Can anyone share with me how I might enhance the color of citrine? A
client would like a brighter hue on the beads I purchased, and I’d
rather not invest in another strand.
Thanks for any thoughts on this.
Linda in central FL
Can anyone share with me how I might enhance the color of citrine? A client would like a brighter hue on the beads I purchased, and I'd rather not invest in another strand.
Restring them on a brightly colored thread. The beads will pick up
apparent color from the thread running through them, and the colored
knots, if you knot the strand, will also add to the effect. If you
string the same beads on white, light yellow, and bright orange
threads, each will look different. The only other options you have
involve dye in the drill holes, which isn’t ethical or permanent, or
in some cases, heat treatment. But heat treatment generally has
already been done on citrine (much of it starts out as light
amethyst,) and doing it again won’t improve the color (unless they
were subjected to conditions that bleached the color out. Not
common.) You can get both silk and nylon beading threads carded and
already with a needle, which is handy when you’re needing just a
little of this color and would never need it again…
Peter Rowe
Try using dyed silk to string them.
Citrine is a heat product, it is the same family as amethyst, but
gets its color from heat. So I recommend that you do not try to alter
the color.
Blessings, pat
We represent sevreal amethyest and citrine miners in zambia for many
years now as well as sell cut amethyest and citrine. The colro of
true natural citrine even from congo, tanzania, zambia is all varied
meaning when one cuts a kilo or several kiloes of the materials
there are sevreal different hues of color and also some colro
striations in the facated or cut stones sometimes. This is
indicative of “natural stone” unheated and untreated in citrine.
Some citrine is heat treated meaning it is heated or can be but not
always heated from very dark blackish brown smokey quartz (looking
lamost liek obsidian) to nice citrine colors This can be done in
yoru kitchen stove Just like para darka amethyest that cutters in
Bolivia and Brazil heat or put in a flame to lower the color There
is also alot of irradated citrines of various colors or called such
inthe market meaning it is irradated quartz coming out of Brazil and
a few other places. The same process as blue topaz. There is also
much hydrothermal; quartz citrine and amethyest around at cheap
prices made in labs and as well dyed materials or glass as well.
Natural citrine and amethyest is expensive based on color, calirty,
cuts and sizes of pieecs as well as beads, etc The only way to add
color in a stoen basically is to dye it if its light in color or if
very dark it coudl possibly be heat treated down such is the case
also in soem but not all saphire and ruby materiasl with very dark
color in the rough or removing all color in white sapphires as is
the case of guida whiet sapphire. You also must find out of the
materiasl are natural, dyed, irradeted quartz or hydrothermal or
even the possibility of glass or something else. It is very hard or
impossible to put color into a stoen unless it is dyed or checmially
treated MOst often with very dark materiasl we maybe able to lighten
colro via heat in some sotnes or via other methods. I hope this
helps you Please feel free to contact me offl line.
Lee Horowitz, M.Ed, CAGS, Gemologist
Peru Blue Opal LtdHorowitz Co-KCIG Co Ltd
Linda- The only thing I’d do is string it on brighter yellow cord.
It’s difficult for someone who doesn’t have the experience to heat
treat quartz with any control over the out come. I’ve seen it done
with rough but not finished beads.
Have fun and make lots of jewelry.
Jo Haemer
www.timothywgreen.com
Not all citrine is heat treated nor irradted quartz from Brazil or
also nydrothermal materiasl We represent fellwo miners of 100%
natural citrine from Mukushi ( 15 kilometers from the congo border)
and Lundaze Zambia as well as Tanzania. Ther is very little citrine
in Kenay where we mine near Voi Tsavo Park Kenya.IN a true parcel fo
cut faceted citrines the colros will vary somewhat in hue and oen
can tell as theer shoudl be in afew pieecs very nice interesting and
used by designers geometric color saturiation bands in the citrine.
Citine taht is heat treated comes from very dark smokey quartz to
also some morion citrine also known as root beer citrine in zambia,
congo, etc You can lower down the color of citrine rough, etc in a
kitchen oven ( just like taking at 700 degrees heat treatment of
sitstrang Cambodian zircons to blue packed in activated charcoal
crucible) and if left in any oven both amethyest and citrine will
become colorless quartz In brazil and bolivia cutters use top
paradarka amethyest and lighten such by holding the amethyest to heat
flame to lower color In fact we sell afrcian amethyest and citrine,
ect to many Brazilian and Bolivian cutters from our facility in Peru.
Heat treatments are a trickey business left to heat treaters Not all
dark smokey quartz just like sapphire or ruby heat treats., the same
with zircons in cambodia verus most african zircons that will not
heat treat. The reasons the elements inside such as if it contains
“iron” , etc. The key is also you can never add color to a stone or
darken it via heat treatment . Dye or other checmial treatments maybe
used to darken color or in the case of emeradls both oil to darken
color and hide cracks or due added to oil to increase color and
darken colro and hide cracks in a emerald. H
ope this helps
Lee Horowitz
Peru Blue Opal Ltd Horowitz Co-KCIG Co ltd
Hi Linda,
Almost ALL natural citrine is the result of heat treating amethyst.
This changes the valence of the iron ions in the amethyst, resulting
in some shade of yellow to brown. There is no way to “enhance” the
color of your citrine. Also, be aware that probably 90% or more of
either the amethyst or citrine, beads or faceted, now seen on the
market are actually hydrothermal quartz, a lab grown product.
If you ever want to experience dealers selling to jewelers or the
public without the disclosure required by law, just spend some time
at the Tucson show. Sad, but true.
Wayne Emery
www.thelittlecameras.com