Some turquoise

[treasuresalvor]

Someday I'd like to turn some of this into some rings or other jewelry but I don't know how.

 

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[galenrog]

To shape the stones, find a good lapidary. To make rings, find a good silversmith or goldsmith.

Time for more coffee.

 

[Eu_citzen]

Agree with the above. We're a few lapidary artists here that could help cut and polish those.

 

[ToddsPoint]

I do some lapidary work. I'd be willing to grind and polish a couple of pieces for you if you send a couple extras for myself. I've never worked turquoise but it can't be too tough. I don't do any silver work though so mounting is on you. Here's a pendant I made out of So. IL flint...very hard. Send a personal message to get my address if you want to try it. Gary

 

[stdenis_jd]

Turquoise often has to be stabilized due to the natural cracks and inclusions that weaken the structure. The stuff in the pic looks pretty good to me and I figure many of them will be work-able as-is.

 

[gunsil]

Looks like that stuff in the photo has already been "stabilized" and definitely looks tumbled. Good quality turquoise never needs to be stabilized which is just soaking it in epoxy basically. The whole stabilizing thing only came about when the popularity of "native" turquoise jewelry exploded in the 1970s and the availability of good turquoise couldn't keep up with the demand for jewelry. Most of what comes out of American turquoise mines is way too soft for jewelry so the "stabilizing" came about. As a lapidary and jeweler I don't use treated stones and stay away from most turquoise since over 90% of what is on the American market today has suffered from color "enhancing" and/or stabilization. I prefer to give my customers real stones not globs of epoxy treated "stones". Sleeping beauty turquoise is fantastic, and the best American turquoise available, hard and great color but the price has more than quadrupled in the last five years.

 

[treasuresalvor]

I'm not sure what has exactly been done to it. Most has for sure been tumbled, some is raw. We use to have buckets full of it along with much silver and many nice rings that had been already made. Also a large saw and a polisher. It was all stuff my dad had acquired from a friend out of Arizona. This and a few odds and ends are all that I have left. I actually really like the look of slightly tumbled turquoise with a pile of silver, i think it makes for a nice display.

 

[hvacker]

Be careful of plastic turquoise too. It can be very convincing if it can't be handled.
A buyer for a jewelry manufacture was shown some for a sale. She threw the stones at the wall.
Upset someone would try to pull that off with an expert.
Some stones that are dyed aren't even turquoise but look like it. Hardness test needed.
I don't mind stabilizing stones that couldn't be cabbed w/o it. Like one called buffalo
turquoise. It's too soft naturally to be worked. Usually.

 

[gunntekk1]

get some books on wire wrapping at your local craft store and pick up a buffer its easy to do just use your talents