Sapphire Bell CA

Welcome to the quickest, most comprehensive guide to sapphires on the internet. In the next fifteen minutes you can have enough basic information to actually shop for these magnificent gemstones with confidence and new appreciation for their beauty.

For instance: Rubies are red and sapphires are blue, fancy sapphires are other colors too. But did you know they are all in the Corundum family of gemstones? Corundum (that’s aluminum and oxygen to you and me) is second only to diamond in hardness, and sapphires are the natal stone for the month of September. Sapphires are found in over 20 countries around the world, including the United States. But the finest blue sapphires are from Kashmir. You get the idea. And if you want your information quicker still, check out our Express Facts segment at the beginning of each section for the few things that you absolutely, positively must know before purchasing sapphires.

So, pick a point and dive into the colorful, magical world of sapphires.

Color Express Facts: Look out for shades of gray and black in blue sapphires, lowers v, making these stones not desirable for resale. But, if the stone is just for you and you like that hue, go for it.

Sapphires of any other color are called fancy sapphires, and in order of value they are:

Padparadscha: Is a beautiful pinkish-orange. These stones are extremely rare and very expensive. Make sure both the pink and orange can be seen simultaneously as some jewelers may insist that an orange sapphire is Padparasdscha. Watch for "brownout," you are looking for a light to medium, vivid pinkish-orange.

Pink: These gorgeous stones can get a little tricky. Since pink is basically light red, some may be sold as rubies. But true pink sapphires will have a purplish hue which make them easy to differentiate from their red cousins. Again, look for light to medium tone and watch out for brown or too much purple.

Orange: Think medium-dark red-orange to avoid confusion with the light pink-orange of the Padparadscha, which can carry twice the price. Don’t be surprised to see some orange sapphires with yellowish tint as well, but the darker reddish stones are the most valuable in this category.

Purple: Medium-dark reddish tones give these stones a plum color in their most desirable state. Make sure you don’t see too much gray or brown. Purple sapphires can also fall into the Color-change category, as they may appear violet indoors and blue when you go outside. This is okay, even valuable, just so long as the color change is pure and strong.

Yellow: Since you are ideally looking for a vivid, light-yellow with high transparency and, perhaps, some hints of orange, clarity becomes more an issue with these stones; as flaws will be much more visible.

Green: The least expensive of all the sapphires, these black sheep range from yellow to blue-green and preferably will have medium to dark tones. If you are looking for a vivid green gemstone, try emeralds or garnet.

Whichever color you choose, always apply the consistency of color tests which were listed at the beginning of this section. As you are inspecting the color, the issue of clarity will make itself clear. And remember, unless you are a collector, pick any color you like. They all are beautiful. So if green happens to be your favorite color, don’t let the fact that it is the least valuable sapphire stop you from buying one. The possibilities are endless, enjoy the diversity.

Clarity Express Facts

If someone wants to sell you a "flawless" sapphire, it’s fake. Flawless Corundum is fake.

Watch out for cracks (feathers) working their way into the stone from the surface. These can seriously weaken the sapphire.

Make sure internal flaws (inclusions) don’t block consistency of color or transparency.

The lighter the color, the more free from flaws the stone should be.

Flaws are fine as long as they don’t threaten durability or adversely affect color.

With those two caveats in mind, now you can appreciate sapphire clarity on its own terms.

There are two categories of flaws, or identifying features, as we like to call them.

External Flaws: (Blemishes)Which are scratches, pits, nicks and abrasions. These are almost always minor flaws and will not harm the quality of the stone.

Internal Flaws: (Inclusions) Are cracks, crystals, negative crystals, silk, fingerprints, halos, cavities, chips and color zoning. Almost all of these will look like their names indicate. The main ones to watch for are cracks and chips which affect durability, and large crystals that not only block light, but could also be a stress-fracture. Another specific inclusion to look for is silk. This naturally occurring wavy feature will shrivel into a little white dot when heat-treated for color enhancement. So if you see silk, you could be looking at a sapphire that came by its color naturally, making it far more valuable.

Rather than judging each flaw individually, The American Gemological Laboratories (AGL) and The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) have devised grading systems which account for all of them on an overall scale of clarity.

The AGL determines clarity with the naked eye and their scale ranges from FI (free of inclusions) to EI1-3 (extremely included) with several levels in between.

The GIA works with 10-power magnification as well as the unaided eye for their scale which works down from the top quality VVS (very, very slightly included) down to Dcl (declasse.) Again, the number of steps from top to bottom is numerous.

Many jewelers have formulated their own grading scale (such as A to AAAAA) just ask where a stone on their scale lands on either the AGI or GIA standards.

You can examine a sapphire for clarity while you are inspecting the color over various backgrounds, under different lighting, from the top, bottom and sides, and under magnification.

With these valuable tips under your cap, you never have to be unclear about clarity again.