(Future) Whitby Jet protects (x2)

[Daisys and Diamonds]

I feel you... it's never pleasant. Good luck!

About the malachite, there are synthetics out there (but very badly done, so quite obvious). Please post a clear close-up pic and let me have a look.

We don't have great lighting in this house even in daylight because with Gary's eyes we have to close the curtains to keep the sun out and live like vampires

I can't find the matching earings - those and the heart are just set in some kind of bass metal and hasn't had a bath in about 25 years

 

[Autumn in New England]

The malachite beads are 100% genuine.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

The malachite beads are 100% genuine.

 

[Autumn in New England]

Here is what the fake ones look like... very obvious!

 

[Autumn in New England]

Natural larimar...





Fake "larimar," which is likely dyed quartzite.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Here is what the fake ones look like... very obvious!

Thank you for the reference
The fakes do look very bright

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Natural larimar...





Fake "larimar," which is likely dyed quartzite.

The 2nd picture from the top doesn't look too far off mine
i mean obviously due to the cost mine have the less bright blue colour in predominance and some of my more 'yucky' ones look more genuine
But then some look like the next picture down too

i messaged the seller
I mean perhaps its dyd lamair ?

But i see on your examples on the fakes the colour fade from blue to white is more gradual than on the genuine
(So not looking terribly good for me)

I loved them i think because i have a thing for marbles (i still pick them up out of the gutter if i see one)
We had a huge bag of them (still do somewhere) as kids
there were these ones that had been mum's called blood shots - white with fire engine red swirled through them
but we also had a couple of blue 'blood shots' that were my favourite

When the 'larmair' first arrived i think that's why i immediately feel in love with it
I did try to rub the dye off with asatone and nothing happened

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

I found these but the price (hopefully a true reflection of genuine larmair) is just out of the wheel house for the jet

perhaps as a necklace of stand alone larmair and/ or with pearls

This item is unavailable - Etsy

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[Daisys and Diamonds]

I need to get motivated and go do something else
Its a beautiful day outside 17 degrees

If the dye can be made stable maybe i just string them up as dyed quartz and move on
at least the jet would be made useful
would it be mind clean ?
Sigh
its just a string of beads hardly the crown jewles or even an engagement ring

I think about my $30 dyed pearls and how much i love them - mind you they are still real pearls

The thing is I still really love how these beads look with the Whitby jet

None of my pieces from the mall jewler are perfect and i still love a fare proportion of them
Sigh

oh i paid by visa debit

I guess lets just see what the shop owner comes back and says

Its still not as bad as my recent pearl restringing i had done at a jewler in town that was a complete and utter dogs breakfast - and cost more than the lamair (and its shipping)

Sigh

Edit
i mean is it fake larmair
Or is it pretty dyed quartz ?

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Just found a 1/3 of a broken fasceted jet bead on the floor


sigh

And 3 of the smaller newer round jet beads (undamaged) to even up the score

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

I take terrible pictures

 

[Autumn in New England]

I found these but the price (hopefully a true reflection of genuine larmair) is just out of the wheel house for the jet

perhaps as a necklace of stand alone larmair and/ or with pearls

This item is unavailable - Etsy

Find the perfect handmade gift, vintage & on-trend clothes, unique jewellery, and more… lots more.

www.etsy.com

Yes, these are definitely genuine. But, like you said, there's nothing wrong with using the quartzite! If you like the way they look with the jet, go for it!! They're not resin or plastic, you know?

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Yes, these are definitely genuine. But, like you said, there's nothing wrong with using the quartzite! If you like the way they look with the jet, go for it!! They're not resin or plastic, you know?

Thank you
ive gone out for a walk in the sun (before the rain comes) and i feel somewhat better
And i remenbered one of those fascated jet beads on the necklace had a crack any way

And then i found 3 more jet beads on the floor

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

So i got a message back from the vendor
he says something has got lost in translation as it is Italian larmair.( Which is what its advertised as )
He said italian lamair is white but when i Google i get zip

I am reminded of a story we read at school set probably in the 40s or 50s (we always had really old books) when a country girl went with her mum and stayed in a hotel in the city
At dinner time the young girl looked at the menu and picked colonial goose - not knowing that that was just lamb

I know lamair comes from the Dominican republic i just thought the beads were made from the rough in a factory in Italy and that's why it was called Italian larmair
Like how diamonds come from where ever and then go to a cutter in another country in the rough

Oh well live and learn i guess

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

He says its white, is real lamair minned in Italy and dyed blue
you ever heard of it @Autumn in New England ?

 

[Soseattle]

So i got a message back from the vendor
he says something has got lost in translation as it is Italian larmair.( Which is what its advertised as )
He said italian lamair is white but when i Google i get zip

I am reminded of a story we read at school set probably in the 40s or 50s (we always had really old books) when a country girl went with her mum and stayed in a hotel in the city
At dinner time the young girl looked at the menu and picked colonial goose - not knowing that that was just lamb

I know lamair comes from the Dominican republic i just thought the beads were made from the rough in a factory in Italy and that's why it was called Italian larmair
Like how diamonds come from where ever and then go to a cutter in another country in the rough

Oh well live and learn i guess

My understanding has always been that true larimar is only found in the Dominican Republic. Recently I have seen other things trying to imply that they are larimar, like "larimar quartz". I think there are some vendors trying to capitalize on the real larimar by associating their products with the larimar name. Here is some information to help educate about the real larimar.
https://www.marahlago.com/larimar#

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

My understanding has always been that true larimar is only found in the Dominican Republic. Recently I have seen other things trying to imply that they are larimar, like "larimar quartz". I think there are some vendors trying to capitalize on the real larimar by associating their products with the larimar name. Here is some information to help educate about the real larimar.
https://www.marahlago.com/larimar#

Thank you

Yes i studied that web site complete with drool for months when i fell in love with their larmair octopus
I know larmair is only found in a tiny area and minners now have to dig deep to find the stone it is hopefully hidden in

So i knew it only came from the Dominican republic

In the far reachers and unreliable part at the back of my mind i think i did once read (can't find it now and ive looked for an hour yesterday) about white Italian larmair or rather Pectolite (im wondering now is it a false menory)
And i did buy a lamair octopuses pendent so i know what genuine larmair can look like

I came across larmair quartz myself on etsy and am greatful for those honest venders calling it quartz so i knew to avoid that and i did read up on fake larmair too so i thought i had done my due diligence
But i honestly thought italian lamair would be more like a 'trade name' like how kiwi fruit is actually native to China, but its grown and marketed by NZ ..
Hmmmm Italy also grow kiwi fruit for export
Oh well now i know what the Manuka honey beekeepers get so upset over (protecting a name)

But then i know french jet is glass so i guess its completly on me (and yet in error i also brought glass jet)

Its too bad the Dominican republic did not trade mark larimar

I do feel a bit silly now
i mean lucky it wasn't $100's of dollars (ive made a lot worse and more exspensive jewlery mistakes) and i guess i should have known the price was too good to be true

 

[Autumn in New England]

My understanding has always been that true larimar is only found in the Dominican Republic. Recently I have seen other things trying to imply that they are larimar, like "larimar quartz". I think there are some vendors trying to capitalize on the real larimar by associating their products with the larimar name. Here is some information to help educate about the real larimar.
https://www.marahlago.com/larimar#

Great post! As Soseattle mentioned, larimar is a one source gem only found in the DR. It is the blue variety of the mineral pectolite, which is found elsewhere (including Italy). It is much like how zoisite is found in several locales, but the variety tanzanite is only found in Tanzania. Anyway, my guess is this seller is suggesting that the beads are natural pectolite (which are dyed blue). His/her listing was still very misleading, and I doubt highly it's actually pectolite anyway. I'm 99% certain it's dyed quartzite. Again, quartzite is a really versatile natural material. So if your heart is not set on larimar, and you don't mind the color enhancement, I see no problem with you using them in your beading projects. But please don't feel silly! It happens to the best of us, and remember it is the seller who was dishonest. You were simply a trusting soul.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Great post! As Soseattle mentioned, larimar is a one source gem only found in the DR. It is the blue variety of the mineral pectolite, which is found elsewhere (including Italy). It is much like how zoisite is found in several locales, but the variety tanzanite is only found in Tanzania. Anyway, my guess is this seller is suggesting that the beads are natural pectolite (which are dyed blue). His/her listing was still very misleading, and I doubt highly it's actually pectolite anyway. I'm 99% certain it's dyed quartzite. Again, quartzite is a really versatile natural material. So if your heart is not set on larimar, and you don't mind the color enhancement, I see no problem with you using them in your beading projects. But please don't feel silly! It happens to the best of us, and remember it is the seller who was dishonest. You were simply a trusting soul.

I am sure i had read about white pectolite from Italy before but now i can't find a thing but lucky you mention it now too
i kinda did have my heart set on larimar but its really too exspensive for the jet
i hope the beads are pectolite and not just dyed quartz but if we go back to the start of this thread both amethyst and rose quartz were possibilities

If i smash a bead how do i know its quartz inside ? (I can sacrifice an ugly one)
Will the dye be all the way through ???

I do feel some way dooped

Yes i have wasted money at the mall jewler but i was still protected by consumer law and what i brought is actually what i brought
Heat treatments and lab grown, hollow or solid, is disclosed up front - they don't actually sell plated or rolled, so just not to the nitty gritty standard that would make a stone PS worthy and really stand out from the mall crowd

So to me it feels like i thought i was buying the larimar equivalent of say 10k gold at a great price and i came away with probably overpriced gold plated over base metal - (not even silver)

Live and learn

But this yet again proves i am in no way ready to be buying loose gemstones

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Sigh
i havn't been this disappointed since i saw some praiserlite earings i saw on the internet i thought i wanted to buy having never seen praiserlite in person.
lucky that disappointment didn't even cost me a dime (well a train ticket into Wellington after work) because i saw it in the shop first - and that wasn't the mall jewler ! It was so pale - too pale - not even as pretty as green wine bottle beach glass

I think im disappointed because the beads just looked so good with the jet -

And I had read that aricle long before i brought those beads
And the etsy seller called them genuine Italian larmair !

Do i just wish the beads wernt dyed ?
....and yet im dying to buy a cz so i can bake it in the oven

I saw on trade me the other day a listing for whitby jet - but then the seller said it might be French jet -
how the F can they get away with that ?
That's like saying well its butter but it might be margarine

Anyway ill be happy if i can work out if the beads are quartz or pectolite, at least then ill know what to call them

 

[Autumn in New England]

I am sure i had read about white pectolite from Italy before but now i can't find a thing but lucky you mention it now too
i kinda did have my heart set on larimar but its really too exspensive for the jet
i hope the beads are pectolite and not just dyed quartz but if we go back to the start of this thread both amethyst and rose quartz were possibilities

If i smash a bead how do i know its quartz inside ? (I can sacrifice an ugly one)
Will the dye be all the way through ???

I do feel some way dooped

Yes i have wasted money at the mall jewler but i was still protected by consumer law and what i brought is actually what i brought
Heat treatments and lab grown, hollow or solid, is disclosed up front - they don't actually sell plated or rolled, so just not to the nitty gritty standard that would make a stone PS worthy and really stand out from the mall crowd

So to me it feels like i thought i was buying the larimar equivalent of say 10k gold at a great price and i came away with probably overpriced gold plated over base metal - (not even silver)

Live and learn

But this yet again proves i am in no way ready to be buying loose gemstones

I'm not exactly sure how to compare and contrast quartzite with white/gray pectolite visually, although I can tell you the latter is much softer (brittle with perfect cleavage too). Quartzite will be much more difficult to break apart. But either way, the dye will not be all the way through, because these are not porous gems. I think you were certainly mislead, so I would not give up easily with regard to a full or partial refund. Please report the seller to Etsy as well. They may be able to help you! But please don't feel badly. We all have a learning curve with this stuff!! Also, you're brilliant.

 

[Autumn in New England]

Personally, I'd rather them be quartzite than pectolite anyway, because it's much more durable!

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Personally, I'd rather them be quartzite than pectolite anyway, because it's much more durable!

The jet is really soft - its at best 4 on the mohs scale

Anyway you will not beleave what im doing ?
I mean i think i need to leave the jet & pectolite/ quartz in the drawer for a while and just let sleeping dogs lie

Next week we go to Porirua to get Gary's eye fixed, i have more property tax to pay and a never ending list of appliances that need replacing - some more urgent that others

But im now looking at rose quartz
I originally thought it might be too pale but now im thinking ...well ???
i ruled out the amethyst because that with the jet takes us back to Victorian mourning jewlery and ive always wanted an opaque stone

i just think hanging around PS that pectolite/ dyed quartz might not ever be mind clean
just because we arnt talking about a $10k + diamond doesn't mean i havn't invested a ton of time and energy and dreaming into remaking these Jet necklaces

Do I owe it to the really beautiful jet beads to give them another option?

and rose quartz isnt rare or exspensive - plus its already quartz ....

....And i do have a future tin cup pearl necklace in mind i want to use rose quartz for ....

What do you think of these ?
Any problems ?
I would buy 3 sizes
11mm
9-10mm
and 8mm

Madagascar Rose Quartz Beads Genuine Natural Grade AAA Gemstone Round Loose Beads 4MM 6MM 8MM 10MM Bulk Lot Options - Etsy New Zealand

This Beads item by JLDreamWorks has 3625 favorites from Etsy shoppers. Ships from United States. Listed on 03 Jun, 2024

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[Autumn in New England]

Jet is indeed soft, but at least it doesn't have perfect cleavage (not the good kind either... lol) like pectolite! That makes stones prone to breakage. But these guys will be in a necklace anyway, so I don't think you have to worry. Calcite is probably the softest material I've used in necklaces and pendants, and I've never had a problem.

I've ordered many strands of beads from that Etsy seller! They're very trustworthy. When certain materials are treated, they do their best to disclose it. Anyway, I love rose quartz. But it has a very delicate color in person, so do keep that in mind. Ask the seller to choose a strand with the most color/saturation. Some will be more intense than others, though all will be light. Let me see if I can find something I made with rose quartz. I've used morganite beads too, and they have more color. But they're also more $.

Good luck to Gary with his eye procedure!

 

[Autumn in New England]

I found it! These are really chunky beads, and all were purchased from that seller (rose quartz, blue lace agate, and amethyst). Sterling findings.



I couldn't find a photo of the morganite necklace I made, but here are the beads I purchased. They have quite a bit more saturation than rose quartz. But, again, they're more expensive. I spaced them with 14k rose gold beads (and findings). So that was a more pricey piece.



If you like opaque pink beads, have you ever considered rhodonite or rhodochrosite? I love them both.

Rhodonite (more of a raspberry)...

Rhodochrosite (more of a strawberry)... I cut the pendant stone and designed the pendant. A Native American friend made it for me! I strung the necklace. All sterling.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

I found it! These are really chunky beads, and all were purchased from that seller (rose quartz, blue lace agate, and amethyst). Sterling findings.



I couldn't find a photo of the morganite necklace I made, but here are the beads I purchased. They have quite a bit more saturation than rose quartz. But, again, they're more expensive. I spaced them with 14k rose gold beads (and findings). So that was a more pricey piece.



If you like opaque pink beads, have you ever considered rhodonite or rhodochrosite? I love them both.

Rhodonite (more of a raspberry)...

Rhodochrosite (more of a strawberry)... I cut the pendant stone and designed the pendant. A Native American friend made it for me! I strung the necklace. All sterling.

Those are lovelly and defiantly need a place on our porch to sit out on and be part of our rainbow

i gotta admit ive never seen great or even good rose coloured rose quartz in person ...but then ive never seen a really great blue saphire either

I am releaved you have used that seller (im assuming English is their first language)
Good tip about asking for a good colour mix
I do rather like strawberry quartz but it might be a bit pricy - well not as pricy as morganite

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

OMG !
The shipping is $100

Ill have to find someone else im afraid

 

[Autumn in New England]

OMG !
The shipping is $100

Ill have to find someone else im afraid

Really?! That's crazy. I realize it's going to NZ from the US, but that seems really excessive. Maybe write them and ask if there's a more cost effective option? Perhaps that's an error.

 

[Daisys and Diamonds]

Really?! That's crazy. I realize it's going to NZ from the US, but that seems really excessive. Maybe write them and ask if there's a more cost effective option? Perhaps that's an error.

Maybe they send it signature required or something that requires a courier
i had to stop shopping on amazon because they charge for each item even if its from the same supplier and really little light items

I got the big citrene beads from Eagle beadz in Texas
although the 2nd strand is still showing it hasn't left the US yet (i ordered like 17 of May)
Anyway a similar order including 3 strands of citrene and 3 strands of rose quartz is only $31 odd

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Sigh
those French Italian-snort- larmair people had really reasonable shipping

I kind of don't like asking too many questions regarding shipping or they might just say its too hard to ship to NZ - ive had that happen
ive also emailed other places and never got a reply
we open up to the world the end of next month so that will mean more flights in and out of the country and hopefully for cargo space for freight / mail etc

 

[Autumn in New England]

Maybe they send it signature required or something that requires a courier
i had to stop shopping on amazon because they charge for each item even if its from the same supplier and really little light items

I got the big citrene beads from Eagle beadz in Texas
although the 2nd strand is still showing it hasn't left the US yet (i ordered like 17 of May)
Anyway a similar order including 3 strands of citrene and 3 strands of rose quartz is only $31 odd

EagleBeadz - Etsy New Zealand

Shop FREE shipping over $35.00 for US orders by EagleBeadz located in Texas, United States. Smooth dispatch! Has a history of dispatching on time with tracking. Speedy replies! Has a history of replying to messages quickly. Rave reviews! Average review rating is 4.8 or higher

www.etsy.com

Sigh
those French Italian-snort- larmair people had really reasonable shipping

I kind of don't like asking too many questions regarding shipping or they might just say its too hard to ship to NZ - ive had that happen
ive also emailed other places and never got a reply
we open up to the world the end of next month so that will mean more flights in and out of the country and hopefully for cargo space for freight / mail etc

If I can help, just let me know.