Amber, ~ It's Magikal Properties & How To Spot Fakes...

Amber is so lovely. It promotes longevity, happiness and beauty combined with deep hidden strength. It increases physical energy, stabilizes health, promotes grounding and protects. It is a traditional wedding gift for a bride. Golden amber is especially prized in amulets by those born under the astrological sign of Leo. Since amber is very old, fossilized tree sap, I believe it would be wonderful worn when communicating and doing spiritual work with our ancestors. BUT, the majority of amber foe sale today is fake. I hate seeing people get cheated. IF YOU ARE NOT BUYING IT FROM A TRUSTED GEMOLOGIST OR AN ANTIQUE DEALER, WHO WILL PERHAPS HAVE OLD AMBER JEWELRY, I'D SAY IT IS VERY LIKELY FAKE. I am a jeweler's grand daughter.; once you have seen enough pieces of real, natural amber it is very easy to spot fakes. For one thing, real amber, unless it has been treated and buffed, does not have a high shine. It is naturally quite dull. It is also extremely light, often feather light, even much, much lighter than plastic. What is on the mainstream market today is either plastic or amberoid, --- pieces of amber mixed with plastic or resin. If you are buying it from an online trendy shop of any kind, I'd say it's fake. And, people pay high for those little dabs of plastic! I had a friend who took her amber into a jewelry store to have it cleaned... The jeweler said, --- "What am I supposed to be looking at?" My friend was astonished. "Why, amber!," she said. The jeweler just laughed. *IF you want to test your amber jewelry to see if it's real amber, you can do this simple test: Take your piece, heat a needle to very hot, hot enough to melt plastic, and in a spot where it won't show, press the needle into your piece. If the smell is of plastic, --- yep, it's fake. If the smell is of tree sap, a woody smell, it's real. Below, is a beautiful piece of cognac amber, valued at over $100. And, below that is fake amber, ~ a typical piece.If you want to get real amber I would recommend going to Etsy; seek out a seller of antique jewelry who is from the Baltic area of the world, where much real amber comes from. Or, go to a trusted antique dealer in your area, who might have some from an estate sale. Good luck. ❤

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>>> Below, ~ a vintage amber brooch... I have seen many amber brooches in this primitive style, with the drops, and they are almost always real amber. I've seen lots of these brooches for sale on Ebay.