I am an Auntie...NOT!!!

Can you guess what these things are?





 Not just ANY stone, these are jade. Like, real jade. You know, the green stone that old people like so much?


I always wondered why they like jade so much. Apparently it is believed to be able to ward off evil, and is also a symbol of wealth, virtue, and love. It is also believed to have some health benefits when worn on the body. In the Chinese Medical Encyclopaedia 《本草纲目》,it is said that jade has the ability to remove "heatiness", enhance hair growth, inprove sleep, bones, blood circulation, heart and lungs, amidst many others.

Something new eh? So it HAS been documented that wearing jade has health benefits. So your grandmother knows something you don't. =)


I was at this jade-making place in Shoufeng, Hua Lian (yes back there, though I'm currently in Solo, Indonesia. I'm badly behind time on my postings. SORRY!!!!).



Stools with Jade as the seat for increased comfort as jade is usually cool to the touch. Extravagant!

 I was given this for my filming, and asked what I would like to make with it.


I thought long and hard, and thought: Earrings are so small, so are pendants. If I made, like, a pendant, for example, then I would be wasting this nice big piece of jade! Jade doesn't come cheap okay....

IDEA!!!!

刮痧板!!!!!!!
Gua sha board! I really don't know how to translate this. Lol~

聪明嘞!刮痧板那么大片,不会浪费这块玉哦!

First got to cut out the rough shape using a diamond cutter. Then using a second cutter which is less rough, we smooth out any rough edges.




Next using an even finer rotating cutter. Grinder? Mill? Don't know what you call it in English. It's a 磨 la in Chinese. Bleah~ 

And that is followed by sanding it down to make the surface really smooth. Can't show too much due to copyright issues. The travelogue starts airing from the 1st January 2012 so keep a lookout for this episode. And of course all the rest of the other episodes. It's my first ever solo hosting show so do please show your support!
 
 Then the piece of jade goes through a final sanding with some whitish fluid to make it shiny.

 Naise~!

 I had the opportunity to head down to 白鲍溪 (White Abalone Lake?),famed for having pieces of jade in the waters especially after a typhoon. Media has been reporting it very often, thus it's very difficult to find decent-sized pieces of jade in the waters if you do go. Because there are a lot of jia pa jin eng people who will go and pick jade ANY TIME OF THE DAY, as early as 5am. Madness. 

But I guess I was lucky.

 I actually found this. Not small okay. Can make into earring or pendant or ring, or all 3 if cut carefully. Lol. Worth a lot hor!

You tell that it's a jade by holding it up to the light. If light can pass through it it's a piece of jade. ;)


 This is also a piece of jade. Different kind. Called 透闪玉.


I picked this up too, but I was told this isn't jade. NOT JADE? But it's green! And it looks so pretty!

Apparently light can't pass through it. It's 蛇纹石. Serpentine. 蛇纹, incidentally, means snake print. And Serpentine has got serpent in its name? Cool~


 Serpentine on the left, and Jade on the right. Both picked up by yours truly. 
I made them into paperweights. For the desk. So I'll have 靠山s. Small also 靠山. Yeah~~~






刮痧可以去热气,促进血液循环,养颜,瘦脸。 Gua Sha. Some call it scrapping. Google "guasha" for more info on this type of Chinese medical treatment method.


 That's my kid for this episode! He's a French Chindian who was born in Canada but moved to Singapore 2 years ago to study. That was when he started learning Chinese and Mandarin. And I must say I was IMPRESSED with his command of the Chinese language! For a 2-year novice, he was Good~~~


 Good-looking to boot!


On a random note, I saw this at a night market in Shoufeng:


OfGuaShaJade&TobalekChickens,

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