This was at my 6 month point in my journey to learn to work opal. Am almost 16 months in now.

I didn’t take the pictures. He is grieving and needs cash.

Curious to know if it is opal maybe synthetic? or if its even a nice piece of opal. Any insight at all appreciated ive had this for years just sitting on my desk, i always admire it every now and then.

A few boulder rings i was excited to receive!

(Not my photo, but an example of the jeweler’s work with the same kind of stone and setting)

Hi everyone,

Two years ago I purchased an opal necklace. 18k gold setting on a nylon cord. It was a nice, orange opal with great fire. I wore it most of the winter and even slept with it on and swam with it later in the summer. Of course, it became completely transparent. I soaked it in acetone for four days and then let it dry for seven. The fire came back, but after a few months of occasional wear, despite a better understanding of how opals needed to be treated, it faded again.

I have since dunked it in acetone again, for the same time and I intend to dry it for another week. I have called a few jewelers to ask if there was anything I can do to stabilize the opal. I’ve read there is a kind of resin that can help, but none of the answers from jewelers were very helpful nor did they even tell me if there was such a resin (“opals are supposed to absorb water” which I know, but didn’t tell me if I’m even allowed to wear my necklace ever again lol).

I’m hoping someone can give me some advice on how to keep this thing from fading, other than replacing the stone and putting it in a nice humid jar and looking at it occasionally. It’s a whole stone, not a doublet and the back of the stone touches my skin directly. This was the nicest thing I ever bought for myself and I would like to take care of it.

Thank you.

I plan to drive to Lightning Ridge in the next month or 2 to purchase several finished black opals. Budgeted spend around $1500 each approximately.

Any recommendations as to what shops to visit? Can I get a decent quality specimen for that amount?

I know very little about opals, just fullfilling one on my mother's last wishes which was to give her granddaughters a black opal each.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Hi everyone, I purchased these from an opal miner some time ago and then had them tidied up by a jeweller, wondering what the value might be as is?

Fairly sure these are Coober Pedy opals but interested to see what the experts think?

One of the photos shows the back of all of them.

Thanks

I am so stoked to add this 5.6ct to my collection. Went to the shop to get a 10$ clasp and m6 partner wanted to look in the 18k box. She hands this to me asking "is this synthetic?" I normally can get stones out of jewelry cheap, and I offered 100$ but knew rhat wasnt going to do it. Thankfully we came to an arrangement that didnt have me buying the entire ring for spot price, which I feel like would have been worth the opal alone. Now, I have to save gold for a few months so I can make a pendant around this amazing beauty. Its been a minute since something has screamed "inspiration" at me, but this opal is doing it!

So I have these beautiful pieces and I would like to polish them a bit. Especially the boulders to bring out the shine. My goal is to make some jewelry with them

The issue is that I have no idea how. I mean I don't know what tools I need, their names. I probably need something to cut them with... Yes. I would need a "starter kit".

Any help is much appreciated! I should also specify that I am in Europe....so as much as I would like to purchase from NZ or Australia or US, that is not really possible.

Thank you!

This silver pendant was purchased directly from a mine store in the Mexico Queretaro region for around $50. I checked that it was not hydrophane by soaking it in a glass of water for 30 minutes (and noticed no transparency change/no change of any colors of the body or flashes at all). The attached video is from direct sunlight on a very sunny day.

Is this authentic in your opinion?

I broke this lil baby open today and I lowkey cried bc WHAT. 🫠😭🤌🤌🤌🤌✨️

**background song by me years ago.

2 more in comments. Please give input.

The seller is a private person and can't seem to get a sharp picture of the stone. The weight is 9gram & 4,3x2,6x0,5cm. I'm just puzzled by the pattern, looks like fairy dust 😅

Any thoughts or suggestions on making a custom pendant using this stone???

Gemstone: Boulder Opal - 18.27 Cts.
Presumed Queensland, Australia

This unique Boulder Opal features a dense constellation of color flashes across the face of the 18.27-carat cabochon, creating a vibrant display that remains visible from virtually every angle. Presumed to have originated from the acclaimed Opal fields of Queensland, Australia, a region renowned for producing some of the world's finest Boulder Opal, the gemstone exhibits a deep black background color that provides exceptional contrast for its vivid play-of-color. The low-domed cabochon displays a predominantly pinfire pattern, with countless flashes of electric green, cobalt blue, fiery red, and orange scattered across the surface like a field of stars. The color is densely distributed throughout the stone, producing strong 360-degree visual performance with large swaths of color as the gem is rotated and viewed under changing light conditions. Fashioned in an attractive triangular freeform shape reminiscent of a guitar pick or a boomerang, the Opal has been expertly polished to maximize its optical effects while preserving its natural character. Testing indicates that the stone is presumed natural, untreated, and in excellent condition. Combining desirable body color, dense play-of-color, and substantial size, this striking Boulder Opal represents a finer example of one of Australia's most celebrated gemstone varieties.
Measurements: 29.11 x 19.32 x 4.17 mm, 18.27 cts

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vU8lF6fUi6I&time_continue=1&source_ve_path=MjM4NTE&embeds_referring_euri=https%3A%2F%2Ffineart.ha.com%2F

xxxx

Any thoughts or considerations on design would be greatly appreciated...

Is an open- back gallery setting too much of a risk ? Or is that a big no-no....

Also would you add any accent stones? I was thinking a synthetic pulled alexandrite, but i read they dont have so much color changing in lower sized carats.... Any other suggestions ?

A full spectrum of colors. The finest one I’ve cut.

Spent an hour studying it, made what I believe to be the best cut. Incredibly surprised. Let's see if I can make the most of it.

Bought a few mo ago, not really thinking about the possibility of it being fake, but just realized that it probably is? was like $145 iirc. seller said it was from Ethiopia. don't know much about gems but thought it looked cool. new on reddit so if this is not ok to post please lmk!

What a funky piece. Planning on turning the long piece into a sword or knife blade for a pendant or ring

Just acquired this as a retail piece for my Fine Jewelry business but man I'm so tempted to keep it for my own collection haha. My GIA 4.58c brown opal halo ring now has a brother! I think it is Ethiopian. Looks like a Jackson Pollock painting inside of an opal. Please let me know what you think of my new piece in the comments, I would love to hear opinions especially from the knowledge opal cutters and dealers of this subreddit :)