[JimBob (OP)]

If purple, I would suggest a diamond that was born in a lab. The most common naturally occuring color is a shade between clear and yellow and/or brown. "Pale shades of red, orange, blue ... also occur. Deeper colors are very rare." Dana's Manual of Mineralogy                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

[moonfire]

What about the light violet, which is almost a lavender?  Would that be lab created and not along the lines of red and blue?

[JimBob (OP)]

Amethyst is hard enough to scratch glass so it could be passed off as a diamond. Fluorite, the element, when in crystal form, is a deep purple but you can scratch it with your fingernail.

If you are considering buying something get the appraisal from a very reputable dealer IN WRITING.

The people at http://www.purplediamonds.co.uk/ say they have seen real purple diamonds but that they are rare. I thought I would have known of something this spectacular but I am obviously wrong.

This page above also tell you HOW so many purple diamonds are on the market right now -  they are artificially treated. I.E., real diamonds that have been colored. For these selected to be to be used for coloring means that they are rather low cost diamonds in the first place. Would you take a $250,000 and allow it to have it irradiated, possibly ruining the diamond in the process by creating two or more different colors?

Settle for the real thing. The value will last.

[moonfire]

Interesting JimBob...still prefer my sapphies(sapphires)over diamonds...Very interesting....Do you know alot about gems?

[lightarrow]

The most beautiful stone, the most hard and pure and bright, it doesn't get corrupted, it prefers to leave our world in a strong and bright flame, as our spiritual self will do, one day.
And it will become one of the infinite bright stars in the sky.

Very beautiful sweetie!

Alberto, That is one of the most beautiful things I have ever heard..very beautiful!

Thank you Loretta, thank you Karen.
If you feel it, it's inside of you...
Hug you,
Alberto.

[JimBob (OP)]

Interesting JimBob...still prefer my sapphies(sapphires)over diamonds...Very interesting....Do you know alot about gems?

No, just stuff that I learned because I had to answer questions after my father figured out rocks were cool (60-70's) and decided to learn to make (really crappy) jewelry. But that's OK, it is the thought that counts, isn't it?

[moonfire]

I love stones....pretty fascinating info...I am curious if anyone knows this or not...they classify a pearl as a stone/gem....but it cannot be as it was processed by a little sea creature...does anyone know about how a gem or stone gets classified as such?

[Karen W.]

Perhaps it is because it starts out as a forien object a grain of sand that gets inside the clam. The clam in and effort to protect it self from the foriegn body surrounds it as a defense as it can't spit it out so it builds a wall around it to contain it and in the process forms this beautiful pearl. So maybe because it starts out as a mineral!! What do you think.. That's only a guess Though! I haven't a clue as to the real reason..LOL

[JimBob (OP)]

Ignorance. Science did not know how a pearl was made until relatively recently. Last 200 years. Then, old habits die hard.

[moonfire]

LOL so true

[Karen W.]

Then why is it considered a stone or a gem?

[JimBob (OP)]

Habit.

Because they were considered gems before there was sciences of crystalography or geology, perls were called gems and it stuck until today.