Dyed or Natural Gemstones? How to Tell the Difference

re: Dyed or Natural Gemstones? How to Tell the Difference

YankeeR — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 23:28:40 GMT

G - Glass filled, lead glass filled Rubies,

I have added this one myself, due to the rash of lead-glass filled rubies on the market today. I won't buy Rubies from any seller, even if I have bought great gems from them in the past. It's getting scary out there to buy.

re: Dyed or Natural Gemstones? How to Tell the Difference

littlepeeps — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 16:39:11 GMT

I would be interested in removing dyes as well. I bought some cheap bubble gum pink carved roses, and I wanted to take most of the dyes out. I'm currently soaking some in rubbing alcohol and water, and I'll try the nail polish remover. I've been warned not to do more than one at a time to test. Some stones will dissolve in different fluids.

re: Dyed or Natural Gemstones? How to Tell the Difference

Cbernau — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 16:02:16 GMT

I recently bought some inexpensive "aquamarine" which is a dyed clear stone. When stringing them, the dye comes off in my hands. Is there any way to remove the dye, or stabilize it? I seem to remember something using white vinegar? Does anyone have experience removing a cheap dye job from gemstones?

re: Dyed or Natural Gemstones? How to Tell the Difference

Zoë So — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 08:19:31 GMT

Spider, about soo chow jade: http://molly.kalafut.org/jade/fake.html Howlite is a white stone, but often dyed in blue as a Turquoise. (see my picture on the left)

re: Dyed or Natural Gemstones? How to Tell the Difference

Spider@5 — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 17:59:58 GMT

Excellent article!!! I have fallen in love with soo chow jade and keep wondering what is behind them. Are they real multicoloured semi precious stones? Are they fake? I am thinking of getting some at the next gem fair but would like to know what I am really getting. I got some dyed howlite at a bead store. After reading the article I am feeling disappointed with my purchase. Is howlite a stone? Does it have any value? They were soooo expensive.

re: Dyed or Natural Gemstones? How to Tell the Difference

Zoë So — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 10:59:52 GMT

Hematite is almost never real....? (Loris S.) Oh my... really? I stress out when I buy stones online. Since I know that sellers aren't honoust of ignorant about stones, I automatically assume it is processed or fake. But I really want to buy gems with confidence and it would be nice if there would a list of sellers with a certain guaranty certificate.

re: Dyed or Natural Gemstones? How to Tell the Difference

AngelHugs — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 16:43:03 GMT

a company that advertises quite heavily in the bead magazines was having a store closing sale close to me. I had made some small purchases in the past and felt "safe" in dealing with them. to say I went overboard is probably an understatement. imagine my surprise when I got home and peeled off the price sticker on my "genuine" turquoise beads, and the "plastic coloring" came right off with the price sticker. I never did receive satisfaction from this company. blessings- Peggy

re: Dyed or Natural Gemstones? How to Tell the Difference

April BlueC — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 22:03:29 GMT

I once bought many strands of turquoise beads from an ivory carver that I had known for decades. She was not only a personal friend of mine, but she had even married a shirt-tail cousin of mine and I thought she was an honest craftswoman at heart. She knew that I was doing beadwork for some First Nation Peoples in the Yukon Territory at that time and had offered her unblemished "turquoise beads" to me "because they were real." They were fake beads.

re: Dyed or Natural Gemstones? How to Tell the Difference

LORI S — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 21:50:11 GMT

When you start buying stones, there are some things you should know. Hematite is never real, garnet, rose quartz, and black onyx are almost always dyed, and if it seems like you are getting a really great bargain, it probably isn't what it is claimed to be. turquoise is one of the worst. I don't buy turquoise, because the good stuff is really expensive and I won't use "dyed" or "reconstituted" stuff. I test things I'm dubious about. nail polish remover will check for dye. Breaking a pearl (put it in a small plastic bag and hammer gently - just enough to shatter it) will tell you whether it is real (the tooth test helps while you are still at the shop) you might try breaking a pearl bought from a reputable supplier so you know what it should look like. Breaking a bead will also tell you is you have got stone or glass. I've bought amethyst and black onyx that turned out to be glass. Alos, educate yourself about things like "mountain jade" which is dyed limestone or something similar. cherry "quartz" things like that.

re: Dyed or Natural Gemstones? How to Tell the Difference

Miriam@23 — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 20:56:02 GMT

I purchazed a garnet necklace. Very beautiful "stones". Later I learned that my necklace is made from "garnet glass". The dealer was persuade they were all natural. Miriam, Israel

re: Dyed or Natural Gemstones? How to Tell the Difference

DebWAZ — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 20:47:09 GMT

Jean, Thanks for this article - VERY NICE! May I have permission to print the whole article and laminate it for use in the store? I have people asking all the time what "enhanced" or "stabilized" mean. The folks on the forums already know one of my pet peeves are stores or vendors who mislabel stone beads. The AGTA chart you used is great - but - for some reason, wholesalers/vendors and bead stores who sell "mere" beads don't seem to feel that the rules of the GEM trade (aka AGTA and the JVC among others) apply to them. Sometimes it might be excused as "ignorance" - but it's no excuse. A customer (at any level) should be able to trust the person who is selling to them. Complicating matters is the interesting habit that the quarries in China have of naming a stone by whatever strikes their fancy, regardless of whether it's the correct name or not. You hit it right on the head when you advised that beaders who use stone should educate themselves. They should deal with vendors/stores that they trust and who will be happy to help them learn more. If a beader is selling their jewelry, they MUST know what the stones are if possible and label them appropriately. If you are selling jewelry with stones/gems, silver, gold, etc. you are technically under the rules of the AGTA and the JVC and your items MUST be labelled correctly. I have stones in the store (in the mixes, mostly) that I have no clue about what they are. On invoices, they are listed as "blue stone" "brown stone - maybe agate?", "mixed stones" or maybe "unknown blue-brown-and-white stone". Thanks for this good article. Deb - AZ Bead Depot

re: Dyed or Natural Gemstones? How to Tell the Difference

NancyM@133 — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 20:22:29 GMT

I took a bracelet class at a local art studio and the stone chips we used for the bracelet were dyed - the instructor wasn't aware they were dyed until after she bought them. Sadly, getting wet in the rain, from washing your hands or even perspiration (we never sweat, do we?) can wash the dye off these chips, so making a bracelet out of these chips was probably not such a great idea. Eventually I'll have a teal/gold/purple beaded bracelet with clear chips:( I thought they might do for beaded window valances, but I'm afraid the sun will bleach out the color - what do you think?

re: Dyed or Natural Gemstones? How to Tell the Difference

Lisa234519 — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 15:45:10 GMT

I was told a few years ago the Sleeping Beauty turquoise comes directly from the Sleeping Beauty Mine near Globe, Arizona. I didn't buy any, but I wonder now, was the seller from whom you bought the stones impersonating a representative of the Sleeping Beauty Mine?

re: Dyed or Natural Gemstones? How to Tell the Difference

pgalle — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 13:16:09 GMT

I recently bought a necklace in a second hand shop. It had nice silver beads that were very tarnished, real fresh water pearls (they passed the bite test) and what looked like nice turquoise nuggets. I'm just not sure about the turquoise. I assumed the nuggets were real because I felt the other components were real. Please tell us how we can tell for sure? Thanks, Paula

re: Dyed or Natural Gemstones? How to Tell the Difference

Karen@4269 — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 07:38:37 GMT

Really useful article, I have just a couple of trusted suppliers and always try to buy only naturally coloured stones but it is hard. I have seen the cherry quartz on sites and assumed it was at least a dyed stone - thank heavens the colour wasn't me ! I'd be interested to know how well these enhancements last, does the dye fade / wear off, heat treated - is it forever ? Karen - www.lavidalerie.com