Does anyone have any definitive about the stuff that is
being sold as ‘Candy Jade’?
I have seen it described as ‘real white jade that has been dyed’ and
’synthetic’. This stuff is cheap, and I always thought that genuine
white jadeite was quite expensive.
Thanks
Pat
Does anyone have any definitive about the stuff that is being sold as 'Candy Jade'?
From its price and advertising angle, I have assumed it’s various
light-colored jadelike materials (e.g., serpentine) dyed in various
colors. I wouldn’t touch it with somebody else’s stick.
Hi Pat. Genuine white jadeite can certainly be expensive, but only
Type A Jadeite. That is, Jadeite that has not been subjected to any
treatment other than the centuries-old wax treatment. I, too, saw
the web page that describes its “Candy Jade” as synthetic, but I
don’t know what it is they’re selling.
Type B Jadeite has been subjected to a hydrochloric or sulfuric acid
bleaching process that removes any undesirable brown or yellow
staining but also leaches sodium from it, changing it’s chemical
composition and rendering it rather brittle. This compromises the
toughness for which Jadeite is known and makes it useless, in my
opinion.
Type C Jadeite is Type B Jadeite that has been dyed. While I’ve
never examined “Candy Jade” I’ll go out on a limb right now and call
it Type C. Although Jadeite can be dyed without bleaching
beforehand, it is usually heated before dyeing, which often causes
brown or yellow staining. “Candy Jade” may very well be low-quality
dyed white Jadeite, but I doubt a manufacturer would ruin high
quality natural white material to make cheap garbage.
I did a Google search for “Candy Jade” and found this direct quote
from the first site returned:
"...made from top quality, hard, Chinese white jade and
through a complex color enhancing process penetrating from
surface to center with vibrantly delicious colors. Because of
these wonderful colors these beads and pendants got their
common name, Candy Jade! If you are looking for trendy new
beads for your 2004 designs you should not ignore these! We
predict that their popularity will rival that of last seasons
Strawberry Quartz! Think about that."
I’m going to go out on another limb here and assume that “top
quality, hard, Chinese white jade” is an outright lie, or at least
the author is grossly misinformed, and that the “complex color
enhancing process” is the typical Type C process.
However, I agree with them in that this will likely be a “trendy new
bead for your 2004 designs” and that it may well “rival last
season’s Strawberry Quartz.” Remember Strawberry Quartz? Think about
THAT!
James in SoFl
Hello Pat,
I have seen it described as 'real white jade that has been dyed' and 'synthetic'. This stuff is cheap, and I always thought that genuine white jadeite was quite expensive.
I have only seen a couple of small cabs of ‘paper white’ jadeite and
only the one totally transparent and colourless. Indeed these pieces
came with enormous price tags.
Several many years ago I was given a 30lb boulder of ‘mutton fat’
jadeite. The carver who gave it to me had little use for it as he,
along with most of the world, considered it the most unattractive
colour that a stone could be. He said that almost all the ‘mutton
fat’ found was destined for the dye shop. I guess they are still
doing that.
Tony.
The carver who gave it to me had little use for it as he, along with most of the world, considered it the most unattractive colour that a stone could be. He said that almost all the 'mutton fat' found was destined for the dye shop. I guess they are still doing that.
Aye Tony and what a pity that is. I have seen and handled old
carvings of mutton fat jade that are absolutely beautiful. My wife
has a lovely translucent piece that we got when we lived in Asia that
is very old and beautiful. It also has small brown areas in it that
add to its beauty. The Chinese revere the vibrant translucent greens
but never hesitated to carve browns, whites, or especially mutton
fat. Only our ‘get rich quick’ mentality would take a beautiful
piece of such jade and ‘ruin’ it with dye!!!
Cheers from Don at The Charles Belle Studio in SOFL where simple
elegance IS fine jewelry! @coralnut2
Thanks to all who replied, and confirmed my own thoughts. I did do
an extensive search on Google before asking the question, and ‘top
quality white jade’ seemed unlikely to say the least. As James says,
who would ruin top quality material for an end product that looks
like Smarties.
I also agree that serpentine is a likely candidate, particularly
from sources that fail to describe it as dyed white jade.
The ‘complex color enhancing process’ sounds like a fancy way of
saying ‘dyed’ since you can’t enhance white to any colour but a purer
shade of white. It may also refer to the fact that some of the beads
I have seen are not solid in colour, but exhibit shading and swirls
of colour.
I am most grateful too, James, for the on Types A, B and
C jadeite.
Best wishes
Pat
White jade rare ? Nonsense ! Much of the jade that is mined in
Myanmar ( Burma ) is white and the more white it is the less
valuable it is…as a matter of fact, you might even characterize
it as waste. Go to almost any rock show and you are apt to find
large slabs of white jade going for a song. Typically it may contain
small, widely dispersed patches of green, but said patches usually
won’t produce a cabochon large enough for use in jewelry.
Ron Mills, Mills Gem Co. Los Osos, Ca.