Naturally Enhancing The Color Of Matte Gemstone Beads
A great way to give your matte finish beads a beautiful appearance that makes all of the natural features pop. It is a simple process that can be done in your kitchen requiring only a rag, some mineral oil, and a few minutes of your time. Stones with oil applied in this fashion will have a beautiful appearance for many years.
Test it on one bead before oiling a whole strand to ensure that the color change is what you are looking for. Also be careful to not get mineral oil on knots and crimps because it can cause wires and cords to slide resulting in them coming undone.
Steps for applying mineral oil to your matte beads:
- Place some mineral oil on a fuzzy cloth.
- Wipe oil on the beads with the cloth.
- Let the oil sit in the beads for a few minutes to soak in.
- Wash the beads with a a little bit of soap and water.
- Dry the beads with a dry cloth and set them to dry under a fan.
- If the beads are still oily to the touch, repeat steps 4 and 5. Be careful to not wash too much as it will remove the all of the oil and you will not get the desired effect.
Share your experiences with the community in the comments section below!
Tejas Beads is a gemstone bead store with an extensive collection of gemstone beads, pearls, findings, and jewelry-making supplies.
Comments on this post (1)
Hi - I’m new to using matte beads. One of the things that appeals to me about many of them is that frosted appearance. But I also really like the way the oiled matte beads look in your video and I can see how it would help gemstones with lots of colors or patterns really pop. My question is this -- After oiling them, are they still fairly distinguishable from polished beads if they were strung together in a single jewelry item?
Thank you!
— Holly