Why Our Baltic Amber?

Note: Under the Therapeutic Goods Act in Australia, claims cannot be made about the potential therapeutic benefits of goods, without these goods being registered and approved. Amber jewellery has not been registered as a therapeutic good and we should not be making representations about the effectiveness of these products in any advertising.

Bambeado use only 100% Balitic Amber...

There are many companies providing similar looking products but these are not always the genuine product. Below are some facts about the product and information to help identify the real from the fake product.

Baltic Amber

Amber is fossilised tree resin. Baltic amber (found and mined near the Baltic Sea) has traditionally been used when a baby is teething.  

Colours of amber

Baltic amber occurs naturally in a variety of colours: white, yellow, brown, black, red, green and blue. The most common are honey-coloured. A small percentage is bone white, due to microscopic gas bubbles. 

The clear and translucent amber results from flowing and dripping resin. This kind often shows layers from continuing flow on already dried resin. 

The black and dirty brown colours are caused by a mix of resin, soil and plant fragments. The rarest have a tone of green or blue caused by gas or inclusions. If the craftsman keeps part of the natural shape, when sanding the raw amber, the crust or inclusions give a natural variety of multi-coloured tones. 

How long has Baltic Amber been around for?

Most Amber today is said to be from 30 to 90 million years old.

What is the best way to look after amber?

Because amber is soft and can be brittle, it’s important to be careful that it not come in contact with chemicals. 

Amber should not be stored with other jewellery where it can rub against other pieces, especially metals.  

Be sure to keep perfume, hairspray, and soaps like shampoo and conditioner away from the amber, and never place your jewellery in commercial cleaning solutions.  

Remove your amber jewellery when bathing. Also remove when applying sunscreen.

To clean your amber, use a soft flannel cloth or an unused toothbrush dampened with clean lukewarm water.  

Dry in the sun or with a clean tissue or towel.

How long should amber last?

In theory Baltic amber, if cared for, could last forever.  However it is also extremely old and brittle, and eventually beads will break.  Also over time the surface of the beads tend to get coated with soap scum and other substances and the beads should be cleaned on a regular basis.  So if you clean your amber and are careful with it, it should last for years.

How do you look for fake amber?

A few recommended types of test:

Visual Inspection 

The first thing you’ll want to look out for is plastic, pressed, and glass amber that is obviously ‘too perfect’.  Amber beads can be polished to near-perfect rounds, but if all of the beads on your string are totally picture-perfect, something is probably wrong.  Real amber has air bubbles, and if clear enough to let light pass, you’ll see imperfections within the bead, cracks, etc. It also feels lighter in your hands than you would expect it to.

The Ultraviolet Light Test 

Real Baltic amber will fluoresce under UV light while copal  won’t.  This is a super easy test to do, particularly if your amber is the on lighter side.  You’ll need a real UV light (think LED UV flashlight or florescent tube, traditionally called a black light.)  

The Scratch Test

Real Baltic amber has a hardness of 5 - 6 on the Moh’s scale so it should be easily scratched by metal.  Glass won’t scratch but it WILL hurt your amber (if it’s real) so attempt to scratch in an unnoticeable area (kind of hard to do on an already small bead).  Not a great test because it damages your amber and it’s easier to tell amber from glass by temperature and weight (glass is colder and heavier).

Supervision & Safety

Our baby and children amber is individually knotted between each bead. Children under the age of 3 are to be supervised at all times when wearing the amber product.  Amber is to be worn, not chewed. Amber necklaces should be removed while your child is sleeping.