- Mexican Cantera Opals
Another one of my discoveries at the Gem & Lapidiary Wholesalers show were these Mexican cantera opal cabochons. I was completely captivated by their color and flashes of irridescence. These actually caused me to totally blow the budget I had set for myself, but I think they’re totally worth it, and I’m looking forward to making some gorgeous new jewelry with them.
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Regarding the care of opals, let me begin by saying that I am not an opal expert, so when in doubt, please consult an expert, but I have read up on them a bit and hope you’ll find these tips helpful.
Opals have a hardness rating similar to glass, so they’re prone to scratching and cracking if they get banged around too much, so be sure to remove any opal jewelry, especially rings, that might be at risk of damage during physical activities like excercising, moving or gardening.
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Opals have a high water content and should be protected from prolonged exposure to strong light or heat and sudden changes in temperature which can sap the moisture over time or cause cracking. You should also avoid exposure to acidic or alkaline solutions and cosmetics, desert conditions, airtight storage and low-humidity storage (such as in a bank vault).
Gently clean opals with warm water, a mild detergent and a soft toothbrush or cloth. Do not use ultrasonic or steam cleaning methods which may be too harsh.
One note if your opal is a “doublet” or “triplet” which is essentially a thin layer of opal glued to a backing (and with a quartz top layer in the case of the triplet) you should avoid prolonged exposure to water and detergents which can damage the adhesive.
Again, I hope you have found these tips to be helpful. If you have any tips of your own, please feel free to share them in the Comments section!
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While shopping at my favorite local jewelry tool supplier (FDJ Tool) this past weekend, I spotted a girl with some cool earrings which inspired these. Hers had a lot more going on than these, but I liked the look of her earwires and wanted to try something similar. I’m very happy with the look, but now that I’ve made these, I’m not sure how secure they actually are. I’ll have to take them for a test drive this week to see if I can make it to work and back wearing both earrings.
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To make these, I started with some sterling silver sheet and used a metal punch to cut out a disk and cut it down the middle with a jeweler’s saw. I also picked up a couple of design stamps on my shopping excursion, and used one to hand-stamp these dainty little stars. A little sanding smoothed the edges and gave them a brushed finish, and I added the silky grey pearl dangles to give them some swing.
Feel free to comment and let me know what you think!
Here are a couple of new things that I have been working on this week.
Sterling silver & copper wire-wrapped Amazonite rings (click for larger view)
I love the look of a chunky, gemstone cocktail ring and have made two wire-wrapped rings with faceted Amazonite stones. On one, I used 18 gauge copper wire which will patina over time, and I made the other one with 20 gauge sterling silver wire.
Sterling silver & Swarovski crystal earrings (click for larger view)
I made these earrings by wrapping sterling silver wire into a herringbone pattern around peacock-blue Swarovski crystals and added smaller peridot Swarovski crystal dangles as an accent. Peacock colors are a big Fall fashion trend this year. The color combinations are so rich and exotic! I’m envisioning a night out on the town with a smoldering, smoky eye and these earrings as a strikng accent.
