my favorite piece...

I think everyone I know has one favorite piece they wear or love. And mine is a turquoise ring I received as a gift for Christmas. I wear it every day. Turquoise is my favorite color and wanted a turquoise ring for the longest time, but they are a little hard to find in CT, and when I did, I couldn't find the right one.

When I recieved this as a gift, I couldn't believe my little eye. It is the perfect shade of green/blue. The picture I took (above) doesnt capture the color, but its beautiful. I love the silver designs that wrap and hold the stone. It's quite large and probably takes up half my finger.... but the bigger the better...when it comes to this beautiful and meaning stone.

What is the history of turquoise? "In many cultures of the Old and New Worlds, this gemstone has been esteemed for thousands of years as a holy stone, a bringer of good fortune or a talisman. It really does have the right to be called a 'gemstone of the peoples'. The oldest evidence for this claim was found in Egypt, where grave furnishings with turquoise inlay were discovered, dating from approximately 3000 B.C.. In the ancient Persian kingdom, the sky-blue gemstones were earlier worn round the neck or wrist as protection against unnatural death. If they changed colour, the wearer was thought to have reason to fear the approach of doom. Meanwhile, it has been discovered that the turquoise certainly can change colour, but that this is not necessarily a sign of impending danger. The change can be caused by the light, or by a chemical reaction brought about by cosmetics, dust or the acidity of the skin.

In South, Central and North America too, the turquoise has always occupied a very special position among gemstones. The Aztecs in Mexico, for example, used to decorate their ceremonial masks with this stone which was holy according to their beliefs. The Indians of North America, who still produce a good deal of traditional silver jewellery with turquoises today, believe that the sky-blue gemstone opens up a direct connection between the sky and the sea. At all times and over the world, turquoises have been worn as natural protection against the powers of darkness.

And why the beautiful blue green color? In Nature, it occurs in the whole range of hues from sky blue to grey-green, and it is mostly found in places where there is a high concentration of copper in the soil. However, turquoise is only really turquoise in the very best quality; mostly, the colour is paler, or bluish-green or greenish. The blue colour is created by copper, the green by bivalent iron and a certain amount of chrome. Often, the material has veins or blotches running through it, which are brown, light grey or black depending on where it was found. These lively, more or less regular patterns are known as 'turquoise matrix'.

My next piece? I hope it's below. It combines turquoise, milagros, and worry dolls. My next post will talk about the meaning of milagros and stay tuned for the story on worry dolls. All meaningful that mean very much to me.