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newbie2012
21-03-2012, 11:41 AM
Hello

I'm looking to buy gemstones, but am finding that the prices for the same sized stone vary so much between 3 or 4 reputable suppliers. E.g. the same sized stone ranges from £15, to £40 to £65 depending on where I look.

As a general rule, does this mean than the higher price you pay from a reputable supplier, the better quality the stone?

Not really sure whether to go for the most I can afford or find the best bargain?

Thanks..

Goldsmith
21-03-2012, 11:57 AM
Obviously the better quality stones will be higher priced , but paying a higher price will not guarantee a better stone. All dealers are in this game to make money and the more they make the better for them. The best way to buy stones is to use your eyes and compare what you are being offered. I like to go to Rock N Gem shows and then the stones are all laid out in front of you to compare.
Don't discount lab grown gemstones as they can have good colours and good facetting. I bought a lot of lab grown stones from Channel Island Gems on eBay, the seller is clearing out his stock so they can be nice and cheap, see; http://stores.ebay.co.uk/CHANNEL-ISLAND-GEMS-LTD/_i.html?rt=nc&_sid=60795779&_trksid=p4634.c0.m14.l1513&_pgn=1

James

These are couple of rings I made for my daughter one has a lab grown pink sapphire from Channel Island Gems and the other has an oval agate cab from Manchester Minerals.

3422

newbie2012
21-03-2012, 12:09 PM
I agree with buying first hand and using your eyes, but as there seem to be so few gem shops around, that leaves me with about 1 supplier to visit.
I like the sound of Rock N Gem though, where you can compare.. Thanks for the info :)

ps_bond
21-03-2012, 12:18 PM
Channel Island Gems on eBay, the seller is clearing out his stock so they can be nice and cheap

This stock clearance has been going on for some years now! I notice that they're doing more CZs than lab grown stones now, which is a shame (particularly since I wanted to restock on small pink sapphires after my eternity ring work).

Goldsmith
21-03-2012, 12:43 PM
Peter, have you tried contacting them direct. I did and asked them to send me a mixed package of stones, I just told them how much I wanted to spend and the colours, sizes and shapes that I wanted. They kindly sent me a good selection of stones to add to my collection.

James

3423

ps_bond
21-03-2012, 12:58 PM
That's a very useful suggestion, thank you James - I despair of picking through the reams of listings at times. I think I need to make a shopping list...

Dennis
21-03-2012, 01:20 PM
They are just colourful rocks and to some extent the prices are arbitrary. That said, some dealers maintain a reputation for moderate prices by offering stones which have been poorly cut, or have a dull appearance. You get to know where to look and I generally go to Marcia Lanyon, Or Marcus McCallum.

As James says, you can get a good selection at Rock 'N' Gem shows, and also at annual jewellery fairs where you can more readily compare quality and prices. Sometimes you can accept inclusions, which reduce the price, but at other times there are fracture planes which could let you down later. So don't expect a refund.

Regards, Dennis.

newbie2012
21-03-2012, 01:28 PM
Thank you Dennis, I'm closest to London so will look at the two you mentioned- thank you.

Goldsmith
21-03-2012, 02:39 PM
Thank you Dennis, I'm closest to London so will look at the two you mentioned- thank you.

Both Marcia Lanyon and Marcus McCallum are good quality suppliers as Dennis suggests and they sometimes exhibit at the Kempton Park Rock N Gem shows. There is another good supplier of gemstones in London and that is A E Ward, see; http://www.aewgems.co.uk/contents/about%20us.htm
The next Rock N Gem at Kempton Park is in June, see; http://www.rockngem.co.uk/show-dates.html

James

Melanie De Castro Pugh
22-03-2012, 12:35 AM
I've bought quite a few from Channel Island Gems too, very reasonably priced. The seller's eBay id is sstringo.


Melanie

http://www.spinysharklythings.com

Kwant
22-03-2012, 11:28 AM
I love bidding on ebay for stones, choosing only those suppliers who have very high positive feedback and a large number of sales. I set my limit and only bid in the last few seconds so I do not get tempted to overbid. I have built up quite a nice collection of stones this way, and "touch wood" to date have not been disappointed. Of course they could all be glass and I would be none the wiser :0)

As to lab grown stones, I have bought a few and they have been very impressive, all round great value for money.

medusa
25-03-2012, 04:52 PM
3454I bought a huge lab grown emerald from the USA to set into a PMC pendant I was making. the damn thing came out looking like it had melted (this was about three years ago and my second go ever with PMC so I was completely clueless). Thinking I had been cheated I dropped it into the hydrofluoric acid to dissolve my expensive glass but it remained. I ground out the bits where it had stuck to the mesh in the kiln (don't ask!) and it kinda looks OK now. I still wear it as a reminder of how rubbish I was but that i am slowly improving!

Melanie De Castro Pugh
25-03-2012, 07:33 PM
So Kwant, you're an eBay sniper too ;-)


Melanie

http://www.spinysharklythings.com

Dennis
25-03-2012, 08:14 PM
I still wear it as a reminder of how rubbish I was but that i am slowly improving!

Not rubbish just impulsive I guess.
I had a brief fling with PMC when it first came out, partly because the agency was so resistant to anyone getting hold of it other than 'trade'. I put red glass eyes into a Teddy Bear, and they glowed brightly while firing. Dennis.

Kwant
25-03-2012, 09:01 PM
Yes Melanie it seems I am, though I did not know it until a week or so ago when I was study and studio less while some work was going on, and having some time on my hands I read some of the ebay forums. Ha, and I recognised that yes indeed I am a sniper, hated by some and, considered wise by others :0)

Of course like all my vices it is done manually :0)

medusa
26-03-2012, 03:50 PM
Yes Melanie it seems I am, though I did not know it until a week or so ago when I was study and studio less while some work was going on, and having some time on my hands I read some of the ebay forums. Ha, and I recognised that yes indeed I am a sniper, hated by some and, considered wise by others :0)

Of course like all my vices it is done manually :0)

computer aided sniping is actually rubbish. I tried it once and the closest you could get to the line was 7 seconds and then it sometimes didn't do it. Plus you miss out on the sheer excitement. As an ebay seller, I much prefer the two people on ebay who get so competitive that they end up buying something for four times its value. The flurry of snipers at the end of a sale is also really exciting when you see something go from £60 to £600 in the space of a few seconds.

Wallace
26-03-2012, 05:34 PM
Yes Melanie it seems I am, though I did not know it until a week or so ago when I was study and studio less while some work was going on, and having some time on my hands I read some of the ebay forums. Ha, and I recognised that yes indeed I am a sniper, hated by some and, considered wise by others :0)

Of course like all my vices it is done manually :0)

I am a sniper too! Lol - need to limit what I spend so I can't get hooked into the potential price war and end up paying four times the value of something and never get it back.. I do get out sniped several times, but at least I am not sat on the auction waiting for it to go higher and higher and get drawn into it.

There is also opal auctions, I like that site as I am a bit of an opal fan.

ps_bond
26-03-2012, 09:12 PM
computer aided sniping is actually rubbish. I tried it once and the closest you could get to the line was 7 seconds and then it sometimes didn't do it.

On the rare occasions I use EBay, if it's not BIN I'll snipe - usually using jBidWatcher. 1s from the close and the highest price I'm prepared to pay; I've not seen it fail to try to date.

Kwant
26-03-2012, 10:26 PM
Ooooooh Wallace I am worryingly addicted to opals of late and have bought .... well let's just say probably too many of the Ethiopian types, which just fascinate me, luckily I have, I think been getting them for what seems to me really good prices.

Here is a pic of a couple I got not so long ago:

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7142/6762748065_893a54e36a.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/12340604@N02/6762748065/)
opals (http://www.flickr.com/photos/12340604@N02/6762748065/) by kwant (http://www.flickr.com/people/12340604@N02/), on Flickr


not the easiest of things to take photos of but they are absolute beauties.

Julian
08-05-2012, 07:05 PM
Hello

I'm looking to buy gemstones, but am finding that the prices for the same sized stone vary so much between 3 or 4 reputable suppliers. E.g. the same sized stone ranges from £15, to £40 to £65 depending on where I look.

As a general rule, does this mean than the higher price you pay from a reputable supplier, the better quality the stone?

Not really sure whether to go for the most I can afford or find the best bargain?

Thanks..

To be honest for most the seller is not going to make a loss, though some may try to tempt buyers with a loss leader or average their sale price when they calculate their profits.

Have an idea how much per carat you are prepared to pay and stop. ( remember more per carat for larger sizes )

Build a small group of sellers that you trust. Test buy and be prepared to write off. Recommendations and reputations count.

People keep a 100% reputation on eBay by using customer service and communication to resolve issues!

If you really want great stones, learn everything you can, and be prepared to pay for them.

Just some thoughts, I know it's not much help, but there are no easy answers other than education.

Julian

Wallace
08-05-2012, 07:13 PM
Ooooooh Wallace I am worryingly addicted to opals of late and have bought .... well let's just say probably too many of the Ethiopian types, which just fascinate me, luckily I have, I think been getting them for what seems to me really good prices.

Here is a pic of a couple I got not so long ago:

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7142/6762748065_893a54e36a.jpg (http://http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7142/6762748065_893a54e36a.jpg<br />opals by kwant, on Flickr)
opals (http://www.flickr.com/photos/12340604@N02/6762748065/) by kwant (http://www.flickr.com/people/12340604@N02/), on Flickr


not the easiest of things to take photos of but they are absolute beauties.

oh my word - how did I miss these beauties? right, off to get a new mortgage quote! lol

wheely
08-05-2012, 11:56 PM
Oooo kwant they are pretty!

pearlescence
12-05-2012, 04:41 PM
With experience as a seller (of pearls only) I can throw in that quality and price depend to some extent on where the seller sources from. I schlep out to Hong Kong to buy in person and go the rounds of suppliers selecting strands and individual pearls, spending sometimes a day in each office, tottering out half frazzled after about five or six hours selecting and then haggling. So, yes, there is the cost of getting there and staying but against that my pearls are the very best possible quality at the best prices
I also have a small stock of gemstone beads and I know that quality and colouration varied massively when I was selecting.
Even the best suppliers sending regularly will never match a buyer selecting in person at wholesale level