What makes this channel so satisfying to watch is that even if Justin has to sacrifice a few carats of weight, he is the opal whisperer...he brings out the best in those beauties!
It's always so satisfying to watch you expertly work on and see the end result to those gorgeous gems. 😍🤩 Also glad you've diversified the shapes you create! 👍👌💙
Justin you are without a doubt one of if not the best cutter in Australia. With that being said. IMO you take too much color away. If you look at that stone before and after you cut it. Some of the 3d is gone and the flash is more distinct because of the transition to the colors left. A large play of orange on the edges is almost gone now. You are without a doubt the true expert. I'm just making observations from the beginning of the stone to the end result. just a thought. I hope this is not taken as an insult.
Definitely one of the most beautiful gems. So large with so many different patterns and colors. I'm fixing to put up my first stone for sell thanks to you Justin. Starting with a Cab King but until I cut a few hundred stones and business takes off it will have to do.
Beautiful stone - wish there was internet when I was looking for a career - only 3 at the time - teacher, nursing, or mom , would have loved being a stone cutter
Justin, i feel like i need to be your apprentice..i have learned so much from you, but im also not afraid to tell you take another look at things, and when I do you actually listen! I wish i could be there to help every day and continue to learn!
So glad you can bring your magic to improve the value of this beauty. Lesson: NEVER trust your opal for repolishing to someone who isn't the very best as seen here. Given the rarity of the opal compared to the inflated value of diamonds, I'd have an opal engagement ring any day over a diamond. Why have a diamond like everyone else when you can have a one-of-a-kind opal:)
Thats cool you said that. I'm looking for an opal engagement ring for my fiance to be. To be honest I'm not sure if she like opals as much as me but the ring I'm looking at is a beautiful fire opal claw clasp with 2 small diamonds either side. Very elegant. Just hope she like it.
Did you notice that the Royals don't use a single Diamond they always have a gemstone and then surrounded with diamonds so they don't consider the diamond to be the important gem.
@@johnnyb9218 tell her that you couldn't just give her a diamond like everybody else gets that she was more important. Just like the Royals who only give gemstone surrounded by diamonds that's what you wanted her to have kiss you was more valuable. The Royals know the value of diamonds is literally held up by the De Beers company in a faults price guarded by dogs and men with guns but gemstones are not they have a value based upon truth clarity and color. Would have beautiful ring she will have. Like someone posted Opals are what a soul would look like I find it very interesting that usually when they represent ethereal spiritual light in the cinematography it almost looks like opal.
@@valiantsfelinesmccarty6678 _"the Royals don't use a single Diamond they always have a gemstone and then surrounded with diamonds so they don't consider the diamond to be the important gem"_ Opals aside (undeniably beautiful in their own right) your statement is simply not true. Plenty of the Royals have a diamond center stone engagement ring. HRH The Queen herself has a diamond engagement ring. The center diamond coming from a tiara owned by Prince Philip's Mother. Countess Sophie, Autumn Phillips, Zara Tindall, Camilla Parker Bowles (which was formerly the Queen Mother's) Princess Beatrice, and Meghan. _"The Royals know the value of diamonds is literally held up by the De Beers company in a faults price guarded by dogs and men with guns but gemstones are not they have a value based upon truth clarity and color."_ This statement is simply laughable, honestly. Let's see, The Stuart, 39.75cts. The Dresden, 40.70cts. The Sancy, 55.23cts. The Koh-i-Noor, 105.602cts. The Cullinan II, 317.4cts. The Cullinan I, 530.2cts. The Cullinan III, 94.4cts paired with the Cullinan IV at 63.6cts to make up "Granny's Chips" to name a mere few of the Royal Collection of diamonds, which is nothing short of epic in quantity. You do not need to make absurd claims about the Royal family and their relationship to diamonds to somehow justify opals. Opals stand alone without the need for this false narrative of yours.
I LOVE THIS CHANNEL, it is so real and Justin is such a wonderful character and I absolutely love opals and furthermore Justin knows all about opals. This opal to me is very pretty, even though it looks like a crack, I would totally buy that opal, it has pretty color, and looks fairly large.
I really enjoy how informative your videos are Justin. I'm just getting into cutting and polishing opal as a hobby. No lapidary equipment yet, need to come across a used unit. Though I haven't found one yet so it'll be a test of patience as I already have a lot of rough stones. Looking forward to your next vids, cheers.
Hello, I am from Mexico and getting into opal working recently too, neither i have a lapidary machine, but I use a bench grinder with sandpaper, if you have watsapp, i could send you a video so you can see the tecnique i use. Salutes!
Hi Justin! One of these days, I will have a sleepless night on the right night and catch you live. As it is, it was 5:30am when I logged in and saw you had a couple of new videos up on here. Keep up the amazing & fantastic work there mate :)
HELLO, DMTrip! Congratulations! No two opals are alike so your fiance owill have a ring unique to the universe..amazing thought. You should consider how she uses her hands. If she bangs her hands around, opals in rings do best in bezel mountings or surrounded with other stones for protection. You might ask Justin's opinion but your fiancee is one lucky girl for sure. When I was in South Africa years ago and found out how common diamonds are, especially in the average engagement ring in the half carat to three carat size, I also decided I didn't want a diamond. I chose a South Sea pearl as I already owned a very fine opal. My Beloved was stunned that I didn't want a diamond and while I had to wait a little for my pearl, I never regretted not choosing a diamond. For every day, I wear a blue moissanite or a strontium titanate. I couldn't see the logic of spending money for a diamond when the money could better be used as a down payment for a home or a new car. Anyway, I hope she loves your choice and best wishes.
Wow, looks like you brought some red fire out as well. Would be interesting to have the stone weighted before and after the recutting. May have lost some weight but gained value!
Definatly can see the original poor finish.... I wonder, how hard is an opal ? Will it loose a perfectly finished surface in regular wear? Fabulous stone xx must add.... for me ..I love the oblique shape of the stone and would always choose something different over something regular. I live close to Whitby North Yorkshire from where JET is famously found....and love the obscure shapes of jet set in a solid band of silver. Xxx
Wow to think I could have sunk a shaft years ago and thought no I won't buy in. lol Used to be a member of the Lap Club in Newcastle NSW. We found some amazing finds over the years. The best was my Sapphire. My metal detector went off so i dug up a huge Sapphire No gold though or was their? May be I should have dug further. Also found a crystal cave on the many weekend trips away. Also Dinosaur dropping formed in volcanic rock, that was the find of the century never forget that trip....lol a beautiful Opal...
At first I took offense about your comment on Mexican opal , but then, when you said you were Australian and live in Australia I understood were you were coming from. As a Mexican living in LA, California USA, I'm leaning alot about opal watching your videos. Thanks for the knowledge.
I would like to know how much of the stone was lost to re-poloshing. I am sure it needed it, but the stone had much more color/pattern at first. Ok, I went back and looked at a before and then after polish. Yeah the stone is 100X better after the re-polishing. Can you edit this video to add a before/after side by side comparison? That would be nice for comparison.
I been watching a bunch of your videos last couple days. I almost want to get into this as a hobby. Idk if it's a good hobby to have or not idk where I'd even start. Anyway I see that you put in a link to your website which is awesome!
So the funniest thing. I was watching your video over the harlequin opal.. so I googled it to see what you were talking about. And lone behold I see this huge 54k opal and im thinking holy crop thats huge.... and all the while this video is playing in the back ground and once I seen the shape.... I realized its literally the same opal from this video 🤣
You are my entertainment im confined to bed with Emphisemaan can't walk a long distance so I spend the day watching yr talents an you do amazed me often ,my name is Bob an im in NZ. SOUTH ISLAND have you tried to use NZ greenstone. Give me yr address an ill send you some, once more you are my entertainment an you do some amazing things , thankyou
I'm late to the commentary section. While I greatly admire opals and possess a small collection of them, I've never actually worked on them myself. What I do know from working with wood and other materials is that if you aren't methodical and thorough in the preparation of the surface that will be on display, then the final polish will reveal and highlight every scratch and imperfection. It's surprising that the initial treatment and preparation of such a valuable stone was so poorly executed.
Wow! That is so beautiful. It would look great as a center piece of a silver bracelet...now I just need 50k to buy it! Thank u sir for the video...I would love to spend a week at the opal mines in ur beautiful country. Just keep the funnel web spider 🕷 and deadly snakes 🐍 away from me!
What makes this channel so satisfying to watch is that even if Justin has to sacrifice a few carats of weight, he is the opal whisperer...he brings out the best in those beauties!
Yes, i can see the ripples and flat spot. Absolutely beautiful stone.
also the scratches as well
That is an absolutely beautiful stone, a world of difference from how it looked when you started.
It's always so satisfying to watch you expertly work on and see the end result to those gorgeous gems. 😍🤩 Also glad you've diversified the shapes you create! 👍👌💙
Thankyou I am trying haha
Yes we can see cutting marks..ripples etc. I feel sure you will bring it to reflect its fabulous color and maximum potential
That is a beautiful gem opal and you do fantastic polishing on that one. What a great man you are to share with us !!!!
I'm glad that you were able to save some red. It's too bad that the person before didn't have your skill♥
Nice
Justin you are without a doubt one of if not the best cutter in Australia. With that being said. IMO you take too much color away. If you look at that stone before and after you cut it. Some of the 3d is gone and the flash is more distinct because of the transition to the colors left. A large play of orange on the edges is almost gone now. You are without a doubt the true expert. I'm just making observations from the beginning of the stone to the end result. just a thought. I hope this is not taken as an insult.
To my taste, the most beautiful of all gems. Your work is magnificent.
Kind words thank you
Call up the owner and say, "Looks great! I took out all the scratches, and made a lovely little oval!"
Definitely one of the most beautiful gems. So large with so many different patterns and colors. I'm fixing to put up my first stone for sell thanks to you Justin. Starting with a Cab King but until I cut a few hundred stones and business takes off it will have to do.
I am so glad to be able to help
Beautiful stone - wish there was internet when I was looking for a career - only 3 at the time - teacher, nursing, or mom , would have loved being a stone cutter
Justin, i feel like i need to be your apprentice..i have learned so much from you, but im also not afraid to tell you take another look at things, and when I do you actually listen! I wish i could be there to help every day and continue to learn!
Thank you I do have one already and one day my son also will show more interest I am guessing
This art definitely needs to be carried on for future generations, i can only hope your son sees how important it is some day! :)
Amazing your pre polished look better than their final
Amazing result from your hands Justin...its more and more beautiful glitering comes out from that opal...cheers mate!
Have an opal engagement ring. Imagine, a gem that looks different
every time you look at it!
Hoping the wife has the same properties as the stone.
So glad you can bring your magic to improve the value of this beauty. Lesson: NEVER trust your opal for repolishing to someone who isn't the very best as seen here. Given the rarity of the opal compared to the inflated value of diamonds, I'd have an opal engagement ring any day over a diamond. Why have a diamond like
everyone else when you can have a one-of-a-kind opal:)
Thats cool you said that. I'm looking for an opal engagement ring for my fiance to be. To be honest I'm not sure if she like opals as much as me but the ring I'm looking at is a beautiful fire opal claw clasp with 2 small diamonds either side. Very elegant. Just hope she like it.
Too true :-)
Did you notice that the Royals don't use a single Diamond they always have a gemstone and then surrounded with diamonds so they don't consider the diamond to be the important gem.
@@johnnyb9218 tell her that you couldn't just give her a diamond like everybody else gets that she was more important. Just like the Royals who only give gemstone surrounded by diamonds that's what you wanted her to have kiss you was more valuable. The Royals know the value of diamonds is literally held up by the De Beers company in a faults price guarded by dogs and men with guns but gemstones are not they have a value based upon truth clarity and color. Would have beautiful ring she will have. Like someone posted Opals are what a soul would look like I find it very interesting that usually when they represent ethereal spiritual light in the cinematography it almost looks like opal.
@@valiantsfelinesmccarty6678 _"the Royals don't use a single Diamond they always have a gemstone and then surrounded with diamonds so they don't consider the diamond to be the important gem"_ Opals aside (undeniably beautiful in their own right) your statement is simply not true. Plenty of the Royals have a diamond center stone engagement ring. HRH The Queen herself has a diamond engagement ring. The center diamond coming from a tiara owned by Prince Philip's Mother. Countess Sophie, Autumn Phillips, Zara Tindall, Camilla Parker Bowles (which was formerly the Queen Mother's) Princess Beatrice, and Meghan.
_"The Royals know the value of diamonds is literally held up by the De Beers company in a faults price guarded by dogs and men with guns but gemstones are not they have a value based upon truth clarity and color."_ This statement is simply laughable, honestly. Let's see, The Stuart, 39.75cts. The Dresden, 40.70cts. The Sancy, 55.23cts. The Koh-i-Noor, 105.602cts. The Cullinan II, 317.4cts. The Cullinan I, 530.2cts. The Cullinan III, 94.4cts paired with the Cullinan IV at 63.6cts to make up "Granny's Chips" to name a mere few of the Royal Collection of diamonds, which is nothing short of epic in quantity.
You do not need to make absurd claims about the Royal family and their relationship to diamonds to somehow justify opals. Opals stand alone without the need for this false narrative of yours.
We love you Justin. You’re amazing in such a beautiful artistic craft you’re in.
Thank you
I dont have money for gemstones gold or diamonds but if given a choice an opal would be the only one i would love to admire
Terrific stone! A Beauty Justin! I especially love the large rounded area bottom left. Beautiful Mate!
I LOVE THIS CHANNEL, it is so real and Justin is such a wonderful character and I absolutely love opals and furthermore Justin knows all about opals. This opal to me is very pretty, even though it looks like a crack, I would totally buy that opal, it has pretty color, and looks fairly large.
I really enjoy how informative your videos are Justin. I'm just getting into cutting and polishing opal as a hobby. No lapidary equipment yet, need to come across a used unit. Though I haven't found one yet so it'll be a test of patience as I already have a lot of rough stones. Looking forward to your next vids, cheers.
Hello, I am from Mexico and getting into opal working recently too, neither i have a lapidary machine, but I use a bench grinder with sandpaper, if you have watsapp, i could send you a video so you can see the tecnique i use. Salutes!
Hi Justin! One of these days, I will have a sleepless night on the right night and catch you live. As it is, it was 5:30am when I logged in and saw you had a couple of new videos up on here.
Keep up the amazing & fantastic work there mate :)
Great opal!! Love your videos, watching from Chicago, Illinois USA
HELLO, DMTrip!
Congratulations! No two opals are alike so your fiance owill have a ring unique to the universe..amazing thought.
You should consider how she uses her hands. If she bangs her hands around, opals in rings do best in bezel mountings or surrounded with other stones for protection.
You might ask Justin's opinion but your fiancee is one lucky girl for sure. When I was in South Africa years ago and found out how common diamonds are, especially in the average engagement ring in the half carat to three carat size, I also decided I didn't want a diamond. I chose a South Sea pearl as I already owned a very fine opal. My Beloved was stunned that I didn't want a diamond and while I had to wait a little for my pearl, I never regretted not choosing a diamond. For every day, I wear a blue moissanite or a strontium titanate. I couldn't see the logic of spending money for a diamond when the money could better be used as a down payment for a home or a new car. Anyway, I hope she loves your choice and best wishes.
I would have never known how to check polishing on a stone except for you
Wow, looks like you brought some red fire out as well. Would be interesting to have the stone weighted before and after the recutting. May have lost some weight but gained value!
That's a brave job to take on. And live. 👍 Excellent video. Watched loads lately. Thanks
Definatly can see the original poor finish.... I wonder, how hard is an opal ? Will it loose a perfectly finished surface in regular wear? Fabulous stone xx must add.... for me ..I love the oblique shape of the stone and would always choose something different over something regular. I live close to Whitby North Yorkshire from where JET is famously found....and love the obscure shapes of jet set in a solid band of silver. Xxx
I see it too. Great work fixing it.
I really liked this video. It must be hard to fix some other persons mistakes. You did a great job. Sending love from Kitchener, Ontario, Canada.
Wow to think I could have sunk a shaft years ago and thought no I won't buy in. lol Used to be a member of the Lap Club in Newcastle NSW. We found some amazing finds over the years. The best was my Sapphire. My metal detector went off so i dug up a huge Sapphire No gold though or was their? May be I should have dug further. Also found a crystal cave on the many weekend trips away. Also Dinosaur dropping formed in volcanic rock, that was the find of the century never forget that trip....lol a beautiful Opal...
Beautiful work... fascinating to watch.
Thank you from Las Vegas...
Beautifully done! It definitely pops more now that you've worked on it!
Hi, am seeing y're work and this is one of the best stones that y've cut endeed very nice love the color game of this one
Hey man your keeping me up,I've just discovered your channel and I love it!!! Thank you
Thank you I hope you have subscribed:-)
Yes u have mate,peace from U.K
FYI i always prefer the free form shapes for opals (I have several). For me, it just adds to the uniqueness of the stone.
Beautiful work my friend! Thank you!
You are a MASTER! Huge difference!
WOW! Justin, you really know how to bring the stunning beauty out in a stone.
Thank you :-)
Yes...Opals are, indeed, "the Queen of Gems"! I have always loved them, and, not just because they are my birthstone! 😎
I love these videos thank you for all your hard work and making the videos
Great job Justin 👍
At first I took offense about your comment on Mexican opal , but then, when you said you were Australian and live in Australia I understood were you were coming from. As a Mexican living in LA, California USA, I'm leaning alot about opal watching your videos. Thanks for the knowledge.
Ancient Mesopotamians thought the gods invented humans to bring their creation to perfection.
You just did it, Justin!
Beautiful stone Justin
Beautiful as always... I always enjoy your work!
I would like to know how much of the stone was lost to re-poloshing. I am sure it needed it, but the stone had much more color/pattern at first.
Ok, I went back and looked at a before and then after polish. Yeah the stone is 100X better after the re-polishing.
Can you edit this video to add a before/after side by side comparison? That would be nice for comparison.
It's hard to see the scratches past the nagnificent beauty of that stone!
But yes, you can see them.
Breathtaking! It’s mesmerizing.
Awesomeness comes from your hands Justin!!!
💓🌏💓🌎💓🌍💓
2019😊
Thank you Caroline
Watching this screaming to myself “That’s enough”.
Awesome job; watching from Dallas Tx
Do opals require polishing frequently after the initial cut and polish?
How is an opal's price affected if the cutter leaves a thick potch on the stone (obviously to increase weight)?
I been watching a bunch of your videos last couple days. I almost want to get into this as a hobby. Idk if it's a good hobby to have or not idk where I'd even start. Anyway I see that you put in a link to your website which is awesome!
Haven't seen this one before. Amazing!
So the funniest thing. I was watching your video over the harlequin opal.. so I googled it to see what you were talking about. And lone behold I see this huge 54k opal and im thinking holy crop thats huge.... and all the while this video is playing in the back ground and once I seen the shape.... I realized its literally the same opal from this video 🤣
That is gorgeous!
Beautiful job . Thank you for sharing 🇺🇸👍🏻
Absolutely gorgeous!
Disfruto tus vídeos pero yo hablo español y tus vídeos no tienen traducción, puedes hacer videos con el traductor activado. Muchas gracias
Sure can. HOLY HELL that thing is gorgeousssss
I love the shape!
Q. Will you re-polish already set vintage jewels.
It depends on the piece
I am thinking about an engagement ring done with one of your black opals.
Love your skills
So where does a $50K opal live?? Who owns it?? Is it a pendant?? Is it in a museum?? Or does it sit hidden away, sadly, in a safe somewhere???????
Oh I’ve missed you!
Do you have insurance or something? What if you accidentally broke a stone?
Hello from Northwest USA
Thank you very much and God bless you and yours.
Opals are my new favorite stone.
yay!!
wow excellent work your very clever and i can see exactly what you asked if we can see
You should have shown the finished piece. Old video though. You're showing them now. :)
What a opal. Awesome job.
Did you buy this one or are you just cutting for someone?
That looks like my Diamond Jem machine.
Whr would the best place 2 get opal jewelry priced. I have some opal sets that the misses would like 2 know more about thm
Great video,again. Love them! Thanks!
That you Mary
I have a black opal it looks black but has all the colors would it be worth something
Beautiful stone
Anyone have info on how my wife could learn jewelery design from a reputable school? In the USA
Has the Queen ever had a tiara made with her Australian opals?
Yes
Can you try filming in the 10x loupe?
I can do it with a macro lens but that gem is gone now sorry
You are my entertainment im confined to bed with Emphisemaan can't walk a long distance so I spend the day watching yr talents an you do amazed me often ,my name is Bob an im in NZ. SOUTH ISLAND have you tried to use NZ greenstone. Give me yr address an ill send you some, once more you are my entertainment an you do some amazing things , thankyou
Awesome stone!
We are now seeing things mirrored I see..., just look at the Philips text on the box...
I'm late to the commentary section. While I greatly admire opals and possess a small collection of them, I've never actually worked on them myself. What I do know from working with wood and other materials is that if you aren't methodical and thorough in the preparation of the surface that will be on display, then the final polish will reveal and highlight every scratch and imperfection. It's surprising that the initial treatment and preparation of such a valuable stone was so poorly executed.
yes i see them.. all of them.
Flagstone ❤️
Linda Opala, wow opls beauthiful...
Thank you so much
Sooooo amazingly beautiful
Well, the odd shape gives it a whole lot of character tho.
Is that 600 a genuine Nova? I notice how out of round it is.
The brown one is out a little and it is not genuine
Wow! That is so beautiful. It would look great as a center piece of a silver bracelet...now I just need 50k to buy it! Thank u sir for the video...I would love to spend a week at the opal mines in ur beautiful country. Just keep the funnel web spider 🕷 and deadly snakes 🐍 away from me!
Yes, I can!
Fire Agate from the SouthWestern U.S./ Northern Mexico has all the colors of opal and then some. Not knocking opal by any means.
but it doesn't have the play of color. Not knocking agate by any means either 😊
Were did you get the cutting machine s
gemmasta in Australia