[Jewelry making - Article 00688] - Re: [Orchid] Blue Quartz

[Lumenea]

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    Awhile back, I purchased a cab of lovely translucent blue-green
    quartz from a dealer friend who was very upfront about the material
    being dyed. Since I planned to set the stone in a piece for myself,
    this wasn't an issue.  Brought it home, tucked it away in my gem
    storage and forgot about it for several months.  When I got around
    to tackling the piece in question, I found it covered with a fine
    aqua-colored powder. Assuming the powder to be a residue from the
    dyeing process, I cleaned it off and decided to wait a little longer
    to see whether this would continue. A couple of months later, more
    of the same, although not so much as initially. By the third cycle,
    no more powder appeared on the stone.  Interestingly, the color of
    the stone was never noticeably affected. Curious indeed. The
    completed piece has received lots of enthusiastic comments when I
    wear it, but I wouldn't consider using this material in work for
    someone else without being sure they understood the color was
    artificial.  Anyone else experienced this phenomenon?  How about
    long term color changes in dyed quartz? 

    Susannah Ravenswing
    Jewels of the Spirit
    Winston-Salem, NC 

    (...where we can hardly wait to move into our new home and studio in
    the Saura Mountains of rural Stokes County! Just three more weeks
    til the dream comes true !!!)

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