SELECTING & BUYING CABOCHON ROUGH
Now, as a beginner, know that it doesn’t matter always what type or grade of material you choose. As you progress you will naturally learn what you like and what you want to work when it comes to materials. supply vers demand and whether you just want to keep it as a hobby, or try to make a little money at it. But there are a few things to take notice of when choosing rough for cabochons cutting.

Fractures; though allot of folks cut cabs with fractures, including me, take notice when selecting rough the amount of fractures, and how bad they may be. As in cases of material like classic AZ Rainbow Petrified wood. The majority of rough you find can be full of fractures, resulting in small ready to preform pieces. But small pieces only, fractures reduce the size of the finished cabochon. And cabochons with fractures in them are not desired by most professional jewelers. So if you find rough with lots of fractures, ask yourself if its something you just want to try and cut, or is it something i want to resale after its cut.So its OK to exploit a fracture to obtain cuttable material. I find myself doing this often and calling the finished cab "Natural Freeform". Just be mindful fractures can and do cause cabochon failures when cutting, during setting, and after years in a setting.

Color; to me is very important, and there are many varying opinions on the ideal colors, or combinations of colors. The most important thing to remember is to observe your rough with the skin/matrix/host still on. Observe it windowed, dry and wet, indoor and in bright sun/light to get an idea of color intensity before cutting. It may need a window which you must create by whacking a chip off the skin to expose fresh material. Allot of miners "cobb" their material when mining, or prior to selling, but in some cases you may need to explore further. IN cases of Internet buying, when you only have a photo to reference. Take notice in the color around the rock. Allot of vendors play with color in the photo to make a rock look better. This is reflected in the photo, not the rock. So the background or lighting may be off.

OR in cases of vendors who use the wrong lighting when photographing a rough rock. Take advantage and ask them questions about the color. Sometimes when i photograph white or off white rocks. The yellow color emitted from the camera casts the photo and stone a yellow color. Sometime i color correct this. But in most cases i note in the description that is not the natural color.

Contrast; is an important thing to me as a cabochon cutter. Contrast is most commonly dictated by patterns, but it can also be noted from the true color of the material like in the cases of Chrysoprase or Amber, allot of fine rough can display such intense color, it glows. The more contrast of colors and patterns the nicer the cabochon. Slabs are a great way to see contrast in a rough piece prior to polishing. Because its proven and you can see all the patterns or color combinations that make up contrast. But in allot of cases, you can see the awesome color from the get go in the photo or in rough. So if your concerned about getting a good piece to cab, buy slabs and not bulk rough.

Always remember how rocks are. And waste is and should always be a concern of yours when buying any rough. Cabochon rough can have allot of waste with the good areas. And in that case, ask yourself as above, Am I wanting to just try this material, or resale it? And as i state in the first paragraph of this write up, this is part of the learning process to train your eye. And that involves getting crappy rough from time to time too. Only by mistake.

Vendors; an important step is going with a vendor that not only will refund your money if you buy bad rough, but one who will answer your questions further when asking about certain materials they are selling. Or you have bought from them. Talk to your vendor and ask them for what you want, color/pattern/grade/clarity/Hardness/Size are all factors when buying cabochon rough. Any vendor that wont answer, or says they don't have time to answer. To me shouldn't be on your list to buy from. Mainly because you learn in the rough market for cabochons. Most rough is junk. And allot of vendors buy into the junk, slap and nice name on it. OR bulk sell it for real cheap. They don't want to waste any time telling you how bad their rough is, putting them selfs further on spot when selling junk. OR that it so common, if you actually shop around. You may be able to locate it next door to your home, and for nothing except a few beers to the neighbor. There are many types of cabochon rough, or gemstone rough that is sold by the gram and carat. And its rough you will want to take notice in time. But i implore anyone new to the hobby to understand its not a cheap hobby. And there are just as many cool and beautiful rocks that are sold as cheap rough, then there are gemstone roughs sold at high prices. So wait till you at that point of investment ideals in rough for cutting and reselling. Before just going out and buying a bunch of rough opal for example.

I often get customers who send me opals to cut. In which they spent allot of money for them. Only to find out they can not cut them because one can ruin opals real easy. And for cutters like myself, i get them and see they are common or beginner opals. In which my customer paid to much for, think they were real gems because of the price. When in fact they were only low grade rough that they could of practiced on even if ruined. Such opals are very easy to replace.

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So there can be many factors, even more than i state here. But these will get your started in the common market for buying rough to cabochon. Just remember to take to time to ask questions. This is probably the most important step in buying any rough. You can read as much as your like and still get burned when new vendors or new roughs, new names hit the market. The more you ask, the more you will find out what it is exactly you want to cut. Impulse is a good thing for buying rocks too, just be mindful of costs. And if you pay allot for rough, and someone tells you that you paid to much. Don't be offended, find out more and become a more educated rough buyer.