Blue John Sterling Silver Pendant

Blue John

This Blue John comes from Two Skies' most recent mining trip to the Peak District. Originally discovered by the Romans, during the 19th century it was mined for its ornamental value, and mining continues on a small scale. This material is a rare form of the mineral fluorite and is only found commercially in one mine in the world - “Treak Cliff” Cavern, England. Mined by Adam's friend John, it featured on the BBC's One Show in 2014/15. It takes its name from the French “bleu & jaune” (blue & yellow) describing the colours it displays. Care should be taken as this stone is softer than other gemstones.

Gemstone Stabilisation

Stones that are naturally very soft or porous tend to be stabilised for jewellery. Modern methods of stabilisation involve injecting epoxy resin into the stone in a high pressure oven, which seals all the cracks and pores. It also stops the gem from changing over time - people who wear non-stabilised Turquoise often complain about their stone darkening and going green over time (this is due to natural body oils reacting with the minerals, causing the colour to change.) Some stabilised stones are chemically dyed at the same time, however colour enhancements are never made by Two Skies, which is in line with gem industry standards - you can be assured the colours displayed in our items are 100% natural.

Sterling Silver (925%)

Why do silversmiths use 925%? Measured in parts per thousand, pure silver (999%) is too soft so silversmiths mix it with other metals to make it it harder. The purer the metal, the higher the polish, but it is a lot softer (thus less durable). The harder the metal is, the more hard wearing the jewellery is, but it will also tarnish easier as it has less silver content. Therefore, the silver industry set a standard percentage content for fine silver (925); what we know as "sterling silver". At Two Skies our silversmiths use 925 (sterling) silver for ring shafts and moving parts, and a very high 950% on our stones settings, which enables us to get a strong jewellery item with a beautiful and secure stone setting, without any gluing. Each piece of our jewellery is hand stamped with our Two Skies Hallmark alongside the recognised industry 925 Hallmark.