r/JadeiteNephrite

This is a follow up to post my review about Yuan Jadeite. A user named u/d0glover1 has claimed to have spoken to the seller u/militarygf1101. D0glover1 is claiming I received a refund for the 52mm green bangle picture in my review, and that I kept it. This is categorically FALSE. As you will see in my Paypal transactions, I was refunded $160 for the bead bracelet with the drill marks AFTER I put up my review yesterday. The seller initially asked me if I wanted a refund, and I declined. After she gave me the refund, I offered to ship the bracelet back. She declined.

I texted the seller’s personal number and she claimed she did not send this person to attack me and falsely claim I kept the bangle. I don’t know if this is true and I don’t care. This entire situation is childish and in EXTREMELY poor taste.

It’s human nature to be upset when somebody says things about you or your business that are not favorable. It's, however, not okay to lie and spread lies about the facts. I am not upset that the seller is calling me a liar, Karen, etc. That’s her opinion and that says more about her than it does about me. I called the seller a lovely person in my review. Now, I am not too sure.

It's It's very concerning that a seller would discuss a customer with another customer. I have no idea how much of my personal information was disclosed. This is highly unprofessional and unethical.

My original review: https://www.reddit.com/r/JadeiteJade/comments/1t3em4h/my_experience_with_yuan_jadeite/

These are two openwork carved jadeite pendants, a style that is relatively uncommon nowadays.

One features a gourd vine design, while the other depicts a landscape scene with the imagery of solitary fishing.

I bought a “pink/oufen” Hetian jade bracelet, but after restringing it from pink string to white string, it suddenly looked like a dull creamy/off-white color instead.

This is actually the second time this happened to me with “pink” Hetian jade beads.

The first bracelet I bought turned out to just be white beads with pink string, but this one seems different in person.

I’m wondering:
- Is this actually nephrite/Hetian jade?
- If yes, what color category would this be called? Is this considered cream, yellowish white, or something else?
- How is the quality of the stones?

The seller marketed it as “pink Hetian jade,” but under neutral lighting and white string it looks more like a creamy yellow-white color to me.

Attached:
- Live selling photo on pink string
- My restrung bracelet on white string
- Close-up of the bead texture/inclusions

I've actually been told by multiple people that they worry about restringing their bead bracelets and are unsure on how to go about it! In this video, I show you how to string it the way Chinese sellers do. This method is a lot more long lasting imo, and very simple to learn. Just a soundless video but I hope the visuals are enough for you to follow along.

What you need is a thin wire and flat elastic string. For smaller beads, you won't need to overlap the strings 2 times like I do in this video. The theory is exactly the same, though!!

I hope this helps those who fear restringing beads when the og elastic's time is up. 🥰💕

P.S. Anyway isn't the 'stone covering jade' seed beads just soooo cute and oily? IN LOVE

i only meant to show my cousin something on u/syang70's website, and before i could realize it, i ordered these pretty lotus beads faster than i could say "nephrite" 😂 i really do gravitate towards anything pink like a moth to a flame, i guess 🩷

Item: Jadeite bangles
Jade Typ: Glutinous
Treatment Status: Natural Grade A
Certificate / Lab Report: NGTC (National Gem Testing Center)
Measurements: See individual item details
Weight: See individual item details
Condition: Brand new
Price: Less than $280, including tariff/tax, free shipment
Shipping From: China
Shipping To: Almost worldwide
Payment / Checkout Method: Paypal checkout at my website
Return Policy: Customer responsible for return fees if receive without damage
Seller Review History: Trusted seller
Photos / Video: See attached
Additional Notes:

Since these bangles come from the same material, they have a consistent style and are offered at better prices.

You may select ‘All Bangles’ from the menu, then choose ‘Sort by Date’ to view this batch of bangles.

https://cuijuanjadeite.com/collections/bangle

My latest estate acquisition. Can you guess which piece is jade? Only one is!

I was asking a seller if he have hetian bangle and this is what he showed me. I asked if that is xiuyan jade he said hetian. Need your thoughts on this.

Finally an afternoon where it’s bright enough to take a nice video, and that I’m outside for once. 😤 definitely a different flavour when observed in natural sunlight, where it should be!! 💖

As many of you know, when people talk about jade, most modern discussion focuses on Chinese jade culture. This focus intends to be especially on the discussion of jadeite, Type A/B/C treatment, and collector-grade material. That history and discussion is important of course, but it is not the only jade tradition in Asia.

Korea has its own relationship with jade, or 옥 / ok, and it is worth understanding on its own terms!

While not as contemporarily popular in terms of fashion, in Korean history and culture, jade has long been connected to ornament, status, beauty, protection, and symbolism. Some of the most recognizable examples are 곡옥 / 곱은옥, often called gogok or comma-shaped jade ornaments (a twin to the Japanese magatama you might be more familiar with). These curved jade forms appear in ancient Korean jewelry and elite objects, especially from the Silla period, including crowns, belts, necklaces, and earrings.

The comma shape was not just decorative. Scholars and museums often discuss it as a symbolic form, possibly connected to life, fertility, rebirth, fruitfulness, protection, or sacred prestige. The exact meaning is still debated, but that is part of what makes it so interesting! For Korean jade culture is not only about material value. It is also about form, symbolism, and cultural memory.

The three most common uses of jade in traditional Korean accessories are garakji / 가락지 a double ring, norigae / 노리개 a knotted accessory hung from hanbok, and binyeo / 비녀 a traditional hairpin. Though, of course, there are other traditional accessories that use jade.

Another important difference is material. In modern gemology, “jade” properly refers to two minerals: jadeite and nephrite. Korean jade culture has historically been more closely associated with nephrite, especially with Korean nephrite from places like Chuncheon. This is Korea’s only jade mine and one of the largest white nephrite mines in the world! So that also gives Korean jade culture a different center of gravity than modern Chinese jadeite collecting.

That difference matters when we talk about Korean jade jewelry today. A lot of Korean jade pieces are bought for tradition, hanbok styling, family gifting, symbolic meaning, or everyday fashion beauty. In that context, jade may be treated more as a cultural ornament than as an investment gemstone. That does not mean disclosure is unimportant… It still is! But it does mean Korean jade should not automatically be judged only through the standards of another jade market.

The Korean fashion market, ultimately, doesn’t have much issue with imitation or treated jade. Though it is almost always disclosed as such. With pieces of jewelry involving such materials still going for hundreds, or thousands, of USD. The emphasis is more on design and color.

For me, learning about jade as a Korean-American has been an important glimpse. At first I was disappointed and anxious that Korean jade history and culture was “less serious” because it may not always center untreated imperial jadeite. But it’s given me a means of appreciating more stones for what they are and deciding for myself what I want to prioritize in my jewelry.

This is the kind of jade conversation I hope we can have here! One that values transparency, but also makes room for different cultural relationships with jade.

In this blog, I will cover a specific sub-section of seed jade called 石包玉 (lit. 'stone covering jade'). Whilst it's very well-known in the collector's world, it remains largely elusive to hobbyists who have just started on the journey of playing with Hetian jade, or even Hetian seed jade. I have received a nice strand of 18mm 'stone covering jade' bracelet today, and am in awe with the fineness of its flesh, so what better time than now to write this.

Pictured is my 18mm bead strand alongside with a special request for the sourcer to keep a 'seed skin' bead for me. The bead itself would be unable to produce a Hetian jade certificate. For reference, p1-3 are of the stone skin bead, p4-5 are of the actual jade flesh, p6 is the seed stone they came from. P7-9 are some other examples of 'stone covering jade'.

What is 'stone covering jade'?

As the name suggests, this sort of seed jade - to recap, river jade found only in the Yurungkax or Karangkash rivers in Xinjiang - are characterised by a thick layer of stony substance, commonly composed of some compilation of quartz, dolomite, coarse actinolite etc.. As this sort of jade commonly has an extremely thick layer of stone "skin" and is quite aesthetically unpleasing, the skin is not commonly retained in the final product unlike other seed stone products. The skin itself will also be unable to produce a Hetian jade certificate due to the absence of high quantities of tremolite - which, to recap, is the requirement for Hetian jade to be Hetian jade.

How is 'stone covering jade' formed?

There are two theories as to why a seed stone, commonly with such thin skin, would have such a variety.

The first is that the original mountain material came surrounded with its own 'mountain skin', a coarse, non-jade weathered rock. This weathered rock has interacted with the elements in the river over time, forming a thicker skin. This is a theory especially used for 'stone covering jade' pieces with sugar colour, as they believe that the colour came from the original mountain material, instead of sugar staining caused by river infiltration.

Secondly, another theory is that seed jade undergoes infiltration by outside substances inside the riverbed, and the original jade flesh at the exterior becomes altered and silicified, or calcified.

What are the characteristics of 'stone covering jade'?

These type of seed stone are commonly characterised by an extremely fine and silky flesh - that is, if the owner of the stone wins the gamble.

From the outside, no one is able to tell whether this stone will contain jade or not, due to the thick outer skin. We know about gambling jade, and this is the highest gamble of all. In fact, most, if not all stones with such skins will never produce jade inside. In fact, the Legend of Bian He is said to be referring to a 'stone covering jade' piece.

Some long-term hobbyists postulate that the reason such seed jade produces such fine flesh is because the impurities that seed jade is commonly exposed to in the river over tens of thousands of years, have been "caught" by its thick outer skin, leaving the jade flesh inside clean and unmarred even with such a long period of time.

Conclusion:

One of the best possessions and examples I can give you are that of one 'stone covering jade' seed stone that I have dubbed "sesame material", which has produced pieces such as my Qinghua seed jade "mother-and-child" set (link here) or these bangles that I'm selling here.

For such seed stones that usually do not come with the skin, it would be best to obtain evidence/video proof from the seller of the original 'stone covering jade' stone, in order to prove its origin.

A revisit of this lovely pendant that I scored a while back. I haven’t met another that speaks to me quite like the way this one does, ever since! 🥰 definitely a keeper for life.

Not sure about quality or certification. Was just browsing with a friend and it was fun to look at

Hello readers new and old! In this article, I’d like to share the main flaws that are naturally occurring in Hetian jade (I will talk about scams to look out for in the future, which is a separate long topic), as these flaws will definitely affect value, and potentially even affect the durability of the stone - they will thus be categorised as such in this post.

This is definitely a more visual-based post, so I highly encourage you to check out all of the pictures that will be attached alongside here. I will also add their associated Chinese terms, as I know there is a significant number of my readers who can recognise Chinese, and it will also make it easier for you to search these terms up in Chinese SNS platforms.

💔 **Cotton (**棉)

Cotton is one of the most common and easy-to-identify flaws in Hetian jade. It is an aggregate of white crystalline formations within Hetian jade, and mainly composed of silica.
Generally, materials with a loose structure will tend to have relatively larger cotton-like flaws in larger amounts, while materials with a fine structure tend to have fewer and smaller ones. Cotton can exist in Hetian jade from any origin, source (mountain material, seed material, etc.), or colour, and will affect its price from a minute to a significant amount, depending on its level of occurrence and how it affects the purity of the jade.

How to identify?

It is generally formed in a cloud-like cluster, and can resemble cotton tufts, snowflakes, or even fine thread. In finer jade, it is typically very small and pinhole-sized (针尖棉). I have attached many photos of various types of cotton, so please take a look.

💔 **Cracks/Fissures (**裂)

Cracks in Hetian jade are something we want to completely avoid, as it affects the jade’s structural integrity - especially in a bangle or bracelet. Even for tiny cracks that some sellers deem as a “vein” or minor fissure (纹), I would still highly recommend new buyers to avoid, unless you are completely sure that it is not a crack but instead a healed natural fissure (石纹) that occurs during the formation of the jade. Cracks will severely affect price, and should only be bought if at a very large discount, and if you are okay with the stone potentially breaking with wear.

How to identify?

There are two types of cracks, external and internal. The external ones can easily be felt with a fingernail, whilst the internal ones can only be seen with a light shining through. In general, cracks will block light (picture attached), so I would highly recommend you to buy a jeweller’s torch alongside your Hetian jade.

💔 Stiff Material** **(僵/浆）

Stiff material has been previously mentioned in-depth in one of JC’s videos. It is typically a white or grayish-white rocky component, often appearing as blocky or structural patterns with low hardness (can be scratched with a knife). It can also be referred to “raw” jade that has not fully jadeified into mature Hetian jade. This is considered an inclusion that will greatly reduce the price of a Hetian jade piece.

How to identify?

Stiff material has a stoniness to it - it looks dry and lacks the luster typical of jade, and is opaque when a light is shone onto it. It is easiest to tell when the Hetian jade piece is not completely stiff material, as stiff material will exhibit a texture inconsistent with the main body.

Recently, stiff material has been repackaged and sold into a variant called “nougat” Hetian jade, where there are bits of white in a caramel-base Hetian jade. This is actually material that used to be discarded, but now repackaged into an “aesthetic”. As different material appeals to different tastes, just be aware when you are purchasing.

💔Water Lines (水线）

Water lines are a very interesting phenomenon in Hetian jade, and are also very commonly seen. They can be as thin as hair, or can be extremely thick in some cases. Water lines are not always seen as a huge flaw - typically, the fineness of Hetian jade increases with an increasing presence of water lines, and these water line-filled jade are typically harder than usual.

Fun fact: a type of Russian green nephrite we call 碧玉夹层料 is actually completely made up of the enormous water line layer in a large block of stone. As it is wholly composed of a water line only, it is more brittle than the average Hetian jade, but very beautiful nonetheless.

How to identify?

They tend to be more transparent than the actual jade, and can be visible to the naked eye.

💔 **Dirt/Impurities (**脏）

Refers to black, brown, or other dark-colored inclusions in the jade, typically composed of iron, graphite, or other mineral inclusions. Impurities significantly reduce aesthetic appeal, and will significantly affect the value of a jade piece.

How to identify?

Impurities appear as dark flaws in the form of spots, patches, clusters (e.g., black spots, yellowish-brown rust-like marks) or like “seaweed (水草沁)” - in the case of what they call “osmanthus jelly” Hetian jade, such impurities that look like “osmanthus” are now sold for a high price, when they were also previously discarded and would never be sold.
Impurities may penetrate deep into the jade or adhere to the surface; and when illuminated with a light, these areas do not transmit light. Some impurities may be accompanied by loose jade structure, creating a rough feel when polished.

💔 **Texture (**结构)

Last but not least, texture. Whilst texture cannot be strictly categorised as a flaw, since it is the most naturally-occurring part of any Hetian jade, it is also the first measure of quality buyers look at when it comes to how much they are willing to pay for a particular piece of jade. In my previous post about “Types of Hetian jade”, you may have seen me talk about two terms, broadly termed as “passing the eye test” (过眼) and “passing the light test” (过灯). This essentially talks about whether the structure of the jade is visible to the eye, and/or visible when viewed under a strong jeweller’s light. Of course, the coarser the structure, the cheaper the material will be (by a significant amount!) and vice versa.

Conclusion

Hetian jade is a natural material, and minor imperfections are normal and can be accepted - as long as the price reflects as such, and as long as it doesn’t bother you personally.

I would advise people interested in Hetian jade to balance your expectations with the price of the piece you are interested in. This is as artificial treatments are rampant in Hetian jade and cannot be detected: treatments such as dyeing or acid washing may conceal impurities and inclusions, and there is even a solvent on the market that can completely remove all impurities from Hetian jade, and turn it into a completely white piece. As such, please be cautious of jade that appears overly perfect at an unusually low price.

Passed all the tests! He’s tried and true and I’m going to re-thread him into a bracelet! Best jade thrifting I’ve done so far!

Item: Hetian Seed Jade Bangle & Pendant

Jade Type / Seller Identification: Heiqing ("Black-Green") Hetian Seed Jade

Treatment Status: Untreated

Certificate / Lab Report: Certificate included

Measurements: Bangle > 54.7-18-10, Pendant > 43.5 round

Weight: Bangle > 90.5g, Pendant > 40.5g

Condition: Brand new

Price: Bangle > $288, Pendant > $88. Take both for $20 off.

Shipping From: Singapore

Shipping To: Worldwide

Payment / Checkout Method: PayPal

Return Policy: No returns accepted.

Seller Review History: General reviews can be found in the pinned Post on my Profile.

Photos / Video: Included in post

Additional Notes:

Hi everyone, Youka here 👋

I’m introducing a new range of bangles and pieces that are priced more accessibly than my usual listings. Many customers have asked for lower-priced options and shared that they’re comfortable with minor, clearly disclosed flaws, so I wanted to make this available.

This listing will be the first to grace this collection of instock, ready-to-ship items, colloquially known as Youka's Good Deals 🤭

These items may have minor imperfections or small flaws, but they’re still beautiful, wearable, and offer great value for what they are.

My goal with this collection is to make these pieces more attainable for those who want to try out hetian jade, including seed jade, but prefer something at a lower price point. As always, transparency matters - every flaw or imperfection will be clearly disclosed so you know exactly what you’re getting. No filters in my photos/videos as always.

If you’ve been waiting for a chance to pick something up at a friendlier price, this is for you. Thanks for the continued support!! 🥰💕

___

Description:

This 'Starry Night' Heiqing seed jade set is named as such because it looks like a night sky full of stars, and is due to mineral inclusions in a Heiqing (lit. black-green) base that sparkle in the light. The material itself is extremely oily, and will only look better with wear.

No flaws to take note of, except for a small spot where the included mineral is on the very surface of the bangle, thus causing it to not be polished as well as the rest of the bangle. Blends in well, looks like a shooting star almost!

The first piece is a vintage-style pendant featuring a chi-dragon (螭龙) design, modeled after traditional jade carvings. The material is solid and substantial, which I’m very pleased with.

2-4 are lavendar dragon pieces. I like the color and the carving as well.

The last one is a white dragon piece, showing a gel like luster, 3D carving.