Cultural Art : Organic Gemstones - All gems are not created equal
|
|
|
By: Michelle Moore Leonard
Date Submitted: 2009-11-05 11:01:40 - Article Views: 56 - Word Count: 933
|
|
We at Out of Our minds Designs don’t just design and make pretty jewelry (that we do, as well as murals, painted furniture and carrying vintage gifts) but also collect and sell vintage jewelry, as well as recreate new jewelry from vintage components and stones. After years of doing this we have learned valuable information (along with education from the Gemological Institute of America), and we’ve decided to share our knowledge with our customers. This article will talk about “organic gemstones”.
It would surprise most people to know that the term “gem” does not mean minerals from the earth only, such as sapphire (corundum) or amethyst (quartz). The term gem encompasses a large array of substances, including organic gems. Organic means ”once living”, such as Amber (petrified tree sap) or Coral (skeletons of sea animals) or most popular, the Pearl (from the inside of the oyster). We will talk about cleaning these gems at the end of this article.
So then what qualifies a substance as a gem? There are three traits it must have; Beauty, Rarity and Durability. Each trait represents a range, and each gem will differ in levels of traits, but these components must be present to qualify as a gem.
Pearls: By far are the most popular organic gemstone. Salt water or South Sea pearls are extremely valuable due to their rarity. Pearls develop inside the mollusk when an irritant enters the mother oyster and to protect herself, she creates a barrier around the foreign object called nacre. This nacre looks similar to the inside layer of the shell (“mother of pearl”, also an organic gem). The more nacre, the more beautiful the pearl. If you have some pearls from a family member, but are not sure if they are real, do this; rub the pearls across your front teeth. If real, there will be an unmistakable gritty-heavy feel. Now, take some of your “faux pearls” and do the same. There will be a super slick feel to them. Pearls are extremely sensitive and need special care.
Amber: Amber is fossilized tree resin fifty million plus years old from the Baltic Sea area. Amber can be clear or opaque and comes in a variety of colors from browns to reds and butterscotch and greens, but is most famous for the traditional honey color. Amber’s colors deepen according to the depth of the ocean it derived from. By far the most valuable amber gems are those containing ancient petrified insects. Real amber has electrical properties. Rub it over cotton or wool, then pass it over your hair and strands will follow the gem. To see if you have real amber heat a needle and touch it to the gem. Real amber will smell like pine. Plastic will have a chemical smell. Also real amber floats in water, where as plastic or glass will sink.
Coral; Skeletons of sea animals, this pretty gem was most popular during the Victorian era through the 1920’s, in turn making it more rare and valuable and flooding the market with fakes or synthetics. Dyed bone, glass and plastics can and do look like the real deal. However, real coral is much heavier than any of the above. The most valued coral is the “angel skin” pink and deep reds. To test coral, touch it lightly with nitric acid and it will effervesce.
Cleaning organic gems; All organic gems are fragile by nature and none of them, in my opinion should be submerged in ANY cleaners (and never put them into an electronic cleaner at all). Amber alone you can put in water, just lightly dip and rub lightly with a very soft cloth. Pearls and coral must be treated very carefully. I don’t know how many times folks have shown me real and faux pearls that have been stripped of their beautiful nacre, because of harsh cleaners, and then ruined forever. Never wear real pearls in the bath or shower, nor should you spray perfumes or chemicals near them. What goes for pearls also holds true for coral. Remember organic gems are porous, making them vulnerable to heat, cold, solutions, direct sun and more. In short they are very fragile. To make things more confusing, many organic gems are dyed. So, just washing them is a danger. To keep it simple, dilute some mild liquid soap with a lot of water. Take a very soft cloth, lay it flat. Dip another cloth in the solution and gently rub the damp cloth over the pearls or coral. Dry them gently. This is only if the gems are really dirty. Otherwise, just rub the piece with a soft cloth. For pieces with tarnished metal components and organic gems you can use gold & silver cleaner but use a Q-Tip on the metal only and keep the solution from the gems. This cleaning advice also hold true for opals and turquoise (the softest and most vulnerable of all gems) as well as many other fragile gemstones. When I was very young I ruined a turquoise piece a family member bought me while we were at the Grand Canyon. I kept dipping the whole piece in silver cleaner because of the tarnished sterling. The turquoise literally disintegrated like chalk. Some things we just can’t replace. We like to inform people where we can especially in regards to family heirlooms and vintage pieces. Take care of the family jewels, please.
And feel free to email us with your questions and comments.
|
Author Resource Required for Reprint:
For more information and to view our organic gemstones gallery, please visit http://www.outofourmindsdesigns.com
|
Article Source: ArticleMind.com 
|
Tags:
organic gemstones  organic gems |
|
|
Bookmark and Share
|
|
 Cultural Art Category Rss Feed |
|
|
-
The Austin Children's Museum is located in downtown Austin. This article describes some of the events at the Austin Children's Museum.
Viewed: 10 Times.
Read More ...
-
I feel nicely isolated with nature, having a near other worldly connection when I paint a landscape. For a few moments, I find inner peace. It's a feeling that we should all experience, I think. I want to share some tips and methods that I became used to using over time. They may help you on your own journey.
Viewed: 10 Times.
Read More ...
-
The Dreaming is the centre of Aboriginal religion and life and is the most important influence on their art.
Viewed: 11 Times.
Read More ...
-
Stained glass has had a long history of over 5,000 years throughout Europe, but due to the late discovery of North America the art form has had a rather short run comparatively in the States.
Viewed: 11 Times.
Read More ...
-
One prevalent trait of all Native American art is the use of animistic themes. These are themes that stem both from lore and from shamanic teachings and experiences.
Viewed: 11 Times.
Read More ...
|
|
| Michelle Moore Leonard's Author Feed |
|
|
-
It would surprise most people to know that the term “gem” does not mean minerals from the earth only, such as sapphire(corundum) or amethyst(quartz). The term gem encompasses a large array of substances, including organic gems.
Viewed: 56 Times.
Read More ...
|
|
Article use is considered your agreement of our Terms of Service.
This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
Thanks for visiting ArticleMind.com
Copyright © 2009 - 2010 ArticleMind.com
|
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
Print
