Welcome to Opal Month (or October to the others).
Do we have an exciting month filled with fun facts and giveaways just for you?
Here’s a quick video below to explain a few things…
Welcome to the opal month party!
Here at Black Opal Direct, we are about celebrating opal all year round — but any excuse for a party!
If ever there is a month to celebrate opal, this is it!
What do we have in store for you all?
Across our social media channels for the month, we will be sharing fun facts, beautiful jewelry, and inspiring opals.
If you watched the video above, you would know that we also have a competition for the month with one winner every week!
How to be in the running to win?
Right, so you’re here because you love opal and who does love a freebie?
How to enter — in the comments section of this blog and this blog only, write your favorite attribute about opals.
What is an opal attribute?
– pattern
– color
– shape
– style/type and so on…
What do you win?
Glad you asked — see below…
So get cracking with your comments and we will choose 1x winner every week for the 4 weeks of October.
We will contact each winner privately via our website to get your t-shirt size and contact details for shipping, woo hoo!!
GOOD LUCK EVERYONE!
HOW THE OPAL CAME TO BE
A long time ago in the Dreamtime, one of the most beautiful of all creatures was Pallah-Pallah the butterfly, with her beautiful dazzling multi-coloured wings. She lived happily with her family near the reeds of the Corcoran Lake.
She would often wonder the high mountains they could see a long way away which were covered in white, and the white on the tops of the mountains would shine when the sun shone on them.
Her husband who was named Ballah-Ballah often told her not to leave the safety of the grasses and reeds that grew around their home on the beautiful clear water lake. But one day when her husband went fishing. Pallah-Pallah thought she would go and have a quick look at the white on the mountains.
When she flew up high everyone looked at her beautiful coloured wings and said “she looks like a rainbow”. Pallah-Pallah flew higher and higher, and she could see the mountains covered in white. She was excited and said “ I will go right up there and see this white for myself, then I will return and tell my husband.”
As she reached the high mountains snow began to fall. Snow beat down on the frail and weak Pallah-Pallah. She fell to the ground and the snow-covered her. She didn’t die, but lay quiet and went to sleep while the snow fell and buried her.
She lay under the snow until spring came. As the snow melted away so did Pallah-Pallah’ beautiful colours. The colours just disappeared, melting into the snow. As the snows melted down the mountains and across the plains the colours ran with them to disappear into the ground near the lakes and ridges. Pallah-Pallah looked at her wings and they were no longer beautiful.
She returned to her husband and family and everyone was sad to see that she was no longer a beautiful butterfly but a plain moth, just grey and brown. The beautiful colours that disappeared from Pallah-Pallah’s wings went into the ground at the Morillah* – stone ridges and lakes formed the colours of the rainbow on the dazzling opal stones. That is how the opal came to be.
As told by Aunty June Barker Copyright – 1999.
*Morilla St is the main street in Lightning Ridge.
Thanks for the opportunity to win a prize. I love your work and I love opal of all varieties, colours and patterns. Black opal is my favourite in flagstone or chaff pattern. The depth of colour and the changes in colour as a stone is moved is awe inspiring. Loved that ripper crystal you cut recently.
Thank you for educating us, your audience about everything opal.
That being said my favorite opal attribute is the gems shifting colors. When I was a young man my love had eyes like opals. I am enamored at the blue, green and gold color shifts that all show through at different times the same colors in my first loves eyes. After over 30 years I was blessed with seeing her eyes again. Her eyes still shine as brightly now as they did a lifetime ago. Every time I see the play of color in an opal gem I see another rare gem that my eyes for now are forbidden to hold.
I love opals for the many different colors they have. The reds really are my favorite but all are amazing. Love your work and would really love to win this stone since a granddaughter is turning one next week and needs a necklace.
Hi Justin, it’s really hard to pick any one single attribute about Australian Opal over another yet Color has to win my day.
I’ve always described, (to myself ) anyhow, the way the color in a patch of surface area will do a complete change say from Blue to Red as
( Phasing) or phase shifting.
Here’s the mind blowing kicker though, those phase shifts occur at such tight angles that when you’re showing an Opal to another person, in person, you’re seeing this stunning Red yet they, who may be standing beside you, looking over your shoulder, off to your left or right,
are looking at a lake of neon blue green. No two people are ever really looking at the same Opal in person, simply because of the distance and slightly different angle you’re seeing it from.
And still you’re both saying
“WOW” look at that color, or look at that shape or pattern. And you’re both seeing something that may be completely different.
No other Gemstone gives you that, not for me anyway!!
My favourite is absolutely black flagstone with full flashing colour!! Love watching your videos. The best dad dancer ever!!
Happy Opal Month Everyone! I know I am not posting my comment correctly but I could not find the section to post comments and can only see the Reply box to type in, so hopefully everyone will see this!
Aloha from Hawaii 🌈 I have loved and been drawn to Opals since forever! Yet I have never acquired one.
We dont have anything to mine here in Hawaii. Always wished I could go gem stone hunting!
I don’t think I could choose a favorite….
If I absolutely had to choose, it would be round, floral dark blue-orange. I did truly love the one you did in this video: https://youtu.be/jvHyn4fQsYw so if I had to choose I’d choose one exactly like this! It looks like it has almost EVERY attribute!
Oh and OYYY I’ve always been drawn to Australia too. Maybe I was there in a past life?! Lol
Thank you so much for all you do, say, explaining your videos! Much appreciated! ❤️
Hey Justin!
I love all your stuff. You think you would get bored seeing someone cut opal a couple of dozen times as it seems like the process is always the same, however I just cant stop watching. It’s so satisfying!
Do I go to work, or do I neglect my responsibilities and watch you perform surgery on a tricky stone?
Jokes aside, I’ve always loved opal, however my wallet isn’t quite large enough to buy the real deal so I get crushed stuff and I’ve been mixing it with CA glue to make rings! I think it’s artificial but I mean it looks pretty decent. I hope you don’t find this blasphemous. I just love how it can look so different depending on the type of light that hits it. When I’m inside, it’s red, but when I’m outside it goes blue! And then it’s all the more special when I get a rare green. Haha.
Anyway, I‘ve never seen a real opal. I hope I get to one day! 😉
Thanks so much for your content.
Aidan
Hi Guys, Happy Opal Month to you. The Opal is my birthstone since I am an October baby. My favourite Opal would have to be the beautiful crystal opal with 3D colour on colour – but hey I’m a bit of a sucker for anything Opal. Thanks for the opportunity to win a prize. Love your work.
Hi. It is Hard to answer in english for me since it is not my birth language. I am obsessed with opals so many years. I have many of them at home, still sad there is so little People that can put them properly into a ring or necklace without destroying them. I love Orange ones and turquoise ones the most. I feel like opal is beautiful Stone from another galaxy. When i look into it i see everything fantasy i love but cannot have because in this world it is not Real. But still hidden in those colors of these magical opals.
Opal is my birth stone. How lucky am I? I love the magical colors present in opals. Perhaps I’ll win one…who knows.
Hi all,
Thank you for the opportunity to enter 🙂
All opal is fab, but I especially love bright crystal opal. I am definitely partial to the gold, pink and yellow/orange color spectrums (the fire and colors in all types is just amazing though). I have a vintage Australian opal necklace that I love, passed through family. Ideally one day I will find a big free-form specimen…..like the rock lol.
Hello Justin,
I am from the Netherlands and watch all your lives. That is why I began my opal hobby! Really can tell that I am addicted to opal. It is always a surprise what you can get out of a stone. My favorits are the black opals with flagstone Pattern. Your New website is looking great.
Keep up the good work!!
Hi Black Opal Direct team !
My favorite opals are cristal with green and blu colors. Thanks for the oportunity to win the price.
Color! Opal’s kaleidoscopic nature reveals a bright, deep world, much like people. Some people hide until their colors are revealed in a vibrant flash, but the color is never dull. The arrangement of silica produces the different colors, just as the arrangement of genes produce a different personality. The spectrum of colors is found in a single stone sets it apart.
We have: “Lord of ring” “Lord of dance” and here we are! Lord of Opals! If I was film maker, I would call my film like that – Lord of Opals. Anybody from Hollywood? Its time to make nice film about Australian Opals and people who work hard to prize us with beautiful opals.
Now more serious stuff. Since I have cut small opal “Red on Black“ I can’t imagine any other colours. My prefereble pattern is floral with small dome in oval shape. Thanks for listening all our crazy stuff.
I watch Opal Hunters on Philo streaming. I can see the hard conditions and hard work these miners put in. Very appreciative of their sacrifices for the beautiful stones they bring us.
I love these videos and black is my fav
I definitely love colors.
Justin,
First off I want to say what a pleasure it is to watch your YouTube videos, they have really inspired me. I have been saving for my first set of wheels for the last year and I hope to be able to get some beginner opals to cut soon… as far as the multitude of attributes I enjoy about opal, I would have to say that I love the various patterns of opal and their uniqueness to their individual regions and types.
The soft glow of a white opal. The deep reds, blues and purples of a black opal. The yellows to deep reds of the fire opal. I just love all opals! I love watching the cutting and polishing of the fire opals you share. You come up with some real beauties’
Hi Justin
Favourite attribute of opal would be that every time I look at a stone I see something different.
I have been mining , cutting for few years now , following your blogs religiously and have found them very informative, thanks for sharing your knowledge
Regards Rob
Happy opal month! Usually my favorite shape is an oval, just a classic look, but lately I have really been enjoying the heart shapes Ive seen posted. It adds an extra unique style to an already unique gem.
I love 3D Flagstone type pattern with some chaff
Nothing more exciting than a Chinese writing oval with flashes of orange’ish reds, bring greens and hints of purple. Set in an oval pendant. There really is another stone gem or mineral like opal l, especially from the Black Opal Direct neck of the woods 😉
Have a blessed day to the Going in Team!
Another October baby here. I have always loved the stone, and have learned so much from your site. Had a white opal set handed down to me from my Mother. Unfortunately I was burgled, and only the ring is left. But I live the blue/green stones with flashes of red and orange. Love the way the colors flash with movement. Opals are magical and so full of life. Perfect birth stone for me, as it reminds me to be full of life and color. Thanks for your channel. I truely enjoy all you do.
Love you guys.
Fave opal is black opal, with blue and green but red and yellow as well is a bonus, the script pattern is amazing. Can’t go past a traditional oval shape.
I love jelly opal, any colour or pattern, blue on black, and tribal boulder opal. Fossils have my heart for being untouchable and cherished as display only. I really can’t choose 1 definitively, it’s too hard, like when someone ask’s if you have a favourite child, impossible for me to choose.
My favorite attribute of an opal is the color, the red color it’s just so pretty.
Awesome Thank you Victoria Yes red is the most expensive color too in opal
Yes it is. I don’t know why, but the red in black opals are just so pretty.
My favorite attribute of opal would have to be the color, not many gems reflect light back as brightly as opal does, but none of them can do the full range of color opal can. No matter your favorite colors, there’s an opal to match them.
Hi Mike you are right about opal being one of the only gems to show play of color.
Hi guys! How amazing is this competition I couldn’t have clicked any faster to enter! Thank you so much for this opportunity! Opal is the most beautiful and underrated stone I wanted it to be my engagement ring stone but were I live finding beautiful opals just wasn’t available 🙁 small town. My favourite attribute is a traditional oval either crystal or white opal with rainbow colours in pinfire or floral pattern something really pretty and girlie!
Australian opal, is the best and only opal out there that I truly love. Specially the black opal from lightning ridge. But I also love some beautiful crystal and seam opal from coober pedy. My first style would be chaff. That is some of my favorite material
Hi Justin and the BOD team,
I am loving your videos and watch every chance I get. My grandson and I have become BOD admirers-(groupies). My favourite attribute is the depth of a colour on colour opal. You can look into it forever and never see exactly what someone else sees, which for me is the point. The pure beauty and play of colour are truly something to behold.
Thank you for doing what you do
That opals start as what appears to be a clump of dirty stone and then through the magic of rubbing, cutting, and polishing, become scintillating gems with amazing colors and depth. I’ve been fascinated with opals since I was 5 yrs old, back in 1957!
Yes it is fun rubbing through that dirt to see that amazing color shine through
What a wonderful giveaway! Thank you for the opportunity. I’ve loved opals for a long time and it’s hard to choose favorite attributes when I think every opal is so unique and love them for that reason! I love red, purple, and teal colors in my opals the most. The combination of having all of those colors is truly amazing. As much as I love black opal I do have a special spot for the Crystal opals. Floral pattern is my favorite in opals!
Love how in depth your YouTube videos are! For me my favorite opal attribute would be a broad flash stone with bright greens and blues!
Broadflash is such a nice pattern especially when it shows different colors from different angles
G’day guys I love all 0pal its all beautiful but ya can’t beat a aussie black opal I love chaff and pinfire patterns but my goal is to cut a harlequin that pattern gob smacks me happy opal month to you all lots of love Ed
I’m all about the color! The other attributes certainly are important in the final selection of a stone, but if the color isn’t good then the rest doesn’t matter!
Hi Justin
My favourite attribute of opal is that every time I look at a stone I see something different. I have been mining and cutting opal for a few years now ,following your blogs religiously. I find them very informative, thanks for sharing you knowledge
Regards Rob
Ooooo I’d love to win something, I don’t have any particular colour or patten as a favourite, I did love the script patten if I was to pick something, I just love opals as you never know what you will end up with with some of the “nobbys “
My absolute favorite is the Heart shape Black Opal. Everything about it I love. All of the colors in it clash together perfectly. The reds, blacks, oranges. I have never seen a more beautiful Black Opal in my life.
I am lucky to have my birthday in October and I love working with Opal albeit on the low end value stones. I love rolling flash for the surprise it presents when you hit the right angle. Keep up the entertaining content. You are all good ambassadors for Australia.
Ever since my grandmother left me her Mexican fire Opal pendant I’ve been absolutely in love with opals! I came across your videos a couple of years ago and I’m constantly in awe of what comes to be in a cutting, especially the wide array of colours and flashes of colour. Blues and greens are my favourite!
Opals colors are my favorite attribute. Of course I love the Reds. But the blues and the greens are my absolute favorite!
Not sure I could really pick 1 attribute as it’s the combination of all of them that make opal so unique but if I had to say one it would be the clarity of colour
What an awesome chance! Thanks Justin! I am 17 and have been fascinated by gems and minerals ever since I can remember. I recently freeformed a Ethiopian opal and now I’ve got the fever. There’s just something about putting in your own time and getting the best out of the stone your working with.
I think my favourite attribute would have to be the play of colour that every stone had to offer depending on the way you shape, polish and finish the opal. It also determines the outcome of the pattern and colour of play
Thanks again for an awesome opportunity. I love watching your videos I’ve recently been in and out of hospital and they keep me entertained. Love what you do keep up the awesome work! 🤍
Black opal with pinfire and or the much desired and loved harlequin opal. The way the black transforms the colours in opal is truly mesmerising!
My favourite attribute of Australian opal is the uniqueness of each stone. Put diamonds next to each other and they can look excatly the same, never with beautiful Australian opal.
Hey Justin and team! My favourite opal is crystal with any combination of broad-flash. The crystal you cut recently was unreal. Thank you for the great content and knowledge you continue to share.
I like the white opals with rainbow speckles.
I love everything about opals!! But especially the variation in color and shifts in color as the light hits the stone. So magical and beautiful!!
Thanks for the opportunity to win I absolutely love the colour, moving it around in the light seeing all the different colours come through
I like fun stones, not necessarily the brightest, the rarest or even the biggest. Asteria stones are quite interesting, for example, you wouldn’t find a lot of gems or minerals exhibiting that type of patern.
Howdy from Texas! I am obsessed with opals (my birthstone) and have learned so much from watching your videos and opal descriptions. So great! My favorite opals are black opals (oval or square) with broadflash or moss patterns. I love all the myriad of opal colors! I also understand that opals symbolize hope, purity, and truth. Who wouldn’t benefit from that these days?!? Thanks, Mate!
How exciting to be able to have the opportunity to win a prize I have opal fever so bad can’t wait to visit in may I love all opal black opal is my favourite I love the brightness of the colours and and free form shapes nothing lights my smile like an opal 😍🌈
I find your videos fascinating. My favorite opals are predominately green and blue with other colors in smaller amounts. My favorite types are black and boulder opals.
I love opals because they’re so unique. My grandmother and I share opal as our birthstone, she gave me her opal ring before she passed away. I now share my birthday with my niece too. So I am able to share our grandmothers opal with her so opals are very sentimental for our family.
This is so exciting! I’ve been following Black Opal Direct since my husband gifted me my custom engagement ring with a black opal back in 2018! The opal was stunning. Red & green & orange chunks throughout but one side had fire striations that had ALL of the colors. That stone was broken by the jeweler when trying to reset BUT I became addicted to all opals now. Black opals are still my favorite but admiring any opal makes me feel like I’m finding treasure with every flash of light.
I love the huge array of colours and find it incredible that the little silica balls which make up the opal act like teeny tiny prisms casting rainbows of colour. It’s like capturing a rainbow in a stone!
P.s thanks for all the videos- the kids love watching them and so do we!
I love that each opal is not the same with the different colour combinations, how the colours can change with the movement of the stone and the different patterns that occur, all of which I am learning about slowly watching your videos. I am in wonder at what is hidden underneath the sand, knobby just mind blowing when you expose the colours.
Hi Justin,
Thanks for the opportunity to win cool stuff.
As you already know, I am a true oppal addict as all opal lovers and cutters are. No surprises there. It is the amazing colors that grab me but the unique opal patterns are what make opal so incredibly addicting to me as well as the thrill of the hunt for color when cutting opal. Every stone is a true treasure hunt. I cannot get enough of it. Every stone is unique and a problem solving challenge. As a math teacher by trade, I am all about the problem solving. Which was will it face best and at what angle? It is especially thrilling when I have to completely adjust the angle that the stone is facing up at to get the best flash and movement with as little angling of the gem as possible. When you get a particularly challenging stone to truly pop there is absolutely nothing better.
Thanks again for giving us this opportunity and for teaching me practically everything I know about cutting opal. I would not be an opal cutter without your help.
My favorite thing about opal is how unique it is.
Thank you for a great show
You guys are so cool! I’m 63, lost my wife in 2011. I met Michele in 2019 fly fishing. We have traveled the world fishing since then. In may of this year, we found the Spencer opal mine 56 miles from our home. Michele’s birthday is October 6!(we’re getting married 10/7) I’ve emailed you for recommendations on machines and gratefully received your input. We’re turning a portion of our garage into a studio for faceting sapphires and cabbing opals. So needless to say opals and October are a life changer!! Thanks for all your videos and hopefully we can see you in Australia someday
Hello and greetings from Sweden! I got obsessed with your channel during the pandemic and I always had your cutting videos in the background when working from home. I inherited a opal necklace from my grandmother when she passed many years ago, and since then I’ve always had a big love for opals. It is a drop cut pinfire opal with mostly red, blue & green flashes, and its my favourite for sure!
All the best!
Love your attitude even when it doesn’t go perfect. Crystal opals are my favorite especially when they are double sided
Thank you for bringing the mystery, fire, and scintillating beauty of Australian opals to us via YouTube. My favorite opals are the crystals with layers of iridescent colors in pinfire to floral to flagstaff patterns hanging in midair throughout the transparent matrix. Your recent find and cutting of a crystal opal, like the one your Dad gave to you, was extraordinary. My favorite attribute is the purity, brilliance, sparkle, and ever changing range of colors possible from refraction by the layers of tiny silica spheres. A single opal can be an entire universe in the palm of one’s hand. And each is unique.
Thanks for the opportunity to enter!!! I love opal month (aka birthday month!)
My favourite attributes of an opal are the colour and patterns and that no two opals are the same. I love the pin fire pattern and flagstone patterns. As for the colours, all colours are magnificent but the warm colour tones are my favourite.
I love watching your videos, it was so nice to see the crystal you cut that was just like the one our dad cut! I always thought the value of crystal opal was far less so very enlightening to watch.
Happy Opal Month to everyone at BOD and good luck to everyone in the running! x
Hi Justin and friends!
My favorite pattern is most definitely pinfire patterning, every time I see the specks of glimmering fireworks my heart beats a little faster 🙂 it’s got me hooked!
Thank you,
Isaac A
I Love ópals, I didn’t know about them until I saw them on a discovery Chanel serie, I fell in love I ended up watching ópal videos for about one month,
My favorite is definitely the black ópal I get dragged into its colors like the love at first sight
I love watching your videos and thanks for opportunity! My favorite attribute would definitely have to be anything that’s black crystal. I do love the floral pattern with red because pinks asking a lot!
Aw! Hello from Wichita, KS!! I love the pinfire pattern and I love the blues and greens! Love watching your videos!
Well I really love everything about opal it can be so imperfectly perfect and so perfectly perfect. I am a very indecisive person when it comes to having a favourite food, drink or even colour, as a kid I chose opal as my favourite stone because it has all the colours of the rainbow, I purchased my first opal when I was 11/12 from CP on a trip to NT never seen it before that moment and I have loved it ever since I am now 37 🥰 I also dont feel myself without having opal with me
The transformation from a dirty rock to something beautiful
I love the black opal! So much more interesting than my birthstone the peridot. I don’t have a favorite pattern, but love anytime an opal has a flash of blue. I also love how the color shifts as you move the stone. Thanks for sharing the origin story. 🥰
I wanted to start by saying thank you for sharing the beauty and love for aussie opals around the world!
I say that all the aussi opals are beautiful and special, in the end it is all about your own taste! My favorite pattern is evening orange 3D floral, definitely OVAL😆!
(P. S. Your videos helped me a lot against panic attacks in the covid time, thanks a lot)
Nice greetings from Austria!
I first learned to love opals as a young girl, because it was the favorite stone of my favorite aunt who lived with us. When she wanted some earrings, I searched several jewelry stores to find the right ones that she would love. I was amazed by the variety of colors, patterns, styles and shapes, and fell in love with the stone. She got her pair, and was buried wearing them.
Fast forward a few decades, and with the internet, I discovered BOD, and was hooked all over again. Not only watching you coax the beauty out of gnarled and dirt and sand encrusted stones, but choosing to learn all that I can about the stones and how to try and make that magic myself. This is the one positive thing to come out of COVID isolation!
Hello Justin and Tamika! Just have to say I have been following your work for years on YouTube and every week I always look forward to a new video. I have always had an interest in gemstones since I was a young kid, but watching you cut opals over the last few years has really created an interest and passion for opal in particular. I really appreciate the effort you and the team put in to spread your knowledge to the many viewers you have (congratulations on 198k subs). Almost at 200k keep it up!
I totally agree with you that a flagstone and chaff combo is the best, but I have to say I really love the golden yellow/orange and purple as the dominating colors, with the other colors accenting it.
Hi guys! Love your work and what you do to pass along the trade to a new generation. I’m still in love with that script opal from awhile back, but one of your last videos with that 3d color on color like the one your dad had blew my mind. Epic. Thank you again for what you do and thanks for the opal-tunity(yea, bad pun, lol) to win a prize. Can’t wait to see what the future brings! Bill – PA, USA
Hello from Paris,
Thanks for getting the opportunity to win a prize “Down Under” !
I’m born on the opals month.
That seems so natural for me, to love them all.
“Uniqueness” is a motto for this rainbow-like gem.
No opals look the same, thanks for their play of colour.
Merci.
Bonne Journée à vous 🙂
Hello January is my favorite month as it my birthday. The floral stones are e my chose and I love the oval shapes as well and yes we have been to lighting ridge and I did buy a opal neckless and yes it is oval shape. Love the pinks and red and blue oh just love them all
I’ll have the real gem…. Tamika…. thanks
Hello! Greetings from the U.S! Opal is my birthstone, my birthday is October 16th. I fell in love with opal the moment my dad told me that’s as my birthstone (at 8 years old). I’ve learned so much about opal since then, a very large portion being from you and your videos! I think one of the most mesmerizing patterns (even though all are beautiful!) to me is script pattern, and floral. I love the brightness and fire you get from opals, that are not found in any other gemstone, and I love the incredible color combinations you can get with crystal, white, dark, and black opals! I love how unique opals are compared to any other stone and they are in a league of their own. I love your content and have been following for quite a few years so please keep it up!
I love the colors and the look of the opal just so fascinating to think all those colors form from sediment makes you wonder the bright colors and shades, how it all the different patterns form
I love the black opal with the red striation.
I love opals irredesent endless colours is like looking into a magic vault. So mystical and brings peace to my soul and i love the feel of opal smooth as a cloud. I am a libra and my stone is opal so I hope I win. Therese
I really like/love mixed patterns in an Opal…..3 0r 4 patterns in 1 stone…….(script/flagstone/chaff/pinfire combo)
But also love it when there are old cracks in a crystal filled up with perfect black potch….like black lightningbolts thru the colors…….
I love how it feels when cutting the stone, setting the beauty inside free……
I love how people’s eyes widen and light up when i show them a piece….. and last but not least…… i love your channels on social media…
Hi guys and gals.
Happy Opaltober! 😉
I just love the uniqueness of each Opal.
Love you guys.
Greetings from Florida, USA! Thank you for this opportunity to enter. My favorite opal attribute is color for sure. I love the dark blues, purples and turquoise/greens especially. I never need to look at diamonds now 😊.
My favorite kind of opals are Australian opals. I love the deep vibrant colors compared to Ethiopians and others. I love both rough and polished opals. The play of color and different patterns all intrigue me, especially the ones that look like they hold minuscule universes in them. They are just classy looking and it’s like a new jewelry piece every time because you never know what color you’ll see!
I really love crystal opal!!!
I first learned about opal in a podcast and soon fell in love with this gem. I was thrilled to learn that opal is also my birth stone! Then I started follow Black Opal Direct on YouTube. It’s so fun and satisfying seeing Justin cutting and polishing each stone.
I love how unique every stone is. I love how the colors flow under the sun. I especially love opal rings, so I can see them and see the colors dancing when I move my fingers. Would love love to win an Australian opal!! Thank you so much!!
Black opal cabochons!
In my personal, honest and very humble opinion, they are the single most gorgeous gemstone on the planet. Every single one is entirely unique. No matter how dark or light, no matter what the pattern is, no matter what the colors in the gem are…there is something beautiful to be seen in every single one. It’s like looking into the stars, the oceans, or pictures of galaxies you’ll never see up close…except in a black opal.
That’s why I chose a black opal cab for my wedding ring and had the band built around it, to suit MY opal specifically. I like looking down and seeing an infinite galaxy on my hand. How many people get to do that? How often does a gemstone take your breath away every time you look at it?
Not very!
The array of colours is always the most eye catching part of an opal, but truthfully the thing I love most about opals is that they exist at all! It took such a perfect storm of circumstances, the right ingredients at the right level, with just the right amount of heat and pressure, and juuuust the right amount of silica to create these phenomenal gems.
And nothing is safe! Opal would find it’s way into being in pockets, cracks, and even leaves and bones! It absolutely blows me away.
I was lucky enough to visit a friend’s mine in the Ridge recently and the whole time we were underground looking at the levels and blows, I just couldn’t stop thinking about how these unlikely gems have been hidden underground for tens of millions of years, and that we are literally the only people on earth that have seen them yet!
So I guess, to me, the opal is the most humbling gem there is, and I love the work you guys do on sharing their magic with the world! Keep up the good work, and we’ll keep watching!
Hello! I love all Australian opals but I have to say crystal is my favourite. I love the depth of colour on colour with a pin fire type pattern. It feels like I’m gazing into an ocean or a different universe… much like in the Men in Black movie, where the aliens are playing with marbles, but the marbles are actually universe’s.
My favourite are black opals that are firey with mostly red. High to medium dome with checker pattern. Oval cut. Been looking for the perfect stone for a couple years.
The first time I found an opal in Nevada USA it looked like a firework flashed before my eyes from a pile of dirt. I love the magic of opals and how each is unique. I hope to find a conch opal one day, and I love all the patterns in opal!!!
First I would like to thank you for being the influence for me to get into opal. What great fun I’ve had. Second my favorite opal attribute is that beautiful electric blue to green change in nice opal. Don’t get me wrong I love reds just as much as anyone but my heart melts for that beautiful electric blue green shift.
My favorite thing about opal…
During lockdown, I stared playing with rough opal. My Grandfather had a real talent with inlay, and after watching a couple of Justin’s video, I thought, why not? Started with inexpensive parcels, have graduated to more expensive ones. Taking a rough stone to the wheel is incredible, watching the beauty evolve as you cut away the potch.
Crystal Opals are my Favorite!!!
Happy Opal Month to the best Opal content creators! I side with Justin when it comes to opal. I just love Crystal opal! The depth of color play you can get is just mesmerizing!
I have a couple of opals , as I’m an October baby (can a 75 year old be called a baby ?)
My love for them grew after seeing a man called Opal Eric in the UK in the 1970s who allowed customers to rummage in a water filled bowl, for an opal of their choice .
None of my opals are madly expensive, but I love them , though my favourites are the beautiful crystal opals ..so mysterious ,like stepping into Narnia .
I love cutting opals of all kinds. I cut a heart shape crystal opal when my daughter was born and gave it to her set in 14kt at her 16th birthday. She is now 37 with a 7 year old son who loves cutting stones. I will teach him all I can about opal and stones in general. He has also tried his hand at cutting and polishing even at the young age of 7. Happy Opal Month to all.
Love yall and your videos. You’re a master craftsman Justin! I love script pattern and pin fire the most I think but don’t let that take away from how much I enjoy all patterns! I really enjoy all the colors but anything glowing a redish purple is wicked. And idk what it is about cushion cuts but I love them. Saving for equipment now! Thanks for you’re time and effort!
Happy Opal Month to you all & thanks for the competition! My favourite attribute of opal is gorgeous and unique patterns that they can display but I’m also a sucker for the beautiful bright colours as well. Good luck to all who enter!
Opal has exciting colours and patterns. Transparent gems are just that. Diamonds may be a girls best friend, but her friends are boring! Vibrant and unique is what gets me going about opal. ✌ 😃
Longtime viewer from the US here! I am OBSESSED with flagstone and pinfire patterns! Blues and purples all the way 🙂 I’m so glad you and your team take the time to share your journey through your videos!! Keep those videos coming!
I confess, I like the mystery of how the colors are hiding in the potch and sand and then when it’s revealed, it’s bursting with cool colors and designs
I find opals fascinating, especially the play of colour and pattern and how it flashes as it is moved or put under a bright light. A rainbow trapped in a rock!
My favourite attributes of opal are their colour and pattern. With their iridescent colour display in perpetually changing dances across the stone, every piece is unique and captivating.
I love to cut rough Opals
I love depth and variety of colour esoo o eucalyptus in a black Opal with its high contrast!
“…colour especially in a…” autocorrect did a number on that post!
Most Australian auto correct ever! I love it, you should win something just for that alone.
I love pinfire opals in all color combinations! Moss pattern is a very close second – if not tied for favorite. Both are just so beautiful!
Penny Haulman, Texas here. I love the aqua bright#5 flagstone in a heart-shaped one or high dome emerald cut. Actually I would nominate you for honorary Texas Citizenship had we such a thing. You’ld make a jolly good Texan. Your humor is Texas loved.
as an amatuer cutter i love cutting outside on a sunny day and watching the colours just explode in the sun, such a good buzz
Opal is unique in its own way. Not one is the same, All colours off the rainbow my favourite Gem in the world ❤️
Hello from San Diego! Been a follower for a long time. I just got on your youtube live and I thought it was appropriate because it is (here in CA) my birthday October 3rd! I love opals, and although I have a hard time picking favorites of anything, opal is my favorite gemstone. I feel lucky to have it as my birthstone, too. I think the variations in patterns and colors are the reasons it is my favorite. You don’t have to choose just one color — you can get a kaleidoscope of colors, of patterns in many variations. They’re bright and respond to light in beautiful and unique ways, depending how the opal faces. Like myself I feel multi-faceted, so the opal reflects that in its qualities. I also really love rounded cuts – cabochon, etc and think they fit opals very well. I have always wanted to come across a harlequin (and be able to afford it) — maybe one day!
Opal is a mystic color palate that is fascinating to gaze into much like looking at the Aurora Borealis’s northern lights. It’s amazing how the colors in an opal can dance with every turn of the beautiful stones. Reds, green and orange are my favorite eye catchers..
Happy Opal Month and I love the videos and thank you Justin for being such a great personality!
My favorite attributes about Australian opal and why:
Variance. No two stones are completely alike. The potential for something new and unexpected is always there.
Color scale. It’s across the spectrum.
Facets? No need!
Stability. Sorry Ethiopia! Your opal is cheesy and unstable, and the green tonality reminds me of Laser Tag from the early 90’s.
Birthstone. It’s me mum’s. So yeah. lol
Payoff. With Lightening Ridge opal, the gamble payoff can be huge!
LOVE OPAL DIRECT
🧡💜💙Opals💚❤💛
What is an opal attribute?
In the metaphysical world, Opal acts as a prism within the aura, bringing a full spectrum of Light energy to the system, soothing and clearing the emotional body, and boosting the will to live and the joy of one’s earthly existence. It enkindles optimism, enthusiasm and creativity, and allows for the release of inhibitions inspiring love and passion. Opal enhances cosmic consciousness and stimulates flashes of intuition and insight, yet is a protective stone for deep inner work, meditations, and lower world shamanic journeys.
– pattern
Bamboo Leaf pattern, cat’s eye pattern, Chaff pattern, Dragon skin, honeycomb pattern, mackerel pattern, Galaxy pattern, neon flash pattern, ribbon pattern, jigsaw pattern, Sheen pattern, multi-fire pattern,
– color
Australian Black, Australian black Crystal opal, Andamookha, Australian Boulder, and Mexican fire
– shape
square, rectangle, round, triangle, octagonal (square or rectangular), cushion (square or rectangular), pear, heart, marquise and oval.
– style/type and so on…
Matrix opal, blue green Peruvian opal, Eagles opal, white opal, and crystal opal are so beautiful and gorgeous.
My daughter and I tuly love watching you and your beautiful family on YouTube. Every week she would tell me: Mommy he has a rock with a beautiful shiny surprise inside!!! Lol. She’s 4 years old and wants to be like you. Thank you for all you do and we love you and your family. ❤🧡💛💚💙💜🤎🖤🤍💯🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
I don’t know what it is about opals but I would love to find an opal that speaks to me.
I think a combination of amazing colour and patterns is what appeals to me most. 2 stones can look so different and every one is unique.
Love your videos.
I like the Rough Opals as I find them unique and different with all of the shiny and color variations. You can get then cut into a variety of different shapes. The colors are just magnificent!
Favorite opal attribute is how the colors flash and change as they are moved! Thanks Justin and Ruth for all you do to share opals with the world!
My favorite attribute is definitely color. & I’ve never seen a creator with consistently vibrant/unbelievably colorful stones as you! 😍
My favorites are crystal opals in green and yellow. Love your video’s
❤🧡💛💚💙💜🤎🖤🤍
🔥Black Opal Direct🔥
My daughter, wife, and I love watching you and your amazing family. Pretty sure my daughter will become a gemologist or does what you do. We watch you at night time as a family. Thank you for this opportunity for winning your beautiful peace. If I win it will go to my little one. She’s the one that loves you the most. LOL.
Big fan right here. ->👧
🧡💜💙Opals💚❤💛
What is an opal attribute?
In the metaphysical world, Opal acts as a prism within the aura, bringing a full spectrum of Light energy to the system, soothing and clearing the emotional body, and boosting the will to live and the joy of one’s earthly existence. It enkindles optimism, enthusiasm and creativity, and allows for the release of inhibitions inspiring love and passion. Opal enhances cosmic consciousness and stimulates flashes of intuition and insight, yet is a protective stone for deep inner work, meditations, and lower world shamanic journeys.
– pattern
Bamboo Leaf pattern, cat’s eye pattern, Chaff pattern, Dragon skin, honeycomb pattern, mackerel pattern, Galaxy pattern, neon flash pattern, ribbon pattern, jigsaw pattern, Sheen pattern, multi-fire pattern,
– color
Australian Black, Australian black Crystal opal, Andamookha, Australian Boulder, and Mexican fire
– shape
square, rectangle, round, triangle, octagonal (square or rectangular), cushion (square or rectangular), pear, heart, marquise and oval.
– style/type and so on…
Matrix opal, blue green Peruvian opal, Eagles opal, white opal, and crystal opal are so beautiful and gorgeous.
❤🧡💛💚💙💜🤎🖤🤍💯🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
Howdy to everyone over at Black Opal Direct!
I love how opal, more than any other gem in my opinion, has almost a mystical, magical quality to it. Even without being set into a piece of jewelry, simply as a stone, opal seems like something special to hold; it’s organic and dynamic, and totally captivating!
For me, nothing beats a super clear crystal opal, polished on both sides, with that 3D color-on-color effect. Dynamic patterns, like cats eye, are amazing to me, as is the potential mix of patters you can observe in a single opal, like flagstone, chaff, and floral patterns all in one stone. It’s impossible to nail down a favorite, because each stone has its own personality!
Keep up the amazing work over there, and Happy Opal Month!
I think my favorite Opal was one you recently posted. It was like a blue green star Opal. The way the light played was amazing. I had never seen one like it. My mothers birthstone is Opal. They have always interested me and my Mom would warn me it was bad luck to wear Opal when it was not your birthstone. Lol, here I am with four Opal jewelry pieces and her with none 😊 The way the light plays is magical. Thank you for the opportunity to win. I would probably gift this to my Mom if I win…no promises though 😉
I fell in love with Opal as a young child. To me it’s like spirit. It’s full of life, fire, color, like a spirit!
The FIRE 🔥 of a nice Opal is always so amazing, from all the different angles. I never lose interest in looking at it.
Hi my name is Anthony and I’m an opalholic 😂…I guess it would take a lot less time (and typing) to tell you what I don’t love about opal…that’s easy,there’s nothing I don’t love about opal. It’s the only gemstone that truly seems “alive”,as if imbued with a soul or some sort of magic 🪄✨ it’s movement,unique patterns, and colors that span the imagination are unparalleled in the gem world and surpasses even most people’s dreams…what do I love about opal? I love how each one,every single one I’ve ever witnessed, spoke to me in a way that only other people who have heard it’s voice would understand or hear…Elle Wheeler Willcox knows the voice I speak of
The Birth Of The Opal
The Sunbeam loved the Moonbeam,
And followed her low and high,
But the Moonbeam fled and hid her head,
She was so shy — so shy.
The Sunbeam wooed with passion;
Ah, he was a lover bold!
And his heart was afire with mad desire
For the Moonbeam pale and cold.
She fled like a dream before him,
Her hair was a shining sheen,
And oh, that Fate would annihilate
The space that lay between!
Just as the day lay panting
In the arms of the twilight dim,
The Sunbeam caught the one he sought
And drew her close to him.
But out of his warm arms, startled
And stirred by Love’s first shock,
She sprang afraid, like a trembling maid,
And hid in the niche of a rock.
And the Sunbeam followed and found her,
And led her to Love’s own feast;
And they were wed on that rocky bed,
And the dying Day was their priest.
And lo! the beautiful Opal —
That rare and wondrous gem —
Where the moon and sun blend into one,
Is the child that was born to them.
Poems of pleasure. by Ella Wheeler Wilcox
London: Gay & Bird, 1900.
I find all opal beautiful, but I absolutely love the ones where a bit of black shines through. Makes them look like a nebula.
i love watching you cut opal. sorry i couldn’t make it to denver.
My favourite opal attributes would be dark black oval shaped script patterns with bright yellows or greens. I do like reds and purples
Hi Justin,
I met you and your lovely wife at the Denver gem show and was there with my daughter and now she brags that she met that famous opal guy and she shows everyone the opal I bought her. You are a true artist and we love our opals. Can’t wait to see you in Tucson.
I love everything about opals especially the crystals something magical about the colour on colour with that almost glass like transparency amazing videos and amazing website thank you for getting me hooked on opal
Any Opal Justin cuts and shapes most always turns out to be a favorite of mine.
I will have to choose a dark opal with Red, Blue, & Green as the color.
Oval or round in a 9mm long or diameter.
I’m not too picky!
Opal is my favorite stone! It’s not only the color, but something about that inner glow even in minimal light. I love how no two are the same!
I love the flagstone pattern. Some of the colors just seem to go on and on. I lived in South Australia almost 50 years ago and came back to the US with amazing stones from Coober Pedy. It was at that point in my life that opals became my treasured favorite. Thank you for all of your expertise in creating beautiful art from these rocks!
My favorite attributes are flagstone and floral patterns and purple/blue dark opals. Love watching your videos and listening to your voice, both are very soothing.
I am drawn to the opal by its close resemblance to outer space (Galaxies/Nebula/Super Nova)
I can stare into opals for hours on end!
Endless depth of color ever changing from different angles and light position.
Although my birth stone is not opal I would gladly exchange my birth stone(Diamond) for opal!
I have been watching you for about a year now. What you do interested from the very beginning. I am a carver.. of wood, horn, stone, so finding patterns is in my nature. The patterns you find in the stone is just grand, but to bring them to life the way you do is extraordinary that is a real art. I love the Colours of the stones.. you would think i would like the patterns first..I do at that.. the the different colours have always interested me.. so many different choices.
I love how some look like confetti with their bright colors! Some look like the universe 🥰 my favorite gem stone by far!
I am mesmerized by your artful reveal of the mystery inside each rough opal but my delight is when it takes Your breath away or when You become speechless over what you just discovered.
I like the bright colored black opals with the greatest number of different colors with a mix of several patterns.
When I was young I was told opals are called “wicked stones”. I don’t know why.
I love love love how Diverse opals can be. There are so many types, cuts, colors and the fact that there are different places you can find them all over the world(just WOW) My favorite shape is oval cut, and the pin stone or flagstone for style.
Ridge Crystal opal is my Kryptonite and when I cut one with depth and play of colour it’s so exciting! Just need to remember to slow down n not get too excited. Rolling them around is mesmerising
For me opal’s patterns are my favorite. No other gem has the unique beauty that comes with an opal. They never repeat and feel far more special than any diamond.
I love opals with bright yellow and some little rainbows.
Happy opal era to everyone!I truly love green/teal/blue opals with floral/flagstone pattern. Maybe red/blue are more valuable but the greens and blues transport me to the sea, and depends on the pattern, to the deep sky too! I love to look for shapes on opals as if i was watching the clouds on the sky!cushion and drops are my faves cuts! Good luck to you all!
Happy opal month everyone.
I have had the addiction to opal for nearly 30 years, starting as a miner and then becoming a cutter. Every opal gets my attention no matter the type or quality but the way colours play in crystal opal always tops my list.
Opals are some of the most infatuating and alluring creations of nature. They come alive with their dynamic colors, as red flashes to blue flashes to green. It genuinely makes it feel as though the opals are communicating the essence of their soul to the observer. Not only is each one unique, but each one holds a rich history of growth and evolution. Opal gazing makes for a beautiful gazing meditation. There is truly no stone like the opal! Grateful to have it as my birth stone and for the small collection I have gathered. THANK YOU! for all of the videos, information, and hard work. It is fascinating to watch your interactions with the stones and to feel you exude your passion for the work.
For me it’s the colors. I love the blues and reds. Unfortunately all the patterns look alike to me.
Hi everybody at Black Opal Direct!
I have been lucky to catch two live streams so far from the Netherlands. I really enjoy the cutting and explaining. I am on a year sabbatical right now and a month or so ago I found your Youtube channel. I have been hooked ever since! I really love the beautiful colours of opal and the play of colour inside the stones. I particularly love a combination of flagstone and pinfire patterns. The larger sheets of colour contrasted with the delicate sparkle of pinfire is just sublime! Thank you for the possibility to win something! As October is my birth month it is particularly fitting! Happy opal month everyone!
My favorite thing about opal… Has to be script pattern. It’s so unique in each case I have seen, it looks mysterious and fantastic. It’s got me itching to start cutting on my own, but so far I have only been able to practice on stones with equivalent hardness and not the real thing – but I’m saving up and waiting for a parcel that speaks to me so I can bring a beautiful gem to life. In the meantime, I’ll keep practicing, making ovals, teardrops, trapezoids and other fun shapes.
My favorite attribute of opal is all of them, the infinite combinations of all the attributes makes each stone unique like a snowflake or a fingerprint. No two are identical and that unique individualism of each stone is what draws me to them all. I must say though my eye is definitely drawn to the darker pieces but I equally appreciate every one of them I see. I’d love to get one to pass down to my son, hopefully as a gift for beating brain cancer, he’s 8 months old currently and going through treatment now and it would be so cool to have something as unique as he is for him to cherish for life just the same as I cherish him.
Happy Opal month to you! I, like so many others here, am also an October baby (as are all THREE of my children…no, I didn’t plan that 😂), and celebrate the opal as my birthstone. I love how the light plays in the stone and the colors sparkle from the depths. I love the unusual stones, the ones with free form shapes, copite needles, small imperfections, because, hey, we all can’t be perfect! Of course I love the perfect ones too. My favorites are the ones with all of the colors of the rainbow, and with interesting patterns like chaff and script. Thank you for what you do, and for how well you do it. What a great gift from your father. Thank you for letting us be part of your story. ❤️
Is it a bit boring to say that all Opals and colours are loved equally? lol. Black Opal with the Script pattern looks absolutely stunning! It still makes me laugh remembering a video I saw where a lady thought she could read Traditional Chinese on the Opal…
I love watching you cut opals. I have learned so much about opals and what makes them so special. I lived in Australia for a while and watching you reminds me of my fondest memories from those times. I love the way the flagstone and floral patterns catch and flash light and color throughout the gem. The dance of light and color in opals is magical and brings to mind the wonderful stories of the Dreamtime that were shared with me. It would be a ripping honor to own a gem you have crafted.
Ooooh, I guess brightness would be the first thing I would look for, something where you could see the color from quite a distance away. I’m not as keen on the broadflash pattern, since other gems will do that effect as well, but any other pattern is lovely. And I do love teardrop shapes, so nice to dangle as earrings, or for a pendant.
So much to love about opal but if I could dream up my perfect stone it would have to be a sphere shaped crystal opal with random flagstone and pin fire, BRIGHT 3D color on color with red, orange, blue green and purple to make it a mesmerizing galactic-like stone that revealed something new with every twist and turn.
Happy opal month to you all at BOD and good luck to everyone!
I have enjoyed cutting stones by taking lapidary classes. I love making cabochon the most and this actually led me to watching your videos. My favorite is the black opal in flagstone and it’s all about the pinks or flashes of fuchsia for me. I watch when I can. Always fun to work through the challenges with you behind the wheel on a live show.
My favorite have to be the black opals, crystal in particular, and pinfire to be even more specific. I especially love the red, orange, and blue flashes.
Thanks so much for doing the contest!
I’m a sucker for multi-colored flagstone patterns in crystal opal, the kind where you can see a thousand kilometers into the stone.
I was just wanting to lnow the different pattern names and looks, and voila! there is is in the blog…thank you. I do love opal, it’s my very favourite gemstone, I love color. love your cutting vids, so informative and great to wtch! thank you
Hello, my name is Brittany and Opal is my Birthstone. My mother instilled her love of gemstones into me at an early age but opal has always been my favorite. I gravitate towards the green blue opals, and the black and reds. I get lost in analyzing the beauty of them. I’d love the opportunity to win something to add to my collection. Thank you for considering me.
How generous of you to share goodies with your fans!
I am a rockhound, but opals have always held a myserious fascination for me. I love the play of color; the way blue can whisper gold or red when you change perspective. Opals have always symbolized magic for me, because they shimmer from within, holding secrets you can only see if you take time to look from ALL sides.
. Hello Justin and all the other wonderful folks at BOD! I have always loved opals and pinfire is one of my favorite patterns. I love any color in opal, but lately I am realky drawn to stones with strong reds!
My great grandmother Margaret left me her opal ring when she passed because I was the first great grandchild, I was named after her, and we also shared the same birth month and of course, our birthstone, the opal!
Thankyou Justin. Your black opal with the intense red colour reminds me of my mum and the opal necklace she wore.
Happy Opal Month, thank you BOD for hosting such a great giveaway event! Owning an opal piece is on my jewelry bucket list; when I started looking at opals I did not know there were so many kinds, each with their own beauty. My favorite attribute of opals is how the color play reminds me of the world around us, the blue and green opals remind me of planet earth the flashy red and oranges of the sun, the milky soft shimmer of pink and white of the moon and stars! Australia is on my travel bucketlist and visiting BOD to pick out an opal would be awesome.
Hello and happy opal month to you Justin and your lovely team. Long time subscriber and viewer.
My favourite attributes of opal are like many others, flagstone and script pattern. Just something about it that is mesmerizing! I love all the colours but orange and purples seem to draw me in most. I personally prefer a high domed cushion cut stone. I am somewhat obsessed with opal. I look at them literally every day at least once, usually right before bed. While I do watch every video and most lives you do, I don’t participate in the chat, so I don’t get a chance to ask questions. And while I know you won’t be replying to questions here, perhaps in a future video you could answer my question. I’d like to know if you experience this same thing that happens to me. If I look at opals online for say an hour right before bed, which happens often, when I close my eyes I see opal patterns and colours until I fall asleep. Does this ever happen to you?
Anyways, thanks for the opportunity to enter your contest, and good luck to everyone here, I know it’s a great group of fans and subscribers you have here (A certain Christmas video comes to mind) and your job is not an easy one!
Cheers, I’m going out, and my tops staying on 😉
Adrienne
Hello Justin and Tamika (hope I spelled that right? Tamika I mean, LOL).
Watching you from Newfoundland, Canada for the last 3 years. I picked up opal cutting at the beginning of the Pandemic and have since cut almost 100 opal gemstones. I have you and your videos to personally thank for getting me through an incredibly steep learning curve and for literally saving my mental health throughout it all. I find opal cutting to be both captivating and extremely cathartic. IMO its the best mindfulness practice on the planet.
“Going-in” has to be my favorite attribute of the opal cutting process and as for opal itself, I would have to say that my favourite attribute is without a doubt “play of color”. It’s what separates opal from all other gemstones and makes each opal gem unique unto itself.
Absolutely loving your guys’ energy together online. You’re like two mischievous teenagers who sometimes forget the camera is rolling as the shenanigans ensue. LMAO. Keep up the fantastic work and keep on spreading the joy and your love for opal. Opal fever may be highly infectious, but it’s also safe and fun for everyone. Love you guys. Long may your big jib draw!
Dougie B.
Flatrock, Newfoundland
Canada
Color peeking through soft sand and mottled potch is comparative to the sun stretching from the clouds after a long and dreary week. All colors and patterns are needed to make this hobby what it is. They are all welcome whether cobbled like a lonely path or simple letters from a poem. Opal are underground flowers in a sea of sand. I’m going in!!!
Hey BOD,
Thanks for the contest and inspiration for getting me starting to cut Opal (website/etsy shop coming soon hopefully). As far as my favorite opal characteristics I’m a bit of an odd duck in that I generally like lighter body tones. My favorite pattern is Striated, with Ribbon a close second, I also like honeycomb-esque patterns. I’m not too picky when it comes to the colors as long as it’s bright or plays well with light I’m happy.
Cheers
Hi Justin, you brighten my days when i get to watch your videos, you teach so well, My elderly mothers birthday s Oct 31st
she wanted so bad a opal ring now at age 69 I’d love to get a stone to have it placed in a ring to say THANK YOU MOM for all you did for us kids. Keep up the great work I love you Man you’re the best.
Opal Colour: first, our eyes are drawn to the brilliant colours of opal, then our hearts. Shape: Every opal shape is unique for that individual gem to show its glory of colour. Beautiful things come in small packages.
I love how every opal is different and beautiful in its own way just like us humans, we are all different and beautiful in our own ways it just depends on which angle you look from.
What an awesome opportunity to own my first opal! I love the multi-colored opals the best- the ones packed with the most colors. My favorites are the ones with small-grained texture: Pinfire, Floral, and Moss. So gorgeous!
hmmm, what I love most is how the opal reveals herself to the cutter as to how she wants to be represented. Whether that’s floral, 3D, chaff to become oval, cushion, freeform, or indeed to shine as a specimen… she puts the cutter into Zen mode to become one with her to reveal her true unique self.
So when and I do say, I love all the attributes, I truly do.
My favourite attribute has to be pattern, specifically Script! It would be beyond amazing to discover a stone like that. Thanks so much for all your fantastic work – stones, videos, everything!
It is beyond difficult to choose a single favorite attribute of opal. They are such an unbelievably unique and interesting species of gem, from their extraordinary formation to their expansive color. However, if I had to choose one thing that makes opal special, especially Australian opal, it would have to be its pattern. Never in my life have I seen, let alone cut, two opals that looked exactly the same. Every single stone holds an entire world inside and every time I look into an opal I see something completely unique and new. There are other stones in the world that have enormous variations in color, body tone, and brightness but none have an assortment of patterns like opal.
Happy Rocktober, AKA opal month…what’s my favourite attribute about Opal. It’s easier to say what’s not…nothing! The entire Opal experience, the colour, the patterns, the body tone, the shape the stone wants to be, it’s all amazing. Staring into the depths of a pattern of colour, that has until recently been buried and hidden for millions of years. It’s like looking into the past, directly into the eye of creation itself. And to be able to release that hidden time capsule for the entire world to gaze upon in wonder…Opal cutters are magicians too!
We cant wait to see you guys again in tucson. We love your opals and their play of color.
The very first gem I ever remember was the opal my mother showed me, saying, “This is your birthstone.” It was a beautiful crystal the size of my thumbnail. I never saw the stone again but I still love crystal opals. When I first saw Black Opal Direct on YouTube over four years ago I became a subscriber and would binge watch the shows I missed. I started buying semi-precious gems stones and learning how to cut and polish them looking forward to the day I can buy some Australian opal rough and cut my own crystal!
I wasn’t much interested in opals until my partner turned me on to them. Maybe one day I will buy him an opal signet ring! I love the mesmerizing colours that kind of resemble nacre but much more intense. I get lost in the sea of colours even on a smaller gemstone. Thanks for sharing your opal expertise with us! 😀
woops accidentally left it as a message during your after hours 😅
Hiya Hiya!
I think I like blue-green flagstone pattern black opal best. I have a slight preference for teardrop shape.
I do really enjoy your vids!
Jake Horner
Hello from Montreal
Thank you for the contest, it’s awesome!!
I love when you do a really deep blue with ocean blue on black stone. I do love crystal opals too but then who doesn’t hahaha. But I still prefer the deep blue ones with ocean blue to give depth to the stone. Flagstone pattern and Chinese script pattern are my favourites. I love ovals and drop shapes or simply a round shape also. Please If you could do more blue opals it would make my days. You do a great job of entertaining us while teaching us about opals and all things Aussies !! Keep having fun!!
Marie-Claude from Montreal Canada
I was born in October and always felt so lucky opal is my birthstone. I love crystal opal and black opal, the brighter the better!
Hi there lovers of opal .. and who between us can say they don’t love this miraculous stone …?
We all do , for different reasons…
Me , I’m imagining a fantastic world, and each stone is a glimpse into that .. my imagination runs wild and my heart just tremble; I don’t have just one type of opal that I prefer.. they are all beautiful in their own way ; each and every one is unique and beautiful, fascinating and wonderful. One thing would be for me the supreme thing to cherish, let me “see” inside it .. let me see the “other “ world, a new galaxy, a glimpse into something else ..that’s all I would dream about (and I’m dreaming to tell you honestly, every time I see a stone from you )
Thank you for letting us be a part of this wonderful journey… all the best , from Canada
I like opals because each stone has a unique pattern. Just like people.
I love all things about opals, you can have a good cut with great colors and shape and you work it a little more and it is completely changed into something better. I loved the story of the butterfly that was beautiful then sad that she lost all her color.
My husband and I love watching your beautiful work all the way from Washington state. Our favorite pattern is the chaff or flagstone pattern and I especially love when the pattern has red in it. Thank you for sharing your work with all of us and keep up the amazing work!
Hey. I think my favorite attribute might just be harlequin. Keep up the good work:)
Hey everyone! So excited for opal month, life is always better with a dose of beautiful opals to look at and learn from. Opal has been my favorite gemstone since I was 9 and saw a magazine article about opals. I particularly like cristal opal because it’s a bit like colors just floating in mid air. My favorite opal attribute is pattern, I actually found your YT channel because I made it my mission to learn as much as possible about the different opal patterns; and the striated pattern on your opal ‘The Rainbow Serpent’ is my all time favorite, I couldn’t believe it was real! Goes to show that no matter what we create, nature probably thought of it first.
Hey BOD crew!
My tastes are similar to Justin, I think. For me, the most mesmerizing opals are crystals with chaff, striated, and/or flagstone pattern, especially those with the whole range of colors and especially strong aqua blues. The perfect example to me is the one from Justin’s personal collection (I think originally from his dad’s collection), the one he will never sell (I’m heartbroken haha). I’m also a sucker for the contrast in some really bright boulder opals, the way the opal fills in the cracks.
You guys rock! Keep up the good work!
I’ve always loved opal thanks to my mother, she has an opal ring she was gifted and I’ve always been facinated by it.
For me a beautiful teardrop is my favourite, preferably in a rubover setting so I don’t catch it on things.
I love the blues and purple/magenta colours.
This will be an amazing wee gift pack for people to win, so good luck everyone, happy Opal month and thanks BOD for the chance of winning it. Take care
My husband and I are opal crazy! We love everything about them!
It is my husband’s favourite gem to cut. With having health issues and a brain malformmation it is difficult to figure out something to keep the mind off the chronic pain. Opal cutting is one of the main distractions he uses to keep his passion for gemstones alive and the pain monsters at bay. Thank you for everything you have done for my husband. Your live opal cutting videos are a joy to watch, and the information you have always provided has been very much appreciated. Thank you for this opportunity for opal month <3 happy cutting.
HI!!! 🙂 Just recently subscribed and have been watching several videos a day! LOVE them all! I think I would say pattern is what does it for me. Each opal is like a snowflake and no two are the same. I am partial to the flagstone and floral pattern the most. Thank you for all you do! I have a few small bits of Lightning Ridge opal to try my hand with cutting on sandpaper now!! So excited. Keep the videos coming!
Opals are my favorite gemstone. My youngest daughter and I have October birthdays!
Also, as a dad, I love that both my daughters wear the opal jewelry that I’ve started to make, just simple pendants and earrings.
I’m a huge fan of crystal opals from Australia. Andamooka and Mintabie have given me my best crystals so far. Floral with chaff is probably my favorite pattern but needs a mix of bright and dark colors, e.g. bright green with red and blue.
Thank you for inspiring me to start my opal cutting hobby. Cheers
I would have to say the vast array of colors that can be contorted into so many patterns. Thank you gain for your time in Denver. Dwayne was an experience ill never forget. Hope to see you in Arizona. Keep us posted!
Howdy, Justin! I know it’s not the most expensive color but the blue/purple opals you cut that look nearly solid black until the color leaps out are my favorites. Once felt my heart leap into my throat at one you put up for sale that was bright green and deep violet. I also adore the ones with inclusions that look like freckles.
I love your channel. I’ve been having a really rough year and your videos are such a great way to focus and pull myself out of my anxiety. I’m so very blessed to have found you and honored to admire your work. Much love from Texas.
Hello! My favorite attribute of opal is undoubtedly the colors! As a geologist I’ve always loved rocks and minerals, but there’s something different about opal, and it has to be the stunning colors. Opal is the first mineral(oid) that I’ve seen that truly feels like a TREASURE any time I see/hold one. They’re just so dreamy!
My favorite part of Opal cutting was always the discovery part. Gently grinding off the bit with little to no color to reveal the beauty within. Before that moment, only God Himself knew what it looked like. My favorite pattern is Flagstone and my colors are bright orange into Yellow so that it looks too hot to touch. I used to cut Spencer Idaho Opal triplets, so on occasion I could have color on color with the thickness of a razor blade and thinner- that’s how thin some layers were. Alas, it’s been many years since a mining accident made me sell everything I had in the way of machinery and inventory. Since my B-day is Oct 9th, loving Opal comes to me naturally. Feel so blessed to have the BEST gemstone as my birthstone!
Hi Justin and everyone at B.O.D.
Big fan of your YouTube videos the information and entertainment you provide is always excellent.
The thing i love most about opals is the brilliant intensity of the colours. I went prospecting twice at the public fossicking area of Coober Pedy and will always remember the excitement I felt when I saw a little glimmer of firey reds or deep ocean blues on the dusty rough stones.
I used your YouTube videos to shape them up and am currently trying to make a necklace out of one stone for my fiancé.
Hi October is my daughter ‘s birthstone. Would love to give it to her. Me and my mum in law use to watch your videos and loved the information you use to give for every opal. She wanted to give it to my daughter but sadly she passed away due to covid . Would love to win it for my daughter in her grandmom’s memory. She love the black opal, in flagstone pattern. Usually pattern on pattern. In an oval shape. With all the colours of the rainbow. Red,blue, purple,green ,orange and yellow. Would be amazing to win . Keep up the good work, appreciated the hard work you put in every video.
I’M NEW TO YOUR VIDEO’S BUT HAVE LEARNED A LOT. I KNOW NOW THE OPALS I FOUND IN MY LATE UNCLES THINGS ARE REAL THANKS TO YOU. SORRY ABOUT THE CAPS TYPING BUT OLD HERE AND CAN’T SEE SMALLER TYPE. HELL TO GET OLD MY FRIEND LOL. I DO LOVE YOUR SHOW AND NOW ADDICTED . THANKS FOR SHARING.
Thank you the opportunity to enter.
I’m not certain if it’s more the colour or the pattern – I’ve loved opals since I was little and fall more in love with them the more I get to know them and marvel at their uniqueness.
My favourite attribute is colour. Especially depth and richness of darker tones. With brighter tones I just enjoy the gemstone as a whole.
Thank you for your videos!
To be honest I’m still so new to this I’ve cut and polished a couple of decent stones but for the most part I’ve probably destroyed more low grade opal just from practicing. You’ve inspired me to start cutting and soon I hope to start my own custom jewelry designing business im 53 this October but im not too old to learn. Ive been wanting to do this for sooo long but never took that step till i watched a video of you cuttin an amazing Opal. So when i met my fiance i new exactly what i needed to do and that was that i didnt want to purchase just any wedding rings I wanted to make it a little more personal and design and make them myself. Were both October babies and of course we both absolutely love opal. You have inspired me to take this journey and i definitely plan on seeing it through or die trying. I have absolutely 0 training or experience in any of this and so far you and all your videos have been my teacher. I can’t really tell you what my favorite attribute is as I love almost everything about opal accept for that dreaded sand. I’d love any chance at winning any of your prizes and if I don’t win no biggie I still have your videos to help me along. I still have so so much to learn but I’ll not ever give up and I hope one day I’ll be able to share with you pictures of the very intricate wedding rings and engagement rings that I want to design that I have burning in the back of my head. Thank you so much for inspiring me. Best wishes and God bless you and your family
All Opal is Beautiful, mesmerizing! Easily my favorite gemstone. I love opals that no matter the light your in, the colors just light up and pop! My particular favorite is red on black! Would love a Gents ring someday! Keep going with the videos, they are very enjoyable!
Both bright Crystal and Black Opal has always fascinated me and regarding the pattern and colors, it would have to be a black opal with a deep red / deep blue flagstone pattern with light blue/ orange/yellow Pinfire shining through somewhere ( if that even exists).
I reckon that would look amazing as a heart shaped Ring/ Pendant.
Many thanks for your advice and wonderful videos 👍 it always brings a smile to my face watching you work.
First off, thanks to Justin, Tamika and everyone at Black Opal Direct for all the wonderful opal content! I love watching the videos and browsing the site to see all the beautiful gems!
My absolute favorite type of opal is a double-sided oval crystal, much like the one Justin cut in the recent video. There’s just something about 3D color-on-color in a deep stone. It blows my mind that such a beautiful object can even exist!
I love the colors. I have always enjoyed things that are multi-colored. Especially when they have that depth that gives them a 3-D look. It seems that there are an infinite number of ways to turn the gem and see those colors dance and change.
I got into Opals because of thier beautiful playful colours, the first time I saw an opal it was a blue green one and I tried my best to buy it but it was out of my budget so I settled for a crystal opal which I still have but it has somehow lost its colours my guess is its either Ethiopian or I just didn’t take care of it enough. Right now I am saving up to buy a blue green opal and you guys have the prettiest ones out there, I don’t know how maybe its the way you guys polish it but Opals from Black Opal Direct have a shine to them that no I have not seen anywhere else.
ever since i started to watch your channel i have been hooked on opal, but one type most definintely stands outs..
green flagstone/floral patern with some blue/purple spots on the top… i have been looking at so many different shapes and sizes but i still cant imagine in what shape or piece of jewelry it would look best.. though i would love to have a ring with one inside 😮
i keep sifting through your videos in the hope of seeing the perfect one, but i guess every single one is just perfect since i can not pick one over the other hahahaha i might be caught up in this forever but thanks for the new interest and a lot of information i would have never even thought about.
have a good one!
cheers from holland!
For me , it’s the colour that has to come first , then the pattern , after that I’m not too fussed about the rest . I’d love a crystal opal with blues , pinks and yellows , with 3D colour play that can be seen from every side of the stone .
Love your videos Justin and thanks for the great giveaway.
Hi, Justin, Tamika and the rest of the Black Opal Crew! Happy Opal Month! As someone born in October, I love all opals, however my favourite colours to see in opals are orange, all shades of blues and greens, and purple. In addition, my favourite patterns are pinfire, floral and moss as I think it makes opals look like dragon/fairy eggs. I am still saving up to buy one of your opals, so thank you for this chance! Good luck to everyone.
For me , it’s the colour that has to come first , then the pattern , after that I’m not too fussed about the rest . I’d love a crystal opal with blues , pinks and yellows , with 3D colour play And i learn so much Fromm your YouTube Videos How too cut the Beat Gem in the World Black Opal
Thank you Justin and the Team
Hi BOD! Love you all!
Pre warning, I have expensive taste.. so script pattern is my favourite, on a beautiful oval or circle, oranges and reds would be the dream. But I really want a directional colour, (I know this brings the value down somewhat), but I would love it so half the time.. nothing soo special, but then you look again and…booom! 😂.
Thanks BOD love you, keep up the fantastic work.
Hey, what a good way of celebrating opal month. I am new to opal since this summer, so still finding new types that I love all the time, but I am particularly keen on those with dark blue flash on black, shells an the galaxy-ish patterned blue green crystal opal that I see sometimes in sales posts. Good luck in the comp everyone, and thanks for the opportunity to enter! 😀
Thank you for the video’s, they are so much fun to watch and i have learnt so much about the gemstone for my birth month. There is not much about opal i do not like, or should i say, that i prefer more. i do love the reds and oranges and blues and greens. i didn’t know i liked script pattern till i saw your video. Tho Harlequin is equally amazing. A good all round flagstone appeal a lot also, – lol the list gets longer the more you show in the weekly videos. Thanks for the dilemma.
Oh wow!
Always exciting to enter a draw 😁
Honestly my favorite sort of opals are black with red mossy or chaff patterns, though I do find most of the ones I get from my rough parcels are blues and greens.
Crikey, don’t know if I can pick a favourite attribute. It’s the sheer variety that fascinates me. But hold on – SCRIPT pattern. Ohhhh yeah. Script, blue/yellow.
I love a light blue toned crystal Opal or a harlequin pattern
Hi, my favourite Opal would be an oval with a broadflash of colour. I actually love the blues and greens.
Happy Opal month
3d flagstone red, yellow, orange
I love black opals (who doesn’t) pattern doesn’t matter as much to me as the brightness of the color. Eventually I want to make an opal ring 🙂
I’ve started to collect opals a few years ago but since I’m from Mexico all the opals I have are Mexican opals, I’ve never seen an Australian opal in real live but the most stunning atribut I will say are the colors and the patterns some opals can take, it’s amazing all the variation the color can take. And it’s amazing the abismal difference between Mexican and Australian opals. Incredible stones opals are
I love all the patterns that you can find in an opal. Script pattern is the most interesting one but i really love the pinfire pattern because it reminds me of the universe and all the galaxyes out there.
Happy Opal month =)
Thank you so much for this opportunity! OPAL IT’S MY DREAM …I NEVER ONE OPAL …I L ❤️ THE COLORS OF OPAL ….la cosa che cattura subito la mia attenzione e la mia emozione…IT’S A DREAM ONLY TO SEE THE OPAL!!!
I love all of them, but my favorite is probably the flagstone black opal with reds and blues.
Hi Justin and the Team
I love all Australian opal but pinfire just is just something else!! So, I have written you a Haiku poem which sums up what I feel when I see them.
Captured in a stone,
Galaxies of tiny stars,
Twinkle red, green, pink.
Cheers Michelle
Hy! Love from Pakistan to Opal family. I’m also Born in October and I’m so lucky to be in love with Opal Stones. As for as Attributes are concerned I suppose Opal is a very rare stone in this world having all colors with him. Thanks for the opportunity to being a part. Also loving your work as you maintained the shape, the Size, the quality of your work, is much appreciated / awesome. Hope I can get a chance to win this 😊.
I love the colors of the opal best! The color of something is everything! With opal the colors vary and you don’t know what you will get until you “go in”!!! I love the purples and blues. I hope to one day have an opal ring! I love watching you cut stones, it is very relaxing!
Happy Opal Month! My favourite opal pattern is Asteria, especially when it’s in my favourite colours, blue and green! I love what you do and have learnt so much about opals, thank you!!!
I LOVE all your videos and have to say the reveal of the script pattern was my absolute favorite. It was amazing to watch it appear and amazing how happy you were!! Keep up the great work-I’ve learned so much.
Floral patterns are unrivaled! You get the best of some flagstone with clusters of dazzling colour. Polish it into a nice little cab and the body colour doesn’t even matter, as long as it’s full of colour it’s got a place in my heart.
Love all opals . I have no favorites
Love the vision you see before you “go in” not to many gems in Casper, Wyoming. Would be nice to win one for my amazing 2 year old granddaughter.
I’ve always loved the crystal opals, then I had a daughter born in October. Good luck everyone.
G’day Guys!
If you had said to me a month ago that I would be entering a competition to win merch from a opal cutting YouTube channel, I would have thought you were nuts. But after going down the infamous YouTube rabbit hole late one night and somehow landing on a video of Justin cutting opal and telling stories, here we are. I think I was bitten by the opal bug and captivated by Justin pretty much immediately. So much so, a week after binge watching all your videos I found myself buying lightening ridge rough gamble opal, a Dremel and attachments plus all the extras like cerium oxide and dopping sticks etc to begin my cutting and black opal hobby (which is fast becoming an obsession lol) Hopefully one day I’ll cut some nice little gems to buy myself a cabbing machine like Justin’s. I’m so happy to have stumbled on your channel and to be part of this great community. Thank you guys ❤️
So far my favourite attributes mimic my favourite stone that I cut just 2 days ago. It’s is a layered pattern with pastel blues, oranges and green mossy/flagstaff on the first layer and some amazing pastel and neon pink chaff on the top layer. Classic oval type body shape with a medium to high dome. As amazed as I am with the little beauty, it is only 0.8crt so to round of my favourite attributes I like 2-5 CRTs
Sorry for the novel, but thought I would kill 2 birds with one stone (or opal) and just let you know how grateful I am to have stumbled down that YouTube rabbit hole and found you and your community.
Thank you again
Chris
Nice I love it Chris
Happy Opal Month to you both. Pinfire Yellow/Red is my favorite but rare. I plan to come to Australia in a couple of years and I am excited already. See you soon.
Let me just say your channel can to me in a time when I really needed it. I shattered both of my feet and couldn’t really do much but I found some peace and suspense and fun in your videos. So I would say my favorite is ones that surprise you like finding flagstone or beautiful color when you didn’t think it was there.
I love opals and their individual beauty. First time I saw one when my Mum got one for her birthday in the nineties. That whas the moment i fell in love with opal. For me most important is the colour and pattern, followed by brightness… that‘s what makes them unique…!
Hi! Ben here from Nephi, Utah.
My favorite patterns of opal are the Chinese writing patterns and Harlequin Patterns. My favorite types of opal are black opal and fire opal. The play of color in opal is unique to any other stone to me because they seem to appear like an electronic light show in how, as you turn it, the play of color, well, plays! 😀 Like LED lights pulsating. Artistically, opal really captures attributes of movement which defines itself to being a somewhat mystical thing to me since it was created by nature herself. This my very favorite thing about opal, it is entirely unique and truly brilliant to behold.
As many of us do, I love all opals. Yet, I have a soft spot for crystal opal. In particular those with sand within the interior, which makes them look like pictures of nebulae and interstellar gasclouds.
I LOVE a crystal Opal! The script & flagstone patterns are definitely favourites of mine ❤️ Colours I’m most attracted to in Opal is the gorgeous classic Opal cyan colour! As well as purple hues in some black opals✨ Peardrop cuts are in my heart 🍐 opals absolutely ENCHANT me! It’s like owning a real piece of magic!
My favorite opals have the warm non directional colors with some chaff, and my favorite shape is barrel. I have been following you for a few years now and love your content and even have a couple of your stones. Thank you for bringing us along on the crazy adventure that is opal cutting and keep up the good work.
I actually love dark or crystal opals more than black, there is just something mysterious about both types, the way the color shifts when you move them around. Moss and flagstone are my favorite patterns, but to be honest, I just love them all! Just as long as there is some pink, purple or light blue in it.
Oh and the shape, now that is something that I had to think really hard on. I have a certain preference for the rawness of free forms, preferably with some host rock still visible, but if I really have to choose, rounded cushion cut or an oval, depending on the play of color.
I would like to thank you for all of your video’s, there is just something relaxing about hearing your voice talking trough the process and you guys having fun while doing it. They inspire me and my partner to go after our own dreams of cutting opals. Unfortunately we always miss your Lives, but I hope if we are ever in Australia we can catch you Live!
Happy Opal month!!
Much love and luck
My favorite thing about opals (besides watching you cut them!) is that every single one of them is so unique.
My favourite attribute/pattern would be a black opal with pinfire pattern… what I love about Opals is that no two are ever the same – they are all individual/unique
What I love most about opal is that every stone Is unique and you never really know what you are going to get out of the rough. Every stone has a special character unlike any other gem stone where when you have seen one you pretty much seen them all, in opal every stone is different and you never get tire of looking at them.
Love all your work and your channel has been a blessing to watch for the last couple of days. Cheers!
*years not days.
I love Black Opals with stripes of red and green that flash brightly as light shines on them, with the colors seeming to dance as light moves about the stone, where it’s like holding a rainbow in your hand.
As for style and cut, Cabochons are my favorite, as they preserve the natural beauty of the stone. I believe with Opals, oftentimes less is more.
I was first inspired to cut Australian opal by watching Justin’s videos. Over the almost three years cutting I’d have to say my favorite type of opal is black opal with flagstone and chaff mixed. Second place is a tie between grey based opal and crystal opal.
Hello, really dig the videos and wanted to say that I love black opals with the blue and green colors. I totally dig the flagstone type too and dream of some day possessing one of my own.
Love the YouTube channel. My fave would be a Black opal, pinfire pattern. Having said that, all patterns are beautiful. Love some of the crystals that you cut.
I just love watching you cut your opals! It feels like a treasure hunt every time you are on the wheel. I love the color of the opals, especially the blue greens! I have been watching you on YouTube for a long time and so happy for your success on your channel. For me, I love the opal but I watch because you are honest, are a good man, and I learn so much! Happy opal month!
Hi everyone,
I love every Opal but my favorite colors are blue and turquoise. So I take happily the ones that are the least in demand ! For patterns I love them all, they are so amazing and I can look at them all day long.
Happy october from France!
I love that no other gemstone comes close to the play of colour that can be found in opal, it truly is a unique gem.
Happy opal month
Hello Justin! I just wanted to let you know I am a young man from the states and I just finished serving in the navy. I always loved watching your videos through the years, they have brought me great joy, and you have inspired me to become an opal cutter and jeweler! Thank you for all the information you have always graciously given. My favorite type of opal is Mintabie seeing on how it is a little bit harder and great for jewelry! Have a good one, cheers!
Hi Justin
I think the best attribute
that any opal has is the fact that no 2 are the same.they are just as unique as us.each one has a story to tell .by the way no one tells the story of opal quite like you .keep up the awesome work
Hello Justin! I just wanted to let you know I am a young man from the states and I just finished serving in the navy. I always loved watching your videos through the years, they have brought me great joy, and you have inspired me to become an opal cutter and jeweler! Thank you for all the information you have always graciously given. My favorite type of opal is Mintabie seeing on how it is a little bit harder and great for jewelry! Have a good one now, cheers!
Black Opal Direct
Hi there! You have contacted us outside working hours but we’ll get back to you as soon as we can.
I have been a life long lover of opal seeing how I am an October baby its inevitable.I have spent many hours gazing in to the polishing wheel wondering what new and amazing miracle of mother nature is going to appear. I would definitely call my self a gem and mineral obsessed amateur.I have been cutting and polishing everything I can get my hands on.I think my favorite well two favorite ones of yours would be the Galaxy, its like the whole world wrap up in a tiny little view.It is truly pulls you in to its own journey of time and creation. The other that I love love is the Serendipitous Opal.Not only is the story behind it heart warming.The stone its self reminds me of humanity, everyone’s one glimmer shine and sparkle some bigger and brighter some small a just a little fracture but each and everyone counts towards the bigger picture. I must say I truly love this company and all the staff you all have been amazing always will to go the extra
Hi Justin!
Thank you everyone at BlackOpalDirect for the opportunity to win a beautiful Australian opal! I am fairly new to gemology but have been utterly amazed by everything about it since I’ve began jewelry making. Being a student I am always looking to learn more and you always provide! My favorite attribute about opal is that they can come in any color, however, my favorite colors in an opal are blue and green. I am partial to cut stones although I love a good specimen!
Cheers!
Thanks a lot for the opportunity to win some of your amazing stones and merch.
I might have an unpopular favorite here. While I do love color opal and all the amazing patterns it offers, I never felt comfortable cutting them on my own due to the price. Therefore my personal favorite are dentritic opal, since they are inexpensive, I can find and cut them on my own, and they often show beautiful pictures. And sometimes they show some nice hues of green or blue. Not sure if you even consider these real Opal, but I like them…
Havin said that I always envy you on the type of opal you are able to produce, especially the insane crystal opal you cut lately. Respect for this masterpiece! But such pieces are way out of my league.
I’ve always been attracted to the colour of opal! My birthday is in October, so perhaps it’s no surprise that Opal is one of my favourite stones, even from when I was young. I remember I received at some early point, a keychain of a plastic circular container with offcut pieces of oval and water. It broke at some stage and the water leaked out, but I still have all those little pieces stored away in a little box.
Happy Birthday to all fellow October babies! I was so excited when I learned that opalsweremy birthstones! How fitting! I already loved opals, but the more I learn about them, my fascination for them expands! That is why I lovewatching your channel. You love and enthusiasm for the stones are contagious! Thank you!
I really love the harlequin pattern black Opal but the script pattern was something really special, you never know what you might get and that’s what makes the videos so enjoyable to watch
Thank you for inviting me to join the fun! 🙂 I love all opal, but I have a special place in my heart for pinfire patterns…. I hope I win!!! I’ve got my fingers crossed!! Yay!!!
First off, thank you so much for your videos. I have learned so much about opal from you. My favorite attribute. in opal would have to be brightness. If the color is blindingly bright and looks at you from every angle, what more could you want eh? A very close second is color. My dream opal would be a bright red-blue gem, or “one like your dad’s”. Happy Opal Month😀
Oops! I got so excitedthatI forgot to mention my favorite attribute of opals. It would have to be the play of colors! The more colors, the better! Just stunning!
Love play of colour, watching colour move and change , it has a life of its own
Flagstone with some orange or red flash among the blues and greens definitely makes a statement for me, but they’re all lovely.
I’ve been collecting opals for nearly a decade along with other specimens. But personally for me. I prefer boulder opal over the black or white opal. I don’t have a particular favourite pattern because I like all patterns equally as they are all interesting in their own way. As long as the colour sticks out then it’s all good with me. I usually prefer rough or specimen quality opal as opposed to cut or faceted opal. I just like looking at the formation of the opal and how it came to be as a rock. To me cut opal kind of looses its natural charm as you don’t really get the full natural history of the gem. It’s just all my opinion. But my favourite cut is cabochons and teardrops of opal with a play of colour along with round and oval cuts for hyalite and fire opals.
They are ALL gorgeous! I love a black opal OVAL with a multicoloured chaff pattern. Love your videos, makes me proud to be an Aussie 💕
Black Opal Direct
Hi there! You have contacted us outside working hours but we’ll get back to you as soon as we can.
Hi guys thanks for the opportunity !! I love your videos !! My favourite opals are dark with blue and green, I love the fact that each opal has a unique pattern and some of them are truly unbelievable, for example the one you had with hieroglyphs looking pattern! well good luck to everybody! And thank you again for your videos and the opportunity to Winn something amazing 😍
My favourite attribute is definitely the pattern, I always find the flagstone and script patterns the most interesting to look at.
Thank you for all your videos and educating me and others about opals. My favourite opals are the brighter fiery but dark/black opals that have blues and greens. Anything that reminds me of the turquoise sea when on holiday.
Hello Justin and the Black Opal Crew……❤️
Thank you for this amazing opportunity.
One of many attributes I love about opal is the huge array of colours, its like no other gemstone in the world. As someone who has Colour Deficiency (Colorblindness) I am normally deprived of seeing beauty in colour. This is the total opposite with opal. The colours and patterns are mesmerizing, so mesmerizing I have a new found love in the diamond and gemstone world. I wish I could experience the presence of every diamond in the world just to see its mother natures blessing.
Side Note: I want to also thank you for all your wise knowledge, tips and tricks, being an inspiration the younger generation and showing them the beauty of this craftsmanship.
P.S The Black Opal crew is amazing (KEEP KILLING IT)
Happy Opal Month dear BOD team! I feel lucky that Opal is my birth stone and I am extremely fortunate to wear a necklace from your guys with a black opal pinfire pattern (my favourite)!!! I’ve come to love crystal opals thanks to Justin’s education too!
My favourite thing about opals is that they are all unique, like us humans – and their colours and patterns are simply magical – you never get bored looking at an opal! That they form over a long time underground in our great Mother Earth is something that I think of everyday when I look at mine. It connects me to the ancient magic of our planet.
Hi, Opal team.
Love your video’s and the fun you guys have making them!
It’s opened up a world of beauty
I’ve never seen before.
Thanks for sharing them with us!
I love crystal opal most of all and all
green and blue that reminds me of
a tropical beach.
I’m a oktober born child too.
Hope to own a crystal opal next year
from you guys. Have to save though….
🙂
All the best and have a great opal
month!
Always love the content, my favorite thing would have to be the captivating iridescence. Looking forward to the next videos, have a happy opal month!
Thanks for the competition, and happy opal month.
My favourite opal is probably the bright crystal pieces where the colour is so strong and you can just look at them for ages. Something amazingly out of this world about starring into one. Not even sure the pattern matters in those ones, they just have a mesmerising effect of their own.
If i had to chose a pattern id say pinfire for its stunning effect and script as it seems such a weird but amazing pattern to form in nature.
The most important thing for me is brightness, it has to be 5 to shineee! I prefer oval opal cabochons, the bigger the better. I like all colors in one stone (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple and pink) and my favorite types are crystal opals. And if the stone is double sided I start to drool… But that’s in the perfect world, with the money I HAVE I would choose lower price smaller (lower dome) crystal opal cabochon with higher brightness, preferrably with some red colors in it. I would wear it as a ring, so I can see it shine and flash to me at all times (as my pendant and earrings can only be seen from mirror and that’s not enough for me). But I am not picky about patterns at all – I see something beautiful and unique in each and every one of them. And now you can guess who learned me all that to be that specific. 😉
Thanks for hosting such an awesome giveaway!
My favourite attribute about Opal especially being Black Opal is the versatility in which you could bring out its beauty. Black Opal with its rich colours and ample amount of patterns makes it a gem that can truly tell stories to the soul in a way which no other gem ever could!
Hi Guys,
Love your teaching, and stones. My favourite is the broadflash, ador blues and greens. Love it when my customers in England say “I thought opals were just white, but these are amazing!” gives me an oppotunity to talk about the stone and show what opal it really about. If I win I’d share the teach shirt with one of my opal customers at my going show in November in lucky opal draw. However I would keep the opal as a birthday present to me, as my birthday is the 9th October.
many thanks for your experience and work you put in.
Ohhh my favourite attribute of Opal, wow that’s tough there really quite magical, so I guess it’s the colours, just stunning, I really love the blue, but when there little bits of rainbow 🌈, we’ll just stunning 🤩
My favourite attribute is the magical colours, gourgous shining rainbows 🌈
Ooh thats my favourite,no thats my favourite,you get the gist.But seriously my favourite opal at the moment(sorry Justin)has to be boulder. When looking at it from above it can have such depth in such a thin colour bar even without a cabachon ,and uniqueness of pattern Ive never seen in LR opal.Just orded my first few parcels to play with.Not saying its better than LR opal just my rough of choice at the moment.My own favourite opal in my small collection has to be a small but mighty 0.65 carat emerald green crystal with an array of patterns.When I open up my box of opals (mainly pointers)it just beckons me to pick it up.Love your vids by the way
long admirer of your work and love watching your videos. I’m not picky but if I were to dream then my favourite pattern is cloverleaf, oval cab (2-3 cts), Australian (of course) and yellow/orange/green against dark/black. Will it ever happen Justin? please pray to the opal gods for me
Hi.. I love being educated the does and dont’s from your YouTube channel! As a 50+newbie into opal cutting I specially liked the script pattern thats so rare. Please continue your generous video production!
Well if I had my wishes I would love to see a script pattern black opal with blue and red background and yellow script! Shaped as a shield cabachon set in an ancient roman style 22k gold flip ring!
So hard to choose a favourite, but I love the crystal opals, especially green/blue.
So glad my daughter showed me your channel. I have been loving it.
Hi Justin my favorite attribute is the journey and sharing with my kids. They are 6,4,2 and my 2 year old helps me carry my Dremel or cabber to the table and my containers and towels light etc and hearing him say oooooooooohhhhhhh whe he sees the color in the end. We love watching you do what you love I hope to share my love of opal with my kids one day become half as skilled as you and have my kids enjoy the love for Australias greatest gift
Hi my Name is Fabrice and I’m from Melbourne. Ever since I was a boy I’ve been mesmerised by gemstones! And my favourite gemstone is black crystal opal. I love the 3D 360 degree of crystal opal…it is simply mesmerising, I can stare at it for hours! My favorite pattern is flagstone as it can comes In various formations and sizes. I watch all your videos and admire your absolute love for opals. Thanks for sharing them with us! Cheers Fab.
Good morning all, Been working with LR Opal for a couple years. Still waiting for the Chinese lettering to pop out at me. I am mesmerized by most of the opal. Anything with a bright color.
Hi! I love opals! It’s my birthday on the 22nd so it’s my birthstone! I love rough opals, the dull rock with a flash of fire, like you can see into the soul of stone! Best attributes for me…? Black opals with shots of rainbow colours, the blues through to green with blades of purple, orange and red. I adore the teardrop shape and I dream of being able to have a stone that is (still pretty) not a milky gem with dull colours. Loves to all!!!
Hello Black Opal Direct
For years I was always disappointed my birth stone was opal as I’m an October baby born on the 1st day. This was until a friend and opal hunter explained the inner magic of these gemstones. With renewed appreciation and after a few acquisitions, opals are my go to jewels for their peacock style adornment. You can lose yourself in the infinite fiery colours twirling round on your ring finger or be super proud when someone comments on its flash of colour. I love the natural freeform cuts that resonate an opals geological formation all those millions of years beneath the earth. Whether white from Cober Pedy, black from The Ridge, boulders from Queensland or a nut from Yowah, opals are the sublime noble gem!
My fav attribute is how the colours play 0ff a black base
I love fire and black opals. The first time I saw opal I thought it was the closest thing in real life to a magic stone. The pattern I like the most is when it looks like writing I didn’t even know that was possible until I saw one of your videos. I have two very small pieces of opal but I binge watch videos and would love to collect more. I even thought about making a opal engagement ring with the help of a artist.
If I could ever have any dream job it would be to opal cutter.
Love the crystal opals with all colors, especially blues reds and purples. Love the script pattern…..wonderfully rare!
Hello Justin
Thank you for your great videos and the opportunity to win something. I fell in love with opal a few years back during my first visit to Australia. My favorite is the crystal opal in green/blue with a floral pattern, it reminds me of the sea.
What I love about opals?… The fact that they are all different! Every single stone has its own character, that’s why I feel attracted to different stones depending on current mood and mindset. Observing the play color of an opal is like a magic meditation– it fascinates, hypnotises and calms down at the same time. You can get a diamond once in a lifetime and be satisfied but if you fall in love with opals you can’t get enough! Greetings from Berlin.
My favorite part is even with the range of colors like blue green or ones that look more fiery red and orange. They are all so dynamic and beautiful.
Just love black opal and sucker for pink and red flashes. Ya can’t bet a nice oval dome shape; every day of the week.
Hello Justin and Ruth, my name is Emily and I’m a young south Australian. I’ve had a obsession with opals ever since I started watching your videos; my favourite pattern of Opal is pinfire and cloverleaf. I love the way opals shine and are all so unique.
G’Day mate and thanks for all the videos over the years on cutting opal, I’ve been a collector for many years and the one opal I haven’t got in my collection is a flagstone black opal from the ridge, big ask and that’s if I’m lucky have a g’day and cheers.
I love that no two opal are the same! Chinese writing and chaff are my favourite patterns. Crystal opal is my favourite for some reason, just love it! Love your work 😍😍
Hi Guys 🙂 favourite attribute is an active play of colour. When colours turn off and on. When a stone dances with movement. Nothing else does that like opal.
Hi Justin and team,
Love both the opals appearing under Justin’s deft fingers and the crazy antics. My favourite has to be red and gold on black. Shape wise has to be Justin’s favourite oval or teardrop. Keep up the good work.
Hi from Norway. Every week I’m looking forward to watch your cuttings, to see the beauty showing up. So exciting! Been hanging on for 2 years now and even sometimes watch the cuttings over again, never getting tired of it. I enjoy your gentleness and skills a lot too. Been wanting an Opal since childhood. I love all the colours, mostly flagstone patterns and ovals. If I don’t win I hope to one day buy my Opal from you. I so much want to wear an Opal ring. Anyways; thanks a million for what you share to the world!
Love me a good flagstone but no matter the pattern, if it faces well I’m all in…
Hello, been watching your videos for some time, it’s ashame I miss your live videos cause of the time difference but you are the reason I have got into cutting opal, my favourite attribute (although hard to choose) was between colour and pattern, I would so the pattern overall is my favourite especially when you get a special one like the Chinese writing black opal you cut sometime last year as that was out of this world, I hope I win and good luck to all who has entered
I love black opal with directional ribbon, flagstone and pinfire. All colours and shapes.
But keep this to yourself. I live in the gemmies and it’s all about sapphires.
So am a secret opal lover.
I get my fix watching your cutting.
The juxtaposition of aqua and orange in an opal is simply unbeatable. Like a glimmering sunrise over a lagoon. Aquorange? Oraqua? Call it what you will: it’s opalarmingly bewitching.
I found your youtube channel while searching for information about gemstones. I’m a chemist and I worked in a mine. One day, I noticed colored stones thrown away at the place where I work and started collecting them. I clean it and give it to a friend. Since I am a chemist, I can guess the type of metals from the color type. my favorite opals are broadflash stones that contain the blue color. Arranging the raw stones and separating the precious part inside is a great mastery. Also thanks for your youtube channel
I love crystal opal with electricity purple the stones just seem to glow with unreal intensity they are just visually stunning to me
I love boulder opal the best. The deep red backgrounds really highlight the blue and green gemstone colour better than black.
To be really honest, I love everything about opal, especially how the colors shift. If I had to pick a favorite pattern, I would have to say, honey comb in a oval cavachon.. my secondary favorite is flagstone, as for shaping, anything symmetrical. I would like to also thank you for your time making you tube videos where we can see the beauty of opals come to life.
My favorite opal is fossil opal, belemnites with amazing bright colors. Second is matrix boulder opal with all the color in the cracks. Lastly any of the rough stones Iv cut 😉
Well on the 15th of October I turn 60, that means I was born in the middle of Opal month. I have always loved Opal, and from the day I found it I love your site. I cut Opal for a hobby, and my favourite by far is black, with a flag stone pattern. The unique look of the colour on a black base just can’t be found in anything else, mind you I have only cut a couple like that, compared to your many and can only imagine the multiple thrills you must have had going in on stones like that. Thanks for the videos and giving me the chance to enter. Best regards John
So good to see you folks back, and with prizes for opal month. I rekindled my opal appreciation a year ago and haven’t stopped watching your videos since. Not sure I have a favorite opal. My engagement ring is a crystal opal but I also love dark/black opals as well. My favorite colour is actually orange, especially with green. Smallish Flagstone is a pattern I like most but a nice striation gets the heart pumping LOL I’d be happy with a Johnny Knoxville pattern 😁 Thanks for the opportunity, Justin. Love your work
I love black and dark opals with deep rich and glorious colours. Probably an oval shaped to suit a ring. The other favourite is the next beautiful opal you bring to life on that wheel. Thanks for the commentary and willingness to share your passion, love and knowledge passed down from your dad onto us. I have learnt so much about the geological characteristics of raw opals and the skilful way like a sculpture that you remove the sand and external part of the raw gem to reveal its real hidden beauty. I love the way you then attach the gem to the dob stick and polish that creation to reveal even more of its beauty. Opals are so beautiful and none are ever the same which is why they are so unique as far as gems go. Each has its own mystical beauty and it takes a master who trusts his instincts, knowledge and experience is prepared to take a risk and “ go in” love watching you work and the beauties you create. Cheers Bruce
Hi justin, i would like to thank you for the content you provide.
You and your family have been inspiration to me and my family. I did cut my first opal becouse of you. And i love the expirience!!!
I would love it if you would create some videos on reviewing opals your community has cut in the future. That is just an idea you might look into or not.
Nevertheless, here are my favourite opal attributes:
Cut-drop
Pattern-flagstone
Type-crystal and dark opal
With the brightness of 5
Thank you once again, and i wish you and your family good luck in the years to come!
G’day from Sanremo, Italy! It is just lovely here, and I relish every chance I get to visit my family in this quaint little town. Alas, my home is in San Francisco, and there is NO place like home.
My favorite opal pattern is broad flash / cat eye, and it is gold and pink in color!
Thank you, team Black Opal Direct, for all you do! Love your content and passion.
Ciao for now!
-Sobel
Thanks for all of the tips and tricks Justin!
I really love a freestyle dark crystal with a floral pattern however if I’m being honest my favourite opal of all would have to be a gem centred Yowah nut showing all of the colours. I think we are very lucky in Australia though to have such a variety of stable and great quality opals that means there is at least one type that appeals to everyone.
Hey Justin and Co! First off just like to say it was a happy coincidence stumbling across your channel early this year, ever since then, your videos have been my go to relaxations at the end of a day or week!
Definitely would like to pay a visit someday when given the chance. I’d have to say I have a soft spot for crystals, double-sided polish or uniform, wide-shining patterns on black like broad flashes. Also brighter on darker of course if its black!
Hi everyone at BOD from me in Scotland! I’ve been obsessed with stones in general for decades. My favourite has always been opals. Why? The play of colour in them never fails to blow me away and takes my mind on a spiritual journey that’s hard to explain. Being a ceramic artist I love the connection to the earth opals have as does the clay I create with. The play of Opal colours always make me gasp in wonderment with the patterns so interesting and unique. I’d find it hard to pick a favourite but top of my list would probably be a lush crystal or a black Opal with some aqua. Shape wise, I do love a drop or cushion but to be honest I love them all! One day…💚💙💛🧡❤️
I think I like beautiful rainbow moss in black Opal the best. Chaff and pin fire are great as well. So a tear drop shape in a rainbow moss or chaff and pin fire pattern would be my favorite all around. I was lucky to find one (dark, not black unfortunately) in my own bag as I’ve been learning to cut. So that was great. Now I need to find cool pin fire and chaff pattern as well.
I love all types of opal the bright colours are mesmerising
Hey there Justin I love the distinctive patterns in every opal how they are so different no 2 are the same from black to grey and crystal the colours are so amazing and you do such a great job with your videos.Love ya work.
Haha Dave good to see you here my good friend
Hello! My favorite attribute about opals are their amazing colors. I love black opals, especially the rich blues in them. (It’s my favorite color!) I think the most amazing pattern was that one that looked like circuits! I’d never seen that before your channel! It’s also my oldest daughter’s birthstone as she is an October baby!
Happy Opal Month! And thank you for the opportunity to win one of these magnificent stones.
Now that I have to think about it, it’s really difficult to pick just one attriibute as my favourite.
I would say the way the color changes and the light plays with the Opal as you turn it.
(Excuse my English, I’m still learning it)
My favorite attribute of lightening ridge black opal is the way the black dark side traps the color and ironically makes the color even more vivid, vibrant and dense.
My favorite attribute of lightening ridge black opal is the way the black dark side traps the color and ironically makes the color even more vivid, vibrant and dense….
Hey Black Opal Direct Team
You’re doing a give away and I say I’m going in!
What do I like about opals?
The color and pattern combination makes it for me.
Like blue/purple yellow/orange flagstone would be nice.
But the best about opal is the secrets they hide in them to surprise you.
Thanks for sharing everything with us. Your videos make me smile.
Schöne Grüße aus Deutschland
Cheers
Hi guys! Love your videos – the metamorphosis from rough stone to polished gem is fascinating!
I have loved opals from an early age – my favourite attribute is the variety of colours in one stone – especially the flashes of red – unlike most other gemstones.
I was born in August and have always been disappointed in my birthstone! (Sorry Peridot!)
I love the opals with blue and red.
I been lurking and watching all types of opal content and i have to say for me i personally find pin fire the best
My all time favourite attribute would have to be a red green flash on black opals, I think they’re just gorgeous and always grab attention.
Thanks for the opportunity to enter such a fun competition, especially since my birthday is next week, fingers crossed I might be lucky.
Good Aye… And thank you for this once in a lifetime awesome opportunity! There’s so much depth and so many different types of opals how do I choose one thing. For one my 1st born is an October baby so his stone is an Opal. I loved opal’s long before I had him just got a bit extra lucky with that one 😉. Opals have such a memorizing and captivating way about them don’t they. That rush you get when you see the colors of say a black opal it’s like the Milky Way captured in a stone. Or a fire opal that air hair raising feeling when you finally feel like you’ve found that sweet spot and can start to polish her up. I love watching you take a raw piece and uncover layer up on layer of marvelous colors. I could watch and do watch over and over. And each time is like the 1st that “WOW” factor. Ok ok I’m sorry I’ve written so much but they really are such stunning masterpieces all of them . If only I could become an Opal someday when I am ash and stone what a lovely peaceful yet crazy idea 🤣🤦♀️✌️💜😀✨🦚 have a blessed day.
Our favourite attribute in opals is the uniqueness that every opal gives from the very beginning with the hunt until the end result set in the imagination of your heart and mind opal is amazing
My favorite attribute is the incredible colors. It’s like looking into a galaxy.
Thanks for the opportunity to enter!
Hi black opal family! I love the Flagstone and Floral pattern! I come from a Native American family and my grandmother loved opal! How you could see the depth in the stones! About 6 months ago before she passed she showed me black opal Direct on youtube! Ever since I’ve been watching it and it helps get me through tough times! I believe looking at opal is like looking in someone’s eyes you could really tell a person by the eyes! I love what you do here Justin keep up the hard work and the contact coming love it!
Good morning me again, I was just thinking about the alien script you uncovered in one of your pieces and_ how exciting that was to watch and edge of your seat nervous as well. That’s also a favorite thing about Opal’s watching a master craftsman uncover something so beautiful and one of a kind no less… I’ve got the creative and & explorative gene myself and love love making things and gifting them. Then finding out 25 years later people still have them. Warms my heart. Thank you Justin and family ✌️💜😀✨
My favourite patten: script
My favourite colours:blue/red
My favourite style: tear-drop
My quest with opal has only just begun but I only have you to thank for that Justin 8 odd months ago I saw a video of yours on YouTube and immediately fell in love with opal seeing your energy and passion for opal seeing how you shape and polish I have learnt everything I know from you Justin and inturn from your father and I will pass on my skills as you have asked as he passed on his skills to you now I cut thousands of dollars worth of opal every day for a collector and I get to see some of the oldest gems in the world for the first time it blows me away that I’m the first or second person to see such beauty in hundreds of millions of years and even if you don’t pick my comment I really don’t mind just knowing that you may read this comment and understand that you inspired me and thousands of others every day is enough of a win for me.
🖖Live long and prosper Justin love to you and your hole family.
Hello! First of all, thank you for bringing this opportunity to win such a special prize! In my case, I love the fact that such a vast array of colours and patterns are the result of millions of years passing by, creating a beautiful and delicate element. It is almost a metaphor of life!
Good luck everyone 🙂
I absolutely love your videos and black opals. I currently wear one of your black opals on my finger. It is by far my favorite ring and I get a lot of compliments. My favorite pattern is pin fire opals. I think they look like you are staring into the universe when you look at it. This is the kind of opal I purchased from you. They are all beautiful though!! I look forward to this contest. I will be purchasing from you again in the future. I need an opal necklace…lol
like you Justin, I love crystal opal – the 3d colour on colur that you find with some of them is just incredible
Hi! I started watching your videos when I happened upon an opal cutting video like a year ago! I thought it was so neat uncoving the patterns and colors. My favorite pattern though is the script pattern. You had on for a video I watched and I have never forgotten it.
What I love about Opal is the never knowing with some pieces how they will turn out. But when they do that play of colour appearing right before your eyes is just magical ! Love your videos !!
Gday Justin and the Black Opal team. Watching your videos with the colours and patterns that pop are hypnotising. They are the most incredible natural gem in my opinion with no two alike. Whether its the hunt for them in the ground or cutting and holding a finished opal, it would all be exhilarating. Happy opal month to all.
Cheers, Glen from Queensland
Hello from Woodville, OHIO!! (Near lake Erie) I love the Gladstone and chaff patterns! Well actually, all opal color! Even pinfire white! I enjoy the videos, keep them going, it’s always a great adventure watching you cut. When I cut my opals, I swear I hear your voice telling me to go around the edge and take a peek and almost guide me to the hidden beauty that is opal!
I love opal for the color and the fact that each one is unique.
The play of color in opal is just amazing, my favorite is purple.
Hello from Wisconsin, US!
What I knew about opals, before watching your channel, was so pathetic! I thought they were pale, watery-looking, with tiny flecks of colors. But then you folks showed this vast world of intense, changing, vivid colors, in every shade of the rainbow! Moss, floral or flagstone are my favorites, as long as they’re bright and full of colors!
When my husband and I got engaged, nearly 24 years ago, he was shocked that I didn’t want a diamond and didn’t want something new. He found a vintage estate sale ring, in downtown Chicago, and the jeweler helped him choose a sapphire that was just the right shade, so it would actually look beautifully, properly blue, when I was wearing it. They made a simple wedding band, to flow with the engagement ring, and then we had his ring made, with a center sapphire, too. We were dirt-poor and were so grateful to them for understanding our budget limitation and keeping us from adding on debt we couldn’t afford. Fast-forward to the present day – he lost the stone out of his ring! Now I’m scrambling to figure out if there is anyway to get him a new ring from you guys and reset mine, with one of your amazing opals! I wish you folks weren’t so far away, ’cause after all the scams running out there, I can’t imagine trusting anyone else to do this sort of project.
Your craftsmanship and heritage in the cutting world is an absolute delight to behold. Thank you for sharing it with the world!
I love opals with chaotic mixed patterns and colors. I know most people like consistent looks, but I’m an exception!
Hello from Colorado! I live far away from Denver sad I couldn’t make the show. I love a black with reds and greens really enjoy the flag stone pattern. Justin you just make opal so magical. I love your family stories that’s my favorite from your channel. Thanks for all the relaxing treasure hunts!
hello everyone from black opal direct. I’ve just started watching your videos in the last couple of months but they are for sure my favorite thing to watch on YouTube these days. my wife and i are big crystal collectors and one of her favorites is opal and ive been drawn to it in the process. being an october child, i suppose it was in my nature. i’m hoping to see you guys at a show sometime in the future. if i had to pick one set of colors that stand out to me it would be the blue and green patterns and if i could have just one in my collection it would be with the straw pattern. but in all reality, i just love them all. keep up all great work you do and cant wait to see what comes in the future.
I think my favorite aspect would be pattern. Cause all the colors look awesome! Some are better don’t get me wrong, but pattern gives the depth that makes you fall into the opal and it’s color.
Never thought I’d be so interested in opals as I have because of your YouTube channel. I mean, I loved opals before, but now, it’s on a whole other level!
Thank you!
Pattern: Script
Cut: Depends, symmetrical or free-form
Color: Intense! I love them all, just dialed up
Type: Crystal (not milky) or black
Shape: Oval
Black opal from Lightning Ridge, raindrop cut. Blues, greens and splashes of purple.
Paired with Australian Sapphires.
Love your work, keep inspiring
Did know opal was my birth stone. I ❤ the blue green pinfire and the 3d crystal opals. Your new tshirts look fantastic, I watch your videos weekly and you do inspire me.
Hi everyone
Thanks for the chance to win an Opal. I watch your YouTube channel as much as possible and really appreciate the time change on some of your live episodes. Both I and my elder mother have been watching all the wonderful stones that have been cut and they are beautiful! My favorite are the pin fire and moss in oval for a ring or small pendant with amazing reds and greens. Just want to say thank you for the entertainment from small town Arkansas USA.
Black Opal from Lightning Ridge, raindrop cut. Blues, greens and splashes of purple.
Paired with Australian Sapphire.
Keep inspiring ✨️
Thank you guys so much for educating my little brothers and I on opal, it really means a lot to us. I have also recently got into making opal jewelry from you guys. It would be amazing if we would be able to win any prize and I bet my little bros would go crazy. But from the bottom of my heart, thank you. 😁
I recently fell in love with Opals!! I had no idea how much fun it was working with them! I love how soft and of course how absolutely gorgeous they are! My favorite cuts would be oval and pear for Cabachons. I also like the rose and emerald cuts! 🤞🏻🤞🏻
Hey Justin & crew,
I’ve thoroughly enjoyed watching your videos, as well as seeing you expand your “brand”, from a cute family-owned channel to a whole production-oriented team with a fresh studio & everything!
With regards to my favourite attribute;
I can’t pin-point- a single one, as the whole collective diversity of opal is what makes it so amazing to me as a mineral- & gemstone collector. However, script is so exceptional! By means of rarity in the world of gemstones, that has to be the favourite.
Keep up the good work!
Kind regards,
Lars
Hello from Rome, Georgia USA! I love your channel. My favorite opal attribute is the color the reds, oarnge, blue green, but especially the green as it is my favorite. It reminds me of a dream I had where I was in a heaven like place and the grass had otherworldly properties. Opal is the closest thing I’ve found to matching the colors, its like peering into the secrets of the universe
Well this is a hoot. To be honest, my only knowledge base about opal really is from you folks here at BOD, and the other odd youtuber vid. I got into your content when I was recovering from knee surgery a few years back, and never left. When Justin had a bit of a cry around Christmas with that unreal script stone on a live I knew you were my people lol. Talented hands and gentle hearts.
Anyways, to the point. Since I’m a newbie, my favorite attribute is the play between patterns, the color on color. Like a chaffe over flagstone, or cats eye over pinfire (I honestly don’t know if this is even possible). Ive been Looking for a small crystal stone in mostly blues like this, to make a ring to honor my kiddos. Both born under supermoons, so looking for a very moonish stone, a crystal opal with color on color. Cheers all!
Just a lover of all things mineral and gem. Opal being on the top of my list for its natural beauty whether it’s rough or watching you polish out an amazing cabochon black opal. My favorite would be the rough knobby opals you get because I loved the surprise of what’s inside.
Thank you for all you do!!
I absolutely love opal. My favorite is a free form carved crystal opal with bright blue-greens arranged in a chaff pattern. Followed second by black crystal high-domed round opal with a bright multi-colored pinfire pattern.
Happy OPAL month to you all!
Thank you for all you teach us!
It’s awesome to be part of this opal loving family!
My favourite would have to be a gem black opal, purple & green coloured & heart shape. But all of your opals are lovely & I’ve grown to like all kinds. 😉
Hi Justin and mates,
I’d have to say my favorite LRBO is a dark striated in red supplemented with other colors. Your videos are great and instructional. I still have the practice lot and 300 carats I bought from you years ago. Maybe I’ll get to cab them this winter.
My god the colour or should I say colours they blow me away every time, I was a wildlife medic and a marine mammal medic but sadly have M.E. so spend a lot of time in bed so really look forward to your next visit as they come out sitting in bed my brew ( tea ) and you guys love maz
Hello Justin & Tamika, I am one of the lucky ones to have a birthday this month. The 7th is my day. I love all opal patterns and colors. Pinks, reds & yellows are my fave. Your channel was the first I ever subscribed to and still look forward to the next one. In my opinion, no other stone come close to the opal’s beauty.
My absolute favorite is the Heart shape Black Opal. I love everything about the beautiful Black Opal.
Hello and thank you for sharing your passion for opals! It always warms ny heart knowing you’ve been doing this for generations and the passion for the profession is still there! Opals are soooo fascinating! And knowing there will never be two opals alike sounds almost like magic! It’s like they have their own fingerprints 💕
My favorite opals are black opals (it’s interesting because if you’d ask me 7 years ago I would have responded differently but I grew to love them so much because of your videos!) I love any shape, but the round and oval ones look like droplets of water which makes them really cute in my eyes!
The color I love is usually the green/blue ones that are EXPLODING in color, I like bright bright colors and the pattern, I like any honestly! But if you were to ask me the clover ones are super cute to me but literally any other opal woule be cool. The green fire opals are also AMAZING. My dream is to own an opal and be able to wear it. I’d pass it to generations to come 💕 also I’m about to get married so it would be extremely special to be blessed by you guys!
I’m going to take this time and wish everyone in the family great health and more awesome years to come! Thank you again for spreading the love for this magical stones!
Hi! I became an opal fan after receiving a boulder opal from my grandfather who passed away earlier this year. My favourite attribute of an opal is the patterns and different colours you can see each angle you turn the Opal I love to spot new colours. Especially red!!
I think it is nearly impossible to pick any single attribute, all Opal is fascinating. If I had to pick I would go with black Opal with red/blue.
Hi, my name is Natasha and I’m from Ballina, NSW and what I would have to say would be my most favourite pattern and type of opal would be hard as there are so many patterns that go well with so many different body tones of opal so if I had to list them down to my favourite 3 in body tones, I would have to say that Black opal will always hold a place in my heart as it was the first ever stone that I cut a small fortune out of and that was a n3 base flagstone where the flags were large and had almost a peacock look to it which is why I love it so much, for a dark base stone, I would have to say a nice mix of floral broadflash with chaff pattern over the top is just stunning and for last, white opal I will have to say coober Pedy is great for white base and the pattern for it will have to be the plain and simple layer on later pinfire with a little mix of broadflash floral lighting up the background of the pinfire!
Those are my favourite patterns and ideas for my favourite stones that I will always look out for and dream of. I also wanted to say thankyou so very much for this opportunity to be able to enter this giveaway and I’m sorry for my rant but I hope it shows you how passionate I am about opal and thankyou for being the one to inspire me to get into opal and fuel this passion of mine that I think will last a longtime and I want to say thankyou.
I love the rainbow flash of color. Tear drop is my favorite shape.
Hey Justin. I believe you are the reason I got interested in opals many years ago. I remember watching videos of you and your father explaining just about everything on cutting and polishing opals. I have gained much knowledge watching your videos. I love all the patterns and color variations. My favorite is the burst of colors from pinfire pattern. My favorite shape is probably teardrop. I also enjoy various types of opal. It’s easy to become an opalholic! Thanks for all your informative videos.
Crystal or dark opal rolling flash patterns greens(favorite color)and blues love watching your videos!
For me, the different patterns are what make opals so magical. Of course, color and body tone all accentuate what is going on with the pattern, but how the flecks are arranged is unique to every stone. Like snowflakes, no two are ever alike.
Thanks for sharing your opal knowledge and stories, and opals!!
October is the best month of the year – the warm weather, the autumn colours, a bounty from the harvest. Firstly, the 3rd is my birthday. Secondly, Thanksgiving is celebrated in the middle of the month. Thirdly, Halloween comes at the end. It is only fitting that opal represent the month.
As much as I love all opal, my favourite is the crystal. Play of colour is what I love the most about opal Were I to have to make a choice in pattern, I suppose above all would be the pin fire. Oh, to have a ring of gold containing a bright crystal opal in the pin fire pattern containing reds, gold, blues, and greens. This would be my ultimate wish.
My favourite has to be lighting ridge crystal opal like the one you did a few videos ago. It look’s egg shaped to me. You said it was just like one your father had. You valued it at 25K. I think it’s the most colourful beautiful stone I have ever seen. Good on you for doing this for us. 🍻
Always enjoy watching you cut Opal.
As someone who also works in stone and was taught by an older cutter many years ago…..I understand the connection you have with your father when you are on the wheels. It is somehow very amusing to see you do one particular thing that always resulted in me being yelled at when I was in my early training…..even to this day I still do it and seeing you do it makes me smile.
When cutting a stone in half or sectioning, you keep the other piece in your hand while you continue to cut. I always hear my mentor yelling for me to put the other piece down in the pan. “You can’t work with that in your hand”. Well, I still don’t put it down and love that you do not either. You have great skill on the wheels and much respect from someone who has a few more years than you in the cutting business.
You show the world what a skilled set of hands can do with a rough stone. Peace and love to you and your team.
I would have say my favorite attributes are the beautiful color on color gems flagstone being my favorite pattern, I have to say i think a nice cabochon is necessary on an opal but we’ve all also seen some nice big carved pieces.
Ahhh this is so exciting! My favorite pattern has probably always been the flagstone-floral mix, especially with the peach and yellow tones. The way that each stone is completely one-of-a-kind is just so special (and I dare say that I’m quite hooked!) I love all of the body tones, although crystal or even white opal are probably the ones that draw me the most. But honestly, just seeing all these other people be just as enthusiastic as me about these wonderful stones and the artistry of the craft is enough for me. Thank you for what you do!
My favorite attribute of an opal is the type! I love all opals but dark opals are my favorite! I really enjoy watching all of your videos, thank you for posting such interesting content and thank you for having this giveaway!
First I want to let you know I’m very grateful for all your educational videos, I’ve learned so much and I started cutting myself. I love to cut cabs but lately found a special place in my heart for carving.
I have to say freeform carved chrystal opals with rolling colours that changes when you moove the stone is my favourite ❤️
Hello Justin and BOD,
I love nature and everything it creates, plants, animals, soils and stones. After my education in forest and nature conservation I broadenend my knowledge about geology especially about minerals. Living in the Netherlands we almost don’t have any rocky outcrops at the surface except from some limstones in the south. Thats why I learned about the “zwerfstenen” (erratic rocks) that i find mostly around the Rhine river. Here you can find stones transported from the north during the ice ages and stones from the south-east transported in the (ancient) river basin from the Rhine. I like all the stones i see but the most beautifull are a little bit more special. The nicest half-gems i’ve found are agates, jasper (red, yellow and green) and graphite. I’ve also find some nice fossils, the best one is a jasperized piece of wood with red, yellow and brown). Although agates, jasper, and flint are family of opal (bing chalcedony quartz) theres no chance of finding a opal anywhere around here.
As my interest in minerals grew i’ve assembled my own rock collection, also with stones from around the world tough i don’t think i have any stones from Australia. I own one really small piece of Ethiopian crystal opal with a small sand spot (or matrix). Althought it is almost worthless and the smallest stone I own (0,5 cm) its my favorite piece having green, red, yellow, orange and a little purple. Opal has become my favorite mineral especially because of your videos, whom i’ve all watched the past couple of years. I dream of owning a gorgeous Australian (black) opal but its too expensive for me.
What i like most about the opal is the play of colors. When there is color on color it looks like a small piece of galaxy. Not to speak about all the patterns and combinations of patterns that makes each opal unique in such a wide variety. The fact that such a beautifull stone is hidden beneath our feet in the ground where there is no light (so no color) and no one to look at it makes me more astounded. Though i also like the rough pieces or pieces with inclusions, you always make us see the most beautifull side of the opal when you cut and polish them.
I hope to watch many more of your videos and thank you for your very informative youtube channel.
With kind regards,
Jorg Braam
Hi Guys, love the show. Yes, you’re a show now and i look forward to each episode. Oh, a Justin’s humour, not his Dad dancing (joking).
In terms of attribute: it has to be colour, not color :p… colour in it different, unique forms is what makes opal a special gem.
Hi Jason & Tamika!
First, let me send hugs and a HUGE thank you to all of you for introducing me to black opals!!!
Until the amazing interwebs brought me to you, I had only see the Ethiopian opals that you had to be so careful with. 😬
BOD has opened up a whole new world to me, and I am totally besotted with Australian opals!
While I was trying to decide which attributes I admires best, I was going through the gems on the website. The only conclusion I came to was I have VERY expensive tastes!
So to be fair to all those gorgeous stones, I will have to say that what captures me most is the thrill of the hunt. I’m enthralled by your talent to coax the beautiful colors and patterns out of these somewhat mundane looking rocks.
To paraphrase Forrest Gump, Life is like rough opal, you never know what you’ll get!!
I hope we can meet some day, and thanks to all of you for so generously offering this opportunity.
I’m a big fan of opal; simple cabs are my go-to with any stone, but I’ve recently discovered your channel and look forward to learning more about stones and lapidary through your work. Thanks for the consistent effort y’all put into the content! While I’ve always assumed opal to be outside my financial wheelhouse, it’s always amazing- your filming captures the pieces as I’ve rarely seen stones and crystals shown. If I ever travel to Australia I’d love to get a closer look at your space and jewelry offerings. Best to you and the whole team!
Justin, et.al.:
I’ve always loved opal. Growing up I was so jealous of my brother since his stone is opal! I have come to adore the crystals with all that 3D color! Color wise, I like the dark ones, but those reds and oranges really speak to me. Thank you for being so entertaining and teaching me so much!
Hi Justin and fam! I’ve been watching your videos for a couple years now and have to say I love just about everything about opals. The flagstone patterns are likely among my favorites but really the opals that speak to me the most are the ones that have all the colors of the rainbow in one piece! When I was little, I was embarrassed that my mom’s engagement ring was an opal and not a diamond bc I thought that meant we were too poor for my dad to afford a diamond. Hahaha little me was soooooo naive. Her beautiful 3 ct oval high domed crystal opal surrounded by diamonds is the most valuable piece in the whole family gemstone lineup! Took me way too long to find my appreciation but now that I have, I would never say “I’m going in” to an engagement or marriage if the ring my man proposes with isn’t a rainbow colored opal🌈🧐😁
My favorite shape is oval. My all time favorite flash is flagstone with more red and orange colors. I came across your site on you tube over a year ago, and have been interested in watching you cut the opals from the rough. You and your team make it interesting to watch when I can. Sometimes I watch live and other times it’s replays, bit no matter I watch.
I love watching you do different shapes as it challenges you to make something different and interesting. I pray that you and your family and team stay safe and healthy.
Ohh, i like the blue/yellow ( I´m a Swede 😉 and pattern…hmmm, think i like Flag the most.
I love the color of opals. The layers and depth look like a galaxy. I can stare at an opal for hours.
Im new to opal, just starting to learn about it and enjoy cutting so far. I love watching you cut and teaching how to do so. My favorite pattern is probably honeycomb. Favorite colors would be red, yellows, blues and purple. Black or Chrystal opal are my favorite.
Has to be the colours, love the videos, always a fascinating journey from start to finish, my soon to be wife loves opals and in a search for opals found the channel and have watched the videos ever since, we ended up going with a white opal but the black opals were my favourites from the start.
Keep up the great videos!!
Script pattern became my favorite pattern after seeing it on your video. Volors dont matter as long as they are bright, deminsional and talk to me. Enjoy your videos as they calm me down after a long hard day at work.
Happy Opal month everyone. I discovered the Black Opal Direct YouTube channel a few years ago and seeing the amazing gems that Justin cuts inspired me to pursue a career in gemology.
My favorite attribute of Opal is definitely the color, specifically the blue & green combination. With a dark or black body tone it looks like deep shimmering water and I find that absolutely magical.
Hi Justin and Tamika!
I love the surprise that you get when curing into a piece of opal. My favorite pattern is flagstone.
Thanks for this opportunity!
I meant cutting not curing, sorry
My favorite opal is well all of them really. I love opal its my birthstone and feel so lucky to have such a beautiful stone as my birthstone. I do love when I see purple and red.
I really love all kinds of colors and patterns of Australian Opal. Love it all!
I love black opal with red, blue, green, yellow and other colors in a nice pattern with a lot of fire and movement every way you turn it!
I love all the color variations, and also the depth of color. Almost like looking into a little 3D world of opal color splashes.
Maybe not kosher but I love a fried egg look on an opal, where it has colour in the middle and potch or ironstone around. Happy opal month!
My favorite are flagstone and crystal opal with a mix of blue and reds, pink also looks amazing and when it has flashes of yellow wow! When the crystal opal has really good 3D depth it’s hypnotizing, I could look at it all day, the shape has got to be oval ahah, but also sometimes a more rectangular/squared look is also nice, depends on the gem I guess.
I can say that harlequin and pinfire are very interesting as well.
I can say I became really curious (read obsessed) with Opal after discovering your Youtube channel it’s really interesting to see the result and the process also, now I know the gems better and I love it, thank you for sharing and one day I’ll be a proud owner!
I am extremely excited for a chance to win a beautiful Opal! I love all the dark black opals with blues and greens! Not sure I have a preference on the cut. I have lost both parents this year and have gotten engaged! I have been on this sight often to look at all the beautiful stones. My fiancé got my fathers permission right before he past and said to let me pick my own engagement ring, and I would be honored to have one of yours to wear! Thank you for the funny amazing videos I look forward to them! Keep doing what your doing!
First off, howdy! And a quick question, what happened to “chaff” pattern in you pretty intro picture/video thing? Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate all the patterns, but you missed part of your own favourite? Or am I just blind?
I only heard of your videos recently, and I am as hooked on them, as I am on opal! I really love to listen to you (your accent is so amazing, and different from my own Canadian one!) impart your wisdom, and knowledge, and love of the opal, in your own unique, cheerful, calming, and silly way! No I am not trying to butter you up! I find your thoughtful approach to all the aspects of opal and life, to be one that we should all aspire to, as there is way too much negative, scary, downright horrific stuff out there in the world, especially now?
For the opal! My appreciation/love of this stone started way back in ancient times, when I was little, and I didn’t even know what it was looking at. I love the whole package of opal! Even when I heard having an opal, if it wasn’t my birthstone, was bad luck! What is up with that?? How can something so beautiful, and colourful, and mysterious, and MAGICAL, be harmful in any way? That first flash and SURPRISE! of colour from an opal was AMAZING, and when you show/shift any of your own work, my heart sings! Such a wonderful way to restore some GOOD/POSITIVITY back into the world. Even those that are “Beaten by Sand” or have small inclusions, or maybe even especially those, because they seem to represent the world more as it is, rather than as being perfect?
Sorry, enough blathering for now, but keep up the excellent work that you and yours do!!
Black Opal Direct
Hi there! You have contacted us outside working hours but we’ll get back to you as soon as we can.
Oh yay how exciting to have a chance to win something from you guys! I love your show as much as I love opal! ❤️ It would be amazing to win as my birthday is October 14th and Opal is my birthstone. My favorite kind of opal is lightning ridge black opal and I love the flagstone pattern the most as it has amazing colors and effects as you move the stone around. I also like the honeycomb pattern. Even if I don’t win I want to thank you both for what you do it is awesome to watch and it has always been a dream of mine to come to Australia and mine for opal and also learn how to cut stones. God bless you both! ❤️ one of your biggest fans…
The blue-green colour that seems to come up pretty often is my favourite colour, however, the opals that you’ve cut that really made me say wow were the red black opals!
My favourite bits about opal are mystery, depth perception and constant desire to look at it from various angles. Blue and green with a bit of orange/yellow os that catches my eyes mostly.
I love opal period. I’ve owned a crystal opal dinner ring (with a high dome and some color)for fifty years. I was very young when I received it. Lol. Some day I’d love to wear a black opal, but I love them all!
I’ve really learned a lot about opals watching your videos Justin. Up until I started watching, I thought opals were white. I far prefer the black ones, and especially those with red and blue which I know are rare but those are my favorite colors. I like them bright and especially like ones where the pattern is relatively even across the whole stone. One day I hope to own one. Your videos have provided a bright spot during some tough times and I look forward to seeing them every week.
Well first off I think its a dirty trick trying to pick a favourite, one day I might be feeling like “Hey. Today is an Oval black with deep blue greens with floral and chaff patterns all about… or maybe its a white drop with an orange broadflash….. but if put into a corner it would have to be the blue green black oval with floral and chaff… with a dark crystal with multile patterns going for that classic 3D colour on colour with a touch of all the colours in there
My favourite attribute has to be the patterns. in particular, the flagstone truly is a gemstone of many magical properties. It’s also my birthstone.
I love the colors of blue, green, or red on a Black Opal. I’m a Libra.
My favorite type of opal is black crystal opal. Super rare and special, just like everyone at BOD 🙂
It just feels like something out of a fantasy novel. Love opal so much
Hello Justin,
I am from Oregon, USA. This is my birthday month, I was born on the 15th. I like the flagstone pattern best as it shows the colors so well. I also like the script as it is so unusual. The blue, green with spots of red is a beautiful combination on black. Someday maybe I will have one of my own.
Have a great day!
Ganette Harley
I love the depth of color and the mesmerizing variety of Opal. It amazes me how different they can look depending on the variety and how even stones forming a foot from one another can looks so different. Truly a beautiful reflection of God’s handiwork in people too!
So many attributes to choose from, and its not the most expensive, but I find something very magical about script pattern opals – especially the infamous one that Justin cut with the hole in the middle.
Happy Opal month!! Very much enjoy watching your videos and learning about Opal from such a knowledgeable professional. My favorite type is black Opal with full spectrum of colors with flagstone mixed with a little bit of chaff pattern cut in an oval.
WooHoo!!! Love a good hootenanny!!! There is a lot to love about opal, being a retired lighting designer and technician for the entertainment industry, the play of colour is a huge draw for me!!!! I also love how the patterns has a big effect on the flashes too, harlequin and that scripty one are my favourites. The fossil aspect is also something really cool about opal that fascinates me!!! Thanks for all the work you put into you videos and the knowledge you share!!!
First of all, thank you for this amazing chance to get an Australian opal and other goodies! It’s hard to choose a favorite attribute of opals, but if I had to choose, my favorite would be a flagstone or pinfire pattern oval cut black opal from lightning ridge. The first time a saw a gem quality opal, I was blown away. It was like looking in to your own world of color. I was drawn in to cutting opals. If I won, this would be my first gem quality cut opal. I already have a large piece of potch from the United States. Happy opal month!
I think you guys have given me ‘opal fever.’ I live in place called Crosby, 8 miles north of Liverpool. My windows face West across the Irish Sea and because of the oceanic climate we often get fabulous cloud formations. I’m now seeing nobbies in the sky! As the sun sets glorious ‘colour bars’ can be seen breaking through the ‘snowy tops’ and the dark potch below. I imagine the sun streaked rain that fell long, long ago to form the inland seas that washed the silica down to its destiny! As for cuts? I’m just too overwelmed to pick yet!
I was a little lengthy in my previous post so this time I’ll try and keep it short… well shorter. As Ive said before,I’m an opalholic,so choosing any one attribute or even a favorite one is nearly impossible… like asking which one of my children or grandchildren I prefer… metaphorically of course 😂. But I’ll tell you the attribute (although not specifically on your list) that made me not just an admirer of the gem but what made me fall in love with it…I’ll call it the “mystery” of opal for lack of a better term. I know, Justin, you will definitely understand what I mean. Any other gemstone be it diamond or sapphire,ruby,or emerald or the myriad of other crystals gemstones out there( save for opal )when you get the rough stone there just isn’t any “mystery” if you have a rough diamond or other facet type crystal gemstone you know what it will look like finished or just about but with opal each one is unique that’s why most pairs or suites come from one stone because no two are alike… they’re like snowflakes. And although I seem to be describing uniqueness as the attribute I love most but opal’s uniqueness is only part of it….it really is the mystery of not knowing what each stone will become that draws me back time and time again. (I blame you Justin 😂 it’s all your fault…if I hadn’t seen those videos with you and your dad I might have through life as an admirer of the gemstone like most everyone else in the world but after watching your videos and being shown the “mystery” and magic of Australian opal well I guess you could say I’ve been ruined for every other gem) so yeah,the “mystery” is my favorite attribute…I’m sure there a better word for it but that’s what came to me. I know I lied about it being shorter,I hope I can be forgiven . Just wanted to thank you one more time Justin, I would have never cut my first opal had it not been for your videos,I know you get this a lot but I am forever indebted to you my friend.
Thanks for this opportunity as well… really cool idea.
Hello! I love all opals colorplay. It gives it a unique depth that no other stone can match. My favorite opal colors are the bright turquoise and the royal/navy blue. Blue is my favorite color, so I love that my birthstone naturally occurs in shades of blue. As an October baby and fellow opal lover, thank you so much for your work to make these beautiful stones available to all of us!
Hi Justin and the whole team,
Greetings from the Netherlands! My favorite kind of opal is the crystal, with all kinds of beautiful colors that shimmer when you move it around. My heart is always skipping a beat when you say ‘I’m going in!’ Always exiting to find out what’s in there! Keep up the good work!
Hello Justin! Thanks for the opportunity to win a beautiful gem, I always wanted to have an opal of my own! My favorite pattern is definitely chaff, with… anything! Just one sparkle of chaff, and I am happy! Color doesn’t even matter. All beautiful!
Favorite attribute is that it’s my fiancee’s favorite stone
Hi Justin
Thanks for a a chance to win !
My absolute favorite Would be Black opal in a Harlequin pattern !
A close second is the star opal specifically the southern cross opal ! that is gorgeous !
My favorite attribute has to be that Script pattern that you uncovered in one of your videos awhile back. Such a shame it had that sand spot.
for me my favourite is chinese writing/script pattern but failing that flagstone and broadflash on black, oval shape, high domed preferably.and im a sucker for reds in the stone
What I love about opal (besides watching you cut it!) is the uniqueness of each gem and the dizzying array of colors they display.
Hi! I discovered your you tube channel, because I was watching the show about opal mining. Wow. It is much harder than you think it would ever be. And dangerous. I was riveted. The intensity of the miners, situations and that not every mining adventure proved fruitful. When I found Back Opal Direct, and watched, you, Justin clean cut and out of a clod of clay, find a stunning opal, working it until it is there, like a magical gift! I found myself pulling closer to the iPad to see better! Lol! My favorite attributes of an opal are as follows… the stunning colors each one Carrie’s in its depths. I am always drawn to the ones with the blues and greens with flashes of yellow or Sunny orange. The blues and greens , lighter in color, make me think ethereal color, magic, a stone gifted with magical properties, like a soul shining brightly. The deeper, intensities of fire opals with indigo blues and emerald green colors are something I picture a warrior embedding into their sword, for protection in battle. The purple flashes are just icing for me in those,
I love the cabochon cut, domed, because it looks regal. It is splendid in its glory, and as a singular piece of jewelry like a pendant or a ring, set in gold, it is perfect in its imperfection. I also love the odd shaped opal cuts, because sometimes they set off the color found deeper, makes it beautiful! But, I love watching Jason cut, and shape the opal as it tells him to, by how the color comes out, what colors come out, and that sometimes the perfect shape, isn’t perfect. Then, it is up to the jeweler to find a way to create a piece to set this unusual stone, off to its own perfection. This is what I love, about Opals! Thanks, Kim Lorton from Kennesaw, Ga.
Hey BOD team! Thanks for this contest!
A favorite attribute of opal is hard to choose! Between color, depth, changing appearance based on angle…
But my favorite attribute has to be the absolute uniqueness of every piece. The fact that no two opals are the same. Every opal says something different – one can feel like a cosmic body such as a nebula, another a Christmas party from earlier in your life, and another may feel like the dream world itself. The infinitely unique nature of opal has to be my favorite attribute.
Hi!
Super excited about this opportunity!
My favorite attribute to opals are their light reflection/different patterns. I love how two opals with the same base body tone can look so different depending on their pattern. Love all your work!
Not sure where to leave the comment for the competition. My favourite colour is a black Opal will blues and greens with a pattern of pin fire or flagstone. I love ovals and heart shaped stones. It’s my birthday on the 13th October and so the Opal is my birth stone and one day I hope to be able to own my own piece of Opal. 🤞 ps keep up the good work, I love watching your videos
Hi team!
I’d have to say my favourite opal (of course) has a black body tone to really make the colours pop. I am partial to more the pinks but do love a deep blue. As for pattern I love some floral, broadflash and can’t forget the king “harlequin”.
I do like my Opals set as rings but have seen some really cool pendant settings out there so there could be an opal pendant on my horizon to add to my collection of stones cut by my husband, turned jewellery ❤️
Love ya work team!
I like the mystery! With such variation of the size, shape, colour and pattern each one is it’s own surprise. No two will be the same and you never know what you’re going to get next.
What I love about opal other than the beautiful play of colors, the different types of patterns, an that not one opal is the same, is that growing up my mother had a collection of stones and fire opal was her favorite. . . Unfortunately we had a fall out. . . In discovering your YouTube channel I had taken it upon myself to cut a 9carat cabochon yellow opal for my mother an as before I was able to give it to her my mother had passed away from the pandemic suddenly. . . . . So what I love overall about opal is the memories as child looking over opals with my mother and as of this day I wear opal in remembrance of my mother and the memories I have her just talking about anything and everything while looking at her collection. . . So when I see opal I see my mother and I dedicate this comment to her “Teddi Rae Jewell”, I miss you a ton mom
Love the channel and videos from the team, I’ve been watching for a few years now and I’ve learnt about the different names of patterns from them. Flagstone, chaff, pinfire, Chinese script, harlequin to name a few I’ve learnt about.
I have to say my favourite attributes are the colours and patterns in opal. So many types of patterns and mixtures together. Nature is a beauty and at its finest with the colours of the rainbow in opal.
Hello ! I hope you are all doing good ! I personally think that black opals with bright red flashes are the prettiest ones. The red color gives such a mysterious tone to the gem, it’s kind of hypnotic in a way…
Hello! I’ve only been watching your videos for a little while but they’re wonderful, educational and relaxing— I haven’t really explored all the different opal attributes but I love red flagstone patterns in black opal. (Maybe someday I’ll be able to afford one!)
I think I love the color variability of the black opal the most. Every piece is different.
My favorite color is red on black. I saw my 1st one in a museum in Cleveland Ohio when I was a child. I have loved black opals from then on. I have purchased 2 opals from you and love them both! My favorite shape is round and then oval. My favorite is pin fire and lots of it and next flagstone.
Hi all! I love opals in every form and colour probably due ti being an October baby! I will be celebrating my , ahem, aaaah 55th year upon this great big blue marble on the 17th. If I had a choice in a stone to wear I would say black with red flash is my absolute favorite. I really do love them all though and am fortunate enough to have been gifted my Great Aunts Tiffany opals in Glass with glycerin as well as her solid pendant. I save those pieces for special occasions 😄 Thanks for what you do, I have learned a lot from watching you! Peace, Larissa
My favorite opal attribute honestly has to be good ol lightning ridge true rough opal with that glimmer of color behind a pale skin awaiting to be revealed by the masters hands! My favorite pattern in an opal rough specimen is the stacked bar pattern that makes for an unbelievable surprise when properly cut! Thank you for all that you do and do for the opal community!!! You are a true LEGEND!!! 😀
Thanks for the opportunity to win a giveaway! I have enjoyed your videos for quite a while during the lockdown. I have wanted a piece of black opal for a long while.
I particularly love the cabechons in oval with green/blue/red. And the flagstone or script pattern. They are fascinating! The play of color makes opals irresistble.
Truthfully any opal is a gift of God!
Hi Justin and Tamika, great to catch another live session!! My favourite attribute is play of colour. I go weak at the knees for an extremely bright double sided high dome Justin hand turned oval crystal opal AKA “EBDSHDJHTOCO” Opal 🙂
Keep up the great content guys!!
my favorite thing about opal is the variation! so many different patterns and colors to choose from. one day i will own an opal fossil!
Hi from Edmonton, Canada! My favourite opal by far is 5/5 brightness crystal opal, especially when there’s a good colour range and you’ve got colour on colour. Pretty hard to beat in my opinion!
Happy opal month!!! I think opal is the best gemstone!! It has so much versatility!! A diamond is a diamond, with only a few colors, same with most gemstones… but an opal??? It can be a dark opal or a crystal opal, it can be a black opal. it can be flagstone pattern, pinfire pattern, chaff pattern, or all 3 or a completely different combination of patterns!! It can have blues, green, reds, oranges or every color of the rainbow!! There’s so many endless combinations it can be!! And the good thing is they’re all beautiful!!! Thanks for everything you guys do!!
Gotta love bright pinfire on black.
Thanks for all the work you all do on the videos. Kind of like meditation, watching your videos (sorry if that sounds weird😂).
My favourite pattern would have to be a flagstone and the blues and reds are my favourite colours! 😃
I love the fact that each opal is totally unique in colour pattern and design …….. the most Beautiful gems ever !
My favorite kind of opal is a crystal opal. I feel so lucky to have opal as my birthstone. When I was young, I didn’t really appreciate opals, but my dad took us to the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History and I saw a large, raw crystal opal and it was the most beautiful stone I had ever seen. It was magical, and I was hooked!
The reason I’m infatuated with Australian Opal is that it’s not a hydrophane type of Opal. So many others Opals from around the world are, and they can temporarily lose their play of color when saturated. Australian Opal keeps it’s natural brilliance and colorful patterns without fading due to moisture absorption. That is my favorite attribute.
Hi from Amsterdam
my Birthstone is a Opal, october 22,
My favorite is a cussion cut bleu green broadflash opal
I enjoy the live sessions and de fun you have with each other
Happy opal month!
After much contemplating,I cannot choose one single attribute. For me it is everything about opal that fascinates me, from the formation to the mining to the cutting and polishing. And thank you so much for sharing the Dreamtime story, that was awesome!
Oh my gosh Opal month and my birthday so Opal is my birthstone. Love watching you work, amazing what you do.
My fav Opal is definitely a crystal Opal, my favourite pattern is flagstone.
I live in the Isle of Man so I realise you probably wouldn’t want to post a prize to me but just wanted to say keep up the good work, and happy Opal Month to one and all.
Regarding opal attributes, my favorite pattern is script.
Regarding giveaways, I like simple entries like this.
For me it’s that every opal is unique. The wonder of nature captured in a stone, each different but equally mesmerising.
I have a soft spot for classic Lightning Ridge black opal, the blues and greens are so harmonious and tranquil, pools you just want to jump right into.
Thanks Justin for sharing so generously your passion and expertise and bringing colour to the world!
I have been a life long lover of opal seeing how I am an October baby its inevitable.I have spent many hours gazing in to the polishing wheel wondering what new and amazing miracle of mother nature is going to appear. I would definitely call my self a gem and mineral obsessed amateur.I have been cutting and polishing everything I can get my hands on.I think my favorite well two favorite ones of yours would be the Galaxy, its like the whole world wrap up in a tiny little view.It is truly pulls you in to its own journey of time and creation. The other that I love love is the Serendipitous Opal.Not only is the story behind it heart warming.The stone its self reminds me of humanity, everyone’s one glimmer shine and sparkle some bigger and brighter some small a just a little fracture but each and everyone counts towards the bigger picture. I must say I truly love this company and all the staff you all have been amazing always will to go the extra
My Favorite pattern is flag stone , color would be the bright green ones mixed with anything , favorite shape would be a cusion cutt ,and style would be the bright n5 ones for black opal poch on the back 🙂
Well ALL I know about Opals is from Black Opal Direct (OK and I have to admit a few episodes of Opal Hunters). It got us through COVID Quarantine when we first found your YouTube page and I’ve caught up on each video going back 10 years. My favorite attribute would be the levels of depth (or what you would call ‘Color on Color’) of any bright patterned black crystal Opal (but if I had to choose it would be Pinfire over Striated!). Beautiful Opals should not exist, but they do. Thanks for letting us into your world!
How can you pick just one attribute about opal that is your favorite?
The gem itself is so unique with every one being different in color pattern and shape!
I guess if I had to pick it would be when opal is cut into free form or when it is tear drop shape!
I could never say one body tone or color is my favorite because I love it all but my favorite colors to see are the purples or pinks and the harlequin pattern is quite incredible. I’ve learned so much about opal through your videos and I get excited everytime you post something new.
Thanks for the opportunity to win anything just being able to see the beautiful gems you work on is already such a prize in itself!
Thanks for all of your informative and entertaining videos. It’s amazing to see you reveal the gem hidden inside the sand and potch. I particularly like the pinfire pattern in a dark opal. It reminds me of a night sky but with incredible color!
I am absolutely fascinated by opals! Since I was about 13 my father would show me some opals that my grandfather had collected during his time in Australia. Ever since I’ve loved learning more about them. I am a big fan of the cushion cut opals with a vibrant play of flagstone pattern. The play between iridescent green to yellow and brilliant blues make me spend I don’t know how long getting lost in their beauty. I love your work and passion in educating all of us. Thank you!!
My favorite part of an opal, hmmm…. right I’d have to say the pattern is the top for me, i find it really interesting when you have multiple patterns on a gem especially if there is a clear divide down the stone between the two patterns
My favorite attribute about opals are the deep almost ultra violet hues of black opal. They shine with a color that almost feels like it’s outside our visual spectrum. Kind of like seeing something you aren’t supposed to be able to see. Like a glimpse into another dimension. When reading H.P. Lovecrafts “The Coulour from Out Of Space” my fist visual was of a gaseous and amorphous cloud with the colors of a black opal.
Sorrry I missed the live. What I love about Opal the best is the UNIQUE pattern and beauty of each and every piece. We in the family try to watch each episode. I’m an October baby so I am opal! Someday I will find that stone that speaks to me and make a man’s ring out of it. A whole lot of them have spoken to the Mrs., who’s sitting next to me watching. 🤔 Keep on showing us the transformation from rough to beauty! Love you guys. Over here in Massachusetts, we don’t get over to Tucson very easily. Come to Boston!
Hands down my favorite thing about opal is it’s movement of color. No other gem or stone moves on the inside like opal does. Who but the Lord would create a rock that appears to have heavenly life inside it!