LMW: Stands for "Limited
Manufacturer's Warranty".
Lab-created:
See
Synthetic.
Note - lab-created does not mean "fake"
Labradorite:
A grayish almost
opaque form of
feldspar with flashes of blue, green, and/or
yellow visible at certain angles.
Laminated: An
object coated with a thin layer of plastic is
said to be laminated.
Lanyard: A cord
worn around the neck for carrying something,
such as a knife or whistle keys or
identification photo.
Lapidary: The
art of cutting, shaping, polishing and creating
jewelry from stones.
Lapis: Shortened
form of Lapis Lazuli.
Lapis Lazuli:
A royal blue
opaque
semiprecious stone with white veins or
patches of calcite and a few gold-looking
metallic flecks of
pyrite. Lapis can be dyed to enhance the
color.
Lariat: A cord
worn as a
necklace with the ends of the cord dangling
like a necktie. It can be tied into a knot or
secured by a sliding brooch. See Bolo.
Laser drilling:
A way of enhancing a
gem
by drilling a tiny hole with a laser to remove
an impurity.
Lavalier:
(Negligee Pendant): A
necklace with two
pendants of unequal length suspended from
it.
Layered: One
sheet of material on top of another with
indistinct boundaries between them.
Lead: A soft,
dense,
metallic
element. Lead is bluish in color, but
tarnishes readily to a dull gray. It is both
malleable and ductile and easily fuses with
other
metals to form
alloys. Lead is used in containers, sheets,
tubes, pipes, solder, type metal, bullets,
radiation shielding, paints, and antiknock
compounds.
Lead crystal:
See
Crystal.
Length: The
linear measurement of a
bracelet or
necklace
or chain.
Lever back: A
means of attaching an
earring to a
pierced ear with a hook that goes through
the ear and is then secured by a hinged lever
attached to the back of the piece.
Light
Transparent: Plastic that appears to
only be
translucent, but is actually
transparent when held up to the light.
Lime: The gray or
white
mineral form of
calcium
oxide, used as a cementing compound.
Limestone: A
common
sedimentary rock consisting mostly of
calcium
carbonate that was deposited by the remains
of marine animals. It is used as a building
stone and in the manufacture of
Lime,
carbon
dioxide, and cement. Crystalline limestone
is called
marble.
Linde Star
Sapphire: A
synthetic
star sapphire developed in 1967. Many
star sapphires found today are these
synthetics.
Link: A loop, or
other object, which is linked together in a
series to make a
chain.
Liquid silver:
The term given to strands of small
silver
beads which were made by carefully slicing
tubes of
sterling
silver into 1/8" pieces and stringing them
together. A form of
Heishi.
Living Jewelry:
Term for
jewelry made from materials that were once
part of a living creature, such as
Ivory,
Pearls,
Mother of Pearl,
Seashell, and
Coral.
Lobster claw
clasp: A means of connecting the ends of
a
necklace together. One end has a wide flat
hook, resembling the claw of a lobster, with a
hinged "thumb" on a spring. The other end has a
ring which the claw hooks onto. It is then
secured by closing the thumb of the claw.
Locket: A hinged
case, usually in the shape of an oval or heart,
which can be opened or closed and usually
contains a photograph or memento.
Lost Wax
Casting: An object is made of wax and
coated in clay. When the clay is fired, the wax
melts and is drained away or evaporates leaving
an exact impression of the object in the
hardened clay, which is then filled with molten
metal.
Lucite: A clear,
strong plastic that can be molded and carved,
popular in the 1940's for ladies purses and
jewelry.
Luster: A
reference to the brightness of an object that
shines with reflected light rather than
producing its own.
Lustrous: A
reference to the brightness of an object that
shines with reflected light rather than
producing its own.
