I've purchased some beautiful top gemstone quality Marsden flower jade lately. This is New Zealand greenstone from the Marsden district in the South Island with a characteristic orange coloured rhind. I believe it's the only place in the world that you get jade of his colour. The green in the top quality jade is either dark kawakawa colour or beautiful emerald green. Somtimes it is mixed with other shades of green, which is both interesting and beautiful.
I have just started carving it with spectacular results. Watch this space! :-)
The piece in the window I got cut really thin to show off it's beautiful translucency.
I have also carved a beautiful inanga heart, which was natually formed in the stone, and set it in again a naturally formed red beech (Tawhairanui) burr heart. Inanga is a lighter shade of green jade fom the sacred Arahura river.
Enjoy.
