I’m fussy about knowing the correct names for the gemstones that I purchase from various internet suppliers. Over the past few months, I’ve asked for information from Lima Beads about the various beads they sell. One particular new gemstone was “Blue Water Jasper”. As in the past, I received a nice friendly reply regarding this stone. They don’t think it is dyed because when the stone is cut it is blue all of the way through. That’s a good sign I think! They did not know where Blue Water Jasper was actually from.
That last sentence brings up another question. Almost all of the gemstone packages I receive from various internet suppliers are marked as a product from China. Is that really true or are the stones mined somewhere else and then shipped to China for final finishing?
In any event, I’m glad that Lima Beads took the time to reply to my question. I actually haven’t purchased anything from Lima Beads yet but I will do so now.
Now, how shall I use Blue Water Jasper. Its navy blue color looks like it would go well with sapphires. I enjoy using light greens, both cool and warm, with dark blues. That’s probably what I’ll do.
May 3, 2008 at 6:10 am
I think you are right about the gems being shipped to China for final finishing. I had once seen “Sleeping Beauty” Turquoise marked as “made in China”. I questioned it because I knew that the Sleeping Beauty mine is in Arizona! The supplier told me that since the stones were cut in China, they had to list it as Made in China. (it was Artbeads in this case)