Ying Yu Jade
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Last week I purchased a bottle of the contact lens solution I use. I had trouble finding it until I discovered the packaging had changed. The price was the same, but the bottle was 12% smaller. I'm sure that you also have seen your favorite products reduced in size but the price is the same. It's a good marketing strategy for manufacturers. I've had to increase jade prices to keep up with the increased prices I have to pay, but I don't have the option of reducing the jade pieces by 12%! The good news for customers is that I want to reduce inventory so I can justify a buying trip next years, and I'll be offering special deals on the jade bangle bracelets, since they are the most expensive to purchase, both by me and by you. I tried to buy samples, small lots over the past few months, hoping I could get high quality products so I wouldn't have to make the long, hard trip to China, and spend a week haggling over prices, in polluted cities, where Americans aren't liked very much these days, and risking my health eating in Guangzhou. But, since I sell only what I would personally wear, I have to choose what I buy personally also. You probably noticed all the jade bangles in the clearance section this month, most of the samples I purchased have been sold at clearance prices. So to lower my inventory, watch for some great deals, especially the "Cyber Monday" sale that will start today, because it's already Monday for some Ying Yu Jade customers. Happy shopping. November 30
A few years ago I accepted "trade ins" on any new jade bangle bracelet purchase. I wanted to give customers the opportunity to get some credit from a "jade" bangle they were disappointed with to get a discount on a high quality Ying Yu Jade bangle. I would take what they offered, sight unseen. I got mostly fake jades that I sold for $1 at my yard sales, but to my surprise I also got quite a few vintage old style jade bangle bracelets that younger Asian women wanted to trade in for a modern jade bangle, and I offered $25 for any trade in. And so the "Estate and Vintage Jade" pages were created. Good ideas don't always work out the way we would hope, and I discontinued the program, but still have a few nice vintage jade pieces to sell. This weekend there's a discount of $35 with coupon code OLD35 on jade bangles $250+. And next week I will run the trade in program for a week, if you have a jade bangle you want to trade in for $25 credit on a purchase of a new jade bangle. Watch for details Monday. November 28
On this Thanksgiving
Day, I thank all of you for patronizing Ying Yu Jade, Jade Bangle Bracelets,
and calmspirit.net. WIth your purchases, I have been able to support local
and global social programs, including giving percentages of sales to the
American Red Cross for domestic relief, and making donations to Chinese
orphanages who give homes to children who cannot be adopted. During our
"giving week" promotions you have been generous with your purchases
knowing that a YYJ donation would be made.Our next "giving"
week will be in January for a central Florida children's home. What goes
around, comes around. I sincerely appreciate you, and wish you a very
happy Thanksgiving.
November 27
A few years ago I worked with a jade carver who would make jade bangles exclusively for me out of a large rough jadeite stone. I would get a beautiful high quality jadeite bangle in variety of sizes, and have "sisters", similar bangles. I sold them for far below retail price. And example is the Wednesday Daily Special, the lavender classic round jadeite bangle. I actually had these carved twice for me, the first time the carver sold them to a jade dealer from Hong Kong who paid him more, then I waited almost a year to get them again, but he made most of them larger sizes, only a couple smaller sizes. That incident was the beginning of the end of our working relationship, as I would pay for the rough, then instead of sending them to me, he would sell them to someone else who would offer a good price. The lavender jadeite bangles retail for $1200-1500 in mainland China and Hong Kong, so to have them as a special is a real special. There are only a few left, but jade loses its brightness sitting in a box, and they will look better on your wrist! November 26
Here is a question
I received about storing jade in a hot climate: "Thank you for
providing jade lovers with so much educational information. I have a question
for you - I was told by a friend that jade jewellery when not worn can
be kept in the the refrigerator because fo the coolness. We leave in the
tropics and it tends to get very hot. Jade should not be kept in the drawers-
all the more one should wear her jade jewellery more often - what's your
advice? Thank you"
My response: We live in Forida, and I keep my jades in a room that
is around 80 degrees in the summer, and they seem to like that temperature.
I personally would not keep my jade in the refrigerator, unless your room
temperature is more than 90-95 degrees. I would leave my jade out, on
display, if not wearing it because it will have better energy and look
nicer. The jade markets are often very hot, more than 90 degrees, or 30-31
c, and when the jade is not being looked at, the sellers turn off the
lights. The reputable sellers also keep bowls of water near the jade so
the jade has a more humid environment. So keeping your jade in daylight,
but not direct sunlight, and a moist environment will keep it looking
good, and keep its good qi.Thanks for asking. November 25
I reflected for quite awhile to decide on an appropriate "weekly special" because this is Thanksgiving week. I chose a jadeite fish pendant necklace, which is suitable for both men and women, because fish is the feng shui symbol for "abundance". During these difficult economic times, I am wearing a jade fish pendant to promote energy for personal and global financial improvement. The Chinese word for fish is "yu", which is also the same Chinese word for jade. The difference is in the tone. So what could be better than wearing a jade fish pendant, for abundance in our lives November 23
This seems to be "international week" at Ying Yu Jade, as I have sent jade orders all over the globe the past few days. Almost all the clearance jade bangle bracelets sold out, and the Daily Specials were priced low so customers got great buys this week. Jade continues to increase in price, so buying jade on sale is a good investment, as well as a good deal. I made an error on the Daily Special price Thursday, and didn't catch it til later in the day, I intended the price to be lower. BB176 is a prettier jade bangle than the photo shows, and unique sage green color that is very neutral to wear, you can wear it with everything and looks good with both gold and silver jewelry. The photo looks "flat" but it's somewhat translucent and when the light goes through it, it changes the coloring, and there's a lot of "butterfly" peppering in it, so it's extremely interesting to look at. It's a larger size, lots of jade in it. and I'll leave the Daily Special price through Friday. November 21
If you watch what's
new in the "clearance"
section, you have been seeing some great items, and most of them are selling
as soon as they get listed. I've been going through the inventory and
listing perfectly "good" jade bangles with no damage that have
been around awhile, or are a little more slender with a little less jade
than most of the jade on YYJ, and marking them at clearance prices under
$100. Last year I intended to mark some for clearance after Christmas
so my inventory would be lower at the end of the year, but I was so busy
helping customers spend their holiday money on something special for themselves
that I didn't do it, so I decided to mark down and clear out before
the holiday season. This is a good opportunity for you to get good quality,
genuine and natural jade for gifts, or a special gift for yourself (which
many of you are doing, according to your comments!). There are still a
few to mark down and add to the clearance section, so check back for great
values. AND I've been offering some very reduced Daily Special jade bangles,
so don't miss those, either.
November 20
Here are two jade stories from Leslie in Australia: "Well, my husband's grandmother was a very frail old woman in the last few years of her life. One day, she fell down a flight of stairs. Amazingly, she didn't hurt herself seriously (a few bruises), but her jade bangle broke instead. I would have thought that sort of fall would have caused something bad like a hip fracture. An amazing incidence.
This one is a little more
spooky. After the incident, my mother-in-law replaced the jade bangle.
When the old lady finally passed on, the jade bangle had been removed
from her wrist by the undertaker. But given that we all knew how much
she loved her bangle, we wanted her to be buried with it. But noone seemed
to be able to get the bangle back on her wrist (it really wasn't that
tightly-fitting). Until my mother-in-law spoke to the body (and perhaps
spirit), telling her that it was OK to have the bangle with her and we
all wanted her to have it. Lo and behold, the bangle slid easily onto
her wrist and she was eventually buried with her favourite jade bangle.
" November
19
Another jade protection
story, this one from a California reader and jade lover: "It is
interesting about jade and protection. Many years ago, the lady who babysat
my younger son was involved in a car accident. She was a rear seat passenger
and wasn't wearing a seat belt,(the law wasn't enforced at the time).
The car was rear ended and "totaled". Her bangle was broken
to pieces but she had small bruises on her face. That was all! She swore
that her jade bangle protected her from injury, even death. My mother
told me that's why Chinese mothers favor jade bangles for their babies.
When the baby bangle is outgrown, it is made into a pendant."
Check back for two more, one is kind of spooky. In the meantime, wear
your jade! November 18
Monday's Daily Special is one of several jade bangle bracelets I had carved from the same rough a few years ago. He was a wonderful carver, who used good quality jadeite, and did good carving work, and I think it's the last time I had rough carved that I was happy with the end results. They were a variety of sizes, and I immediately put one on and it is one of my top-5 favorites. I didn't put them on the web site, but I sold them individually to special friends, special customers who are always looking for something that is a best quality. BB172 is the last one from the rough, and one of my friends who purchased a "sister" and I were discussing yesterday that we hope BB172 goes to a good home because we have special feelings about this jadeite. Jade pieces that are all carved from the same rough have a special energy, a special connection to those who wear it. That's why the smooth and carved jade bangle "sister sets" are unique. You can wear them both, or share one with a special person in your life. November 17 P.S. It did get purchased by one of my favorite people!
I love jade, love selling jade, but the business details aren't as enjoyable to me. Although I have what is considered to be a "small business" I have a "big" web site because almost every item is one of a kind. Most internet sellers have a substantial quantity of each item, but Ying Yu Jade and Jade Bangle Bracelets has so many one-of-a-kind pieces that it's a big, big job keeping everything current. One little mis-key can make a big problem. So last week a customer ordered several jade bangles at regular prices to re-sell in their business, and when I processed the order I was surprised at the low prices I had listed on them. I had "things" mixed up, and I noticed quite a few jade bangle bracelets with wrong prices, several I had listed did not even exist, so I spent the weekend checking every jade bangle to make sure it "existed" and was priced correctly. I adjusted some prices and even lowered some prices. And for those of you who are really observant, the numbers of the new jade bangles I listed are not always "higher" numbers, I re-used some "lower" numbers. So a lower number now does not mean it's an "older" jade bangle. AND because I want to have a price range for everyone, the lower priced jade bangles are still very fine quality and A grade, and are priced in the lower range when they are more slender and have less jade in them, or a little jelai which is part of natural jade stone and not a flaw, or a small irregularity like a scratch from carving that is inside and not easily seen. Clearance jade usually has real flaws or irregularities, but regular priced jade bangles do not. So have fun shopping, and be assured that all of Ying Yu Jade and Jade Bangle Bracelets jade is fine quality, natural and genuine jade and jadeite. November 16
Several readers have asked if we can do a layaway program for the holidays, and I'm willing to try it, see how it works. You can click here for Ying Yu Jade Layaway FAQ and please let me know if you have questions or suggestions. Having had a career as a mental health counselor, I certainly don't encourage anyone spending more than they can afford, but also want to give the opportunity to purchase fine quality jade at a schedule that is more affordable so buyers don't overextend their credit card limits. Hope it works out for all of us! November 15
My jade supplier in China and I were discussing the jadeite bangles he sent in the last shipment. He had them tested in a China gem lab because although they were sold as A quality with no color enhancement, we weren't sure. Some of the things we look for as color enhancement are often seen when we take photos of the jade, the color doesn't appear "true", or there are odd streaks or splotches that don't look natural. I often receive comments that the photos on the Ying Yu Jade web site are beautiful, and that's because natural jade photographs beautifully and does look good in photos. Perhaps you have seen photos of jade that appear muddy, colors don't look natural, or are very translucent but the price is low which shows it's been bleached with acid. Some of Ying Yu Jade photos need to be retaken with my new camera, but even the not-so-good photos are still "true". When people tell me that have been disappointed in jade purchases from other sells and are worried about buying Ying Yu Jade over the internet, they comment that the "real thing" was quite a bit different in color than the photo showed in another sellers photos. That's probably because the color isn't natural. When people tell me they buy a lot of jade, but pay much less than Ying Yu Jade and Jade Bangle Bracelets prices, and can live with their "real thing" not looking like the photo as opposed to paying higher prices, it's important to note that color treated jade doesn't have the value that "A" natural jade does. Nov 14
Jade Shipment
Three Part Video
I receive quite a few orders from people in the military who want jade for protection. Most of the orders go to military mail addresses, and ask that I infused them with qi when they read I am a Qi Healer and Reiki Master. Here is an excerpt from an email I received today: A couple of years ago, I was working a games booth at my children's school Fall Festival. An American man came up to me and admired the jade bangle I was wearing and said, "You realize that the jade protects you, don't you?" He seemed to want to strongly impress that on me. He then told me that his daughter had picked up a jade bangle in the Orient during an Army stint there, and that now she was serving in Iraq. She survived an explosion there when she put up her arm to shield her face and a piece of shrapnel hit the jade instead and broke it to bits. She wasn't injured at all. Boy, how literal is that for protection? Then I understood why he was so emphatic about telling me...it gives me goosebumps just thinking about it." The "bi" donut jade pendant is traditional for protection, as well as Buddha, Guan Yin and of course, dragon. Let me know if you have a story to share with blog readers. Nov13
I received several emails from readers telling of their woes shipping EMS from other countries, and our USPS not understanding the "E" means "express". So why did I use it? I had several orders over the last few months shipped and speedily received using EMS, and about half the price of UPS. My shipments from China are heavy, over 100 pounds packed in several parcels. UPS used to cost me several hundred dollars per large shipment, and the price went up this time to several thousand dollars. Since jade is also increasing in price, I have to pass all these costs on to customers, and the price of jade, especially bangles, is only going to go up. A few months ago I did a survey asking readers if they would prefer YYJ selling a lower quality of jade to be able to have lower prices, and I received a resounding answer to please keep the quality high. I have purchased some pieces of jade that I can sell at lower prices, but that is becoming more rare as jade is gaining in world popularity. So if you see a good deal on YYJ or Jade Bangle Bracelets, go for it because our prices are not artificially marked up so we can always have a "sale". November 12
The balance of my shipment is still missing. It's in the EMS system, but we don't know where it is. EMS is supposed to be 3-5 business days for delivery, and this has been 10 business days. When I ship EMS to international destinations, it does arrive in 3-5 business days, but our USPS postal service is so dysfunctional that it's been somewhere in the USA for a week, and the USPS can't give me information. Until I can "show off" some of the new items, I'm putting a beautiful natural white "flower" jade bangle on the Wednesday special. "Flower" is the pattern in the jade stone, the actual stone you see when you look at it. I like to buy this kind of jade because there is no doubt it is natural color and hasn't been bleached. It's not pure white, has subtle hues that give it a nice "winter white" color. I think it's the last jadeite bangle I have like this, so if it's your size, it's a real deal. November 11
I hope you purchased a jade
roller that was on sale over the weekend. I recieved an email from Susan,
a reader who is recovering from ankle surgery and is wearing a foot cast
for six weeks: "I find using the jade roller on and around my
toes is quite soothing. Since I can't scratch or get under the cast, the
roller is extremely calming. Earlier I was still experiencing the side
affect from anesthia, so I used the roller on my face, around the sinus
areas and on my head. I've fallen asleep a few times from the coolness;
so relaxing. People really need to get more than one jade roller. Keep
one at home and one in the briefcase for those stressful days! "
Jade rollers are on display in the Forbidden City as an every day accessory
in the living areas of the residents. Used for centuries, and great to
use today. November 10
Monday is "Make your own daily special on Monday", and you can take $25 off jade bangles regular price $300 on both Ying Yu Jade and Jade Bangle Bracelets web sites. Use coupon code MONDAY25. Or you can take $10 off your order of regular price items $95+ with coupon code MONDAY10. The sale starts on Monday, but if you are reading this now, you can get an early start on a discount. Internent orders only. November 9
I'm still waiting for parcels, and still not getting any useful information from EMS tracking. I have felt like a prisoner all week, because I had to stay home all day to wait and see if something would arrive. Two boxes arrived today, there's still more coming. One of the boxes contained jade rollers, and they will be the weekend special. So I will work on the video as boxes arrive, and HOPE they do arrive because I sure don't have good feelings about EMS. UPS next time. November 7
I take back any kind words I may have said about the USPS, which are few and far between because a big percentage of business problems are related to the shipping. I was impressed with EMS shipping from China a few months ago, and we decided to ship our five big boxes shipment with EMS. They were all shipped together, and I have received ONE. The tracking is worthless, they update once a day so you don't know where your shipment is, and you have no idea when you might receive it, and it must be signed for, so it would be helpful to know when it's out for delivery. It's been my experience that when the USPS has something for me to sign, and I'm not here, I never see it again. (Which is the reason for my strict returns/exchanges policies.) So I call to try to get more information, get no information and some rudeness to go with it. And it was supposed to be less expensive than UPS, but EMS added two layers of heavy packing material to each parcel that added about 5 pounds to each box, which of course raised the shipping cost. Two days ago, a post office person called me to let me know that they were contacting small businesses like mine to try to give them a better experience with USPS shipping. Thanks a lot! If this is the "help", I don't need it. We want our jade from China! November 5
New shipment from China -updated entire video
Why do we love jade so much? I often get emails from readers who wonder why they have to keep looking at jade, and wonder how many pieces they need to get before they feel like they have enough! Jade is certainly intriguing, fascinating. Each piece of Ying Yu Jade is natural, so each piece will be different, and the natural jade is endlessly interesting. Chinese people believe that when a person wears jade, the jade becomes part of the person. So wearing jade is a very personal experience. You feel the energy, the qi, of the jade, and exchange qi as you wear it. You become healthier, happier, and the jade becomes prettier as you wear it. November 3
Monday is "Make and Offer Day", a request by several customers who missed the last one. If you are reading this now, you are welcome to do so now. Ying Yu Jade is NOT a discount web site, our prices are not artificially marked up so we can always have a sale or a discount. There is a wide variety of quality and prices for every budget. For the "Make an offer on Monday" event, the offers can be made on regularly priced jade bangle bracelets $300+. Bangles under $300 are bargain priced without much mark up so we can offer excellent quality jadeite at lower prices, and they are already a bargain. There are tips for making a successful offer on the offer form, and please let me know if you have questions. Happy "bargaining"! November 2
The
Calm Spirit / Ying Yu Jade complete
November newsletter is available online now, click here. This month
features Chinese medicine wellness information for November 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.
November 1
