- Abalone
Abalone is mineral generated by the marine mollusks and used for many
silver jewelry items.-
Agate
- A type of chalcedony quartz found in a variety of colors
and patterns, frequently with varying color layers.
- Amethyst
- Transparent variety of crystallized quartz, typically
purple or violet in color.
- Austrian crystal
- Imitation of natural or rock crystal (quartz).
- Azurite malachite
- A mineral which is characterized in appearance by bands of
light and dark blue.
- Bail
- A metal finding that is folded closed, from which a
pendant, watch, stone, etc., may be hung from a chain or
cord..
- Band
- A ring which is the same in width all around.
- Bangle
- A stiff bracelet that slips over the hand or is hinged.
- Basket
- A fancy setting with numerous side piercing to provide a
lacy or basket-looking appearance.
- Beveled
- An angled part or surface, usually an angle other than a
right angle.
- Bezel
-
A form of any shape which incorporates a continuous
groove to fit something, generally a stone. The metal at
the top of the groove is then burnished over the edge of
the mounted item to hold it, forming a setting.
- Box chain
- A type of chain with links that are wide and square so
they form boxes.
- Button earrings
- A flat, usually round earring which sits on the earlobe
and has no dangling parts.
- Cable chain
- A type of chain where the links are round and uniform in
size.
- Cabochon
- A domed gemstone. Highly polished curved surface without
faceting.
- Cameo
- A carved gem or shell in which the outer layers are cut
away so that the design stands out in relief against a
background of a different color.
- Carat
- Unit of weight for gemstones with 100", points to a
carat, with one carat equaling one-fifth of a gram."
- Cat's Eye
-
Gemstones which display the cat's eye phenomenon are said to exhibit
the optical property of chatoyancy.
- Channel setting
- Grooved metal built into a jewelry setting for holding
stones. Also a number of uniformly sized small stones set in
a row.
- Charm
- A decorative pendant or trinket designed to be worn on a
bracelet, necklace or earrings.
- Charm bracelet
- A link bracelet which charms can be attached to.
- Chevron style
- A motif consisting of short lines joining at angles to
form an inverted "V".
- Citrine
- A brownish-orange quartz variety.
- Coral
- The skeletal remains of marine animals.
- Corundum
- A gem mineral of crystallized aluminum and oxygen. Ruby
and sapphire are the most valuable corundum.
- Curb link chain
- A type of chain where the links are oval and twisted so
they lie flat.
- Cubic Zirconia
- The most successful simulated diamond. Properties
such as refraction, hardness, and specific gravity are remarkably
similar to diamonds. Cubic zirconia are very hard to
distinguish from diamonds; sometimes a jewelers loop will be needed to
see the difference.
- Dangle earring
- Any earring which hangs below the earlobe. Also called a drop
earring.
- Diamond-cut rope
- A portion of the chain is cut away at an angle and then
polished to a high shine. see also ROPE CHAIN.
- Electroplating
- The process of covering a base metal with a thin film of
gold. The base metal is set in a chemical solution which an
electric current flows through to coat it with precious
metal.
- Emerald cut
- A gem cut which is usually rectangular, but sometimes
square, with rows of step cuts along the edges and at the
corners.
- Enamel
- Colored, opaque glassy material fused onto metal, pottery
or glass.
- Facet
- A polished surface; a small plane which is cut into a
surface and enhances its reflection of light.
- Faux
- An imitation of; used to describe imitation stones found
in fashion jewelry.
- Faux pearl
- Glass beads coated in the ground-up iridescent nacre from
fish scales.
- Figaro chain
- Similar in style to a curb chain, but instead of uniform
links, the links alternate between long ones and round ones.
- Filigree
- Lace-like ornamental work made from intricately arranges,
intertwined wire.
- French wire
- A curved wire which passes through the pierced earlobe and
has a catch closure. Used mostly in dangling earrings.
- Garnet
- A family of crystals whose name is derived from their
resemblance to red pomegranate seeds. A semi-precious stone,
usually a reddish-brown color; can range from true red to
violet- or blackish red. Often semi-opaque.
- Gem
- A stone which has been cut and polished for use in jewelry
and fulfills the requirements of beauty, durability, and
rarity. A fine stone of unusual quality. Precious or
semi-precious stone.
- Gold
- A heavy, yellow, metallic element used for coins and
jewelry since prehistoric times.
- Gold finish
- Jewelry done in a finish so that it has the look of gold.
- Hammered
- Tapped with a small hammer to create a wavy texture.
-
Hematite
- Frequently fashioned as a cabochon or beads, the mineral
hematite is highly versatile.
- Herringbone chain
- Created by small, slanting links which gives it a flat
effect.
- High polish
- A surface which is polished to a mirror-like finish.
- Hoop earring
- An earring made from metal wire or tubing and circular in
shape. Variations include the traditional shape as well as
hoops with charms and other ornaments to be hung from the
hoop.
- Ingot
- Metal cast into a bar or other shape.
- Inlay
- A decorative element, such as a stone, which is imbedded
into another surface so it is flush (or level) with it.
- Iolite
- A mineral used as a gemstone and appears as deep blue,
light blue-gray, and yellow-white.
- Jade
- Becaues of its tenacity, strength, and toughness
jade was first utilized in the making of prehistoric
weapons.
- Jasper
- A semi-opaque to opaque rose quartz. Usually yellowish,
reddish, or brown. The U.S. and Brazil are the most common
sources. Jasper was once believed to have curative powers.
- Karat
- A measure, from 1 to 24, used to indicate how much of a
piece of jewelry is gold content and how much an alloy.
- Lapis lazuli
- A semi-precious stone of an azure blue color.
Product of limestone and contact metamorphism
-
Lariat
- An open-ended, long strand necklace. Sometimes looped into
a knot or used with a slide so that the two ends hang free.
- Liquid silver
- Produced by drawing small ribbons of sterling silver
through a draw plate that forms a thin, silver tube. These
tubes are carefully cut & hand strung together. Liquid
silver is an example of the Native American jewelry making
technique of Heishi.
- Malachite
- A mineral which is characterized in appearance by bands of
light and dark green.
- Marcasite
- Crystallized iron pyrites ("fool's gold")
mounted in groups, cut or uncut, in pins and other pieces of
jewelry. Marcasite is a gray, lustrous mineral.
- Marquise
- An oval shape gemstone cut with pointed ends. It's named
for the Marquise de Pompadour, Mistress of King Louis XV.
- Mother-of -pearl
- Hard, iridescent substance that forms on the inside layer
of a pearl-bearing mollusk.
- Nacre
- A shiny, iridescent substance made from the lining of
mollusk shells or fish scales.
- Nugget
- A lump or irregularly shaped mass.
- Omega
- A patterned, flat chain with a solid surface formed by the
links.
- Opal
- The extensive deserts on the continet of Australia are responsible
for 95% of the world's opal gem material available today.
-
Onyx
- A semi-precious stone composed of chalcedony (a variety of
quartz) found naturally in white or gray. The white variety
is generally dyed black for onyx.
- Oxidation
- Metal blackened by a reaction with oxygen. The appearance
is accomplished by chemical means.
- Panther link
- A flat chain in which solid links are arranged like
bricks.
- Pendant
- An ornament suspended from a single chain.
- Pearl
- One of the few gems materials with an organic origin,
pearls are a product of marine and fresh water mollusks.
-
Peridot
- A transparent gem which is olive green in color.
- Point
- Unit of weight for gemstones equal to one-hundredth of a
carat.
- Polish
- Process used to make metal smooth and glossy. Increases
shine and eliminates flaws.
- Quartz
- A crystalline mineral used for gems, usually colorless and
transparent.
- Ribbed
- A textured effect consisting of ridges.
- Rope chain
- Chain with a spiral appearance, giving the effect of two
thick strands woven together.
- Rose finish
- Jewelry done in a finish so that it has the pink look of
rose gold.
- Satin finish
- A matte finish achieved by sandblasting, brushing with a
stiff wire brush, or chemically altering a high shine
surface into one with a soft, pearl-like luster.
- Scalloped
- An ornamental edge that consists of a series of curves.
- Shank
- Part of the ring that circles the finger and to which the
setting is attached.
- Simulated stones
- Any substance which is meant to resemble or take the place
of a gem. For example, cubic zirconia is a simulated
diamond.
- Slide
- An ornament that can be slid onto neckwear.
- Smoky quartz
- Brownish color quartz with a smoky appearance.
- Snake chain
- A type of chain with links that fit together to form a
bendable, often tubular chain.
- Square cut
- A style in which the stone is square an bordered by four
long narrow facets that are step cut. Similar to emerald
cut.
- Stamping
- Cutting or embossing a sheet of metal with a punch or a
die.
- Step cut
- A gem cut with a varying number of sloping parallel rows
of four-sided facets which give the impression of steps.
- Sterling silver
- Silver that is at least 92.5 percent pure with 7.5 parts
of another metal, usually copper, to make the piece harder.
- Stud
- A single stone or metal ball on a straight post worn on
pierced ears.
- Synthetic
- Man-made, but having the same physical, chemical and
optical characteristics as the natural stone.
- Tennis bracelet
- A flexible bracelet made up of evenly matched stones,
commonly diamonds. There are variations on the style, such
as alternating stones.
- Titanium
- A metallic element that has been used mainly in industry,
but also used in some jewelry because of the range of colors
it produces when heated.
- Topaz
- A transparent gem, the most precious type is wine-yellow
in color. It also may be found in other colors, such as
white, blue, brown, orange, and pink.
- Turquoise
- Semi-precious stone which is greenish-blue in color.
- Vermeil
- A heavy gold electroplate over sterling silver.
- Zircon
-
The mineral zircon has been known to man for over 3000 yers and has
been called such names as jargon, hyacinth and jacinth.
-
- What are Minerals?
Minerals are defined as a naturally occurring, homogeneous, inorganic substance with a definite atomic structure and a range of chemical composition. Within these pages, each component of the definition so as to make clear the exact nature of what a mineral is and is not.
Naturally occurring means that minerals are not something that is manufactured or created by humans, they are a part of the physical interrelatedness of our planet and are created and recycled naturally as part of the rock cycle. While fabrication of minerals such as emeralds, quartz crystals and diamonds can be performed in a laboratory under specific conditions, for our purposes were are limiting our definition to include only natural minerals, not those which are man-made.
Homogeneous refers to the the uniformity of the mineral; it is the same throughout.
Inorganic is used to refer to the non-living origin of mineral materials, however they are a few exceptions to this part of the definition, such as pearls and amber.
-
- Definite atomic structure concerns the framework of the specific mineral around which the molecules of different elements form the core internal and microscopic structure.
-
- Range of chemical composition allows for substitution of certain elements for one another within the defined framework of the mineral structure. This means that mineral formulas can be highly simple to extremely complex depending on the extent of the compositional range.
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