Source for matched fire opals

Jewelry Discussion
1

I’ve checked the opal sources mentioned recently, but they don’t
have what I need right now. I have a customer who wants earrings in
fire opal, so I need a matched pair. Any suggestions? Opals are
not something I have done a lot with, so I don’t have a reliable
source for these. Thanks!

Beth

2

Beth, Try www.pioneergem.com - he has no photos, but his gemstones
are exactly what they need to be. Regards, Will

3

The Tucson show catalog shows two fire opal suppliers.

Rosman co 915-855-7679 rosman@elp.rr.com opal (fire and faceted)

X.G.X. 212-302-7600 Mexican fire opal

Lee

4

Beth,

   I've checked the opal sources mentioned recently, but they
don't have what I need right now.  I have a customer who wants
earrings in fire opal, so I need a matched pair.  Any suggestions? 
Opals are not something I have done a lot with, so I don't have a
reliable source for these.  Thanks!

I made a pair of fire opal earrings last year, and I searched
through lots of displays and sorted many trays full of stones. I
finally gave up and picked out a couple that weren’t too dissimilar
in color, and were about the same size.

Nobody looks at both ears at the same time. :wink:

I suppose that it’s possible to find material that would permit two
very similar stones to be cut from it, but one of the things that is
most fascinating about opal, at least to me, is the amazing
variations from one piece to the next, and even within the same
piece.

You can see the two that I finally decided on at this link:

One of them has a little more green fire in it than the other, but
they both have similar amounts of orangy-red fire. I did what I
could with what I could find.

Loren

5

Hi Beth, I assume you mean the orangey transparent opal (without play
of color), which is often faceted and usually from Mexico. If that’s
the case, I may have just found someone today to fit your bill.

I’ve been working on updating the vendors and suppliers list on the
SNAG Web site Today I spoke with Robyn Dufty, with Dufty Weis Opals,
Inc. She indicated she has an outstanding selection of Mexican opals,
among other forms. She would be worth a contact!

800-948-5058 www.duftyweis.com

Hope this helps!

Dave
Dave Sebaste
Sebaste Studio and
Carolina Artisans’ Gallery
Charlotte, NC (USA)
dave@sebaste.com
http://www.CarolinaArtisans.com <