Archive for December, 2008

How does one attach a Swarovski crystal to metal?

Wednesday, December 24th, 2008
viraneth asked:


I want to make a steam punk pendant, and I need to attach a Swarovski crystal to the pendant, and the pendant is made of metal. It is a pendant cut crystal. Can someone help?
It’s not a very expensive crystal, so I can get another if need be. But, I need to attach the crystal so it has a seamless look.

Jamie
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What type of crystal is in an agate that I found?

Monday, December 22nd, 2008
me asked:


This is a large lake superior agate that I found in Minnesota. There is some clear quartz in the rock. I was looking very closely, and I noticed that inbetween the edge of the quartz and the chalcedony, there is some crystal that is red. It’s a very distinct ruby or blood red. I can tell that it is not agate material, and its structure is just like the other quartz. At first I thought it was the color of the red agate reflecting into the quartz, but after looking closely I realized that it was the actual color of the crystal. Is this just ruby colored quartz, or is it some other type of crystal?

Nancy
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How do I clean crystal violet from a beaker?

Thursday, December 18th, 2008
Quake asked:


I made a solution of crystal violet (gentian violet) in a glass container and it doesn’t wash off. What can I use to clean it? If you have safe suggestions (not strong acids or something like that), it would be better. Thanks.

Marian
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Using Expanding Water Crystals to Make Your Garden Blossom!

Wednesday, December 17th, 2008
Gen Wright asked:


If you are thinking of revitalizing your home garden, perhaps you can consider buying some water crystals to help with your gardening. Water crystals are produced from crystal polymers. And as the name suggests, its main function is to help store water, which can then be released to the plants. Obviously, the application of water crystals is not solely limited to home gardening. They are also widely used for home d?r ?often in multiply colors, wedding vases, crafts, making cool-ties, and even dog beds. Let’s take a look at the many uses of expanding water crystals to make your garden flourish!

House plants.

Not everyone has a garden, but some still like to keep plants in their houses. If you are one of these people, perhaps you may be interested in using some water crystals to help your plants grow. From previous studies done on the crystals, it is shown that plants with water crystals in them require fifty to seventy percent less watering. That means even if you are too busy to water the plants, the house plants still have a pretty good chance of survival.

Gardens.

This is the most common application for water crystals. Besides just absorbing water and storing water, these crystals also have the ability to absorb and store nutrients. In other words, water crystals work best when you combine them with fertilizers. The crystals will help ensure that the fertilizers are not lost in the soil.

Trees and shrubs.

Trees and shrubs appear almost everywhere - in public landscapes, golf courses, or even in your own backyard. Water crystals have been proven to work very well with trees and shrubs. Here is how water crystals can be applied to a tree or shrub.

First, start by digging a hole for the plant. The hole should be about fifty percent larger than the size of the plant container. As you fill up the hole again with the soil, make sure that you mix the water crystals uniformly with the soil. Use about two cups of expanded gel for every gallon of soil. Leave the top one or two inches of soil untreated, and the job is complete.

Lawn and sod.

Convinced that water crystals can benefit plants, you may wish to apply them on something closer to your home - your lawn and sod. A seed spreader can be used to apply water crystals in a uniform manner to the lawn. The crystals are then tilled to a depth where the roots of the plants are. Use between two to five pounds of water crystals for every thousand square feet. Once the crystals have been planted, it is important to remember giving the lawn lots of water. This will help hydrate the crystals.

There are many uses for expanding water crystals, and the right way to apply these crystals is to keep the quantity to a somewhat uniform level. The goal is not to use as many crystals as you can. That’s like trying to drown the plants with too much water! Having a good understanding of the soil and environment, and applying the crystals uniformly, are keys to success.



Gary
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Love With Crystal II — Give a Glance at the Mysterious World of Crystal (up Part)

Wednesday, December 17th, 2008
Krista QQ(www.123giftfactory.com) asked:


Crystal is one kind of intelligential minerals, it could bring us good luck while eliminate bad luck, and it has been described as a fairy treasure of natural stones.

The special molecular structure of crystal is a fruit of absorbing the elites of the sun, moon and the earth endlessly, thus endowed with super powerful nimbus and magnetic energy, and with an incredible force for Aura. Keeping a crystal with as to carry a body guardian of King Kong, it has functions of self-cultivation, health care, training of qi, house guarding, gathering wealth, praying, recruiting wealth, worshiping Buddha, removing blocks, prapatti, adding wisdom, help edge, and keeping away from villains and so on.

In the study of Feng Shui, crystal was also called “Feng Shui Stone”, because the natural crystal has agglomerated nimbus in universe of thousands eternities, deposited in the crust from a variety of natural elements (minerals) and refined through innumerable years, thus formed in a variety of crystals, each kind of crystal represents a different frequency of energy, and produce different magnetic fields and functions, so in Feng Shui theory, according to the truth of five elements generated and restricted mutually, crystal has evolved into the most important study of five elements as metal, wood , water, fire and earth.

For years crystal experts have constantly studied over and provided a large amount of literatures and examples of crystal lovers and have proved that crystal contains enormous amounts of energy and mysterious magic power, reply on which could not only reversed back lucks into good desires, but also is an ancient culture that worthy to promote all through millions of years.

Crystal Assorment

 



There are mainly 9 species in the crystal family catefory as following:

??White Crystal

??Amethyst

??Citrine

??Smoky Quartz

??Rose Quartz

??Milky Quartz

??Rutilated Quartz

??Cats Eyes

??Red Quartz?

1) White Crystal



White crystal is a sort of transparent and colorless or white color crystal, natural crystalline is shaped in a hexagonal column. It is the most representative gem endowed with most functions, applications and most helpful in the crystal family, and be called ”The King of Crystal”.

White crystal has the abilities of bringing people a calm mind, a pure and harmonious spirit, and demolishing negative energies around and on people ‘s body, it can amends magnetic fields around and that of people’s bodies, thus to make sick peoples to regain a strong and healthy body, and brings good lucks too; There’s a legend said magically that crystal could not close to witches and wizard for it’s feminine vigor, so white crystal endowed with powers of guarding house, guarding shop and breaking bad fortunes.

 



* white crystal necklace, elegant and romatic

2) Amethyst Crystal

 



Amethyst crystal is the most noble and beautiful member in the crystal family, it also known as “Feng Shui Stone”, Japanese called amethyst as energy stone. As appeared in purple color for there’s a trace of Fe (iron) infiltrated in, as ferric oxide is the main cause of the color of bright purple, while light-colored amethysts are mostly be heated and transformed into yellow crystals (artificial heating is commonly while natural yellow crystal engendered by natural heating that through thousands of million years are very rare).

Amethyst crystal also has other forms, most of amethyst crystals are grown in the introversive mode, which called as amethyst crystal holes, and amethyst crystal clusters grown in extroversive mode are extremely rare (the most available crystal clusters in the market are white crystal clusters).

Amethyst crystal is on behalf of the spirituality, mentality, top-tier love, which could be presented as an engaging gift or a keepsake to admirers. As one kind of traditional amulet amethyst crystals are generally able to drive bad fortunes and bring good lucks, also to improve one’s wisdom, adjusting mood, promoting intuition, help to focus attention, enhancing memory and give people courage and strength.

The color of purple is the dominant key to right-brain world, which control one’s intuition and subconscious minds, it is particularly suitable for Aries persons to keeping amethyst, thus help to collect vigor, improving the vitality of thinking, and help people in trouble to think calmly and to face challenges offered with reality.

Amethyst crystal also is the guarding stone and birthstone of Aquarius persons.



* amethyst pendant, mysterious and noble

3) Citrine Crystal (Yellow Crystal)

 



Citrine crystal is known as “crystal yellow gem” in the gem community, whose colors are different from light yellow, yellow, orange yellow to gold yellow. Due to its superior brightness and color it could be measured as a top grade citrine as long as endowed with transparent, bright and clean characters, also with a fine visibility quality that superior much to that of topaz, so citrine crystal are favored by consumers much, they often be incised into pendants or rings. Furthermore, as natural citrine crystals are extremely rare in the nature, so its prices are more expensive.

Citrine crystal is a symbol of wisdom and joy, it could bring us full confidence, and reduce fears and guilt senses too, so it has a good ability of calming and adjusting moods for persons who are prissy or nervous more. At the same time, citrine crystal is also the guardian stone for Gemini persons!

Citrine crystal also is helpful for persons who are weak in pancreas and endocrine nervous system, it’s also essential for diabetics, also is helpful for the treatment of stomach cramps and swelling.

As citrine crystal is mainly preferred for money recruiting, so it is an indispensable aid for stock holders, a citrine crystal ball is particularly has a more strong cohesion and is more prominent with this function, So, aside from placing a wealth guardian in home, it’s best to wear a citrine crystal bracelet for a stock enthusiast .



* citrine crystal finger ring, vivacious and gracious



4) Smoky Quartz (or Brown Quartz)

 

 



Smoky Quartz or Brown Quartz also known as smoky crystal and black crystal, it is radioactive and contained strong energy implicitly. Most of smoky crystals are formed in hexagonal prism shapes, and sometimes contained ice-break and clouds materials inside same as other transparent crystals. The color shades of smoky crystal are various, different from light brown or dark brown, but sometimes formed into the color of black brown that completely dark. The variety of smoky crystal’s color shade is caused by the influences of natural radiation during the crystal’s forming course.

Smoky crystal is a representative crystal for stability, wearing a smoky quartz bracelet (remember to wear on the left hand) could help you to be more steadily, solid and practical, also it could help you to control your flighty and nervous characters, making your mood field in dispassion thus to calm down your thoughts, so you can look through the complex conditions clearly and make the most efficient direct reaction and way to deal with the response.

Smoky crystal has a strong ability to regenerate, so it could shorten the time of wounds healing, at the same time smoky crystal is significant effective for absorbing negative energy (especially best for absorbing confused gas, or avoiding bad fortunes), it can enhance the function of people’s immune system, give more vigor to human cells, thus to reduce the body’s aging speed and recover the vitality of youth.

In addition, smoky crystal can improve the male’s sexual function significantly, and also helpful for women to moderate her blood and gas and intensifying the curative efficacy of women’s disease.

 



* smoky crystal earrings, mellow and fresh clean

(not finished to continue…)



Herbert
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A Guide to Using Feng Shui Crystals to Heal and Improve Energy

Wednesday, December 10th, 2008
Lynn Lee asked:


Now I need you to rethink a stereotype. Crystals. Yes, they look good on jewellery and yes drinking wine from them is an especially opulent experience, but the Chinese have had a use for crystals for generations for more than their aesthetic appeal. Introducing the feng shui crystal.

What Can Feng Shui Crystals Do?

This is a wondrous item that can heal the wounds of emotional scarring, create energy to bring in luck and fortune and to improve the overall health, mental and physical of anyone wielding them. In Chinese art and science, feng shui crystals are tools that dampen chaos and unleash bad energy, creating calm and peace around us so that we are more in tune with nature.

Crystals come in various shapes and sizes, as well as different forms. The earth produces natural crystals; you can spot them easily by their imperfect surfaces and often cloudy appearances. There are crystals that have fallen from the sky (not the stuff of fiction, but probably meteors compressed by extreme heat) and those produced in a laboratory.

Crystals have an inherent current flowing through them, an enforced energy that runs through their sub structure like electricity. Scientists call this the piezoelectric effect - a sort of minute vibrations that are testament to the crystals energy. This amazing fact about crystals is just that - undeniable scientific fact, and it is this effect that gives these natural jewels their uncanny power, a power that the Chinese have tapped upon to great benefit.

What are the Benefits of Crystals?

Healing and improving energy might be just too general a description for you readers so I will get into the specifics of their amazing abilities. For example, in Feng Shui, rose quartz crystals are used specifically to enhance the energies of love and emotion, enhancing and improving the love and romance of two people. It can also mend the scars of a broken heart. It is these vibrations, these piezoelectric effects with specific regularities of currents that resonate with matters of the heart.

Ammonite crystals, which are more often associated with the ‘Chi Lin’ a strange and wondrous ancient creature that emanates with good and healthy energy. This is because the patterns and intricate designs of the crystal closely match that of the creature and this crystal has frequencies that affect the most powerful muscle in the body - the brain. Wisdom is a common benefit of using these crystals and some Chinese masters have also attributed it to riches, prosperity as well as the ability for mothers to bear illustrious and strong sons.

Speaking about wealth, natural starlite citrine spheres are a great choice if you want to increase your wealth energies. Citrine attracts wealth luck into your life. They are also known to be able to enhance your self-esteem, motivation, creativity and confidence.

This brief overview is simply that - an overview. You should do more research and ask around for more advice and tips on feng shui crystals because the range and the possibilities for improving your life through crystals are wide and far reaching. Now that the jewels of Chinese luck creation have come to Western shores, you should get a piece of the action today.



Kimberly
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What gemstone or crystal is best for hearing loss and/or hearing disorders?

Friday, December 5th, 2008
hd8161 asked:


I looked at several healing gemstones and crystals books about the subject, and each book recommends something different. One book recommends onyx being placed on the each ear for 15 minutes, where a few other books don’t even mention onyx but recommend quartz crystal, amethyst, or another gemstone. Where should the gemstone be placed, worn, or should an elixir be made?

Christina
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