What is opal dust?

I’ve seen many lovely pieces referred to as opal
dust. Is that synthetic opal? Is it a doublet or triplet? Or is it a
misleading term that refers to something totally different? I have
asked many people and have tried to research it but I have gotten
nowhere. Any assistance is appreciated!

The only reference I can find to “opal dust” is a glass frit used to make opal simulated glass cabochons or other fused glass.

Never heard of opal dust. However, I really would not have any interest in “dust”

John

Opal dust, I think that is just a term used by buyers and sellers who deal with opals. It may probably be synthetic to some extent or a doublet. To Identify if it is natural, you can use magnification and see its inside characteristics. But to my opinion, it might be low priced. I tend to think it i the dust of opal combined together to form a piece.

Opal dust is just that-- leftovers from cutting and polishing. Triplets and doublets include a thin slice of natural or lab-created stone, with a quartz cover for protection, and in the case of triplets, a black stone backing of some sort. Dust is dust. For me, anything less than 1 or 2 mm is what I call OTF (off the floor), and anything smaller than that is useless! I use OTF to suspend in solutions to use as snow-globe type ornaments and pendants. Nature’sJewelry.com has opal dust jewelry. Take a look.