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Gemstone Index: Moonstone

Gemstone Index: Moonstone

With its ghostly glow, this feldspar stone almost seems magical. High-quality rainbow moonstone is usually chatoyant and sometimes displays a strong cat's eye. The floating-light phenomenon and sheen of moonstone are called adularescence or schiller. The light is scattered by alternating layers of two kinds of feldspar and produces a misty luster of white, dull yellow, yellow-gray or greenish-gray. The stone's main color also comes in shades of peach and gray. Incipient cleavage cracks often are …
Feb 23rd 2023 Rings & Things Staff
Footprints in the Sand Earrings Tutorial

Footprints in the Sand Earrings Tutorial

Created by: Summer MelaasDesigner TipsLay out 10 sunstone beads in an ombre pattern (lightest to darkest).Cut two feet of the 26g wire.Wrap a few tight wraps at the top of the wire part of the ear thread, and thread one bead on the wire. Holding the bead tight in place, wrap the wire twice around the ear thread.Repeat until you have wrapped all the beads down to the loop at the bottom of the ear thread. Cut off excess wire. Using your chain nose plier, pinch the ends of the wrapped wire to tight …
Feb 23rd 2023 Summer Melaas
Gemstone Index: Lava Stone

Gemstone Index: Lava Stone

Black Lava Stone Beads: Black lava stone beads are cut from basalt, a type of igneous rock formed during volcanic eruptions. Due to their holes and bubbles, lava stone beads add great texture, but not a lot of weight, to jewelry designs. Lava stone is naturally rough in texture, and our beads appear to be treated with a paraffin wax to make them smooth to the touch - plain basalt would be rather abrasive! Lava stone beads are a great base for Art Clay Silver paste and other Metal Clay pastes - j …
Feb 23rd 2023 Rings & Things Staff
Gemstone Index: Prehnite

Gemstone Index: Prehnite

This pale green stone has the distinction of being the first mineral named after a person. In the mid-18th century, Dutch mineralogist Colonel Hendrik Von Prehn (1733-1785) discovered it within Jurassic dolerite (volcanic rock) on the Cape of Good Hope, South Africa. For many years, prehnite was regarded as a fairly rare gemstone. However, recent finds in Australia and China have made it available through many gem dealers. Prehnite is a hydrous silicate of alumina and lime, with bright, almost l …
Feb 23rd 2023 Rings & Things Staff

Gemstone Index: Black Stone

Black Stone beads and pendants provide basic black gemstones that will perpetually remain in style! This semiprecious gemstone closely resembles black onyx, but since we have been unable to verify its true classification, "black stone" is the most honest descriptive name we can give to these beads and pendants. Black stone jewelry components generally appear less shiny than black onyx components.
Feb 23rd 2023 Rings & Things Staff