How Much Should I Pay for a Jade Bangle Bracelet? How Much Does Jade Cost?

 Not a very new topic, this has been discussed in the past, but with the holiday season approaching, and dealing with craziness from COVID, time to add to the conversation.

The Chinese saying:   "Gold and Diamonds have a price, but jade has no price"   Diamonds and gold are often valued by carat and karat weight, so prices can be consistent for them, although the details of the item will add to the value.

Burmese jadeite and Chinese jade prices are based on what people want, and what they are willing to pay.  When I bought the jade for Ying Yu Jade and Jade Heaven web sites, I went to China personally to purchase it.   There are no prices on jade when you buy wholesale directly from the jade carvers.  I had to arrive in China two days before I started shopping, with cash only, take it to the Chinese bank, and exchange it for Chinese money.   Real jade sellers who sell real jade take cash only.  And China allowed only a certain amount of foreign money each day to exchange for Chinese money.  Of course I truly enjoyed my time in Beijing, Tianjin, visiting friends, my Chinese doctor friend, and traveling, eating, exploring.  

Then I went north to Xiuyan where traditional Chinese jade is mined, met with my jade carver, shopped and ordered for shipping to me.  I learned so much about Chinese jade from the jade mines, jade museums.  And that's how I can spot the "fake jade", what I often see at gem trade shows, in regular stores in USA, and online especially from jade sellers in the south of China, around Guangzhou.  Jade mined there is often nephrite, or something else color treated to look like jade. 

Then traveled south to the Myanmar (Burma) border for the Burmese jadeite.  I was trained by a vice president of the China Jade Association how to know if jade is grade A, or B or C, color treated.  There is a photo of us working together on Ying Yu Jade Facebook page. 

All the Burmese jadeite had to be "bargained" for.  The price was whatever the seller and the buyer agreed on.  When I made a purchase, I left a note in the jadeite I bought so I could decide what to sell it for.  The price includes the actual jade price, my expenses of going to China, what it costs to get it listed on the web sites, and the costs of accepting payment from credit card processing.  And other costs, like accessories to pack, shipping charges, taxes I have to pay, and more.  The hours of taking photos, editing so they look like the "real thing" and writing descriptions has no price, it's a never ending task for me.  

There are some long time jade sellers in China, and Hong Kong who look at my websites and give me feedback about prices.  99% of the time, I am told that "my prices are too low", the jade bangle bracelets have higher value.  But, selling online is not like selling to tourists in China, Hong Kong, who can see the "real thing", touch it, feel the good qi energy.  And with all the fake jade being sold, I understand it's difficult to trust online sellers.  I have guarantees on the Jade Heaven and Ying Yu Jade, if you purchase Burmese jadeite that I claim is grade A, genuine and natural color, and you get it tested and get a certification that it is not grade A, I give a full refund, and great apology.  I have not had that happen in the 20 years of selling jade online.  

AND, if you look at Jade Heaven and Ying Yu Jade, you will notice that many items are on sale now, prices marked down.  The holiday season is approaching.  The shipping companies are raising their prices because more people are buying online, and higher prices will go into effect in December.  And the worst part is shipping may not be as reliable.  If you buy a gorgeous jade bangle bracelet and it gets delayed because of shipping problems in the systems, or lost, or delivered "somewhere else", you will not be happy.   So now is a good time to shop before holiday shopping starts.

AND, if you see a jade item you like, but you think the price is too high for you, you can "make an offer", just like shopping at a jade market in China!   The web sites have email addresses for you to contact me with the item number, description, and what you would like to offer.   Your offer will either be accepted, or a counter offer made.  Again, just like shopping at a jade market in China!

If you want good quality, genuine and natural "real" jade and Burmese jadeite, trust Ying Yu Jade and Jade Heaven.  Check the Deal of the Day on Ying Yu Jade, and "Heavenly Jade Sale" on Jade Heaven. Ying Yu Jade sells both kinds of jade: Chinese jade and Burmese jadeite, and a variety of items like pendants, jade carvings, Chinese medicine jade health tools like rollers, gua sha, facial masks.  Jade Heaven sells Burmese jadeite, some of the highest quality and best bangles and pendants I found while shopping in China.  

I love jade, and sell only the jade quality and jade items that I personally love and would wear, want for myself.   

And I treat customers the way I like to be treated.

Comments are welcome and reviewed to make sure they are not SPAM.

Please allow time for your comment to be reviewed and posted.

Is My Jade Bangle Bracelet Cracked or Scratched? What Does a Crack Do to a Jade Bangle Bracelet?

 I personally take the photos of all the jade listed on the web sites.  And the photos are taken outdoors on our screened sun deck, in natural daylight so the photos can be edited to look like the "real thing", not photoshopped to look "perfect".  I take a few pieces of jade, bangle bracelets, pendants, carvings, beads in a basket with a towel, a polishing cloth, the "double dragon" metal piece I use to hold bangles, and use a background for other jade items.  When I get set up, I polish the jade piece and examine it carefully in the daylight to look at the color patterns, "feel" the jade qi energy, and get a "feel" for the description title when it gets listed.  

Sometimes I find an "imperfection" on the jade piece.  There's a Chinese saying: "the jade carver always leaves something behind".  All of our jade is hand carved, not machine carved, and hand made items are not always "perfect".  But sometimes that's what makes them so special.  In fact, genuine and natural jade with a small imperfection is always more valuable than a color treated or "fake" jade.  

But I understand most customers do want "perfect" jade.  So I do my best to make sure that if there is a small imperfection, it is detailed in the listing information.  

And if I "need a new jade bangle for myself", (like I have so many now!) it's an "imperfect" one I keep.

This is one of my favorite jade bangle bracelets:

I can barely get it over my knuckles and onto my wrist.  It is quite wide, which makes it seem smaller than the usual size.  But when I do get it on, it's the best bangle I have because it stays close to my wrist and doesn't "fall up my wrist" when I'm active.   This is genuine natural grade A Burmese jadeite, purchased before the "fake jade" became popular so it doesn't have a certificate of gemology testing.  When I was "bargaining" for it from the jade carver, he had it packed with two other very similar bangles.  The color is very good green, and some of the veins are the rare and precious imperial green.  I really wanted only the other two that were in perfect condition, to sell online, but he wanted me to buy all three.  I put this one on my wrist.  It was stuck because it was so hot in south China near the Burma border I could not take it off to continue bargaining.  So I pretended that I agreed to buy all three.  And I got very good prices for the lot of three because of this.  Being an "American", he knew Americans expected "perfect" so he felt like he "won" the bargaining deal.  But I knew I won, because I fell in love with it.  

It's not easy to see from the photo, but there are small cracks throughout the deep and imperial green veins, on the bottom they appear grey.  And there is a one inch+ "clarification line" on the white color that is on the side you can't see in the photo.  It is visible but it really just looks like part of the natural jade.  And that's another reason I wanted it:  clarification lines are formed while the jade is being formed when there is a lot of pressure in the ground.  The clarification line took the pressure off  and actually makes the jade stronger because on the round style, it's easy to break of dropped or struck hard. I wear this bangle most of the time, and I'm active, and it has lasted through many years.   A crack goes up and down the width.  A clarification line goes "around".

I do my best to include anything that is not "perfect" in the description, but sometimes miss a little "something" that "the jade carver leaves behind".   Our "old mine" Burmese jadeite bangle bracelet are best quality overall, rare to find today because carved before 2008 when the political problems re-started in Myanmar. So if you purchase one of our jade bangle bracelets on Ying Yu Jade or Jade Heaven and see a "little something", of course we will exchange if you are not happy with it.  But hold it first:  "feel" the qi energy; "feel" the history of this jadeite.  "Feel" how your body, mind and spirit are attached (or not attached" to genuine, natural jade.

Comments are welcome and reviewed to make sure they are not SPAM.

Please allow time for your comment to be reviewed and posted.