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How to Remove Glue From Amber

According to Knives By and Will Adsen Family, carving amber feels a bit like carving hard plastic. Amber is crystallized tree sap, hardened over hundreds of years with a golden color that ranges from very light yellow to almost red. This gemstone is light and brittle, meaning that carvers need to secure it before carving. A vise would chip or crack the stone so many carvers hot glue their pieces to flat, sturdy pieces of wood that can withstand vise grips. However, the glue needs to be removed after carving. The process is simple, though time consuming.

Things You'll Need

Saucepan
Rubber gloves
Tweezers
Toothpicks
Wooden popsicle sticks

Instructions

- 1
  Fill a saucepan about halfway with water and bring it to a rolling boil over high heat. Do not salt the water to speed boiling; this could harm the amber when it dries.
- 2
  Put on rubber gloves and hold the amber and wood piece over the pan, allowing the steam to warm the piece. This helps prevent the amber from cracking.
- 3
  Remove the pan from heat and let it cool for about 15 minutes. Slip the amber and wood into the pot and let it sit for another 10 minutes. Put on rubber gloves and reach into the water, gently prying the amber and wood apart.
- 4
  Take the amber from the water and grip the softened glue with a pair of tweezers. Slowly and gently pull the glue away from the amber. If the glue tears, don't worry. Go back to that strip with the tweezers later.
- 5
  Remove very stubborn glue by sticking the amber back in the water for a few minutes. Wedge toothpicks under the glue after removing it from the water. Wiggle the toothpicks to loosen the glue, replace them with popsicle sticks and then try to remove the glue with the tweezers.

Gemology