900jewerly's Blog For Mother's Day

1) We have all seen the ads touting “SOLID 14K GOLD.” However, this is simply not true as there exists no such jewelry item containing solid 14k gold. Solid gold is as it exists when mined from the earth in an exceptionally pure form. It’s entire make up is simply pure gold-or as defined in the modern world; 24 karat gold.

To attain the level of 14k gold, the chemist must dilute the pure 24k (1,000%) gold with a ’specification alloy’ of approximately 415%. According to all worldwide acceptable standards- the pure gold has now been reduced to 14k gold, or in many countries .585 gold.

Following this formula, 18k gold must contain 750% pure gold, 250% alloy.

2) “Why did my brand new, solid 14k gold ring turn my finger green? My other 14k gold rings wear fine and are no problem.”

There are two MAIN areas in which this problem can occur. Neither one is very nice. One, the ring may have a hallmark inside the shank indicating 14k, but could be anything but…The Jewelers Board of Trade, and the U.S. Customs Service are overwhelmed and undermanned and there is far too much fraud being perpetrated upon an unsuspecting purchaser by dishonest jewelers. Too many known instances whereupon the gold content is very, very low wherein the percentage of alloy simply overwhelms the gold content-thereby making such a “green finger” reaction possible.
Read more…

chick-jewelry-necklace

Gold

Gold is the most popular jewelry metal for men’s and women’s wedding and engagement rings, and is also customarily used in the crafting of earrings, pendants, brooches, necklaces and bracelets. Gold is a highly valuable metal, and is one of the most coveted metals in all of history. Gold symbolizes riches, wealth, and good standing, and in its purest form, is impossible to tarnish. Gold jewelry is sophisticated and refined, and is a divine and precious metal that is perfect for all occasions.

bird-jewelry-necklace

Pure (24-karat) gold can sometimes be too soft and malleable for everyday wear. Therefore, gold jewelry is usually complemented by a mixture of other alloyed metals (such as silver, copper, nickel and zinc) to help it retain more resistance and strength. While purer gold’s are rarer and more exotic, they are oftentimes prone to being bent or twisted. Since other alloying metals are employed to build gold jewelry’s resistance, gold then becomes more likely to stain or to tarnish. Pure gold can never tarnish, but in gold pieces that are mixed with components of nickel, slight discoloration may occur over time, and it is possible for the gold compound to leave a dark residue on the skin. When purchasing gold jewelry, it is best to stick to the higher karat gold. If the gold jewelry is to be worn everyday, make sure it is between 14-18 karat gold. (The karat measurement denotes what percentage of the gold jewelry is made of pure gold. For example, 18k gold is 18/24 real gold, or 75% pure gold.)
Read more…

Kathleen Dughi’s work brings complexity and craftsmanship to the high-end jewelry design world. Her work is highly appreciated in the US, but her background and experience comes also from Italy and Switzerland. She refined her style and skills so as to win several important prizes like the Spectrum Award and two Honorable Mentions from De Beers Diamonds International Competition.

About her work Kathleen confessed: “I design for the woman with a strong sense of individual style – the woman who has refined taste and seeks out jewelry that reflects that.” Even if she is regrettably lost, her team of designers continues to design and create wonderful pieces under her name, vision and formation.

from the Bound Earth Collection

Artist Andrea Williams grew up near the coast of Maine where she got inspired by the ocean and coastal nature. Her jewelry are made from beachstones and every single piece is spectacular. In this post, I have presented only the items from her Starry Night collection.

Although I like all Andrea’s pieces, these are my favorites! But every piece is unique and impressing and if you are interested you cand see more jewelry at Bound Earth Presentation Site. There are also theKebyar, Sa, Kyuma, and Mani padme collections. All the jewelry lines have with Tibetan inspired names.

Of her work, Andrea Williams states, “My jewelry is an expression of the wonder I sense in the overlooked intricacies in nature. When we see stones in infinite numbers underfoot at the beach, we cannot help but to miss the unique perfection in each.”
So Good she works !

beads_for_life

Few of us, if any, can fathom the adversities and tragedies women living in the extreme poverty of Uganda have had to endure. Violence, HIV, and hunger plagued the community until a chance encounter between a Ugandan woman sitting near her mud home and beads for Life founders, Torkin Wakefield, Ginny Jordan, and Devin Hibbard offered hope.

Inspired by the beauty and uniqueness of the paper beads the woman was creating, Torkin, Ginny, and Devin, realized this distinctive talent held within it the opportunity to create income for the impoverished community…

BeadforLife Eradicates Poverty: One Bead at a Time

Since 2004, BeadforLife has provided sustainable income for Ugandan women and their families by selling their beautiful jewelry, handmade from recycled paper. The women are HIV+ mothers, refugees from a brutal civil war, former prostitutes and other impoverished people. Before joining BeadforLife, all of the members struggled to get by on less than $1 a day.

Thousands of people have responded to this innovative project and opened their hearts, homes, and communities to these determined women. Hundreds of thousands of people worldwide partner with the beaders and share the BeadforLife spirit by wearing the vibrant jewelry, and talking to others about how to end extreme poverty. The average beader now makes more than $2000 a year during their membership – five to seven times more than they made before.

BeadforLife acts as a ladder out of poverty, providing women not only income, but entrepreneurial training, business funding, health programs, and the chance for women to build a home of their own.

With great ingenuity, beaders have started small ventures such as a poultry business, or a vegetable stall. The beaders, directly and indirectly, support over 4000 other people, who enjoy better health, housing and education.

beadsforLife invests in human potential, and the dividends are impressive:

99% of members say their lives have improved since joining BeadforLife

Over 90% of respondents report their health, housing and diet has improved

85% of graduates either opened a business or built a home; 42% did both

Members sharing a latrine with 10 or more families went from 50% to 6%.

With its vision of a long-term, sustainable community, BFL invests its profits back into community projects that fight extreme poverty in the areas of health, affordable housing, and vocational training/entrepreneurial development.

If you’d like to learn more about beads for Life or visit the online store, follow the links below.

Coral is not a mineral but a hard calcareous substance consisting of the continuous skeleton secreted by many tribes of marine coelenterate polyps for their support and habitation. It is found growing plant-like on the sea-bottom. With pollution on the rise everywhere it is becoming increasingly rare, to the extent that even the most prized, the Mediterranean coral, is threatened with extinction.

Coral was very popular until a few years ago, but has now become too expensive for most pockets. Its increasing rarity does. however, make it a good long-term investment. You would be wise to buy Italian coral rather than specimens from the Far East, which have often been adulterated.

The best corals are generally considered to be those of a deep rose red colour, though some jewelers would tend to disagree. Understandably so, when it is almost impossible to find more than one or two necklaces of this shade in a hundred ! As regards white and pink varieties, choose without hesitation the colour known as “angel’s skin”.

Weight-wise, coral is worth more on today’s market than gold, which is why it is such a sound investment provided, and I stress this, it is of the best quality. The finest specimens come from Sardinia and Tunisia; larger, less fine ones from Japan and China.

Coral is cut en cabochon or used for beads and sometimes small carvings. Beware of imitations, such as coloured shell or bone.

Coral as Gemstone/Gem

Coral is a gem that is not a stone but fossil. it is found in the sea. There are coral islands in many parts of the seas. We find this gem quality coral from the coral islands in shape of trees.

People love to use coral in Jewelry because of its vivid red color. It is also found in white color. Of course, white corals are less expensive.

Coral is rich in calcium and used for traiting patients with calcium defficiency.

Shaping,Cutting and Polishing of Coral

The earliest known gold jewelry made in the Americas has been discovered in southern Peru.

The gold necklace, made nearly 4,000 years ago, was found in a burial site.

Archaeologist Eugenia Zevallos showed the necklace to journalists.

“This finding is very important for Peru and the whole of South America. It’s a gold necklace, made of gold beads laminated with turquoise…It’s from 4,500 BC so it’s 6,500 years old.”

Researchers say the necklace suggests someone at the time already had the time and knowledge to make this ornament. This is a completely shock to researchers because people living in this region at the time were found primarily hunter-gatherers.

There is no evidence at the site that shows how it was made.

For now they are just specks only visible through a microscope,but a century form now the pearls from these tiny freshwater mussels could be on sale in an upmarket jewellry store.

They endangered species could be saved from extinction thanks to a captive breeding scheme launched by Environment Agency Wales.

Just 100 of the original batch of 70,000 have made it this far and these three-year-old mussels-the size of a pinhead-are properly visible only through a microscope.

They will not be able to leave their hatchery for up to five years and will not reach full adulthood for at least a decade.

But with a lifespan of more than 100 years,they have the time to develop and to benefit from what the agency hopes will be improved water quality in Welsh rivers to meet European Union guidelines.

The agency’s Huw Jones said:”We are really pleased to see these young mussels develop.

“Their breeding cycle is such a complex one that it hasn’t been easy,but we are starting to see results.”

Agate is a variety of  chalcedony formed from layers of quartz which usually show varicolored bands. It usually occurs as rounded nodules or veins.

Often tiny quartz crystals form within the stone and add to the beauty and uniqueness of individual stones. These crystals are called druzy(sometimes misspelled as druzy). Lapidaries often cut just the drusy from an agate and jewelers use these drusy cabochons as the main stone or as an accent stone in their jewelry designs.

Some named varieties are: moss agate, eye agate; and plume agate, which looks like it’s filled with beautiful feather plumes .

Agate is a relatively inexpensive stone except for some varieties with unusual banded or scenic markings.

Agate is found all over the world including: the Africa, Asia, Brazil, Egypt, Germany, India, Italy, Mexico, Nepal, and the USA.