Thursday, November 20, 2008

Bangles, Et Al

I've been making bangles, a form of bracelet that I'm quite fond of myself. I always have some sort of bangle on whether it's a smooth band of gold or one set with gemstones. The bangle is an especially versatile bracelet since it can be extremely casual or very formal.
The Swarovski bracelet above is the epitome of bling with its huge Swarovski crystals, two Cosmic crystals on either side of a Graphic. It is definitely a bracelet that will be noticed. The bangle bracelet below is a bit more sedate than the one above, but combine rubies and emeralds, and you'll always have a piece of jewelry that will be noticed. The focal point of this bangle is a carved, fluted emerald surrounded by rubies; a toggle clasp has a cabochon emerald set in it.


The other bracelets include a citrine bracelet dwith a lovely borosilicate lampwork bead and charms, a three-strand garnet bracelet with some of the newest silver from Bali, and again, pretty borosilicate beads with an amazing depth and complexity.
The final two bracelets include an emerald bracelet chock full of genuine emeralds, large and small, transparent and opaque. I love the emerald toggle clasp with this bracelet especially; it adds so much richness to the emerald and silver.
Finally, another bangle bracelet with the most amazing pink Peruvian opals - faceted and with the clearest pink I've ever seen in an opal.
Now, if I can just get everything done before Thanksgiving!












Thursday, November 06, 2008

Sparkle and Gleam



The Austrian crystal earrings above (Swarovski Austrian crystal) are a perfect match for the Swarovski crystal bracelet that you see below. Both earrings and bracelet feature the ruby Swarovski crystals in the Graphic shape, perfect for earrings and bracelet. The Graphic shape is an elegant, dressy shape, perfect for bracelets since it will lie flat on the wrist, and the shape is a classic, timeless look for earrings. I find Swarovski's labeling the colour "ruby" interesting since it is not what I think of a ruby colour immediately. Swarovski's "ruby" has a pink, well, really, a fuschia tinge to it, while I think of ruby as being a totally clear but dark red. No matter what you call it, the colour is gorgeous as are the Graphic crystals.
Below the ruby bracelet is another
Swarovski crystal bracelet, this one made with pale golden topaz crystals and morion crystals. I love the morion crystals; at first, they appear to be a translucent black, then maybe they have a blue tinge? Then you realize it's a teal-green, maybe? Whatever, I love the morion because it looks so great with the lighter Swarovski crystals.

The lampwork bracelet below has gorgeous lampwork with a partially pink opal look to it. Swarovski's pink crystals work well with them. The sterling silver disks are special beads I just received from Bali; they are completely covered with hand-decorated flowers. A Swarovski butterfly in pink hangs beside the toggle clasp.
The new gemstone bracelets posted are below. First, a smoky quartz bracelet made with some of Robin Weber's beautiful silver-laced lampwork beads. The faceted smoky quartz beads in this bracelet are especially pretty. Below, the smoky quartz bracelet are two bracelet sets (although they are sold separately, I will give a discount if you wish to buy them as a set). The first is a favorite gemstone of mine: sunstone. The sunstone bracelet and earrings are made with sparkling sunstones that glitter in the light - artificial or sunlight. The bracelet also features some more of those special sterling beads from Bali.





Finally, the amazonite jewelry that you see below is handmade from turquoise-blue amazonite of unusually even colour. Faceted teardrop earrings have special earwires with a rose decoration on the front. The bracelet has one of my favorite huge nuggets, faceted, as its focal; it is accented by lampwork beads by Suzette Celestin and sterling silver.


If you are considering buying
handcrafted jewelry as a Christmas gift, now is the time to buy. You will avoid the worry of whether your gift will arrive on time, and you'll still have time to return it to get it resized or to exchange it if something isn't quite right.
Also, consider taking the pledge to "buy handmade" this holiday season. Go to Why Buy Handmade to learn how buying handmade articles can help the environment, the economy, and the satisfaction you receive when gift-giving.