tourmaline with this intensity of color and being a red pink. I think that this is a … Continue reading
A purple without copper, oval#533
This purple without copper does not have a good saturation level, but it is a purple and therefor rare in the collection. The stone is included, but its medium dark tone level tends to obscure the inclusions. (I just spotted … Continue reading
Slightly sleepy, included, dichroic, blue oval.#518
I usually think of sapphire and garnet when I hear sleepy, but that is what this oval is. I can see both dichroic blues in the gem’s flashes and they are not exceptional dark. But the pizazz is not there. … Continue reading
If it wasn’t included it wouldn’t be a saturated yellow oval#512
This oval is lightly included and the inclusions are not a distraction from the beauty of the stone. This saturated yellow is not only excellent for tourmaline, I don’t think that many other types of gemstone can really measure up … Continue reading
Dravite, just not enough satuation to keep this Orange without Brown, Oval#511
This oval has a good size, fine crystal and is probably eye clean, but gets very little respect because its saturation (purity of color) is not high enough to scare away the brown. This problem is shared with many other … Continue reading
Slightly included medium forest green, oval#728
I think that this medium toned forest green oval has just a touch of blue. It has a slight flaw close to the girdle, but it should not weaken the stone. The rest of the gem is eye clean with … Continue reading
Modest, mid range, pink oval#722
This modest oval has a rather toned down flash and does not appear to be significantly dichroic. The stone appears to be eye clean and with good crystal. Its color is a mid range pink with a darker tone level. … Continue reading
Lightly include oval with a heart of gold.#718
Except for the inclusion that are minor, this golden ray of beauty has it all. Its moderate tone level and open golden color, without any green or darker tones makes an eye grabber to me. It weighs 2.16 carats. Bruce
Dark toned and flash driven golden/orange brown oval
This bigger oval is reaching the limit, set by its darker tone, in size that an effective oval can be cut. It is dark, but from its depths still come bright flashes of golden orange. Dichroism does not appear to … Continue reading
Dichroic orange brown oval
This oval was cut with the darker dichroic color on the side of the oval and the paler orange brown in the ends. If it works with the piece of rough, it is a good way to get a reasonable … Continue reading
Orange Brown to Golden Brown like Buckwheat Honey, oval
This sweet gemstone is dichroic with the darker golden to orange brown in the ends of the longer ratio oval. The stones tone level is medium dark and it color is mainly flash driven. It is eye clean with excellent … Continue reading
Shades of orange and pink in a deep oval.
This larger medium light toned oval is cut with a “super nova” pavilion and a regular crown. This arrangement makes a really bright fully involved oval. What is bright in this stone is a nice average pink to peach slider, … Continue reading
A Very Bright Rich Pink, that really wants to be a Red, oval.
This pink that wants to be red, is very bright for its rich tone level and knows that it is a great stone. The ovals cut is the standard one I use most of the time, but this gemstone seems … Continue reading
A moderately included rich pink oval
This rich pink oval has a quadrant of the stone that has moderate inclusion. They are visible from face up, but they do not stop the gemstone from being bright for a darker, middle of the road, pink and flashy. … Continue reading
A big red star for the collection, oval#292
My principle dealer in Africa has gotten to know my weaknesses. And really red tourmaline is one of them. I was rather frustrated that I had not been able to be in on the scene when the big find of … Continue reading
A golden oval that rests in brown.#290
This modest gemstone has a nice golden flash, but is darken by brown when the flash passes. It is moderately dichroic with darker tones of gold in the ends of the oval. It appears to be eye clean and with … Continue reading
An incredibly dichroic mahogany oval#289
I have been waiting to post about this longer ratio, deeply cut oval. Face up the dravite, a trade name for brown tourmaline, looks like many of the brown gems I have posted about, with the possible exception that its … Continue reading
A brown has come around, again, oval.#288
I smile when I wrote again in the title, because I like this stone and I wish that more browns would roll my way. But I haven’t seen any for years (2013). I am sure the rough came from East … Continue reading
A peachy pink slightly included oval#287
This modest gemstone has a medium light tone level that does not hide the stones slightly included nature. It color is a nice pastel that floats around in a pink to peach to golden cloud. It weighs 2.01 carats. Bruce
The vote is in and a Rubellite (red) declared, oval.#285
I love Rubellites and I am demanding in declaring was is a good enough red to be called a Rubellite. Nothing with a brown problem or a significant degree of purple under normal daylight conditions should be called a Rubellite … Continue reading
A very nice pretty average darker pink oval#284
This gemstone doesn’t have any gemological problems, but its medium dark pink color is not exceptional. Still it is a solid performer and would make a fine center stone in a distinctive ring. It has enough richness of color to … Continue reading
A more stately oval on the darker side of pink.#283
Now, I love a flashing piece of eye candy as much as anyone, but that is not in every piece of rough, no mater how good the lapidary effort has been. The posted gemstone has a solid amount of flash … Continue reading
Deep cut oval with bright pink flash#286
This oval was cut with both a larger ratio of its length to width and a “super nova” style pavilion. This extra effort was well rewarded by producing a very bright flashy gemstone. Its tone level and pink color are … Continue reading
Liddicoatite rose sliding to orange rose, oval.#282
This is one of the few tourmalines in the collection that I have had adequately tested, enough, to determine that is not Elbaite, but Liddicoatite. Liddicoatite and Elbaite are very closely related species in the group of minerals we call … Continue reading
Dichroic, medium toned, pink orange oval#280
This medium toned oval has a nice complex nature. The pastel pink orange blends nicely with the pastel pink orange to make a medium toned, dichroic gemstone. It appears to be eye clean and of a fine crystal. It weighs … Continue reading
A darker more robust brown oval#279
Little orange is left in this good sized brown oval. I would really reach for a name with this one and call it brown. It is dark, but still has a fine flash driven color, in a stone that is … Continue reading
You may call it mahongany or I might call it root beer, oval#278
I haven’t seen this material in a long time. It is a desaturated orange that makes a fine rich browned orange. I think that this stone is cut with the table perpendicular to the c axis and that produces a … Continue reading
Smaller, Dichroic, Pink Oval#277
This smaller oval is strongly dichroic and the middle of the stone is much paler than the ends which are a nice medium pink tone. This definitely gives a different look to the stone. It is eye clean and with … Continue reading
Pink oval darkened with a bit of purple.#276
Purple pinks are not rare and I find that the purple cast tends to make them less vibrant. This is the case with this oval. It has a good tone level of medium dark and is eye clean with good … Continue reading
A smaller medium dark pink oval.#275
I am working on a tray that my son organized years ago after the last Carnegie Museum Show. It is about 1/3 brown to orange gemstones, 1/10 purples and the rest pinks to reds. I have not really looked at … Continue reading
A definitely dichroic pink oval.#274
This nice sized, dichroic, pink oval was cut with the table parallel to the a/b axis. This causes a band of lighter pink to dominate the center of the oval. The ends of the oval are a much richer, bright … Continue reading
A fine medium light pink oval#273
I you have been reading many post about the gemstones I have cut, you have probably come to the conclusion that pink/reds are predominately in ovals and rounds, while greens are predominantly in emerald cuts. This is true and it … Continue reading
Pendant sized oval pink with great properties#272
This larger medium pink oval has a flatter than normal crown that gives a wide open appearance to the gemstone. The table opens into an eye clean medium toned world of pink flash and general brightness. It weighs 6.72 carats. … Continue reading
An orange good enough to get juice from it in the morning, oval#270
This is how an orange tourmaline should be. It doesn’t want to be a red or darken into a brown. It follows it purity in color by being eye clean and uninhibited. I have gotten larger oranges, but I haven’t … Continue reading
Smaller richer golden oval.#269
This oval maybe on the small side for me to cut, but it has a rich golden color that flashes to a moderate degree. It is cut with the c axis perpendicular to the table and has a nice even … Continue reading
Great Rich Golden Brown, just like Mom’s Gravy, oval#268
This is an exceptional piece of dravite (brownish tourmaline). It is cut with a “super nova” pavilion and a standard top, to conserve weight and get the most out of a brown, that is not dark or dense in any … Continue reading
Another round of golden eye candy please, oval#267
This bright bouncy golden yellow oval is slightly dichroic, but you have to look hard to see it. It appears to be eye clean and is just a down right nice little stone. There is not a hint of brown … Continue reading
Just another great medium dark pink oval#266
I wish that I could get the rough for this medium dark toned, pink oval at a reasonable price today. It is just a beautiful ring sized stone that has all the right gemological properties. It is even eye clean, … Continue reading
Slightly included, medium toned, bright pink oval#265
This oval has a slight inclusion toward one end of the oval. It is close to the girdle and does not effect the beauty of the gemstone. I think that the tourmaline is slightly dichroic, with a slightly darker pink … Continue reading
A fine uniform rich pink oval#264
I would not call this nice sized pink oval a hot pink. But it is a solid medium dark, middle of the road, pink. One that can say that you’ve reach a stable and mature position as a lover of … Continue reading
A tale of two golden ovals.#260
This is #259 and is piece of bright golden eye candy This is #260 and is a dravite with golden flash. I am going to post one comment for both of the next two stones in the tray. My … Continue reading
Orange flash in a brown body, oval#258
The verdict is in, this is a traditional dravite, even if the flash has quite a good orange color. The oval has a nice medium tone level and appears to be eye clean with good crystal. But it can not … Continue reading
Small pale peach oval#257
Peach that is some level of pastel seems to be the twin of pink in tourmaline. It generally has the same problems and strengths as its more appreciated sibling. This pale peach oval could be easily mistaken for a pink … Continue reading
A pink oval for the common man#256
This pink tourmaline oval is bright and eye clean and flashy and moderate light in tone and has good saturation and is probably the only natural gemstone that you can buy, at a reasonable price, with those gemological properties. I … Continue reading
Nice sized pink oval with stepped crown#254
I have found that a stepped crown makes a wide open gemstone that does not hide inclusion. This 4.85 carat oval has a stepped crown, but does not have to worry about inclusion because it is eye clean. Its fine … Continue reading
Nice smaller medium dark pink oval.#253
This medium dark pink oval appears to be eye clean. It has good crystal and bright flash. The pink seems to be a bit on the purple side of pink. It weighs 1.10 carats Bruce
Included pale peaches and cream oval
This slightly included oval appears eye clean face up. The gemstone appears to be dichroic with light peach in the middle of the stone and a cream in the ends. I am sure that you can come with other names … Continue reading
Old #44 is a large peach oval with a heart of green.
This oval is one of the first larger tourmalines I cut and I even remember the listed sale number it had (44). The rough was advertised to have peach and green, which can make an undesirable mixture. I think that … Continue reading
A wild side yellow with a long body, oval
I kept this yellow piece of rough for a long time because I wanted to cut this rare color in tourmaline with as little loss in weight as possible. But that meant I would have to cut a very long … Continue reading
Medium Dark Gray Transparent Oval.
This gray with a touch of brown is quite transparent for its darker tone value. It came from Thailand and was probably heat treated. I have enough similar material to feel that this color and saturation occurs in nature, but … Continue reading
Very nice pastel yellow oval
This pastel yellow appears to be eye clean. Its tone level is medium light and does not appear to have a greenish or brownish overtone. With a fine crystal, a great polish and cut, the stone has to be a … Continue reading
Medium Gray Oval
I obtained the rough for this medium gray oval from Thailand. It has probably been heated and my principal interest was to see if I could tell the difference between heated and unheated tourmaline. I could not tell there was … Continue reading
Medium Dark Toned Yellow Green Oval
This oval is dichroic and the ends are a bit greener than the sides. The cut effectively mixes the colors together well. This yellow green oval is flashy for a darker toned stone. It weighs 3.04 carats. Bruce
Possibly heat colorless oval
This colorless oval could have possibly been heat treated since it went threw Thailand from where ever it was mined. The principle reason I purchased the rough was to see if heating effect it, in a way that I could … Continue reading
A yellow oval modified with green and brown overtones, oval
I have lauded yellows that are well saturated without green and problems with their purity of color that lead to browns. Well this oval can not escape a touch of green and low saturation (purity of color) that leads to … Continue reading
A green oval that reminds me of seaweed.
Tourmaline comes in every shade of green from yellows that just a touch of green to blues the hate to show their green wash. This oval is a bid different green with a level of yellow that reminds me of … Continue reading
A hot pink oval of excellect tone and clarity.
This hot pink oval is open to the world. Nothing dark or dull in its world. In fact it is so transparent that a bit of chipping can be seen on the keels. This is not an unusual problem with … Continue reading
The IceTs are ready, wisp of blue to colorless small oval.
This gemstone looks like it is colorless in my yellowish light and it has just a wisp of blue in daylight. Either way this smaller, eye clean, oval does not depend on its color for interest. It flashes out bright … Continue reading
Lavender pink oval without copper
Lavender pinks have generally not been prized over pinks in tourmaline. I think that it is rather toned down from pink, like its more intense purple red sisters. This oval of medium tone is interesting, as a contrast to the … Continue reading
Darker toned purple red oval
Looking over this darker toned purplish red oval produces a feeling of restrained power. It appears to be eye clean and this gemstone is not hazy, but it has too high a tone value to be really flashy. I … Continue reading
A one a day pink oval to keep the doctor away.
This very nice middle of the road pink oval has a two step crown that produces an interesting stone. I have been cutting more of them and getting good reviews. I can see a faint feather when I check the … Continue reading
All who love orange, a medium pastel oval is born.
Orange in tourmaline does not get a lot of respect. Most of it has dark modifiers that can brown out a very good orange under less than ideal conditions. At times experts have even questioned the existence of orange that … Continue reading
Wheat, Cream, or Slightly Brownish Yellow, oval
This oval can be call by many colors, but it is so pale that the IceT group already has a place for it. It is slightly included which does not effect the stones brightness, but rather looks like little drops … Continue reading
Medium pink troopers and the building of a collection, oval.
A bright, eye clean, find crystal, in a medium toned, pink, oval. Does that sound familiar, well it is available when other colors are not. And I need to keep cutting and they are relatively affordable. And if you hadn’t … Continue reading
This smaller oval dances to a yellow green tune
This yellow green oval is not dichroic and has a bright eye clean look. It has fine crystal and a moderate tone level. It would look great in a delicate,golden ring. It weighs .77 carats. ( Its tone level and … Continue reading
Peachy Pink Pride in a smaller Oval
Peachy pink or pinky peach is all in the lighting. This oval has a crisp clean look because it does not appear to be dichroic. It also appears to be eye clean and with fine crystal. Its tone level is … Continue reading
I love stout hearted blues that still know how to open up, oval.
Here is a beautiful blue that knows how to stay blue under a gray day’s sky or even in my secret place, just under the side of a compact florescent light in a yellowish shade. There are more steps that … Continue reading
It is a pitty that this classic peach tourmaline oval is not bigger.
I like peaches and this pastel approximation of their color looks delicious. It is dichroic and both of the peaches blend well in their creamy world. The longer ratio oval appears to be eye clean and with fine crystal. It … Continue reading
This well cut longer oval displays the purplish red color well.
Longer ratio ovals are more work to get right than ovals that think they are almost rounds. Longer ovals have more than just getting a better yield out of a piece of rough, going for them. They produce relatively thinner … Continue reading
Smaller, Open Ended Dichroic Green, Oval
This middle of the road green oval has refreshingly open ends. Both dichroic color are green and blend together nicely with the darker color in the ends. It appears to be eye clean and has fine crystal. It weighs .80 … Continue reading
Dichroic peaches and cream oval
This rather round oval is obviously dichroic. Both colors are shades of peach with the darker peach being in the ends of the oval. Now I use peach as a color name for pastel orange of moderate to low levels … Continue reading
Olive green under the girdle and forest green around, oval
I have posted before about an interesting phenomenon of decreased transparency down the c axis. This green gemstone is an excellent example of that phenomenon. Under the table, which is perpendicular to the c axis, is a bit darker olive … Continue reading
Nice eye clean pastel pink oval
Pink seems to work well with ovals and most pink rough that is available can be efficiently cut as either a round or an oval. So everything is in the pink most of the time. Still inclusions can be a … Continue reading
A powerful orange with a bit of red oval
I don’t know if orange is a “power” color in anyone’s book because it usually just a fun color. Even a bit fruity at times, but the orange of this stone speaks of authority. Its color is stable and penetrating … Continue reading
An after dinner, pastel green mint of an oval.
This light green oval has that light pastel look that we associate with babies. It appears to be eye clean and with decent crystal. It does not appear to be dichroic and the ends of the oval flash very nicely. … Continue reading
Good sized, medium pastel, pink, oval.
This pink oval has a two step crown that has won praise from my board of directors. I am using it more often because it gives me very good control over the thickness of the crown. Its only drawback is … Continue reading
Exciting bright crisp pink oval.
I have seen a lot of pink tourmaline and there is a certain fatigue that builds up, but each time I see a pink like this oval, the excitement returns. I don’t think that there is any other kind of … Continue reading
Open Dichroic Orange Oval
The selection of rough to cut this collection has never had an organized method to it, except for purchasing the best and most diverse set of color in tourmaline I can find and afford. What that really boils down to … Continue reading
A faintly dichroic green oval
This oval is a very nice green and is only faintly dichroic. This lets the ends of the oval be nice and flashy. Still I don’t think that the c axis is aliened with the long axis of this oval … Continue reading
What is the difference between rusty yellow and peach pink? Dichroism.
This is a great oval and I am glad that I put the extra effort into a “supper nova” pavilion that makes a deep pavilion. It has a three step crown that is relatively shallow in this stone. This adds … Continue reading
A fine transparent pink oval
I just finished writing about a pink shield cut.#808 and this is probably the same hue (color) as that shield cut, but its tone level is not as high. It is also not as flashy. I generally try not to … Continue reading
Transparent pink to orange pink slider, oval
This oval stays basically pink, but has a weakness for orange. It is a very transparent gem because of its eye clean, high quality crystal, but that is only part of the story. Its tone level is medium and it … Continue reading
An Oval Dichroic Pink that stays Pink
This oval wants to be pink and though it displays two dichroic colors, both are shades of pink. It has a medium tone level and fine crystal. No inclusions bother its flash. It weighs 2.32 carats. I have indications of … Continue reading
Darker greenish yellow oval
This darker greenish yellow stone has a moderate amount of flash. It is dichroic and has some light yellow green color in its ends. An eye clean, good quality body helps to make this an attractive gemstone. It weighs 2.90 … Continue reading
A deep yellow green oval that is fun.
In the quest to sell lighting it has gotten popular to advertise that this “high tech” wonder is daylight equivalent. There is not such man made light source and there will probably never be one made. And even if one … Continue reading
In this oval we have BIG PURE PINK.
In many tourmalines you have at least two colors. In some tourmaline you have only one color, but it is in a graded series of tone values, finally you have a uniform color, but it doesn’t have a good saturation … Continue reading
Yellow washed in green a twice told tale, oval
Some colors I routinely pick up whenever possible. A yellow green that really is a yellow that has been wash with green clothing and no bleach is always in demand. This one is eye clean and a smaller size. It … Continue reading
Smaller dichroic green oval
This dichroic oval in a mixture of bluer and yellower greens and is nice to see in an oval. It is darker than ideal, but still displays it color nicely. It appears to be eye clean and weighs 1.14 carats. … Continue reading
Posted in Verdelite
Tagged blue-green, dichroic, green, oval, verdelite, yellow-green
Leave a comment
Good Sized Solid Green Oval
I am working with an artist on a portrait that I will post on the “who am I” part of the site. While I was watching him paint, I went threw one of his catalogs. There were thousands of different … Continue reading
Singing Pink or Orange depending on the light oval.
This stone and its larger brother (#659) have driven me up the wall too many times. I was just singing in my mind (the cat on my lap doesn’t like me to make too much noise) how I love a … Continue reading
A yellow that dances around with a bit of green, oval.
I am seeing yellow in natural light and my yellowish light, but I know this is the type of tourmaline that will make a debate out of whether it is a slight greening yellow or a yellow. I would probably … Continue reading
Included Pastel Lilac from Copper Oval
Looking at this delicate lilac oval whose color is a blessing from copper and comparing it to the exact same material in an oval half it size points up somethings about pastels. While darkly toned material can get too opaque … Continue reading
Bright dancing yellow green dynamic oval
This flashing oval may have a bit of an inclusion that is very difficult to see by eye and has not impact on the stone. I confess that I am drawn to greens that are open and not dichroic like … Continue reading
Wounded pink to orange color changing oval.
Decisions, decisions and you have to make them cutting gemstones. I have chosen with this gemstone to retain a white feather that is close to vertical with the table, in order to get a descent sized oval. The rest of … Continue reading
Nice average included pink oval
This is a nice average medium toned oval that speaks a pretty pink. I don’t think that most of my pink tourmalines have been heated or treated and that speaks well for tourmaline’s natural beauty. This tourmaline will always have … Continue reading
A Good Morning Sunshine Yellow Oval
Now my mornings do not start off greenish or brownish and this oval will have none of it. I was cut from one of two larger pieces of water worn crystals from East Africa that I got together, long before … Continue reading
A Pink Oval that has It.
There are a lot of pinks in my collection, after green it must be the most common color out there. (sometimes it is the most available from Africa) Now I have nothing against an average pink, but at times I … Continue reading
Moderate Honey Brown Oval
How many brown gemstones have you ever seen? (I guess brown diamonds have become popular, but I hardly ever think about diamonds period.) And when a gemstone has a brownish cast to its red, orange or yellow body, heaters … Continue reading
Purple, Included, Purple tourmaline oval
The title is not a mistake made by my terrible typing. When I see a purple tourmaline that is rich and with good saturation, I know that I probably have a copper bearing gemstone and a rare color to boot. … Continue reading
Posted in Cuprian Tourmaline, Laurellite
Tagged cuprian, laurellite, Mozambique, oval, purple
Leave a comment
Small medium light blue oval
This is probably the smallest oval in the collection. It has a pretty average medium blue color with good clarity. This eye clean gemstone weighs .43 carats. Bruce
Included pale blue oval
Not all semi-facet rough is created equal. Some semi-facet has larger, but relatively few significant feathers that need to be oriented, as much as possible, perpendicular to the table and other semi-facet material has a diffused web of small inclusion … Continue reading
Another Nambian blue green winner.
Somehow I don’t think that many blue greens are as bright as a true blues. It is probably my preference for the rarer blue. Well this bright Namibian blue green can keep up with the best medium dark toned blues. … Continue reading
Good Size green oval with light growth tubes.#249
A nice, spicy, larger oval tourmaline with a good uniform, medium toned green. Wow I got a lot into that sentence. The only thing I can see that lessen the glory with this gemstone is a few deeply buried ghostly … Continue reading
Included saturated yellow oval#248
This is the final stone that I cut from two large alluvial pebbles that I bought off the inter net years ago. The pebbles were completely frosted and were not expensive because of the numerous flaws that render the … Continue reading
A darker Namibian blue with a touch of green oval.#247
The Namibian oval is a bit too dark to be optimal. It also has a greenish cast that really does not shout out I am a blue gemstone. Still when it gets it chance to shine in a yellowish light … Continue reading
A great blue(indicolite) oval from Namibia#245
This is an expensive gemstone in dollars per carat. It is clean and without flaws. Its tone is moderately rich and that is very important in Namibian blues. And an intense, consistent, saturated blue it is, in the shade of … Continue reading
Darker Rather Obscure Green Oval#244
This darker green oval does not have dichroic dancing colors to make it dynamic. It just flashes it color and goes toward the olive or back toward the bluish side depending on the lights. It is cut with a … Continue reading
WOW a Whale of a Green Oval#243
I have been working on a tray that my son organized after the last gem and mineral show that the Carnegie Museum did in Pittsburgh. The green ovals are nice and there is a sprinkling of blues, but most … Continue reading
Moderate Dichroic Green Oval#242
This is a very transparent green oval, with typical dichroic coloring. It appears to be eye clean and with the type of crystal that would make it try and disappear in a glass of water. It weighs 1.93 carats. Bruce
Moderate Dichroism in Green Oval#241
This gemstones gains quit a bit from its dichroism. This because its tone in the ends of the oval are quit moderate and the overall stone shows the two colors well. The typical c axis color is yellower with the … Continue reading
Quite Light Blue/Green Oval#238
Medium light and bright and raring to flash for you. This stone is only held back by too much light. It is best for the indirect lighting of intimate moments. It does not appear to be dichroic. I has excellent … Continue reading
Nice array of growth tubes in blue/green tourmaline#240
This oval does not have high quality crystal along with a fine array of ghost like growth tubes. It does have a fine blue green color that darkens toward the ends. There is no doubt that this is a natural … Continue reading
Darker ends on smaller oval#239
This smaller oval has a nice blue flash in the middle of the gemstone and darker yellowish green ends. It is still flashy and really fires up under incandescent lights. It weighs 1.06 carats and appears to be eye clean. … Continue reading
Posted in Verdelite
Tagged blue-green, dichroic, green, oval, verdelite, yellow-green
Leave a comment
Rich Powerful Namibian Blue Oval#237
It takes but a moment to realize that you are looking into a superior tourmaline with this oval. It is on the darker toned side, but has an open face with a great blue saturation in natural light. The … Continue reading
A bit toned down dichroic green oval#235
This oval does not seem to share the same level of visual impact as other medium toned dynamic greens. Still it is an attractive stone that would make a nice ring stone. It appears to be eye clean and weighs … Continue reading
Spicy mixture greens in an oval#234
Another find member of a large family of spicy dynamic green tourmaline. The c axis is the yellower color and the bluer color is the a/b axis color. I always put the a and b axis together because they … Continue reading
Posted in Verdelite
Tagged blue-green, dichroic, green, oval, verdelite, yellow-green
Leave a comment
Deep Crown. Browned Green Oval#233
This gemstone was cut with a deeper than average crown. That effort produced a medium dark browned green that twinkles with a brighter more saturated green. It appears to be eye clean and weighs 2.89 carats. Bruce
Definite Dichroic Green Oval#232
This oval shows classic area of yellow green and bluer green that comes from dichroism. (The ability of the stone to separate light into two rays that travel different paths threw the stone and produce different colors.) This gives the … Continue reading
Bright even medium light green oval#231
The gemstones medium light tone level just doesn’t produce a pastel with this oval. It is just too bright. It is clean and not noticeably dichroic. It weighs 1.96 carats. Bruce
A different look darker “chrome” tourmaline#230
This gemstone is made of a different member of the tourmaline group than most of the gemstones in this collection. It is a vanadium/chrome (most of the time the vanadium dominates) colored Dravite, the species. Dravite has magnesium in it … Continue reading
Great Clean Medium Blue Green Oval#229
This oval slides around blue to green and therefor it is blue green. It has a medium tone and good crystal for a bright stone. It weighs 1.77 carats. A nice respectable gemstone that will be sure to please. Bruce
Green with a blue side, pastel oval
This paler shade of green definitely is on the blue side. It is not noticeably dichroic and the medium light tone level is refreshing. It weighs1.15 carats. It is eye clean and you can easily see inclusion in pastel gemstone … Continue reading
Hazy pretty blue oval
This included oval has a really sharp bright medium blue color. It has numerous small inclusion that produce a poor quality crystal. It weighs 2.01 carats. Frankly, the nicest colors can come in included stones and this is a … Continue reading
Straight up rich blue tourmaline.
This medium dark blue is true. Its tone level is medium dark and sapphire like. It came from Namibia and weighs 2.13 carats. It appears to be eye clean with fine crystal. This is a very nice gemstone. Bruce
Bright medium toned yellowish green oval
This ovals bright medium light green is not what many people expect from tourmaline. But when the rough does not have dark ends, the lapidary is set free to cut different shapes. This oval has good crystal and appears … Continue reading
Very Dichroic Green Oval
The two dichroic colors in the this oval are very distinct, while still being green. The c axis in the ends of the ovals are a nice medium forest green while the a/b color in the middle is a yellowish … Continue reading
Very Nice Green, Clean, Oval
This oval is a great dynamic mixture of dichroic green colors. The oval appears to be clean and has find crystal. It weighs 2.15 carats and has a medium dark tone level. Just right for a great stone. Bruce
Very Nice Green Oval with Growth Tubes.
This oval is a great combination of medium rich dichroic greens that is spicy and good crystal. Its one drawback is a group of growth tubes (long defects in growth parallel to the c axis). The reflect light and are … Continue reading
Complex gray green Oval#215
I call this complex grayed green color “celery juice”. This oval had a good drink and came out a medium toned gemstone, but without noticeable dichroism. This leads to a brighter stone than many greens, but the gray overtone does … Continue reading
Included Dark Blue Oval#220
This gemstones dark blue color obscures a large number of whitish inclusions that do not flash. The inclusions are not distracting, but they do restrain the gemstone’s brightness. The gemstone weighs 1.31 carats and it came from Namibia. Bruce … Continue reading
Included Medium Blue Oval#219
This blue oval has a nice saturation and moderate tone level, but is restrained by numerous light inclusions. There is also a touch of green, but I would still call is an indicolite. This visibly imperfect gemstone is still attractive … Continue reading
Nice Refreshing Green Oval#218
This oval is on the blue side of green. It is uniformly open and bright and flashy. This is given to it by a limited amount of dichroism and a moderately light tone level. It appears to be eye clean … Continue reading
Medium Dark Blue Green Namibian Oval#217
This nice medium dark toned oval has at least two eye visible inclusion next to the girdle. Its color is principally blue with a fine dash of green, another Namibian specialty a long with pure blue. It weighs 1.97 carats. … Continue reading
medium dark Namibian blue oval#216
This darker Namibian blue oval has a nice even tone level and color, that gives the gemstone a sapphire-like feel. It appears to be eye clean and does not have any green in the blue. True blues (indicolite) in … Continue reading
Moderately Pale Green Oval#214
Pass the celery juice around again for this oval could have used another shot. The pale pastel gemstone has an even if unexciting grayed green color. It appears to be eye clean and have fine crystal. It is flashy and … Continue reading
Darker Ended Dichroic Green Oval#213
A very nice rich green with good saturation is the principal color that can be seen in this oval. The darker yellowish green in the ends, just appear dark unless you have a strong light. The cause for the two … Continue reading
Gray Green Restrained Oval#212
This oval’s tone is darker than desirable, which comes in part from having semi-closed ends . It’s gray overtone restrains the stones native green and along with its tone level makes for a rather quiet gemstone. It appears to be … Continue reading
Medium dark pastel blue green oval.#209
This stone is not very dichroic. Its darker pastel blue green color has a touch of gray in it. It weighs 1.28 carats. It appears to be eye clean. Bruce
Moderate toned dichroic green oval#208
This oval is bright and flashy. The darker color in the ends is definitely bluer than the paler blue on the sides. It appears to be eye clean is an above average, attractive gemstone. It weighs .79 carats. Bruce
Nice medium dark blue green oval#207
Nice medium dark toned, blue green oval. It appears to be eye clean and decent transparency. It weighs 1.36 carats. Bruce
Dark Dichroic Blue Oval#206
The tone value of this smaller oval is high. It is dichroic, with the darker color being a good sapphire blue, while the lighter color is a decent medium light blue. It appears to be eye clean and weighs .83 … Continue reading
Definite blue green oval#205
This smaller blue green oval has a medium dark tone. It appears to be eye clean and has a nice flash from open ends. It weighs 1.33 carats. Bruce
Darker Dichroic green oval#204
This darker, yet flashy oval is quite dichroic. The ends of the oval show a really nice medium dark grass green and the sides of the oval show a brownish yellow green. It appears to be eye clean and has … Continue reading
OnlyTwins in the Collection Green Ovals#203
This is the only set of twins in the collection. I lost interest in cutting matching tourmalines many years ago. I also stopped worrying about cutting calibrated sizes as I cut bigger material that was not well suited for … Continue reading
Common Yellow Green Oval#202
A medium bright oval with a common classic color of yellowish green. It is eye clean and weighs .88 carats. Bruce
Medium toned bluish green.#201
This smaller oval has open ends and a really bright flashy presents. It has quite a bit of blue in its green, but it is still a green. It appears to be eye clean and has good crystal with … Continue reading
A lighter shade of blue oval#1095
This nice medium blue oval is without a gray modifier. It has a rather watery presence, but it can stand its ground under brighter conditions. It is clean and bright with a personality that is sure to please. It … Continue reading
Dravite in Stone, Oval#1090
This gemstone has a nice sharp crown with two steps. It body has good crystal and is eye clean. All great features for a stone that should step forward, but the desaturation of its orange color, that produces a brown … Continue reading
Larger Included Red Orange Oval#1089
This is a powerful stone . Its rich red orange flash swirls in the stone masking the moderate amount of inclusions. Time flashes by and I can not take my eyes off the color. It is not the saturated orange … Continue reading
Included Blond Butterscotch to Yellow oval.#1087
The sun just really came out and the butterscotch just got a lot yellower. Under either lighting condition this included, but still bright oval looks like eye candy. I really appreciate tourmalines that are yellow without green or being … Continue reading
Get Your Red Hot Pink Oval#1080
You want a hot pink, I got a hot pink. You want a clean stone, I got a clean stone. You want a great hue, but one that is not too toned down for intimate lighting, well I have that … Continue reading
A Yellow with Touch of Green Oval#1079
This tourmaline has a pretty “normal” color. There really isn’t that much green in there, but just a little is enough for it to step down from the yellow heights. Its medium dark tone level does not stop it from … Continue reading
Namibian Blue Oval to the Starboard#1076
Whales maybe hard to find, but they are easy to spot once you’re close and that is how these wonder Namibian blues are in the later years of my collection. None of them are really large, but their color … Continue reading
Dichroic Gold Oval of Eternal Value#1075
Two rows of stepped faces over an eye clean body that flashes with both gold and yellow makes a modern looking gemstone. I am cutting more of this style crown because I have gotten a good response, but I … Continue reading
Smaller Included Yellow Oval#1069
I have been cutting more rough tourmaline that have a lower grade for a variety of reasons. (08/2013) 1. I have a better selection of color available. 2. The rough cost less, but low yields can negate that advantage. 3. … Continue reading
A Purple without Copper Oval#1067
This gemstone has a place in the collection not because of its great beauty, but it is attractive, or size, though it is a decent size, or clarity, though it is has good crystal or … It is here … Continue reading
Orange Oval that is sure it is a tourmaline.#1059
All this orange tourmaline ever wanted to be was orange. It doesn’t go for brown outs and would never shift its gears and become a red. It is mildly dichroic at most. The icing on the cake is … Continue reading
Darker Grass Green Oval#1055
This oval has a three step emerald cut like crown that opens up fields of grass green color as it is moved. It does not appear to be dichroic and its tone level is higher than average with the … Continue reading
Peri-do or Peri-dot it’s really a tourmaline oval#1053
I think that the idea of “inventing” modern birthstones that the trade can supply in abundance at a profit is pure genius. It gives a thoughtful, but naive buyer an easy out, when looking for that special personal gift that … Continue reading
Nigerian Red Beauty Oval#1051
There have been better times in the rough tourmaline business. Some twenty years or so ago a gigantic amount of reddish tourmaline was found in Nigeria. There was so much that it actually depressed prices and it seems like … Continue reading
Red Round with a Purple Overtone#1047
A purple overtone with red (rubellite) is not unusual. Some people rate the red with a purple overtone very highly (and charge you for it) while others like the pinker reds. This situation is mirrored, with ruby from different … Continue reading
Nice sized red oval#1046
When in doubt I like to call a tourmaline red rather than rich pink, so this oval is red. Its saturation is not the best, but it is a beautiful oval. Unfortunately there is a flaw that can be … Continue reading
Average Dichroic Pink Oval#1043
I can easily see a pale pink and a richer c axis color in this gemstone. It does a good job of mixing the colors and the result is a solid average pink. It is eye clean and has … Continue reading
Fine Namibian Blue Oval#1039
This Namibian blue oval has a top quality blue with a medium tone level. It is cut with a two stepped crown that makes a bright stone and gives an interesting play of flash off the surface of the … Continue reading
Crisp Medium Toned Blue Oval#1036
This oval is not made of top grade Namibian blue. But when you’re looking for “different” tourmaline with distinction, you don’t always go for the best. This oval lacks the tone level of the best, but its color is pretty … Continue reading
If you like pink you will like this oval#1025
This pink oval has a much better tone level than much of the available rough. It doesn’t damage that great beginning by being included or by having any unfortunate overtones. It is pure pink and a very sharp pink … Continue reading
Golden Brown Oval#1024
This tourmaline is dichroic with the darker drown in the ends, but they do not make the stone dark. I would call this a dravite, but it is golden and spicy and not a color drag at all. The … Continue reading
A salmon that is a bit fishy oval#1016
I always smile when I am obviously looking at a gemstone under different conditions than when I put the gemstone’s official color on the back of the boxes they live in. Today under a yellowish light on a gray … Continue reading
Gold dominates this oval.#
This rich bright golden oval was cut with the c axis perpendicular to the table. I can see the paler dichroic yellow around the edges, but gold is number one in this gemstone. And a very nice gemstone it … Continue reading
yellow gold dichroic oval
This yellow gold dichroic oval is open and eye clean. There is not a speck of green anywhere to be found and I call this one yellow. I love to yellow without green because it is rare. Unfortunately … Continue reading
Red/Rich Pink Oval#1006
The debate will always go on about the line between Rubellite (Red) and rich pink tourmaline. However you make the call this tone level of red does not usually appear as bright as some pinks. This is one of … Continue reading
Plain and Simple Pink Oval#1005
Some color calls are certainly easier than others. This oval is simply pink. No flaws and a fine crystal lets you see easily into it depths. It is also not dichroic, which limits its dynamic color display, but makes … Continue reading
An Oval Mixer of yellowish green and gold with a touch of brown.#1003
This oval will have to be called a yellow, but its dichroic nature keeps the stone dancing between flashes of greenish yellow and golden all with a touch of brown. I am a true supporter of yellowish tourmaline, but … Continue reading
Oval with Dreaded Olive Green Color#1002
This larger oval has a very common and not very appreciated color, olive green. I have not really run into other gemstones being called olive green, but some yellowish greens with a touch of brown produces a tourmaline that … Continue reading
White bread sort of wheat oval#1001
A bright clean oval that is so pale that I have to look at it closely to call it wheat. Now this is not your whole wheat variety, a bleach look that has very little brown and might even … Continue reading
Smaller blue green oval had clutter#998
Some tourmaline I still facet have enough clutter in them to significantly reduce their transparency. In a fantasy world,I would be able to get all the colors I wanted without problems with the purity of the gemstone, but that … Continue reading
Heavily Included Yellow Oval#990
Sometimes even I push the limits of decency in the name of color and something interesting to cut. This oval is a nice yellow, but is so heavily included that it should probably not have been faceted. How many … Continue reading
Pure Blue Oval#986
There is absolutely nothing wrong with with bright, flashy medium pastel blue oval. It is not noticeably dichroic and it has great transparency, without a flaw in the sky. So why does it leave me rather cold. It really … Continue reading
Pale Golden Peach and I think of Topaz oval#985
Now everyone would love a fantastic Imperial Topaz and this dichroic pastel golden peach tourmaline does not measure up, but it does look like topaz that I could afford and was actually offered for sale. I can see its … Continue reading
Dichroic, golden orange oval#984
Some gemstone grab you even with a casual glance while others get passed over. This strongly dichroic (two different colors/intensity of color depending on the axis of view) deserves a closer look. The higher tone level c axis color … Continue reading
Bright Medium Pink Oval with noticable inclusions.#981
I bring up inclusions with this nice bright flashy oval because it is easily seen, by eye, with the stone face up. It also effect the way I cut this stone. I work very hard to minimize inclusions under the … Continue reading
An Included Oval of Mixed Yellow Persuasion#980
This oval has at least one very eye visible spot in it It is on the pavilion and I have been able to pick it up from the crown, but it is quite visible from the back. Besides that … Continue reading
Moderately rich pink oval#977
This well cut oval lives up to the ideals of the collect. What keeps it from really demanding notice is a rather middle of the road pink. But if it was ever taken and put on its own, it … Continue reading
An All Star Pink Oval#971
Nothing can be said that is exceptional about this beautiful oval, except that it brings everything together to make a great pink stone. I would be proud to show it off as a representative of my collection even though … Continue reading
Decent pink oval#969
This richer pink, lightly included, oval is a decent stone. It has a two row step cut crown. It is the type of gemstone that kind of get lost in this collection, but if you’re looking for a smaller … Continue reading
Ring size Yellow Green with great crystal.#963
Now yellow green in tourmaline is not greatly prized. In higher tone values it is probably one of the more common colors with tourmaline. It might even rate right in there with medium light pinks for being everyday material. … Continue reading
Purple Oval of Copper Bearing Beauty#959
I love this stone, I love purple in tourmaline, I love copper bearing tourmaline and I love getting a nice stone for a decent price. I consider this medium shade of purple to be only found in copper containing … Continue reading
Two Distinct Hues in a Green Oval
Now I love the dynamic nature of hues (color) in many tourmaline, but it can make an effort to honestly present, in both photography and writing, its beauty. Now this eye clean oval possesses two distinct colors that had … Continue reading
Big Oval Blue Purple that did not get away.#943
Buying tourmaline rough over the inter net or even in person can be an adventure. This large oval, at 27.13, carats is one of the larger gemstones in the collection. It was cut from a piece of rough that … Continue reading
Posted in Cuprian Tourmaline, Laurellite
Tagged blue, bruce fry discovery, color change, laurellite, oval, purple
Leave a comment
Large oval of the earth (color)#937
This very nice, eye clean, larger oval with great crystal is in search of a name. Older tourmaline lovers, that have been around a crystal/gem or two would call it dravite. This is because dravite is a trade name … Continue reading
Oval Pink with a wisper of Purple#934
I am looking at this oval gem under morning light and seeing a pink that has some cast to its hue, but I can’t put my finger on it. I look at the its box and I have written … Continue reading
A Red/Pink oval that walks the line.#932
I don’t think that the debate on the cut off between red and pink is as important with tourmaline as it is with corundum because of the expense that is associated with ruby verses pink sapphire, but is sill … Continue reading
Hot Pink with Punch#929
This ring sized oval, at 1.85 carats, really has a lot going for it. Its pink is pure and of a good tone level, all set in a fine crisp body. I use “hot” in the title to describe … Continue reading
Pink a classic color with an oval shape#921
This good sized oval at 7.11 carats is eye clean and has great crystal (very transparent body). Its pastel color and tone level is probably the most common combination coming out of Africa at the moment (2013). Medium pastel … Continue reading
An cuprian oval with mixed colors and a radioactive past
In the quest to completely fill the color wheel with tourmaline examples, the hardest range of colors is blue/purple. When Africa began to produce lavenders to purples that could be slipping into the blue purple range I really tried … Continue reading