What's your least favorite gemstone?

Are we talking all stones, as in semi-precious too? Sorry, I don’t wear much jewelry. If we are talking all kinds of stone, I would say that amethysts have in general really disappointed me.

While I have no personal interest in jewels per se, I still admire the beauty of Emeralds and Diamonds as a simple fact of their existence - skip to 00:40 for the BLING!

Peridot is my birthstone, but it's such an unpleasant colour.

A TOPAZ?! Among MY jewels? Are you MAD?

^ Oh, sorry - You asked for LEAST favorite. That would be the Ruby.

The expense of gemstones of utter craziness.

deBeers holds back the diamond supply specifically to keep the prices sky high.

Now that these gems can be created in the lab, all these companies are freaking out

The proper engagement ring should cost two months salary

—made up by diamond company executives

I love all four of the precious stones: diamonds, rubies, sapphires, and emeralds. Fancy colored diamonds are more interesting, usually, than clear ones, but clear ones can be beautiful when they are not tiny chips.

Odd fact: Rubies and sapphires are different colors of the same rare substance, corundum. When corundum is red, it is called a ruby; any other color and it is called a sapphire (though blue sapphires are the most famous). Corundum is the second hardest naturally occurring substance in existence after diamond. Diamond is a 10 on the Mohs hardness scale, while corundum is a 9. Emeralds (which are really green beryl) are way down the list at 4. People are often surprised that emeralds can shatter if you are not careful enough with them, while it is nearly impossibly to shatter a diamond, a ruby, or a sapphire (unless you are using a diamond to cut them).

Of the semi-precious stones, I like amethysts and opals (black opals especially, but most kinds are beautiful--even if they are said to bring bad luck). I love agatized coral--so pretty. Topaz can be very pretty when it is light blue or pink, but it is less attractive when yellow, its most famous color.

I do not like garnets (too dark in color) or peridots (usually an ugly shade of green).

Ruby and sapphire

I know someone who doesn't like emerald. Resembled 'envy' to her.

There are medications available, Rose.

Least favorite: amethyst, maybe. I don't like purple.

Opals

I collect gemstones, both precious and semi-precious. I guess I'd have to say rubies, but that's only because it's so very difficult to find really nice ones. I have a rather large one, but the clarity is pretty much non-existent. But, now that you mention it, the only diamond I own is on a stickpin that was passed down to me from my grandfather. I've never been interested in purchasing one. My Mom's wedding ring had a spectacular diamond: a very clear, large emerald-cut diamond. My Dad had shown his aunt the ring he had selected for my Mom, and his aunt told him it absolutely wouldn't do, and she worked out a deal with a jeweler she knew so my Dad could buy this spectacular ring. My family was poor, too, but it's strange what we prioritize. My Dad was absolutely nuts for my Mom.

One stone I looooooove that isn’t a gem is larimar. On tan skin, it positively pops, it is gorgeous!! Sorry OP, some dorks like myself are struggling with telling you what we do *not* like lolol.

Probably fire opals. Most stones are plain slightly translucent orange, and the rare ones with iridescence usually have some green in the iridescence that clashes horribly with the orange of the main stone.

My favorite stone is turquoise, BTW, which is both masculine and feminine, and represents both earth and sky. I wish men (non-Navajo men) could wear more than a simple turquoise ring without looking like a prat.

^ Interesting stone, R15. It almost appears as the water in a pool reflecting the sun.

Anything blue, unless it is dark blue.

As a gay man, I'm sad that I can never buy jewelry for a woman. I love jewelry...fascinated by it! Of course, I can buy a watch, tie pin, or cuff links for a lover, but I'll never have the thrill of buying earrings, a bracelet, or a necklace with diamonds, emeralds, or pearls.

I have a niece and a nephew, and I look forward to passing my mother's jewelry to them. And I look forward to that. But I remember the thrill my Mom opened a gift of jewelry from my Dad.

You mean you like blue? ^ Joey Luft.

You guys wear stones? Here we just use them for laundry.

Not a fan of "champagne" or "chocolate" diamonds. Diamonds are as plentiful as weeds and the "brown" ones are just stones that have a dirty, shitty color and couldn't be sold until they made up a desirable name for them.

Smoky topaz. There was a period back around 30 years ago when loads of women would buy these YUGE smoky topaz rings. A single stone the size of a peach pit. They were cheap as could be, in price and appearance.

I also hate any gemstone cut in a cabochon style. Opals are especially unpleasant to me.

I'm surprised to read someone dislikes peridot. That's one of my favorite gems.

As gays, you are required by law to like rubies because of Judy Garland.

I hate diamonds.

Tourquoise

Tourmaline hideous, Bloodstone elegant.

Ruby is my least favorite.

Aquamarine

Turquoise, particularly the ones without veining. They look like plastic.

I like lapiz lazuli--the color is so beautiful.

I had one of the fireplaces on my yacht, the Christina, fashioned from Lapis Lazuli.

Diamonds are so blah.

R8: Emeralds are a 7.5 to 8 on the mohs hardness scale not a 4

They still shatter more easily than other precious gems.

Pink / sky blue zircon. Essentially anything that is pink or sky blue, really.

mruh for me

Diamonds are boring. I love everything else except turquoise (is that technically a gemstone?).

I thought everyone loves Opals. Surprised some don't like them.

Peridot. Like a cheap, half-assed emerald.

"Diamonds are boring." Not so when they're of at least adequate size and you catch the BLING in the right light noting all the colors of the rainbow.

Speaking of emeralds, it still cracks me up that Meghan thought she could insist on wearing this tiara to her wedding.

It is as if when the Queen told her she was giving Harry and her a house of their own, she had said, "GOOD--I want Balmoral Castle!"

That “Emerald” tiara that the snip of girl wanted to wear is indeed beautiful.

I should know because my dear husband the Grand Duke Vladimir gave it to me. It was designed so that the stones could be swapped out for color depending on my gown for the evening.

Here I am wearing it with Arabian pearls.

—- The last Grand Duchess Vladimir of Russia

"Peridot is my birthstone, but it's such an unpleasant colour."

It's my birthstone, too. I don't much like it, either. Low quality peridots ARE pretty ugly stones. But a good peridot is a nice, bottle-green type color. But if I were to have a green birthstone I would prefer it to be emerald.

If I had a least favorite gemstone I think it might be opal. They're pretty; the best of them are gorgeous, full of fire and light. But they have the reputation of being unlucky. I tend to think it might be true. In the seventies there was a famous murder case; a Yale student named Bonnie Garland had her head bashed in by her boyfriend Richard Herrin, also a Yale student. Seems he went off his rocker when she told him she wanted to see other men. At their last Christmas together he gifted her with what he thought would be a very special gift: an opal ring. Some time ago there were news reports that Sharon Tate's "engagement ring" from Roman Polanski would be auctioned off. It wasn't a very attractive ring; mere garnets surrounding a large marquise shaped...opal.

"As a gay man, I'm sad that I can never buy jewelry for a woman."

How about your niece? Or do you have any female friends? If you gifted them with jewelry I'm sure they'd appreciate it.

Here's that ugly ring, R44

[quote] But they have the reputation of being unlucky. I tend to think it might be true.

How would that work, exactly?

Do you believe all opal deposits on the planet were somehow cursed in antiquity by some sort of evil witch?

"Do you believe all opal deposits on the planet were somehow cursed in antiquity by some sort of evil witch?"

No. But the fates of Bonnie Garland and Sharon Tate certainly are a strange coincidence. Both gifted with opals and both dying horrible deaths.

Correlation =/= Causality

[quote]R10 I know someone who doesn't like emerald. Resembled 'envy' to her.

The French believe emeralds to be unlucky.

I learned this from the trashy novel [italic]Lace.

≠ on a Mac r49.

I'm great; you're not.

R45, His niece has probably been ruining herself with tampons. Who'd buy that whore jewelry?

Some people think pearls are bad luck. There are a lot of superstitions pertaining to gemstones.

[quote] I'm great; you're not.

Even despite your thrilling keyboarding skills, I cannot take such a claim seriously from someone who believes certain mineraloids are hexed.

Sorry.

"mineraloids" -- ???

Not familiar with mineralogy? Maybe this will help some:

[quote] A mineraloid is a naturally-occurring mineral-like substance that does not demonstrate crystallinity. Mineraloids possess chemical compositions that vary beyond the generally accepted ranges for specific minerals. For example, obsidian is an amorphous glass and not a crystal. Jet is derived from decaying wood under extreme pressure. Opal is another mineraloid because of its non-crystalline nature.

News to me

Okay, so you've convinced me to purchase a peridot. I don't think I have one in my collection. Also, a couple of other green stones, like an Alexandrite. (From the recent Bond thread). I've started to want a diamond, you assholes.

Did Sparkle REALLY want to wear the tiara at R42 to her wedding? How audacious can you get? I thought the tiara she ended up wearing (Queen Mary's bandeau tiara) suited her gown perfectly. It was understated, which went very well with her plain as an old shoe wedding dress.

Amazing that people spend millions of dollars to buy little colored rocks. Because that's what all gemstones are: colored rocks.

Would you wear the diamond, or just keep it in a case and gloat over it?

All of them. Never got the "fuss" over any of them really. Not a jewelry person.

All of them. Never got the "fuss" over any of them really. Not a jewelry person.

[quote] I also hate any gemstone cut in a cabochon style.

I had to Google "cabochon." You're right. It really is ugly.

R64 cabochon gems that are of fine quality can be beautiful. The examples in your pic are cheap, so of course they aren't much to look at.

My favorite are excellent quality star rubies and star sapphires. Although it really is difficult to choose a favorite. I should have been a jeweler like my great uncle.

Thankfully nobody said Citrine!

Opal, and turquoise. Those are the frauest stones.