OK so I thought we could have a thread to discuss what cherry/pineapple/strawberry quartz actually is (normally it's glass if you didn't already know).

All about what different minerals are sold under the name jade.

What you are actually buying when you buy turquoise.

How various stones are treated to give them the best colour and durability and other such subjects.

(again please bear with me while I try to get some info together).

i learned a lot from the fmg catalogue!

Not all Strawberry/Cherry/Pineapple quartz is glass, quite often it is dyed quartz. I am just double checking that with one of my contacts in India, I will let you know his repsonse (once I have deciphered the pigeon english!)
If you buy Turquoise chips/beads from me, thats exactly what they will be, although some people try to fob you off with dyed Howlite, its so easy to tell the difference. Howlite has lots of grey coloured veins and is generally quite 'flat' (for want of a better word) Natural turquoise comes in green shades as well as the turquoise colour we all know, its shape is much more natural (this is in chip form I am speaking of) .If anyone is unsure, just send me a pic and I will let you know if its natural or not.

Topaz is the one to look out for, generally it is dyed quartz (or glass in some cases) even some gemstone sellers try and sell is as natural Topaz, if all my strings of 'Topaz' were natural I would be quite a rich lady! The colour will rinse off very easily, in fact it will come off all over your hands. If you want real Imperial Topaz, start saving up, dont be fooled that by buying a string for £2.99, you need to add a couple of naughts on that price. I dont like to sell it, but people always ask for it, I state on my adverts that its not real and the colour will run.
I dont know of any gems sold as Jade when its not Jade, as it is available in abundance and very cheap so there is no need to immitate it. It can be very easily dyed and it holds the colour really well, you can get some fab purples/reds/candy apple colours of Jade.
If in doubt about any stone bead, smash it with a hammer, you will soon know if its glass on not.
Ive spent many an hour chasing beads round the floor with a hammer, round ones can run very fast LOL!
I will write some more when I'm not so busy, gotta get ready for the bead fair on saturday,
If any one needs any specific info on stones please PM me, i will get back to you as soon as I can.
Alison

What Alison says about Topaz is true....I carry real namibian Topaz, and it sells at a minimum of £43.00 per string just for the nuggets. I also have magnificent individual Twist faceted Topaz pendants, and they are at least £30.00 ea. I also agree that not all stones are glass, but in fact many are dyed quartz....but Alison is the expert on stones, would love to know more if you have the time Alison?

Cheers
Mark

Alison your a gem!

smashing one (chip i mean ) with a hammer..thats a good way of finding out if its dyed or not.. never thought of that!

Lynda x

I know this is a fairly old post, so I don't know whether this has been discussed elsewhere, but I have this information (from a reliable source) on turquoise.

Natural Turquoise - turquoise that is so hard and beautiful that it is simply mined, cut, polished and set into a piece of jewelry or carved into a fetish or sculpture. Less than 3% of all the turquoise on the market worldwide is natural and very expensive, be cautious of turquoise which is described as natural, it is most likely to come from one of the catagories below.

Stabilized Turquoise - soft or "chalk" turquoise has been infused with a clear epoxy resin. The resin, under pressure, absorbs into the rock, which permanently hardens the rock and deepens the colour. Unlike the collectible natural turquoise which deepens in colour over time by gradually absorbing oils from the skin as it is worn, the colours in stabilized turquoise are permanent. Most of the turquoise on the market is stabilized. Stabilized turquoise is still very beautiful, and is a good buy.

Treated Turquoise - soft or "chalk" turquoise that is stabilized as described above, except that the epoxy resin is also dyed. Colours in treated turquoise have a tendency to look artificial. Prices should be much less than natural or stabilized.

Reconstituted Turquoise - turquoise "chalk" that is lower grade and has been ground into powder, saturated with epoxy resin, dyed, and compressed into blocks or cakes to be cut into shapes for jewellery making.

Imitation Turquoise - there is no turquoise in this category. Either there are stones like Howlite (white stone, very porous) dyed to look like turquoise or there is pure plastic (epoxy resin) that has been dyed to look like turquoise. It is a shame that these materials are set in silver and priced as if they had intrinsic value


I hope this is some help

That's great info thanks for sharing it with us

What a great thread. I knew most of what's been said, (some of it I learned from this forum) but I didn't know about topaz.

I've got some Strawberry Quartz in the shop, and I'm pretty sure it's not glass. I'll have a closer look, and maybe smash one, but it's so pretty I'll be really reluctant.

Just to add to the discussion, Goldstone and Blue Goldstone are both glass with copper filings added for the sparkle. I think most people will know this, but it's always sold among the gemstones.

Celia

Concerning Goldstone, this is what is said about its origins...
sometime during the early 1800’s, an Italian monk was making glass at his monastery. He accidentally spilled some copper filings into his molten glass and, voila, goldstone was born. The recipe for making goldstone was kept secret by the monks, but was handed down through time.

I bought some goldstone, being drawn to how pretty it was (also marketed under the name "blue-sand sun sitara) I knew it was too good to be true. It is beautiful though.

Where can I buy Lava Beads in the UK, I have some 15mm round ones from america, but it's too much hassle to get more from the states so I was hoping someone in the UK would be able to find me some?

There are many factories in China selling fake gemstones on ebay, they are very cheap though so I figure I am not doing any harm by buying them and making beautiful jewellery as long as I don't try to pass them off as authentic.....