LMW: Stands for "Limited
Manufacturer's Warranty".
Lab-created: See Synthetic.
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
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.
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.
