3 Tests You Can Use to Tell Whether the Turquoise You Bought at the County Fair Is Real or Made Out of Howlite

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County fairs are a good place to go have fun and buy jewelry at one of the little stands scattered around the fairground. However, you do have to be careful when buying turquoise jewelry, as some of it can be may actually be made out of howlite. Howlite is a white porous borate mineral that is commonly used to mimic other types of minerals—including turquoise. Howlite can be dyed to look like turquoise, so you may not know whether you're buying natural turquoise or an imposter mineral. Here are three tests you can use to determine whether the turquoise jewelry you are thinking of buying at the county fair is real or not.

Heated-Pin Test

Howlite can be mixed with magnesite and dyes to form a stone that looks a lot like turquoise. The stone can also be covered with an epoxy material to give it a hard shell. One way to tell whether the stone you are thinking of buying is covered with an epoxy is to do a heated pin test. Take a regular household pin and heat it up with a lighter until the end of the pin glows red. Once the pin is heated, press it against an inconspicuous spot on the stone. If the piece of turquoise is actually made out of howlite covered with an epoxy, the heated pin will melt the epoxy and expose the lighter color of the howlite mineral.

Nail Polish–Remover Test

The dye used to change the color of the howlite can be made to run by applying an acetone-based material to it. Nail-polish remover typically has acetone and works just fine when doing this test; make sure to read the ingredients on the nail polish–remover container to verify that the remover has acetone in it. Take a regular cotton ball and soak part of it in the nail-polish remover. Carefully pick a spot to wipe the stone, and rub the acetone-filled cotton ball against the spot. If a dye was used to color the piece of jewelry, the color will run, and the cotton ball will turn blue while the spot you rubbed will either turn white or become noticeably lighter in color.

Physical-Appearance Test

If you are buying a necklace or bracelet made up of small stones, you should closely examine the color and design of the stones. Natural turquoise stones will vary in shape, color, and design even within a single necklace or bracelet. If the stones in your necklace or bracelet look all uniform with little to no variances in color, shape, and design, you can assume you are buying a stone manufactured to look like turquoise.

Talk to a company such as Sunface Traders that sells natural turquoise jewelry for more tips.

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13 October 2016

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A few months ago, I caught a glimpse of myself when I was walking by a large mirror. I couldn't believe how old I looked. It was as if my personality had been sucked right out of my body. I knew that I had to do something to turn things around, so I went to a friend for help. She suggested sprucing up my look with a little jewelry, and I decided to give it a shot. I was nervous to wear earrings, bangles, and necklaces, but it made a huge difference. My blog is all about teaching people how to use jewelry in exciting ways, so that you can feel your best.