If you are someone who loves statement jewelry pieces, then you might have considered buying opal jewelry, at least once in your life. It is not only unique but also looks quite mystical. Opal is a gemstone that has been quite overlooked, but once it is infused in a jewelry piece, it looks quite chic. This article is a little guide to Opal jewelry.
Opal jewelry is back in trend, with a full swing as it comes out strongly for various occasions. From your everyday statement pieces to wedding jewelry; you can get opal earrings, rings and much more, to stand out in the crowd. You can get the best and most stylish opal jewellery in Melbourne; no matter what type and style you are looking for! But before you grab yours, here is a little guide to opal jewellery.
Brightness of Opal:
Opals have a grading scale based on their brightness. This brightness grading scale basically categorizes this stone, depending on the intensity of the reflection of colour, when light is penetrated through them. There are three brightness grades:
- Dull
- Bright
- Brilliant
As the names suggest, brilliant opals are the brightest and they contain different flashes of colours too. This is why brilliant graded opals are the most expensive ones as well. On the other hand, dull opal jewellery is not valuable and is least costly. It doesn’t shine either. However, bright opals are medium in brightness and value both but they have a nice sheen to them.
Difference between hand-made and synthetic opals:
Natural opals are more valuable and hand-made ones don’t have much value to them. For someone who doesn’t have an eye of judgement for the right opal, might be paying more for a less valuable opal and vice versa. Thus, understanding the difference is important.
Synthetic opals are created in labs. It is similar to synthetic diamonds. However, they use the same chemical formula that of the natural opal. But these opals have different density and patterns as they don’t occur naturally and are created in labs. You can judge a synthetic opal by its texture; it will have a pattern that is similar to snake’s skin. Moreover, synthetic opals are cheaper in price too and obviously, less valuable.
How to take care of your Opal Jewelry?
If you are investing in natural opal jewellery pieces, then you need to make sure that you take care of it properly. It is going to be costly and you don’t want its charm to wear off too soon.
Opals are just like pearls;they are quite delicate. With the passage of time, marks can occur on opal and can also start getting dull. If your opal is getting dull, you need to take it to the opal cutter. They will polish the stone again for you. It will be similar to reviving its brilliance back.
On the other hand, if any grime is building up on the opal, you can wash it with detergent and use warm water to rinse it off. Make sure you clean it often, so that no grime starts to get permanent on it. Lastly, if you plan to store your opal jewellery for a long time, then you can wrap it in cotton wool. Just dust a few drops of water on it, to keep it moist in humid weather, otherwise it will lose its brilliance.
CONCLUSION
Before you buy opal jewellery, it is best to understand the difference between synthetic and natural opal, so that you can buy the best pieces for yourself.
