When I realised I lost money on this $8K rough opal piece, I only had one choice.
I could throw a tantrum or I could salvage the best and learn from the rest.
I like to show you all sides of opal cutting and the reality it; it ain’t always a win! The only true loss is one you don’t learn from.
With that in mind, let’s see what this trickster of a piece had in stall for me to learn today.
In one of my recent live videos, we cut a piece that didn’t turn out the way I predicted it would. Today we have it’s brother so, did I really think I’d get off easy?
I was optimistic that this piece would cut a big, beautiful crystal opal but when I opened it up, I realised it had other plans. Spider web potch ran through the color and almost sent me into a tantrum that would rival a toddler at the grocery store who just got told they can’t have Fruit Loops for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
I kept my cool and instead decided to make the best of what I had. Watch to learn alongside me.
The Final Opals
We all know today didn’t turn out as I had hoped. Even though I lost money on this investment, I learned a little more about my favorite gemstone.
Starting from the baby stone, this 0.43-carat dark opal makes for a great buy for anyone interested in collecting opals but not ready to invest big bucks! Likewise, the 0.83-carat dark opal is a good purchase for newbie opal buyers.
The 2.68-carat dark opal has flecks of potch inclusions which looks pretty cool but did bring the value of the stone down.
Our prize piece that saved a bit of loss for me on this rough was the 6.40-carat dark opal with color on the front and back of the stone. If you ask me nicely, I’ll even polish the back for the buyer!
I lost money on this $8K rough opal piece, but hey! That’s the gamble of opal.
