New Jewelry Studio

Our son graduated from college last spring and moved back home until he could find a job, save some money and find a place of his own. He accomplished all of that and moved into his own apartment last month. We were sad to see him leave again but since he only lives 20 minutes away it isn't like we really lost him! Since he has moved out it has given us some room to move my jewelry workspace from a cramped space in the basement where we store our Christmas decorations to a room that he used as a sort of den. So something that we viewed as a negative (we really love our two children!) has a silver lining.

I spent the first day of transforming my new space packing up our son's movies, broken laptop, miscellaneous electronic wires, old books, papers and old sports equipment that didn't make the cut for going with him to his new apartment. The next day was spent removing and donating an old television, sofa and out dated stereo equipment.

My wonderful and handy husband built shelves for me to place my jewelry draws on with pegboard above them. I can now hang all of the wires and miscellaneous stuff that I have acquired. We had a spare television that our daughter used at college so he hooked that up for me. Next, he installed great new lighting for me. I have a laptop on a shelf that was already there. I have space for my lights and table that I use for taking pictures of my jewelry. I will have to take a picture of the room and post it here. I am so happy to have so much room and great lighting.

We went down to Destin, FL shortly after completing the project so today is the first day I have had to actually work in the new space. It is great! I completed a necklace and earrings that I will post later.

While I was working on the necklace, I flipped on the television and watched the local weather. It looks like we are going to get some snow in Atlanta tomorrow! We get so excited when we get a chance to actually see snow. It is so much fun to watch it fall!

Okay, so while writing this post my computer went on the blink. Since then it did snow here in Atlanta. It was just beautiful to watch. Today it is starting to melt. The picture in the top right is our front yard!

I am new to blogging so for my first post I would like to list some information on how to clean different gemstones. This is a partial list but I hope it will be helpful to some of you.

You can visit my website at http://www.doublesjewelry.artfire.com/ to see examples of some of these gemstones.

Agates – very easy to care for – commercial jewelry cleaners are safe to use.

Amber – use a soft cloth and clean water to clean this stone. If the amber is set in silver or gold, do not use a chemical dip solution to remove oxidation from the metal. A non-abrasive jewelry polish and a soft cloth are okay but you should be sure to rinse and dry it off well. Ultrasonic cleaning is not recommended.

Amethyst – jewelry made with sterling silver or gold can be dipped in a solution to remove tarnish without harming the stone.

Aquamarine – easy to care for – use a toothbrush and dishwashing detergent or a commercial jewelry cleaner.

Aventurine – requires little care – clean with a toothbrush and dishwashing detergent or a jewelry polish.

Bloodstone – can be cleaned easily – polish with a commercial jewelry polish, rinse with hot water and dry with a soft cloth.

Black Onyx – easy to care for – polish with a commercial jewelry cleaner, rinse with hot water and dry with a soft cloth.

Carnelian – jewelry made with sterling silver or gold can be cleaned with a commercial jewelry cleaner, rinsed and polished with a soft cloth.

Citrine – jewelry made with sterling silver or gold can be dipped in a solution to remove tarnish without harming the stone.

Coral – will dissolve in some household cleaning chemicals – coral jewelry should never be dipped or soaked in solutions to remove tarnish. Ultrasonic cleaning is not recommended. Scrub with an old toothbrush and then polish with a rough cloth.

Emeralds – easy to care for – clean with a toothbrush and dishwashing detergent. You can also use jewelry polish.

Garnets – jewelry made with sterling or gold can be cleaned with commercial jewelry cleaners. Or you may use a toothbrush and dishwashing detergent.

Hematite – a commercial jewelry cleaner can be used along with a rough jewelry cloth.

Iolite – can be cleaned with a commercial jewelry cleaner.

Jade – easy to care for – can be cleaned with a commercial jewelry cleaner or polished with a soft cloth.

Labradorite – easily maintained with a commercial jewelry cleaner and rough polishing cloth.

Lapis – a soft stone that should not be cleaned with a commercial jewelry cleaner or chemical dip. It is a porous stone that can absorb liquids that will affect its color. It should not be worn while washing dishes or using household cleaners. Ultrasonic cleaning is not recommended. A soft cloth should be used to polish the stones.

Opal – natural opal should not be cleaned with commercial jewelry cleaning compounds. It is a porous stone that can absorb liquids that can affect its color and erode the stone. It should not be worn while washing dishes or using harsh household cleaning chemicals. Ultrasonic cleaning is not recommended. A rough polishing cloth is okay.

Pearls – should not be cleaned with commercial jewelry cleaning compounds. They are porous and will absorb liquids that will affect the color and erode the pearl. Rings with pearls should not be worn while washing dishes or using harsh household cleaning chemicals. Ultrasonic cleaning is not recommended. A soft cloth should be used to rub the pearls clean.

Peridot – most dipping solutions are okay. A final polish with a rough polishing cloth is recommended.

Rose quartz – jewelry made with sterling silver or gold can be dipped in a solution to remove tarnish without harming the stone. It can be polished with a rough polishing cloth.

Rubies – jewelry made with sterling silver or gold can be dipped in a solution to remove tarnish without harming the stone. It can be polished with a rough jewelry polishing cloth.

Sapphires – jewelry made with sterling silver or gold can be dipped in a solution to remove tarnish without harming the stone. It can be polished with a rough polishing cloth.

Tiger eye – a quartz family stone, is easy to care for. It can be cleaned with a commercial jewelry cleaner.

Topaz – very easy to care for – you can use a commercial jewelry cleaner and a rough cloth for polishing.

Tourmaline – very easy to care for – you can use a commercial jewelry cleaner and then polish with a rough cloth.

Turquoise – a very soft and porous stone and will be stained if it absorbs a colored liquid. It should never be dipped or soaked in a cleaning solution. Ultrasonic cleaning is not recommended. Polish with a soft cloth.