Opal in hearts

DE302
4mm round white Coober Pedy Opal
Black back setting (see comments)
Palladium Sterling Silver

Comments:

Some family members recently visited from Japan. During the visit my wife pulled out some opal jewellery from back in the day when that was all I made, opal jewellery.

One of them really liked some white opals that were in plain four claw studs. She asked me to reset those opals in a pendant design she had seen my wife wearing but in earrings.

To enhance the colour of white opal it is standard practise in the opal industry to close in the back of the setting and turn it black in some way. This generally enhances the colours in white opal if it is transparent. The more transparent the greater the effect.

The same concept is used when creating triplet and doublet opals, which I consider as not real opal. Naturally occurring backgrounds that enhance the colour of opal would be the ironstone of Queensland Boulder Opal or the black potch of Lightning Ridge Black opal.