Ceramics and bridging definitions
So the other day we had a luncheon training for one of the lines we carry, Lagos. They've had some really nice black ceramic bracelets where the ceramic is done in a beaded way that they call "caviar."
My boss didn't understand that when there is "Ceramic" in jewelry, it's not pottery ceramics, but industrial/space-age ceramics.
At the end of the training, the rep had a prize for someone who could answer a question from the presentation she had just given. The question was, "What is another name for ceramic?"
She had explained it in the training - the other name for ceramic is Titanium Carbide.
That was astounding to me! Titanium carbide?! Really?!
Here's why I was astounded - at kay, we had men's rings, and I was well versed in the materials. We had titanium rings which are light weight, and super durable. I don't recommend titanium rings, though, because if something happens to your hand THE RING CANNOT BE CUT OFF. The only way to get it off in the case of extreme swelling would be to remove the finger or strip the finger like a pencil sharpener. Anyway, titatium rings also scratch really easily - they're weirdly soft for a metal that is so indestructable.
Then we had Tungsten rings. Tungsten, otherwise known as Tungsten Carbide. Tungsten is a 9.5 in hardness, just under diamond and just over Sapphire. Tungsten basically does not scratch, and will not show wear over time. I have a tungsten watch. Its. fucking. fantastic. Also, heavy.
Ceramic rings. For men who want a black ring, my only recommendation is Ceramic. It is the only metal that is black all the way through, and it is also very hard and scratch resistant. Also a 9-9.5 in hardness, and less heavy than tungsten. Ceramic and Tungsten can both be shattered, though, with a hard blow on the right surface. The only tungsten rings I ever saw broken were broken by being dropped on a ceramic tile floor.
So, imagine my amazement when I hear that ceramic is actually also Titanium. Titanium Carbide. Like tungsten carbide? Is it, then, the carbide part that makes them a 9.5 in hardness? Because titatium isn't a 9.5!
So, I explained to my manager all those reasons why I had remembered that funny, obscure, technical detail about the presentation that she had put NO emphasis on whatsoever. (Everyone was like, "of course JULIE answered the question right!" it was funny and flattering.) My boss (who wears three of these ceramic bracelets) had no idea ceramic was a metal EVEN THOUGH when these bracelets first came out I kept saying OVER AND OVER AGAIN "Ceramic is such an easy sell!!! It's the only metal that's black all the way through and it's super durable!"
So, the bridge between Ceramic and Tungsten is really the Carbide. Then, while talking to my manager about it, I wondered out loud if maybe there is a bridging definition between pottery ceramics and industrial ceramics.
Bridging definitions... for instance, a "creek" in the south is a little river/stream thing... sometimes creeks lose all their water in the heat of summer when everything gets really dry. A "creek" on the northeast coast is an inlet from the ocean, kind of like a lake. I lived on a creek in Maine - the size of a decent lake - and it lost all its water at low tide. I would look out to the creek, and twice a day there was no water. Or was it once a day? I've forgotten how the fucking tides work... boy that's sad.
Anyway... I wonder if "ceramic" is really to say... something that is melded together with liquid? Or something like that? I still haven't researched it since having this conversation, and I probably will once I'm done writing. But I basically said all of this to my manager, including the comparison with creeks.
After I was done talking, she kind of looked blankly at me.... and then said that I think about things too deeply. She then went on to say that once I have kids and get "pregnancy brain" I probably won't continue to think so hard, and then she said that she never really recovered from "pregnancy brain" and also she doesn't really have time to think about things like that.
Is it weird that I find her reaction.... somewhat demeaning? But not demeaning to me, personally, because I actually just feel really proud that I was able to actually sort of show someone my intellect for a brief moment... but it just seemed sort of... anti-feminist to me. Weird coming from someone who is an established woman in her industry... who will continue to ascend the management ladder at Neiman Marcus.
There is just something I can't put into words about how her reaction makes me feel. Almost like I feel sorry for her? Almost like I get the idea that I am smarter than her? It actually sort of puts my own intellect into view for me in a way I don't usually see it. I just don't see myself like that. I am me, so I don't often conceptualize my own intellect, and I... I don't have a single person to talk to on my level. I usually keep those sorts of thoughts to myself. I don't usually talk about things in-depth like that with anyone. People usually just don't ask those questions and don't appreciate the materials like that - whether it be metals or stones.
I still continue to delve into all the materials in new ways - and now that I think about it, I need to do that with metals, too, not just stones. I should know more about the origins and chemistry of the metals.
There was some EXTRAORDINARY high jewelry in my store the other day, and a lot of it was done in TITATIUM... (but not titanium carbide - so not scratch resistant ceramic!) In anycase... it was high jewelry... in TITATIUM, which you just never fucking see. The pieces ranged in price from $40,000 to $700,000 and probably more (those were just the pieces I held, tried on, and took pictures of.) In anycase, there was some beautiful blue irridescent titanium that had gems set into it, and the rep for the line told me that when titanium is heated to different temperatures, it turns different colors! So... I'm guessing that means the color goes all the way through? Or is it just on the surface? These are things I need to know. You think of titanium like that for cheap body jewelry... it's so incredible that it's being used in high jewelry.
Also, Victoria and I were supposed to have lunch, and I wanted to tell her this whole entry, but the day we were supposed to go to lunch, she wasn't at work and then she was gone for the whole next week! Guh! I was hoping I'd have someone to really bounce all these thoughts off of. (She's my GIA Gemologist friend who was astounded when I sight-identified a Sphene!)
I'm still so proud of myself for that. I didn't second guess myself, I didn't think it could be anything else. It was a Sphene and I knew it!!!
My boss didn't understand that when there is "Ceramic" in jewelry, it's not pottery ceramics, but industrial/space-age ceramics.
At the end of the training, the rep had a prize for someone who could answer a question from the presentation she had just given. The question was, "What is another name for ceramic?"
She had explained it in the training - the other name for ceramic is Titanium Carbide.
That was astounding to me! Titanium carbide?! Really?!
Here's why I was astounded - at kay, we had men's rings, and I was well versed in the materials. We had titanium rings which are light weight, and super durable. I don't recommend titanium rings, though, because if something happens to your hand THE RING CANNOT BE CUT OFF. The only way to get it off in the case of extreme swelling would be to remove the finger or strip the finger like a pencil sharpener. Anyway, titatium rings also scratch really easily - they're weirdly soft for a metal that is so indestructable.
Then we had Tungsten rings. Tungsten, otherwise known as Tungsten Carbide. Tungsten is a 9.5 in hardness, just under diamond and just over Sapphire. Tungsten basically does not scratch, and will not show wear over time. I have a tungsten watch. Its. fucking. fantastic. Also, heavy.
Ceramic rings. For men who want a black ring, my only recommendation is Ceramic. It is the only metal that is black all the way through, and it is also very hard and scratch resistant. Also a 9-9.5 in hardness, and less heavy than tungsten. Ceramic and Tungsten can both be shattered, though, with a hard blow on the right surface. The only tungsten rings I ever saw broken were broken by being dropped on a ceramic tile floor.
So, imagine my amazement when I hear that ceramic is actually also Titanium. Titanium Carbide. Like tungsten carbide? Is it, then, the carbide part that makes them a 9.5 in hardness? Because titatium isn't a 9.5!
So, I explained to my manager all those reasons why I had remembered that funny, obscure, technical detail about the presentation that she had put NO emphasis on whatsoever. (Everyone was like, "of course JULIE answered the question right!" it was funny and flattering.) My boss (who wears three of these ceramic bracelets) had no idea ceramic was a metal EVEN THOUGH when these bracelets first came out I kept saying OVER AND OVER AGAIN "Ceramic is such an easy sell!!! It's the only metal that's black all the way through and it's super durable!"
So, the bridge between Ceramic and Tungsten is really the Carbide. Then, while talking to my manager about it, I wondered out loud if maybe there is a bridging definition between pottery ceramics and industrial ceramics.
Bridging definitions... for instance, a "creek" in the south is a little river/stream thing... sometimes creeks lose all their water in the heat of summer when everything gets really dry. A "creek" on the northeast coast is an inlet from the ocean, kind of like a lake. I lived on a creek in Maine - the size of a decent lake - and it lost all its water at low tide. I would look out to the creek, and twice a day there was no water. Or was it once a day? I've forgotten how the fucking tides work... boy that's sad.
Anyway... I wonder if "ceramic" is really to say... something that is melded together with liquid? Or something like that? I still haven't researched it since having this conversation, and I probably will once I'm done writing. But I basically said all of this to my manager, including the comparison with creeks.
After I was done talking, she kind of looked blankly at me.... and then said that I think about things too deeply. She then went on to say that once I have kids and get "pregnancy brain" I probably won't continue to think so hard, and then she said that she never really recovered from "pregnancy brain" and also she doesn't really have time to think about things like that.
Is it weird that I find her reaction.... somewhat demeaning? But not demeaning to me, personally, because I actually just feel really proud that I was able to actually sort of show someone my intellect for a brief moment... but it just seemed sort of... anti-feminist to me. Weird coming from someone who is an established woman in her industry... who will continue to ascend the management ladder at Neiman Marcus.
There is just something I can't put into words about how her reaction makes me feel. Almost like I feel sorry for her? Almost like I get the idea that I am smarter than her? It actually sort of puts my own intellect into view for me in a way I don't usually see it. I just don't see myself like that. I am me, so I don't often conceptualize my own intellect, and I... I don't have a single person to talk to on my level. I usually keep those sorts of thoughts to myself. I don't usually talk about things in-depth like that with anyone. People usually just don't ask those questions and don't appreciate the materials like that - whether it be metals or stones.
I still continue to delve into all the materials in new ways - and now that I think about it, I need to do that with metals, too, not just stones. I should know more about the origins and chemistry of the metals.
There was some EXTRAORDINARY high jewelry in my store the other day, and a lot of it was done in TITATIUM... (but not titanium carbide - so not scratch resistant ceramic!) In anycase... it was high jewelry... in TITATIUM, which you just never fucking see. The pieces ranged in price from $40,000 to $700,000 and probably more (those were just the pieces I held, tried on, and took pictures of.) In anycase, there was some beautiful blue irridescent titanium that had gems set into it, and the rep for the line told me that when titanium is heated to different temperatures, it turns different colors! So... I'm guessing that means the color goes all the way through? Or is it just on the surface? These are things I need to know. You think of titanium like that for cheap body jewelry... it's so incredible that it's being used in high jewelry.
Also, Victoria and I were supposed to have lunch, and I wanted to tell her this whole entry, but the day we were supposed to go to lunch, she wasn't at work and then she was gone for the whole next week! Guh! I was hoping I'd have someone to really bounce all these thoughts off of. (She's my GIA Gemologist friend who was astounded when I sight-identified a Sphene!)
I'm still so proud of myself for that. I didn't second guess myself, I didn't think it could be anything else. It was a Sphene and I knew it!!!