Summer News from Your Jewelry Box
Designer Jewelry For Discriminating Women July 2008
In This Issue
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Turquoise necklace
Turquoise ring
Turquoise bracelet
Greetings!
Imagine! We're already in midsummer. Many weeks of warm weather lie ahead and it's hard to think about anything but having fun out of doors. We hope that you enjoy many wonderful days this summer. However, we are already planning for Fall and Winter. New designs and gift ideas.
People stop to admire the jewelry we are wearing. We proudly hand them a business card and invite them to visit our website: www.jewelryboxus.com. The internet is such a great, easy way to shop for yourself or for gifts.
We proudly stand behind our jewelry and will repair or replace (if materials are available) anything that might fail. Remember that handcrafted items should be handled gently, with the same love with which they were made.
Turquoise: King of Gems; Gem of Kings
Turquoise lore: During ancient times, turquoise jewelry was worn to protect a person against evil forces. Wearing a turquoise stone has always been considered as a symbol of good fortune. It is said that wearing turquoise jewelry helps the wearer feel cheerful as well. It was also considered a way to get the one you love.
Turquoise is a perennial jewelry favorite. It has been prized as a gem or ornamental stone for thousands of years. Turquoise does not occur in Turkey as its name might imply, but was traded at Turkish bazaars to Venetian merchants who brought it to Europe. It has adorned palaces, places of worship and homes, and its color has been used in tiles, cloth, and paints.
Turquoise occurs as opaque blue, blue-green, or green depending upon what minerals are present. Blue is attributed to copper while green -- sometimes yellow -- results from the presence of iron or dehydration. In the American southwest turquoise is usually associated with the weathering products of copper and is often recovered as a byproduct of large-scale copper mining operations.
This beautiful gem was among the first to be mined. Persia (modern-day Iran) or the Sinai Peninsula remain sources of the most highly prized naturally blue turquoise. In the United States, Bisbee (AZ) turquoise has a hard chocolate brown matrix and is considered some of the finest in the world. Because turquoise is found in so many parts of the US Southwest, it is easy to understand why Native American jewelry makers made such wide use of the stone. In China and Tibet, green turquoise is prized and many good quality stones come from there.
Because high quality turquoise is scarce today, some of it is treated or "enhanced." Good quality turquoise polishes to a beautiful luster, but light waxing protects the soft stone from discoloration from oils and moisture. However, some stones are dyed, reconstructed from fragments, or impregnated to enhance color. Imitations such as dyed howlite are also on the market.
If you are shopping for turquoise, it's important to turn to a reliable source. It is fine to buy lesser quality stones that appeal to you but the seller should provide you with the correct information.
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Caring for Turquoise and Silver Jewelry
Turquoise is fragile and sensitive to harsh chemicals. Perfume and other cosmetics will attack the finish and may alter the color of the stone. Also, skin oils and most commercial jewelry cleaning fluids will adversely affect the color. Prolonged exposure to direct sunlight may dehydrate or discolor the gem.
Cosmetics should be applied before putting on turquoise jewelry. It should not be worn to a beach or other sun-bathing environment. After use, turquoise should be gently cleaned with a soft cloth to avoid a build-up of residue. The jewelry pieces should be stored in their own container to avoid scratching by harder gems. Never store turquoise jewelry in an airtight container.
A dilemma arises when turquoise is set in silver. Sterling silver is 92.5 parts silver with the remainder being other metals, mostly copper. The best way to polish the silver portion is with a soft cloth with has been treated with chemicals to remove tarnish. Be careful to avoid the stone(s). A good quality paste silver polish applied with a soft toothbrush to the silver and rinsed in cool water works well, too.
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Click on any photo to view the details on our website.
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Sincerely,
Evelyn and Bill Clark - designers and jewelers
Your Jewelry Box LLC
Contact Us
43 Winton Rd.
East Windsor, Connecticut 06088
860-623-6394
info@jewelryboxus.com
www.jewelryboxus.com
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