Some brief information about the gemstones you will find in our jewellery.
Abalone
Amber
Amethyst
Brown Quartz / Smokey Quartz
Citrine
Cubic Zirconia (Cz)
Diamond
Hematite
Mother of Pearl
Onyx
Pearl
Peridot
Rose Quartz
Topaz
Other information you may find useful:-
Silver - Why is it called 925 or Sterling Silver?
Are your pearls real?
Care of your silver jewellery
Abalone
The Abalone is mollusc prized for its flesh which is considered a delicacy in some parts of the world, and for the beautiful shell interior which is coated in nacre or Mother of Pearl. The Mother of Pearl can range in colour from silvery white to pink, red, blue, green and purple, depending on the species. In New Zealand the Abalone is more commonly known as the Paua.
Amber
Amber is well known to be the fossilised resin from trees. Although most amber is golden to yellow to orange in colour it can also be found in black, red, violet and green. Each piece is somewhere between 30 and 90 million years old and can contain pieces of twigs, pollen, leaves and even insects. The majority of amber today is Baltic amber, coming from the shores of the Baltic sea.
Amethyst
Amethyst is a variety of quartz, found in shades of purple through to pinky lilac. It is mined all over the world, but the main producers are Brazil and Zambia. Other countries that produce Amethyst are the USA, Australia & Austria. Amethyst can be heat treated to change its colour to yellow, producing Citrine.
Brown Quartz / Smokey Quartz
As its name suggests, brown or smokey quartz is brown in colour and is found in shades ranging from a smokey grey to black.
Citrine
Citrine is the yellow or golden variety of quartz. The best citrine comes from Brazil, Spain, Russia and Madagascar. Natural citrine is generally a pale yellow colour, but much of the citrine available today is heat treated amethyst.
Cubic Zirconia or Cz
Cubic Zirconia is a stone most used as a simulated diamond because of its flawless qualities. It is equivalent in colour to a rare and perfect Grade D diamond although it can be changed to other colours to replicate stones such as amethyst or Peridot. It is beautiful in its own right and is a very affordable alternative to good quality authentic gemstones which are more expensive.
Diamond
Diamond is of course the most prized of gemstones. Pure colourless gems are the most sought after, but there are other colours available from yellow to brown, to blue to pink. Diamonds are graded based on “The four C’s” which are Colour, Cut, Clarity and Carat (weight) Almost half of all diamonds come from Africa.
Hematite
The name hematite comes from the Greek word for blood, haima, because when cut it produces a blood red colour. It has a metallic lustre and is black to silver grey in colour. Much of it comes from England, North America, Brazil and Australia.
Mother of Pearl
Nacre or Mother of Pearl is the internal coating of a Pearl Oyster shell. This smoothes the shell and defends the mollusc from parasites. Mother of Pearl can be in as many colours as pearls, but is usually creamy-white to pink or lilac. Because it has the same iridescent quality as pearls it makes beautiful jewellery.
Onyx
Onyx is a variety of crypocrystalline quartz, chalcedony, and has bands of black, brown and white. The most well known and popular colour is pure black.
Pearl
A pearl is formed when a small shell bead or irritant is introduced into the fleshy tissue of an oyster or mussel. The mollusc responds by secreting a substance called 'nacre' (Mother of Pearl) which it coats over the irritant in layers eventually forming a pearl. There are many types of pearl, the most well known are freshwater, Akoya and Tahitian. For more information on each type of pearl, click here. The link will take you to our sister site Simply Pearls.
Peridot
Peridot is an olive or bottle green version of the mineral olivine. The depth of colour is dependent on the amount of iron it contains, and is one of only a handful of gemstones that only comes in one colour. Peridot is found on St John’s island in Egypt, (also known as Zagbargad, Zebirget, Topazios), and among other places Brazil, China Mexico, Arizona in the USA, Australia and Hawaii.
Rose Quartz
Pink or peach coloured quartz is called rose quartz. Brazil produces the most but Madagascar produces the best quality.
Topaz
Topaz, one of the most well known gemstones, occurs in a range of different colours from yellow to pink, blue and green. Its name is believed to have originated from Topazos which was the ancient Greek name for St Johns Island in the Red Sea or from the Sanskrit word tapas meaning fire.
Silver - Why is it called 925 or Sterling Silver?
Silver is of course a precious metal not a gemstone, but we thought you would like to know a little about it and why it is often referred to as Sterling Silver or 925 Silver.
When newly mined or highly polished, silver has a silver-white colour and metallic lustre. It is a very soft metal in its pure form, too soft to be used in most jewellery. Because of this and because when exposed to oxygen, it blackens or tarnishes, it is often alloyed with other metals, the most common of which is copper. The ratio is 925 parts silver to 75 parts other metals, hence 925 silver! The phrase sterling silver is believed to be from English 13th century coinage when pure silver was alloyed at this ratio to create a harder sterling silver coin.
Silver can be coated with a rhodium plating which helps slow down the tarnishing process. Rhodium is part of the platinum group of metals, is very durable and has highly reflective properties.
All sterling silver jewellery is hallmarked with the makers mark, and the numbers 925 which indicates it is made of 925 sterling silver!
To clean your silver jewellery, it is recommended that you use a special silver cleaning cloth not silver dip or silver polish which can damage the gemstones in your jewellery. Our silver cloths are twin layered, the centre being impregnated with silver polish to remove small amounts of tarnish, and the outer layers are to buff to a beautiful shine.
Are your pearls real - the 'Tooth Test'!
The simplest and quickest (but perhaps not the most hygeinic!) way to tell if a pearl is real, is ro rub it gently against your front teeth. If it feels gritty or grainy it is very likely to be real. If it feels smooth it is probably imitation. This isn't completely foolproof of course, especially if the pearls have been heavily dyed, but it is certainly a very good guideline.
We do not sell faux or imitation pearls. All of our pearl jewellery, even the red, blue and green pearls, are real freshwater pearls, they have just been dyed!
How to Care For Your Silver Jewellery
To keep your jewellery in the best condition, we recommend the following care:
- Do not immerse your jewellery in water.
- Never spray perfume, cosmetics or hairspray on, or near your jewellery.
- Store your jewellery in its original box if possible, away from other jewellery which may rub and cause damage.
- Store silver jewellery in a dry area to reduce the risk of tarnishing. To keep that rich shine, lightly polish your jewellery with a soft dry cotton or jewellery cloth.
- Always remember, jewellery should be put on last and taken off first!
