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- 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.
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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.
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Tag Archives: personal story
Off to see America and Canada with tourmaline in hand.
There really is no substitution for seeing a beautiful tourmaline upfront and personal. So I am off to see a wide part of America and Canada with gemstones in hand. I have never taken the northern route to the west … Continue reading →
RIP the reported demise of a beautiful Afghan Sea Foam tourmaline
About 10 years ago I hooked up with a goldsmith that would work with me and design original setting for some of my tourmalines. He put his time and gold into the setting and I put in my tourmaline. We … Continue reading →
Posted in Cutting Tourmaline, Personal Stories, Verdelite
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Tagged afghan, personal story, seafoam, verdelite
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One for the Afghanistan mine run
When I was just getting back into faceting after a long hiatus, I wanted to get my son interested in what I was doing. He loved to find “good” dates on coins and anything else that seemed to be worth … Continue reading →
Posted in Cutting Tourmaline, Personal Stories
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Tagged afghan, cutting tourmaline, mine run, personal story
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Sing the praises of Paraiba, but not a dime for Mozambique.
This is a different twist on an old familiar tune. And to start me going I went searching on the inter net by putting in “tourmaline jewelery”. It is not a subject that I have a great deal of interest … Continue reading →
Posted in Cuprian Tourmaline, Etc., Personal Stories
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Tagged cuprian, Mozambique, paraiba, personal story
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The glowing difference between Paraiba tourmaline and Ruby.
Just got back from a trip down “Cuprian Tourmaline Lane” on the inter net. I really don’t think that the confusion will ever abate when it comes to color, neon glow, vivid color and the composition of Paraiba, paraiba like, … Continue reading →
Posted in Cuprian Tourmaline, Personal Stories
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Tagged color, cuprian, neon, paraiba, personal story
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Late Breaking News Cuprian Oval Come Clean, well not really.
This post is centered on a stone that I just finish from a piece of rough I receive a couple of months ago from Africa. The rough weighed 6.5 carats and had both inclusions and two ugly iron areas that … Continue reading →
Posted in Cuprian Tourmaline, Cutting Tourmaline, Personal Stories
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Tagged cuprian, cutting tourmaline, personal story
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Copper and Manganese made a Lady of Her, round#271
I am not a great believer in luck, but there are times when you’re game plan works out. My game plan with the collection was not to secure the best investments or even the prettiest tourmaline, but to chase color. … Continue reading →
Posted in Cuprian Tourmaline, Etc., Laurellite
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Tagged color change, cuprian, laurellite, lavender, Mozambique, outstanding, pastel, personal story, purple
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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
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Tagged blue-purple, bruce fry discovery, color change, cuprian, laurellite, Mozambique, oval, personal story, purple
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The Laurellite “discovery” gemstone. Cuprian tourmaline from Mozambique#944
This GEM, exceptional gemstone, started my path in helping discover copper bearing tourmaline from Mozambique. I gave her, Laurellite, as a name that is based on my older daughter’s name, because this exceptional, new variety of Elbaite, deserves a pretty … Continue reading →
Posted in Cuprian Tourmaline, Etc., Laurellite, Personal Stories
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Tagged blue-purple, bruce fry discovery, color change, cuprian, emerald cut, laurellite, Mozambique, outstanding, personal story, purple
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After the ball was over. Large, blue purple, cuprian, Laurellite oval#943
Prior to the discovery of copper bearing tourmaline in Mozambique I had a ball. I was seeing blues, purples, and greens like never before, at prices that I could afford. I also had a good connection to Afghanistan and their … Continue reading →
Posted in Cuprian Tourmaline, Laurellite, Personal Stories
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Tagged blue-purple, bruce fry discovery, color change, cuprian, laurellite, Mozambique, oval, personal story, purple
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slightly included, green powerhouse, emerald cut, Afghanistan#446
Viva La Afghanistan and its tourmaline. This hunk of an emerald cut is pure tourmaline heaven. Now it is slightly included and I can see those pesky disturbances in the force, deep in this flashing well of green, but it … Continue reading →
Posted in Etc., Personal Stories, Verdelite
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Tagged afghan, dichroic, emerald cut, emerald green, green, outstanding, personal story, verdelite
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Well saturated yellow green, medium plus tone level emerald cut. Namibia#442
I like this gemstone. It has too rich a tone level, at medium plus to really stand out in the tray without help, but it has such a classic yellow green tourmaline color when I help it, that it makes … Continue reading →
Posted in Personal Stories, Verdelite
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Tagged emerald cut, green, medium green, Namibia, personal story, yellow-green
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The elusive color of yellow green in the oval.#1155
At times I have used the word “dynamic” to discuss color in tourmaline excessively. But thinking back threw the posts I have written for my site, I have not used the term that much. Maybe it is because the pictures … Continue reading →
Posted in Personal Stories, Verdelite
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Tagged color-shift, green, oval, personal story, verdelite, yellow-green
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Standout Dichroic blue green oval#1141
Most of my later, higher number trays, are a mixture of gems as I cut them and not the ordered field that my son put together after the last Carnegie Museum show. With the desire to post information about every … Continue reading →
Posted in Etc., Personal Stories, Verdelite
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Tagged blue-green, dichroic, green, outstanding, oval, personal story, verdelite
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Included hot pink emerald cut.#1123
When I was in college I played a lot of duplicate bridge after the first year or so of study. I had to lean a lot of rules and got better at the game. But after some time I … Continue reading →
Posted in Personal Stories, Pink
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Tagged emerald cut, hot pink, personal story, pink
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Flash, deeply cut round almost save from being brewed by the IceT group.#1112
It has been a while since I have discussed the IceT group, which is a far right splinter group in the color world of tourmaline. The group’s goal is to provide support and comfort to a select group of tourmaline … Continue reading →
Posted in Personal Stories, Verdelite
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Tagged green, horizontal split mains, IceT, pastel, personal story, verdelite
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Apple green, medium toned, oval, Mozambique#1101
This is a beautiful gemstone. The discovery and production,from a location in Mozambique of apple green rough, from which I recently cut (2012) this stone, appears to have had world wide repercussions. This is according to a recent article by … Continue reading →
Posted in Etc., Personal Stories, Verdelite
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Tagged apple green, green, Mozambique, oval, personal story, verdelite
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A special pink from Mozambique, cuprian.#49
The story you are about to hear is true and no names will be mention to protect the innocent if there are any. I had just purchased one of the most important pieces of rough I will ever be blessed … Continue reading →
Posted in Cuprian Tourmaline, Etc., Personal Stories, Pink
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Tagged cuprian, horizontal split mains, Mozambique, outstanding, personal story, pink
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A great red GEM from Nigeria, round#47
Well this is my vote for the best Rubellite/red in the collection. I have bigger ones with great color and I have smaller ones with great color. Some are brighter and flashier than others and some have cleanliness problems. They … Continue reading →
Posted in Etc., Personal Stories, Rubellite
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Tagged Nigeria, outstanding, personal story, red, rubellite
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Historic lavender deeply cut round, Mozambique, cuprian#31
This round has a horizontally split main pavilion and a deep crown. This helped produce a stronger medium light tone value in the first lavender tourmaline I had ever seen. The stone is eye clean and with fine crystal. This … Continue reading →
Posted in Cuprian Tourmaline, Etc., Personal Stories
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Tagged cuprian, horizontal split mains, lavender, Mozambique, personal story
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Nobody, Laurellite and the GIA.
In this post I will try and give you my point of view on the events that lead to the discovery of copper as a chromophore in gem quality tourmaline from Mozambique by the Gem Institution of America (GIA). I … Continue reading →
Posted in Cuprian Tourmaline, Laurellite, Personal Stories
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Tagged cuprian, laurellite, personal story
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Walking the stone, a rite of passage. A Laurellite moment of a lifetime.
I purchase most of my tourmaline rough off of the inter net and the color rendition of the rough is not the best to say the least. When I get the rough, I may have emotions about its color and … Continue reading →
Posted in Cuprian Tourmaline, Laurellite, Personal Stories
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Tagged blue-purple, cuprian, laurellite, personal story, purple
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One of the most brittle tourmalines I have ever cut. emerald cut.
I think that the amount of tourmaline that is available to the custom cutter out of Africa is as bad as it has ever been. I don’t think that there is much being discovered and the material that is being … Continue reading →
Posted in Cutting Tourmaline, Indicolite, Personal Stories, Polishing Tourmaline
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Tagged blue, cutting tourmaline, emerald cut, indicolite, personal story, polishing tourmaline
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Greatness is in the eye of the beholder. Bright, Green, Cuprian, Round.#148
This is a beautiful gemstone. There are many movies, books and even myths, about a creative person paying their dues and striving for greatness, but would not have made it, without the help of someone who believed in them. I … Continue reading →
Posted in Cuprian Tourmaline, Cutting Tourmaline, Etc., Personal Stories
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Tagged cuprian, green, Mozambique, outstanding, personal story
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A deep round in yellow washed with green.#116
Once upon a time I had a roommate, during my freshman year at college, that appeared to have pink underwear and socks. Now this was in 1966 and some social movements had really not come out of the closet. So, … Continue reading →
Posted in Etc., Personal Stories, Yellow
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Tagged green-yellow, horizontal split mains, personal story, yellow
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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 →
A treasured pink of great visual impact, emerald cut. Afghanistan#197
She and her family are known wide and far in Afghanistan and their given name is strawberry. When I heard of this exceptional, saturated pink from Afghanistan, that was found in large crystals that were always included and had to … Continue reading →
Posted in Cutting Tourmaline, Etc., Personal Stories, Pink
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Tagged afghan, cutting tourmaline, outstanding, personal story, pink, strawberry, unique
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Aghan tricolor, uniquely tourmaline, emerald cut. #60
This is a beautiful gemstone. Not only are the colors, particularly the blue green, are beautiful, but the pale almost colorless and pink end work well together. Still the blue green dominates the gemstone. That is particularly obvious in the … Continue reading →
Posted in Bi-Color, Cutting Tourmaline, Personal Stories
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Tagged afghan, bicolor, cutting tourmaline, emerald cut, green, personal story, pink, tri-color
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An exceptional bright blue green emerald cut turns out to be cuprian.#388
It is amazing to me, that after climbing the pinnacles and wandering threw the valleys, of Namibian blue green tourmaline, there is a gemstone that transcends all of them in the same tray. The gemstone does not have the most … Continue reading →
Posted in Cuprian Tourmaline, Personal Stories, Verdelite
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Tagged blue-green, cuprian, emerald cut, green, neon, outstanding, personal story, verdelite
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Impressive Amber Colored Emerald Cut#541
Some efforts will always stick in the memory and this large emerald cut is one of them. I had been unsuccessful in getting anything truly orange in any size, when the piece that became this gemstone came to my door. … Continue reading →
Posted in Dravite, Orange, Personal Stories, Polishing Tourmaline
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Tagged amber, dravite, emerald cut, orange, personal story, polishing tourmaline
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Introduction, pictures and comments on five waves of tourmaline rough.
I started cutting gemstones again after a long hiatus in 1998. I have purchased most of my rough from Africa, but there has also been a significant amount of rough coming from Afghanistan. Getting this site going and posting comments … Continue reading →
Posted in Cutting Tourmaline, Introduction, Personal Stories
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Tagged color, del gado, Mozambique, personal story
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One of the glories of the collection, Deep Peach and wonderful Round.
It just seems inadequate to call this wonderful stone a round. It has a pavilion of ten mains of a split nature and the crown is my favorite choice of a modified step cut with 8 mains for brilliant depth. … Continue reading →
Hot included pink, long oval
There really seems to be two distinct groups of pinks in the tourmaline world. There are the naturally clean pinks that may have feathers and flaws etc, but the crystal is good and nature just has not very been nice … Continue reading →
Included purple cuprian round from Mozambique
Sometimes I think that movie critics are not the people that should judge which pictures people should like. They have seen so many films that they can not judge the individual movie without considering how it works within the world … Continue reading →
Posted in Cuprian Tourmaline, Etc., Personal Stories
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Tagged cuprian, personal story, purple
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An orange for all seasons droplet of color.
When I started cutting again after a long hiatus, I was particularly interested in purples and oranges. I have found golden oranges in abundance out of Africa and some of it has driven me up the wall because it is … Continue reading →
A spunky pale yellow pastel oval that is included.
It has been a long time since I have stopped to look at an old friend. When I started cutting again after a long hiatus, I purchase lots (parcels) of smaller rough. I had set out to find color and … Continue reading →
Posted in Personal Stories, Yellow
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Tagged IceT, oval, pale, pastel, personal story, yellow
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My secret place
It has been a challenge to keep posting descriptions of my collection’s stones as quickly as I can, while seeing the stones under a limited number of white light sources. This is not to say that when I cut the … Continue reading →
An Included Little Violet Cuprian Oval
The story of copper and tourmaline is fascinating to me. Research indicated that copper acted as a chromophore (coloring agent) in tourmaline predated the discovery of commercial copper bearing tourmaline in Paraiba Brazil by many years. But it certainly was … Continue reading →
Posted in Cuprian Tourmaline, Personal Stories
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Tagged cuprian, oval, pastel, personal story, purple, violet
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A bit of my life and the start of a great adventure.
The following tourmaline tale of sad and glad was written in April 2002 and though the set up is fictional, the stone discussed (posted above) and the events in the tale are real. It turned out to be a … Continue reading →
Posted in Laurellite, Personal Stories
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Tagged blue-purple, color change, cuprian, laurellite, personal story, purple, violet
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A retro example of the Polish Wars.
The following tale was written in June 2001 which is over twelve years ago from this moment, August 2013. I had not returned to faceting for that long and I was in a period to aggressive experimentation in what I … Continue reading →
Posted in Cutting Tourmaline, Personal Stories
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Tagged cutting tourmaline, personal story
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Cutting a stubby tourmaline with a closed c axis
As of August 2013 the supply of quality tourmaline available to the custom cutter and coming out of Africa, has probably hit a new low. I really don’t think much material is coming out of the rest of the world, … Continue reading →
Posted in Cutting Tourmaline, Personal Stories
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Tagged closed-c, cutting tourmaline, emerald cut, personal story
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In honor of the 4th of July a trip down Freedom Road.
The following description of going down Freedom Road from Mars Pa. was written over 10 years ago. It was my attempt to give a feeling of the land that I have come to call my own, after inspecting many industrial … Continue reading →
Copper, Red, Tourmaline, A Christmas tale
Dec. 29th 2009 On the night before Christmas I was again examining my tourmaline collection with my new spectrometer in search of SOMETHING. I have gotten better with it and alone with double checking some earlier cuprian tourmaline I began … Continue reading →
Color Change/Shift in Red Tourmaline
Feb. 27th 2010 The first well known feature of some red tourmaline is that it de-saturates under incandescent light and turns brownish. This is not desirable and has cause the use of the variety name Rubellite to be only acceptable … Continue reading →
Posted in Cutting Tourmaline, Personal Stories, Rubellite
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Tagged color change, color-shift, personal story, red, rubellite
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Cutting & Faceting Tourmaline
Cutting & Faceting Tourmaline by Bruce A. Fry Considering Color & Weight Retention When cutting rough tourmaline, as with any colored gemstone variety, the lapidary must consider both color and weight retention. The unique complexity of cutting tourmaline comes into … Continue reading →
Posted in Cutting Tourmaline, Etc., Personal Stories
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Tagged cutting tourmaline, personal story
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Tourmaline tale, Birth of a beauty
The following tale was written years ago, when I tried to share the excitement of buying and cutting tourmaline with a friend. I would like to share one of them with you now. A TOURMALINE TALE OF SAD AND … Continue reading →
Posted in Cutting Tourmaline, Personal Stories, Pink
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Tagged personal story, pink, purple
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A trip to Mars (my little town)
It is late spring and nestled in a valley surrounded by lush hills of maturing foliage is a borough called Mars. It was probably named after an early settler (abbreviation of Marshall), but the town has sold the connection … Continue reading →
Harvest Completed for Pennsylvania Potatoes
The day held great promise as I drove down the dirt road to my uncles. The farm sits high on a hill overlooking a valley that contains a stream called the Little Loyalsock. The area is called the endless mountains … Continue reading →