Index | A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z W WATERMELON TOURMALINE Watermelon tourmaline is a tourmaline gemstone that is multicolored, going from pink to green. The Schreiner pin above is made of paste (glass) watermelon tourmaline. WATER SAPPHIRE "Water sapphire" is not a true sapphire, but is iolite, a more common, softer, and much less expensive mineral. It is a transparent, violet-blue, light blue or yellow-gray mineral. Iolite is pleochroic; a single stone will show many colors (in the case of Iolite, violet-blue, light blue, and yellow-gray). Iolite has a hardness of 7 - 7.5. Iolite is found in Sri Lanka, India, Madagascar and Burma. WAX PEARL Wax pearls are hollow glass beads that are filled with wax and resemble pearls. WEDDING CAKE BEADS Wedding cake beads are lamp worked glass beads that are decorated with intricate, colorful glass overlays, often of roses and decorative swirls and dots. This type of bead was originally made in Murano, Italy. WEDGWOOD Wedgwood is an old pottery company that also makes some porcelain jewelry. The company was founded in Burslem, England in 1752 by Josiah Wedgwood (1730 - 1795), who was Charles Darwin's grandfather. Their signature Jasper ware (white on blue porcelain formed into a cameo) is made into pins, pendants, and necklaces. WEISS The Weiss company made high-quality costume jewelry from 1942 until the 1970's. The company was founded in New York City by Albert Weiss, a former employee of the Coro Company (the largest costume jewelry manufacturer). Weiss' jewelry was often studded with Austrian rhinestones. WELD Welding is a process that joins two pieces of metal using very high heat. Rolled gold is formed in this fashion. WHITE GOLD White gold is gold that has been alloyed with a mix of nickel, zinc, copper, tin, and manganese (and sometimes palladium). White gold was originally developed to imitate platinum during World War II (during this time in the US, platinum was considered a strategic material and its use was prohibited for most non-military applications, like jewelry making). X XAGA Xaga is a type of obsidian found in California, USA. XALOSTOCITE Xalostocite is a pink grossular garnet that is found in a matrix of white marble. Xalostocite is found in Xalostoc, Mexico. XYLOID JASPER Xyloid jasper is jasperized wood (petrified wood). It is wood that has fossilized - all the original chemicals have been replaced with minerals, making a stone-like replica of the original wood. Y YAG YAG is an actonym for yttrium aluminum garnet, a man-made imitation diamond. This imitation stone lacks the fire of a natural diamond. YELLOW GOLD In its natural state gold come in varying shades of yellow. Relatively pure when initially mined, gold is usually alloyed with copper, zince, and/or silver when used in jewelry making. YGF YGF is an abbreviation for yellow gold filled. Z ZAMAK Zamak is a zinc alloy containing some aluminum (3.9-4.5%) and copper (0.02-0.05%). ZINC Brittle at room temperature but malleable when heated, this bluish-white metal is used to from such such alloys as Brass, Bronze, and Nickel Silver. ZIRCON Zircon (zircon silicate) is a lustrous gemstone that comes in colors ranging from golden brown to red to violet to blue. Pure zircon is colorless, but most zircon stones are brown. Zircon stones can be heat-treated to become blue or colorless; sometimes, heat-treated stones revert to their original color. Clear zircon is sometimes sold (intentionally or otherwise) as diamond. It has a hardness of 7.5 and a specific gravity of 3.90-4.71. ZOISITE Zoisite (Calcium-aluminum silicate) is a gray-green mineral that occurs in cracks of igneous rock. Zoisite has three known forms: anyolite (a green matrix containing rubies), tanzanite (transparent, blue-violet containing strontium), and thulite (opaque pink crystals containing manganese). Zoisite was named for the Slovenian mineral collector Baron Sigismund Zois von Edelstein, who financed the expedition that discovered Zoisite. |
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