Spectrolite SHOULDN'T sell as rainbow moonstone!

anistasia - have been away & logged on to see some of my favorite
words: spectrolite (labradorite) & moonstone.

first off, both moonstone & labradorite/spectrolite are indeed
feldspars; BUT moonstone is an orthoclase feldspar with a mohs’ of 6

  • AND labradorite is a plagioclase feldspar with a mohs’ of 6 to 6.5
  • bytownite is termed only as ‘similar to labradorite’ - the three
    materials are found in sections of the world different from each
    other with only one or two overlapping locations.

‘spectrolite’ is a term for material found & processed only in
finland; it is mostly dark based with tones of gold fire &
midnight-royal blue swooshes, splotches, etc. - i have never seen any
completely transparent spectrolite. there is an almost
water-transparent labradorite of facet quality that is expensive - it
cost far more than moonstone. ‘good’ rainbow moonstone is as clear as
rock crystal/quartz with blue or blue-green fire - there is also
material with pink/peach. i buy a lot of moonstone &
labradorite/spectrolite rough.

the secret to cutting & polishing is to select only sections of rough
with good fire & without visible cracks. i set a box of rough pieces
on the east deck just after noontime - it works far better without
bright lights, you can drive yourself crazy using just overhead light
for lousy rough material - if you can’t see fire in an eastern
indirect natural light don’t bother with it, good material will have
fire showing in that light. use the thinnest blade you’ve got -
diamond is best. for polishing work up through the grits from 80
through 1500-1600, taking time at every grit to get a ‘sheen’ (no
scratches) before moving on to the next grit. most commercially
polished material has a surface treatment to save time; it isn’t
necessary with good sanding. you will see a major difference between
a well worked cab & a commercial one when it comes to surface
texture. ive

ps: if anyone wishes to see a nicely cut & polished
spectrolite/labradorite in jewelry i can email a few when i am online -