Precious and semiprecious gems bring to mind images of beauty and great riches. I have been fascinated with natural stones since childhood. My mission with this blog is, to explain why these stones and the jewelry made with them long fascinated the human population. They have inspired myths, curses, and have been using as medicine. People have treasured gems for many reasons. Some of these reasons include the use of gems as adornments, beautiful ornaments, amulets, and good luck charms. Gems have been used for barter and medicinal purposes. For others, the gem has been used to display wealth and power.
HISTORY OF GEMS
A Gemstone (also called a gem, jewel, precious or semi-precious stone) is a piece of mineral crystal which, in cut and polished form, is used to make jewelry or other adornments. However certain rocks like Lapis Lazuli or Opal, and some organic materials that are not minerals, like Amber or Pearls, are also used for jewelry and therefore are often considered to be gemstones as well. Most gemstones are used in jewelry because of their luster or other physical properties that have aesthetic value. Rarity is another characteristic that lends value to a gemstone. Today gemstones are identified by a gemologist, who identifies a gemstone from its chemical composition. A gem maker is called a lapidary or gem cutter. Gemstones have no universally accepted grading system. Historically, all gemstones were graded using the naked eye. Most gems are cut and polished for the usage of jewelry.
Cutting and polishing: The two main classifications are stones cut as smooth, dome-shaped called cabochons, and stones which are cut with a faceting machine by polishing small flat windows called facets at regular intervals at exact angles.
The value of the stones is decided upon attractiveness, durability, rarity, fashion, and size.
HISTORY OF JEWELRY USING STONES
The history of jewelry is long and goes back thousands of years with many different uses among different cultures. It provides us insights into how ancient cultures lived.
Reasons humans have used and still use jewelry:
- Functional, generally to fix clothing or hair in place
- As a marker of social status and personal status, as a wedding ring.
- As signifying some form of affiliation, like ethnic, religious, or social
- As to provide talismanic protection
- As a carrier of or symbol of personal meaning, like love, mourning, or personal milestone
- Superstitions.
MOST POPULAR STONES IN JEWELRY
I make beautiful jewelry using natural precious and semiprecious stones. I know that some stones are more popular than others. Is it the look, or people buy these pieces for the stones’ properties? I tried to research this, but each resource had different opinions! So here is what they all agreed on: the most popular natural semiprecious stones:
- Rose quartz
- Garnet
- Amethyst
- Jade
- Aquamarine
- Opal
- Moonstone
- Onyx
- Lapis Lazuli
- Turquoise
- Citrine
The most popular color is shades of blue.
The marketing mix of precious and semiprecious stones is widely varied. Gemstones differ vastly from color to size to clarity and origin. In short, no two stones are identical, each one is Natures Art. Therefore, it is very hard to standardize.
Because of their uniqueness and beauty, I am forever fascinated with these gems. Sometimes I just sit and hold a stone for a while…it tells me how to enhance it and use it in the piece I am planning to create. I miss the art shows when I can see up close how these stones affect people. Lapidary people usually get excited just finding some unusual stones, but most of my customers stand long minutes a front of my displays before they say something. I make many styles and use different colors.
I am known to make unusual pieces, which harmonize with Nature’s Art. My customers usually return and we thank the gems for many longtime friendships! Most of my stone jewelry contains one of a kind pieces, sold on my website: www.threebutterflies.net, in museum shops or upscale boutiques. I do custom work creating new styles from inherited old pieces. Also, weddings or group orders are available from certain styles. Contact me and we will create something beautiful together for your occasion.
