I am going into my 5th week of obeying “the stay at home” order. I’m afraid I may forget how to drive! The weather here in Hillsborough, NC has been gorgeous. I may have to put the top down on my convertible and take a drive to make sure I haven’t forgotten how and to enjoy the beautiful weather. One “good” thing of being holed up at home is I am able to focus more, when I’m not consumed with the news, on my jewelry.
I am reacquainting myself with my tools, relearning how to use them and practicing my jewelry making skills. Boy do I need some practice! I want to start making some gemstone pieces. I have all these beautiful gemstones just calling my name, but I don’t want to “practice” with $40 (a piece) or for that matter even $10 gemstones! So, I have been hunting through my stones looking for ones that are under $10 and preferably even less!
I have been wanting to create brooches, especially since I went to “Brooching the Subject” workshop way back in October. I had this idea to make an abacus brooch.
I love things that move and I remember play with an abacus as a child making all sorts of designs with the little beads. The least expensive beads I could find and that I had on hand were howlite.
Howlite gemstones are “real” but howlite is neither ancient nor precious! Howlite was named after Henry How, who discovered it in 1868 in Nova Scotia. Howlite is a borate mineral and can be found in Canada and parts of the US. Deposits of howlite have also been found in Turkey, Germany, Mexico and Russia. Howlite has the appearance of marble or white porcelain. It is opaque white or grey color with veins of black or dark brown running through it. Not very pretty in my opinion!
The appeal of howlite is that it is very porous and can absorb dye quite well. As such it is best known for imitating other gemstones. It is often sold to imitate red coral, turquoise and lapis lazuli.
Howlite is sometimes misleadingly sold as white turquoise. A good sign that you may not be getting what you thought you were buying is price! Coral, turquoise and lapis are all more expensive than howlite.
Howlite is a calming stone. It is said to quite helpful if you are feeling stressed or anxious. It may be the perfect stone for these “trying” times we are currently experiencing! Howlite is believed to help teach patience, hmm I need to start wearing it, eliminate rage and pain. It can also be used to facilitate awareness and encourage emotional expression. Are you an insomniac or have trouble sleeping? Try placing howlite under your pillow.
Despite its commonality, dyed howlite can be quite attractive and can make for some pretty and inexpensive jewelry!
Until next time, stay home, stay safe, stay well
ENJOY!!
cheryl