Spiritual gifts of love

Love is the one thing that everyone hopes to feel at least once in their lives. All other things, like wealth and good fortune fade away. The feeling of love cannot be described in actual words, and the only way you can express it is through metaphors.

I don't know about you, but I have been in love. To be honest with you, when I sit back and think about my life before it, there are not many things about which I can say mattered to me. The moments you can really say you are alive are the ones when you are in love.

Even so, when you are in love, you may be in a jam. Feelings are very important and expressing them can be harder than it seems. Also you may have a problem with your partner's feelings. If you break the news without any warning, some people get scared and you may lose your one chance for happiness. This is why you should try to make a statement by sending a few hints before the actual declaration.

The best way to make yourself understood to some extent is to offer some meaningful gifts. Try to search for some spiritual gifts that can send the right message, so your partner gets an idea and perhaps slowly will understand that the feelings are mutual.

These spiritual gifts should be chosen with great care and extensive information about the receiver. You wouldn't want to offer roses to someone that is allergic to them or any other unpleasant situation like that. You need to try to find out a thing or two about your partner's tastes if you do not know already. Try to understand what could send the right message on the proper occasion.

If you want my advice, flowers are a good choice. However, there may be some problems with this type of gift. Some flowers may stir up some unwanted memories, even though they are favored. You need to find a full-proof solution.

Even though there are a variety of solutions for spiritual gifts, there is one that cannot fail. On any occasion, may it be important or casual, there is always one thing that can do the trick: jewelry. If you pick the pieces carefully, you will make a very good impression and a powerful statement at the same time.

Always take into account all the important factors. Think about what type of relationship you had up until that point, consider what she likes, and most of all try to picture her reaction to certain gifts. If you think that offering a ring might scare her off, go for something else.

Other solutions for spiritual gifts come in pendants or ear-rings. But you need to choose the right design in order to make a good impression. In order to get an idea about what is suitable and what message you want to send, you need to find a website that can provide all that information.

Because of this you should consider visiting ka-gold-jewelry.com. Here you will find all kinds of jewelry with great significance that will suit your needs perfectly. Every symbol has a cultural background and other hidden meanings, so you will not buy a simple piece of jewelry. On top of that, all the things you need to know about it are there, so you can impress your partner with its significance.

Source: http://www.therealarticles.com/Article/Spiritual-gifts-of-love/156666

Shopping for Topaz Jewelry: Treatments, Fakes, and Radioactivity

Topaz is becoming the popular gemstone with the widest variety of human influence on its appearance. When shopping for topaz jewelry, you rarely come into contact with a gemstone that resembles something from the earth. Almost every topaz you can find has been treated in a way: you can get a clue about those treatments by observing the stones' color.

Pale Blue: If you see a pale blue stone and it is very expensive, there is a small chance it could be natural. Otherwise the color of these stones is usually produced through heat treatment.

Intense Blue: "Electric blue", "Swiss Blue", "London Blue" and any other very bright blue color you see is usually the result of two treatments: irradiation and then heat. In the case of irradiation, the gemstones need to "cool off" for up to 2 years before they can be worn due to their radioactivity after the treatment. It is so difficult to govern or account for these procedures, that Europe is beginning to take steps to ban gemstones treated in this way. These gemstones should be purchased with awareness and caution.

Brown: Brown topaz is the second most common color found in natural, untreated topaz. Brown topaz can also be the result of treatments, although it is not common since the cost of the treatment couldn't be made up in the price of the stone. So a brown topaz is likely to be natural and unheated.

Yellow: Yellow topaz also occurs in nature, however bright colors are usually the result of treatment. Extra caution is needed when looking at a piece of "yellow topaz" however, because yellow quartz (citrine) is often incorrectly given that label. "Yellow Topaz Quartz" is less deceptive, but it is not topaz. Since citrine is less valuable than topaz, it is important to make the distinction. You can tell with a scratch test. Find a spot on the girdle (thin edge between the top and bottom facets), and scratch the stone with something of at least 7 on the Moh's Scale (e.g. garnet). If the stone scratches, you know it's not topaz.

Pink: Pink is the most valuable color of topaz. However, in nature pink shades of topaz are extremely rare. Traditionally, pink topaz was created by heating yellow topaz. This has been done for hundreds of years and is a fairly stable treatment. Recently, though, very "hot" or intense, dark colors of pink topaz are being achieved through "coating". A coat of colored film is put on the gemstones surface and then it is exposed to high pressure or heat. The color absorbs into the stone but only in a shallow layer. This means that if the stone is severely scratched or re-polished or chipped, the natural (usually white) topaz will show.

Iridescence: More and more colors and varieties of topaz are available daily with an iridescent, incandescent look to them. The most common and popular of these is "Mystic Topaz". There is also "Rainbow topaz", "Mystic Firelight", "Azotic", etc. These stones are created when colorless topaz is coated with titanium oxide (a film like the one on a camera lens) and then exposed to pressure. The treatment is referred to as "coating". Since the color only seeps through to a thin surface layer of the gemstone, it tends to wear off over time.

Colorless: This is the one form of topaz that you can count on as not being treated. Colorless or "white" topaz is the most abundantly found in nature. It is therefore, not very expensive. Many of the colored topaz stones you can buy started out as colorless before their treatment.

Research topaz treatments and ask your jeweler questions. Be informed so you know what you're buying.

Source: http://www.therealarticles.com/Article/Shopping-for-Topaz-Jewelry--Treatments--Fakes--and-Radioactivity/153987

The Myth and Lore of Garnets: January's Birthstone

The lore of garnets can be traced back to the ancient Greek myth of Persephone. She was the maiden daughter of Zeus, the most powerful Greek god, and Demeter, the Earth mother whose realm was plants and agriculture.
Persephone was picking flowers when she was abducted by Hades, the ruler of the underworld. Zeus sought out Hermes to find her and bring her back, but because she had eaten of the pomegranate seed, she was obligated to spend a third of the year with Hades, who became her new husband.

The term garnet comes from the Phoenician term for pomegranate: punica geranatum. From this came the Latin term, "granatus," which translates as "seed." Garnets appear like pomegranate seeds individually and also, in their natural matrix where they can be found in clusters.

Persephone's rising up from the underworld and disappearing in the late autumn months represents the seasonal cycles of plant growth in temperate climates. In the winter months, when plants are barren and the Earth itself seems to be asleep, Persephone is underground. In the spring, she rises up with to be with her mother, Demeter, who brings the bounty of leafy growth with joy at her daughter's return.
The mythological association of garnets, particularly red garnets, with Persephone suggests that the gemstone might be associated with a particular type of love - not the superficial type of love, but deep love that takes you so far out of yourself that you end up in a different world.

Note that Persephone was not courted. She was swept down. Once she tasted the underworld, she could never leave; it was an initiation of sorts. Hades, Persephone's husband, inhabits a world in which one is forced to leave one's body behind in ashes.

Hades was also sometimes called "Lord of the Riches," because indeed, all riches do come from the earth. Jungian depth psychology and astrological lore associates Hades with catharsis, radical change from deep within. The underworld is a metaphor for the unconscious currents of one's existence - the dream world, where archetypal characters interact in stories that have mythological patterns.

Apart from the myth, over the centuries garnets have been the subject of much lore. There's a Biblical story about Noah hanging a garnet around his neck in order to have safe passage through dark and stormy nights, which perhaps accounts for garnets being offered to travelers as a talisman for safe journeys.

Garnet is named as January's birthstone. The zodiac sign is that of Aquarius, a sign associated with the warmth of friendship and working well with groups of people.

The Koran describes Heaven's light as all pervasive, glowing because of garnets. Garnets, in this case, contained a powerful internal energy. Romans compared the glow of garnet to that of coal and the passionate red, led them to associate the gem with Mars, the god of war. Garnets are also associated with the hot weather of summer time.

Perhaps the lore of garnets also has something to do with how they are formed. Garnets, found in metamorphic and volcanic rock, are formed deep underground and under extreme pressure and temperature. They are a type of silicate that share a common crystalline, isometric, cubic structure.

Though we most often identify them with the color red, they can be found in a wide variety of hues, depending upon the composition of calcium, iron and manganese. Garnets range from green, lemon yellow, black, rose, orange and even black.

Human beings have used garnets for adornment for thousands of years. Garnets have even been found in bronze age tombs. According to Knuth, the earliest recorded garnet mine is in Sri Lanka, and dates back about 2500 years.

Today, garnets are mined on several continents. Those that are not gemstone quality are quite common. I remember picking out small red in granite in the White Mountains of northern New Hampshire which I explored as a teenager.

If you want to learn more about garnets and your relationship to them, here's an entirely different approach. Just try holding a garnet in your hand for a while and see if you get a new feeling. Perhaps you'll see some images in your mind's eye.

Contemplate what you feel and see if it provides any insight. This may seem crazy, but ask the garnet a question. You might be surprised about what a garnet can teach you about your personal journey, picking flowers with your sweetheart, or wandering about in a dream somewhere in the realm of Hades.

References: Most of the historical content, myth and lore referenced in this article came from two books, both of which are in print and available on line:

George Frederick Kunz, The Curious Lore of Precious Stones, New York; Dover Publications, Inc. 1913, 1971 edition.

Bruce Knuth, Gems In Myth, Legends And Lore; Parachute, Colorado, Jewelers Press, 2007.

As a jeweler, I am often asked about birthstones by my customers. Yet few understand the historical connection behind between gem and month. Nor do many considered what is behind the attraction one may feel toward a particular gem. This article considers garnets, the birthstone of January, using myth and lore, to grasp this gem's metaphysical "meaning".

About the Author:

Source: http://www.upublish.info/Article/The-Myth-and-Lore-of-Garnets--January-s-Birthstone/129153

How to Get a Good Deal Buying Rubies: What Your Jeweler Won't Tell You

When shopping for a ruby, you want to be sure you buy the best one you can for your money. Salespeople in jewelry stores, though perhaps well-meaning, are usually not gemologically trained. They are not often able to explain the properties or rareness of a particular gemstone, but rather use softer terminology like "beauty" and "sparkle". Before you buy your ruby, read about the common things that jewelers do that can be misleading.

They show you rubies that are the wrong color:

The most important factor in determining the value of a ruby is its color. The most valuable color for ruby is bright bright red. It is nicknamed "pigeon blood red". Most of the rubies that a jeweler will try to sell you are either:

1. Too dark. They are the color of wine, or slightly brown or slightly purple, or
2. Too light. They are dark or hot pink

Now, if you like these colors, then you should buy them. However, you must also make sure that the price takes the "less valuable" color into account.

They don't tell you that the ruby is poorly cut

Most rubies commonly found in fine jewelry are cut too shallow. This means that when you look at it from the side, it is disc-like. A well cut ruby is about as tall as it is wide. You can tell a good cut by the amount of sparkle: a perfectly cut ruby will dazzle you. A poorly cut ruby will either have a dark spot in the center without any sparkle, or more commonly, you'll be able to see through it (in clearer stones).

The quality of the cut has nothing to do with the shape of the cut. If you are shopping for a ruby, look at the stones available to you and examine each one for the amount of sparkle they return.

They make you think that just because it's a ruby, it's precious

This is not the case. You can buy loose rubies for under $10. The value of a ruby completely depends on its qualities as a gemstone (color, clarity, cut and size). The finest rubies can be worth more than diamonds. If you are buying a piece of jewelry because you think the ruby it contains makes it valuable, you have to be careful. Examine it for yourself according to those 4 characteristics.

If you go into the shopping process well educated about what is valuable, you can end up with a precious treasure that will hold its value for generations.

Source: http://www.therealarticles.com/Article/How-to-Get-a-Good-Deal-Buying-Rubies--What-Your-Jeweler-Won-t-Tell-You/146930