[Jewelry making - Article 00029] - Re: [Orchid] Stabilized Vs. natural turquoise?

[Susan]

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Jeanne,

    It sounds like you got a steal of a deal with that turquoise. 

    Stabilized turquoise is generally a little cheaper than natural
    because, as was mentioned by another, lower quality turquoise can be
    made marketable with the process.  However, that does not make
    stabilized turquoise automatically less valuable.  When I bought
    some beads from the Sleeping Beauty Mine in AZ (when they were
    selling beads) the stabilized ones were only slightly less expensive.

    The process should not make them heavier - at least not noticeably
    so. Turquoise may be lighter than some stones, but not a whole lot.
    It is, however, more pourous. That's where the stabilizing comes into
    play.  It seals the surface, so skin oils won't change the color
    (which will happen with natural) and the material is less likely to
    break. Turquoise is a very soft stone, so breakage is always a
    problem. Stabilizing fills in the tiny cracks and crevices with a
    kind of plastic type material that would be prone to become
    fractures. Stabilizing will, however, make the material darker. 

    Personally, I think stabilizing makes the stone more useful for
    jewelry applications, but it is hard to beat the robin's egg blue you
    can sometimes find in the natural material. You just have to accept
    that it won't stay that way with wear. 

Susan
Sun Country Gems
www.suncountrygems.com

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