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Turquoise Jewelry

For centuries, man has been enthralled by the seemingly mystical properties of turquoise. True enough, turquoise has been used for healing therapies by American Indians and other mystical cultures. Mystical history notwithstanding, turquoise also an otherworldly beauty that makes it one of the most sought after rare stones even today.

Turquoise is a naturally occurring stone that is bluish to greenish in color. In its natural form, it is chalky and porous – and in all, not a good choice for a jewelry stone. After some treatment, however, it stabilizes and becomes the entrancing sight people all know turquoise to be.

This rare stone is usually mined in places such as Persia, Egypt, Iran, China, Turkey, New Mexico and Arizona. They are highly sought after by New Age healers and other mystical practitioners alike for their supposed healing powers.

Taking care of such jewelry is quite a delicate issue. As mentioned earlier, turquoise requires special attention and care. Also, this stone is sensitive to many cleaning methods. That is why you will have to be careful of whatever comes into contact with it.

Here are some tips to help you care for your turquoise jewelry.

1. Keep It Away from Harder Stones When keeping your jewelry, make sure they do not scratch against one another or other items in its storage box. This is a cardinal sin many people commit when keeping their jewelry. Imagine the harm that could be done if you kept your diamonds and turquoise jewels together. It is probably horrid enough to give you nightmares.

Turquoise, in particular, is a sensitive stone. If it is scratched hard enough, it could chip or crack. Plus, it is porous to boot. This makes it prone to many forms of degradations. However, if you care for it well enough, this shouldn’t be a problem.

If you have a specially made jewelry box that can prevent scratching damage to turquoise, then do use them to store your jewelry. You could also keep the stones in Mylar or Polyethylene bags so that they are protected from the elements.

2. Store Your Jewelries if Not in Use If you are out to a classy dinner, or on a big date, breaking out the jewels is the logical thing to do. Just remember that after the date, you should put your jewelry back where it belongs – in your storage box.

This is especially true for rings and other commonly worn jewelry. If you forget to remove these stones before engaging in a particularly strenuous activity, you could accidentally shatter these stones against other hard objects.

You may think that most jewelry pieces are pretty tough. However, even the toughest of them all – diamond – could break if it gets hit one or two times. So, heed this caution, if ever you decide to do anything with any risk of hitting your jewelry against anything, relent. Remove your jewels first and keep them safe.

3. Keep Your Turquoise Away from Chemicals. Unlike other metals and crystals, turquoise is a rock gemstone. Crystals are composed of a single mineral, while rocks are made of a hodge podge of a dozen. They are a lot more sensitive than other jewels and require special care.

That is why while it is okay to use different cleaning chemicals on other jewels, you should lay off of them when dealing with turquoise. Even mild soap may cause harm to these stones. This is due to their porous nature which allows chemicals to seep into them.

You should also definitely avoid ultrasonic cleaning and ammonia-based cleaners. They could build up and damage the stone irreparably.

4. Clean the Stones Gently Just because you can’t use common jewelry cleaners on your turquoise does not mean that you shouldn’t clean them at all. You should. Only, you have to take great care when doing so. This is especially true if you constantly wear your turquoise.

Use a moist, lint-free, cloth to wipe dirt and grime from the stone. Try to get to the corners where soap and grime may have accumulated. And to avoid this, do remove your turquoise before hitting the shower.

Conclusion
While it is a little troublesome to care for, turquoise brings a mystical sense of beauty to any jewelry collection. It is well worth its keep and could quickly become your favorite jewelry piece.

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