An email from a Chinese-American reader described the happiness he had purchasing a very green "bi" (donut) jadeite pendant, and he wrote that he was so happy to have the classic jade "stone of heaven" and in a bi shape which is also symbolic of heaven. He must be a younger person, because until about 100 years ago, the jade "stone of heaven" was NOT jadeite, which is not mined in China, but has classically been Chinese nephrite in a deep green color. Unfortunately with all the fast changes in even mainland Chinese peoples lives in the past 10 years, they have lost much of the charming traditions. My friend in Beijing is very proud to be part of "new China" but at 55 years of age, also misses some of the traditions of "old China", and feels that loss is worth China and Chinese people being more modern. Jadeite wasn't introduced to China until late nineteenth/early twentieth century. Women in northern mainland China still cherish the Chinese jade for jade bangle bracelets, but southern Chinese women now often prefer the jadeite. And outside of China, Chinese women rarely value their Chinese jade, and want the jadeite, and don't even realize that's not their "traditional" jade. It is so rare to find natural genuine Chinese nephrite, and a friend who has a jade carving and selling business in southern China actually imports nephrite from Canada to carve and sell, because it can't be obtained in China. So don't fool yourself thinking jadeite is the traditional "stone of heaven", because it is not. June 29

I got an email from a woman paid about $500 for an imperial green bangle that was advertised as "A" quality on another web site, and she didn't think it was natural color, she sent a photo asking for my opinion. My jade friend in China told me last week that natural A color imperial green jadeite bangles start at $5000 wholesale at the jade markets, and retail for $35,000. And that's a low estimate because about 8 years ago I tried to find one for a customer in Texas and I found one for $50,000 then the man in China who had it decided not to sell it, even if we went there with cash and he put it on her wrist. I have some B grade imperial green jadeite bangles I got from a seller in China who I ordered A from but got cheated with these. They are actually quite nice, and genuine jadeite because I tested them with refraction, and the color hasn't faded in the 6-7 years I've had them. Usually the cheap fake imperial green jade bangles are "Malay" jade which is quartz, but these are jadeite. And well-colored, so they do have value, and are really pretty. And I have stated they are B grade. I had some A grade close-to-imperial green jadeite bangles that I bought almost 10 years ago, and I sold them too cheap on YYJ not too long ago. That's when I started checking with my jade friend in China who lets me know when I should change prices on some of the jade bangles. The value of jade is determined by who will pay what price, there are no fixed prices, and at the jade markets in China you bargain for everything because there are no prices. So it's a challenging determining price! June 27

The past couple of years when the economy was really bad, I didn't list many of our "best quality" jadeite bangle bracelets, but now that people are looking for and buying the better and best quality jades again, I've been listing some of those special jade bangles I've been hoarding for years. When you take a look at "what's new" you might be surprised to see the higher prices. These were purchased before the jadeite boycott and before this good quality of "lao pit" old mine jade became so rare and expensive. They would probably fit the category of our "vintage jade" but it's new and has not been worn. Some of them are smaller "Chinese size", and one reason I've been saving them to see if I would gain weight as I got older and then could wear them because they are a little too big for me! It was fun buying jade because I always bought the kind of jade I personally would wear. Some customers who realize the cost of jadeite is going up, our US dollar is down in China, are buying some of these excellent rare jades as part of their investment portfolios. Jadeite will go up in value as gold does. Plus, it's prettier! June 26

Yesterday I wrote about jade "chime", and want to mention this is an ancient Chinese jade testing for jadeite only, not for Chinese jade. Chinese jade including the Hetian jade will chime, but it's not really a valid testing tool because that kind of jade is not traditionally graded A, B or C because it doesn't receive color treatments. So don't be concerned if you are wearing a beautiful Chinese "river jade" or watery jade bangle, and it doesn't "chime" anything like jadeite. That's the way it is. June 23

We've been getting a lot of SPAM in our email so I apologize for late replies or lost emails, if you have sent a question and haven't had a response, please send it again as it looks like the SPAM problem has been resolved. A blog reader asked why I write about the importance of "chime" to indicate jadeite quality, but not how to do it. "Chime" is the high chime sound you hear when you strike a jadeite bangle, and it indicates how fine the grain is, the finest grain being the old mine lao pit jadeite. The finer the grain, the higher the chime. I smile thinking about the women sellers in the jade market holding up their gorgeous jadeite bangles when I approach and "chiming them" with a substantial strike. They would point to my personal bangle I was wearing, smile and chime away, showing me they were selling the same excellent quality of the jade stone. If you "chime" your jade, you really have to know what you are doing. A sad customer told me she broke her jade bangle whacking it to test the chime, and she was surprised it broke. Of course your jade bangle will break if it gets struck in just the right place, because there is a lot of tension on the stone being carved in the bangle shape. If you have experience with jade quality and chime, you can actually just use your fingernail, and tap near the outside, get used to what you are hearing, and then do it to other jade to hear the difference. I personally used fingernail in the jade markets to test chime, and it took years of training from my "jade master" how to do it, but a valuable "tool" that requires only "me". Try it! (with your fingernail). June 22

Last night we went to a Luau dinner and show. Yes, I know they are kind of hokey and "touristy" but I like the food and culture and went the the friends we traveled with when we went on our Hawaii cruise last year. The show was well done, and featured performance from cultures in the Oceana islands. When the New Zealand performer came onstage, she was wearing a big lovely New Zealand jade pendant. The kind of jade is very green and is nephrite. It's carved in the Maori tradition, and when you see a piece it's unmistakable for what it is. I have one New Zealand jade pendant, a curved hook style and I always get compliments when I wear it. But it doesn't have the energy I wear Chinese jade and Burmese jadeite for, it's very "yang" and strong. But it sure is pretty. June19

Saturday Daily Special is listed as a "YYJ Favorite" because of the quality of the jadeite bangle, and the coloring. When I'm not wearing my very favorite pale green "sister" lao pit bangle, this is similar to the one that is my second favorite. When I bought it at the jade market, and put it on, I didn't take it off until my next shopping trip to China because I love the colors. I've referred to it as "modern jade" because it's the kind of jade that jade carvers used to bleach with acid to remove the dark coloring, then put in green polymer or resin color to give it green color and add stability. But the younger Chinese women like the natural color of this kind of jade so it is becoming popular now. I was shopping with a Chinese woman I work with who used to buy jade bangles for me between shopping trips before the Lantos law banned jadeite to USA in 2009. When we came to a jade seller who had an entire table full of these bangles, we both dove in and started putting them on our arms, raving over them until we realized we made the terrible error of showing how much we liked them. It was awful because we knew we could never bargain for them. We each bought one, paid too much, then waited until the seller went to lunch and someone else came to watch her booth, and sent my husband in to buy a lot of them! Then later as we shopped, we saw a few more sellers that had them, and covered up our bangles as we bargained and good prices for more. I sure do miss jade shopping which was a lot of work, but also much enjoyment. Hope you enjoy this Daily Special, and I'm listing a smaller size in a few days. June 17

Thanks for sharing your horror stories about using Paypal as a customer. I've seen your emails about identity theft that included not only your Paypal account, but your credit card used to fund your Paypal, and getting your bank account cleaned out by hackers. Credit cards usually don't require your banking information, but often your Paypal account does. I've had Paypal clean out my bank account, causing it to be overdrawn, by customers who started a dispute with Paypal rather than work it out with me. So now I don't feel so bad about our decision to stop Paypal as a payment option later this month. Paypal sure doesn't tell their dirty little secrets, and makes you feel it's safer than paying with a credit card. When we receive your payments by credit card, we never receive the middle 8 numbers, and never physically store any of the information because it's done automatically on the server, so your card information is more safe than if you made a phone order. Anyway, enough about pernicious Paypal. The Thursday Daily Special will be a free shipping discount if you take advantage of "Bangle of the Month" program. Your first bangle will be shipped FREE. Or if you purchase all three at one time, they will all be shipped free if you start Bangle of the Month by the end of Thursday June 16. Great way to build a "jade bangle wardrobe" or get gifts for daughters, mothers, friends. June 15

I'm sorry to say that I had to disable the feedback form, and you won't be able to click the "earth" above to send feedback, but you can use the email address. I have been getting spammed with the form and am concerned about the security since there's been so much spam. I also got a call from Paypal that someone was trying to break in my account, so I may be removing Paypal as a payment option. Paypal isn't as secure as using a credit card, both for merchants and customers. So if you are a Paypal paying customer, and plan to make a purchase soon, you might want to make it before I close the Paypal account. I was taking Paypal as a convenience to customers, but it's kind of a hassle for me, and I'm concerned about it's security. When I get a credit card order I can choose not to accept it if everything doesn't match up and the code isn't "good" but I don't have that option with Paypal and I don't have any way of knowing if the Paypal payment is "good". I've received fraudulent Paypal payments which means the Paypal account holder has had their account compromised. And then of course Paypal instantly takes the funds out of my account, and I get left taking the loss for a transaction that I had received payment and shipped days or weeks before Paypal realizes there is a problem. And I personally use Paypal to pay for online purchases when I have the option, but have found that if there's a problem, it doesn't get resolved as easily as when you pay with credit card. So if you use Paypal, be careful. And if problems continue with our Paypal account, I will certainly close it because I can't sustain the loss and stay in business. June 13

Women who live in Hawaii usually have very good instincts about jade, jadeite, and are very particular about the jade they buy and wear. There is a large Asian population throught the Hawaiian islands, and a big Chinatown on Oahu that used to have a good jade market, but now sells mostly commercial quality and lower quality than in the past, due to the economy I would guess. Although on our trip to the Oahu Chinatown last year it seemed that many of the Chinese sellers really didn't know much about jadeite and were very adamant about their fake and color treated jade being "natural" when it was so obviously not, and I think it's because they just don't "know" jade than being dishonest sellers. Anyway, a customer who has been purchasing a "jade wardrobe" from YYJ and JBB wrote that she took a trip to China and wanted to buy a jade bangle there, but didn't feel comfortable with the way the selling was going. She said she fell in love with a $700 jadeite bangle that the "manager" had greatly discounted for her, but she still felt reluctant. She wrote that she has purchased three jadeite bangles through YYJ, including a daily special, a clearance jade and a regular priced jade bangle for less than $700 and is very happy with the quality compared to those she saw in China. I am very aware of what "jade factories" and tourist jade shops sell their jades for, and most of our jades are kept priced much below those prices, even the elegant and higher priced jade bangles. I can just imagine the Chinese sellers in China laughing about the high prices they sucker tourists into paying. If you go to China and really want to buy a jade bangle there, you should so you can have that special experience, but there is no need to pay more than $300 in China for a nice quality jadeite bangle. And do bargain, because you "lose face" if you pay more than 35% of the "opening price". June 12

And now the discussion about carved jadeite bangle bracelets. Usually if you have a choice between a smooth or a carved jadeite bangle bracelet and you want to know which one is the "best", it will usually be the smooth jade bangle because they are most often a higher quality of jade stone. The jade carver often uses jade bangles that have a crack, or internal lines, or small chip from carving to make the carved bangles using the imperfections to his advantage. Also, jade carvers often "lose" the bangle as they are carving it, because it has a higher risk of breaking while being carved due to the pressure and tools of the carving. . But the value may be higher because of the craftmanship of the carving. Most carved jade bangles are made for export and are commercial quality, but there are some where the carver doesn't use patterns, but does free hand carving based on what he want to use the jade coloring for, and he might be a true craftsman who still takes pride in his work. And that's the kind of jade carved bangle YYJ has purchased, a better quality, and more original that commercially carved bangles. There are some very excellent carved jadeite bangles on the web site, and priced to reflect the value. Enjoy taking a look! June 8

Today's blog has nothing to do with jade. China has become much more modern very fast in the 12 years since my first visit there. Back then, and in many homes even now, a "middle class" home had a tiny kitchen, like an average closet here in USA (not a walk-in closet, smaller). The kitchen would have a counter with a microwave, propane burner or two for the wok, electrical plug for teapot and rice cooker. Maybe a shelf for spices and herbs. But the kitchen was only for cooking, and very minimal cooking. The electric rice cooker was very practical for this situation. A couple days ago I found an old electric rice cooker I got second hand and never used, stuck it way back under the kitchen counter and forgot about it. I saw it was worth about $30 on ebay, and was thinking about selling it at our next yard sale. Today I had some vegetables I wanted to stir fry for lunch, and decided to try out the rice cooker, but couldn't find instructions, so I cleaned it up, used my regular formula of one part rice to two parts water, plugged it in, and expected it to take a half hour. I was surprised it took half the time, and how nice it cooked, perfect and the way I like it, AND it didn't stick. So easy for a small serving of rice that I can cook "fresh" when I want it. It's my new favorite appliance, wonder why it took me so long to realize how great it is! June 7

This is an offshoot from the previous blog. Below is a photo of my favorite oval carved jadeite bangle I wear often when I need more "yang" energy. It's an older jade bangle, and carved in the older style, not by a pattern by free-hand by the jade carver utilizing the irregularities in the jade stone to add interest. For example, the carved flower has some beautiful honey color, but it's rough and slightly cracked. When jade stone is being formed, minerals seep in the natural jade stone cracks and give it color. Yes, it's a crack in the stone and it runs the length of the width, but it's not damage. It's just the natural makeup of the jade stone.Clever carvers use these to add interest when they carve the jade. More about carved jade bangles in the next blog. June 4

A customer who has a fine taste in jade asked if the Chinese jade baby bangle that was daily special two days ago was Hetian jade, because of the coloring it looked like it could be, but the price was so low, if it was Hetian jade it would have been priced lower than it would cost me to buy wholesale. We discussed through email that it is so difficult to get real Hetian jade because of the political climate of where it is mined making it inaccessible to Chinese jade buyers, and to fill the void in the market there is so much fake Hetian jade. The yellow hued Chinese jade is being sold as Hetian, and some of it is even bleached then color treated to look like "mutton fat" Hetian jade. A new twist on fake jades, which have traditionally been the Burmese jadeite "fakes". I didn't realize how much fake jadeite is still being sold until the last year, there have been some Asian women buyers, by there name I am guessing Hong Kong or southern China roots, living in USA now, and they bought nice quality jadeite bangles from either YYJ or JBB, and as soon as they got their bangle they emailed me that the jade was fake and they were returning it. That surprised me, because selling jade for the past 11 years and providing information, most people can now tell just by looking at photos that YYJ and JBB jadeites are genuine jadeite, so I tried to elicit what they perceived the problem to be. It became evident they were used buying and wearing to fake and/or highly treated jadeite that made the bangles look "perfect" and were seeing the natural jade stone and thinking that it was fake or flawed! It's all that lovely jade "stone" appearance that proves it is genuine jadeite, but these women were sure, and offended, I sold them "fake" and "damaged" jades. Most customers write about how much they love their jade purchases and enjoy seeing all the natural "stone" of the jade, because of it being pure, natural and untreated, genuine jade. But some people who like jade will like only that dyed, green, "perfect" color and wear it for the "jewelry" look rather than the joy of owning jade. And that's certainly their prerogative, but you won't find that on YYJ. June 3

We were down to our last handful of jade rollers which are still selling strong since they were featured on the Dr Oz show two weeks ago, when we got our shipment from China yesterday. These new jade rollers are made better than the other ones, as our jade carver is always working on improvements. We also received more jade combs, which have been selling very good as well. And they are one of the Daily Specials. Of course, the price of Chinese jade has gone up, our US dollar is worth more than 20% less in exchange rate than a couple of years ago, but we are trying to keep prices low, and didn't raise any of the Chinese jade health tools except the standard jade roller, and that was by only $1. The next order will be higher, so if you like Chinese jade health tools, get them now. June 2

The Calm Spirit / Ying Yu Jade complete June newsletter is available online now, click here. This month features Chinese medicine wellness information for June regarding balance of body, mind and spirit. There is information about what kind of jade to wear this month if you wear jade for your health, and more. There is also information about the reason we have added the hand knit fashion scarfs with jade accessory to our inventory, how it relates to Chinese culture and Chinese medicine, and the element of "wind". And you thought it was just a pretty fashion! June 1

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