Understanding Peridot Birthstone

Peridot, the birthstone of August is a golden green sparkling stone that is quite popular today and has been used as an adornment for thousands of years.

This clear and stunning gemstone is unchanging in color, even when the light fades and is often referred to as "evening emerald". This stone was popular in ancient Egyptian jewelry and is often paired with other gemstones in contemporary sterling silver jewelry.

Peridot was not only popular in jewelry but was also found to be used in Medieval churches as an adornment and accessory for the church. The tranquil green color can be very calming so you can see why it has been so popular throughout the ages.

Peridot has had it's uses as a healing stone as well. In Hawaii, this stone symbolizes the tears of the goddess Pele and teeny stones can be found on some of the beaches. Taken internally, it is thought to help relieve asthma and the stone is also thought to bring power and influence to those who own it.

Peridot which is found in the Red Sea island of St Johns, China, Pakistan, New Mexico, Arizona and Burma is composed of iron, magnesium and silicate can range in color from olive to brownish green to yellow-green. The stone is not very hard and must be cut carefully as it can easily be broken during cutting.

Peridot is a type of stone that is suited for everyday wear. It is not a heavy stone and will not "take over" your whole outfit. This stone requires minimal care and can go with casual as well as formal wear. Although you can wear peridot at any time of year, it is particularly suited for summer wear. The lime green color is a perfect accent for most summer colors including white, turquoise, peach and yellow.

Peridot can be set into necklaces, rings, earrings and bracelets and looks great in both gold and silver settings. This gemstone is striking when used alone in jewelry but also works well with other stones including turquoise, iolite, amethyst, garnet and citrine.

When buying peridot be aware that some stones are treated with waxes or resins to enhance color. The best color to choose when shopping for peridot is a vivid lime green color with no brownish tones. As with any gemstone, the larger the stone the more you can expect to pay and you won't find many larger than 3 carats. As with any jewelry, pick the best you can afford in a style that you love and you can't go wrong!

Basic care for Silver Jewelry

Silver jewelry is more popular than ever. These days, I wear twice as much silver as I do gold but, tarnished silver is such a turn off especially if it can happen overnight. Storing your silver jewelry and how to care for these pieces can be daunting but it's actually quite easy if you know how.

Causes of tarnish and corrosion:

Humidity, naturally emitted sulfur from silver, chemicals in clothing, food (onion, egg, oil based products, salt, milk, vinegar,acidic foods ) wool, felt, anything with rubber or rubber based(rubber bands), latex, skin oils, makeup, perfume and hair products(gel, hair color, hair spray) and more. Some things tarnish silver instantly. Hair color (during application) turns silver black in a second. I learned the hard way.

Jewelry Boxes and Storage

How you store and protect your silver jewelry is very important and easy. What most don't know is that it's not difficult or time consuming if you just follow a few guidelines.

Sterling silver jewelry must be stored in a dark, dry place away from direct sunlight , humidity and heat. All jewelry, need air circulation and silver is no different. Silver should be stored where each piece has space for itself without other jewelry under or on top of it. This allows for the air circulation as well as protecting it from scratches and other potential damage.

Never wrap or store your silver jewelry in:

paper
plastic wrap (baggies OK)
cotton
cardboard
unlined wood jewelry boxes

All silver will slowly tarnish with age regardless.This is part of the beauty of silver and a nature's antiquing. Remember, old silver items are usually worth more if they have that natural patina that only comes over time. If you clean them, they can actually lose value. There is a difference between natural aged patina and that horrible metallic smelling inky black colored thing that's tarnish or really corrosion(silver rust). You can actually feel the difference too.

OK, so you don't want your silver jewelry to tarnish or should I say get that ugly unnatural black inky color quickly. None of us do.

Here are the basics for Cleaning & Polishing

You should consider whether you wish your silver to develop a natural patina or not before cleaning your jewelry.

Best way to prevent tarnish is to wear jewelry and to store properly.

For great ideas on storage and jewelry boxes, please read, The Truth about Silver Jewelry and Anti Tarnish Jewelry Boxes.

To clean lightly tarnished pieces or pieces that you want to continue aging:

Wash in warm water and a mild dish soap(phosphate free) on a soft sponge, rinse and dry thoroughly with a soft cloth.

This works great on many heavily tarnished pieces too.

To clean aging silver: Go light on the soap and just gently run the sponge over pieces you want to continue aging. Rinse and dry thoroughly with a soft cloth.

Caution: If your jewelry has gemstones, be very careful when cleaning. A cello sponge is fine to clean with but, nothing more abrasive.

To clean heavily tarnished pieces:


In a large non metallic bowl, (larger than the silver you want to clean),
Place a piece of aluminum foil in the bottom of the bowl shiny side up.
Place silver on top of the aluminum foil. The silver must come in contact with the aluminum foil.
Pour boiling water into the bowl, enough to the cover the silver.
Sprinkle 3 tablespoons of baking soda over the silver.
Soak for up to ten minutes,
Rinse with water and dry well.

Not everyone wants to take off jewelry when taking a shower, swimming or before bed. You don't need to. What you do need to do is make sure it's rinsed in clean water after swimming and there is no soap residue after a shower. Periodically do a quick cleaning with soap and water and you should be fine. I wear a pair of earrings all the time and they have never tarnished. I do take them out when I get my hair done and if I use hair spray, I throw a towel around my neck to protect my chains and cover my ears with a hand. The little extra effort has saved me cleaning time in the long run.

For storage:

You don't need an anti tarnish jewelry box. There are pros and cons to anti tarnish boxes and the cons outweigh the pros in my book. There are some easy inexpensive ways that allow you to store your jewelry tarnish free in any jewelry box you want.

To read more on anti tarnish boxes and tarnish free storage for your silver jewelry, please read Anti Tarnish Jewelry Boxes and Silver Jewelry.

Marie designs jewelry boxes for leading manufacturers and has extensive knowledge in the field. Jewelry Box Direct.com offers all the latest styles and for more expert insight on Jewelry Boxes and related articles visit jewelryboxdirect.com/JewelryBoxArticles.asp