Back from Paris: French Jewelry!

 I've returned from a trip to Paris - a wonderful time! Unusually cool weather made walking in Paris even more fun than usual.  Of course, I had to check out the jewelry, not always easy to do when I'm with my DH, son, daughter-in-law, and three-year-old grand-daughter.  I was especially careful to notice what French women were wearing, both young and old.

  Some eye candy first:  above is a wild creation I fell in love with (the matching earrings are below the necklace.  It's made of rhinestones and crystals and is certainly not what you'd call an everyday piece!  Crystals shoot out from long strands of silver in a way that reminds me of 4th of July fireworks!

   Below, another statement necklace from our Pantheon of French jewelry.  I think of this as a peacock necklace and believe that it would actually be very wearable with the right dress. It does not look cheap and is very beautiful in person!

 Below, more rhinestones and crystals.

 The French are known for their whimsey and their jewelry is often no exception. Below is a pretty necklace and earring set that is made from mother-of-pearl buttons.  It's really quite striking.

 Another statement necklace: I found quite a bit of what I would call the "tribal influence" in the jewelry in stores.  I didn't see many people wearing these however. The one on the bottom is made with lucite.

 Another necklace made from natural materials, such as bamboo, mixed with lucite.

 The skull trend is still on spot in Paris as you can see here.  The little turtle in the middle is made of colored rhinestones and I did see younger Parisian girls wearing them - on jean jackets!

 Below, I saw quite a few people wearing chandelier earrings, some quite elaborate. 

I also saw more frequently obviously Parisian women wearing something like this simple cross (but a very expensive antique) with a shorter chain.  And I saw that most women, especially those over 30, were wearing gold.  Almost all the gold here is 18 karat which is a richer, more yellow gold than the 14 karat that we are accustomed to.

  French women seem to wear pearls for everyday often.  Below is a Cluny Grey necklace, but it is very typical of what I saw French women wearing oddly enough.  Pearls mixed with softly colored natural stones were fairly common, as were pearls in white, cream, grey, pale pink, beige, and gold.

Many women also wore something similar to the Cluny Grey chalcedony necklace above when they were a necklace other than a simple pendant on a gold chain or pearls.  The gemstones were almost always in soft colors or pastels. But when they wore these gemstone necklaces, their earrings were very simple, a stone or pearl stud, and the only other jewelry they wore was a ring or a gold bangle or chain bracelet.

Above, dangling earrings that would look right at home in Paris.

  For all the glitz I saw in the shops, I seldom actually saw them on Parisian women, daytime or nighttime.

  What did I wear? Smallish plain gold hoops, a small mixed gemstone necklace and a bracelet that my grand-daughter would choose for me daily.  The bracelet wasn't always a perfect match, but she certainly enjoyed choosing it.  What did 3 year old grand-daughter wear? One of my good gemstone necklaces - yes, she really did!

Our Favorite Jewelry Pieces Under $70

I am busily making jewelry and trying to enjoy the summer, too! While the prices for my supplies, especially sterling silver, continue to rise, we do have some great deals on our Cluny Grey website. All the bracelets here are on our website and are under $70.00!!! Naturally they are well made with genuine stones (unless otherwise specified) and sterling silver, vermiel or 14 karat goldfill. The earrings that you see here are mostly under $30.00! So if you are looking for a bargain, a gift, or just something special to spice up last year's summer outfit, check these out! They are the tips of the iceberg in our lower-priced jewelry!

  Above, on our Nugget Bracelets page, we have a blue opal and amethyst bracelet with sterling silver. The soft blues of the opaque blue opals complement the wonderful purple translucence of the amethyst.  At $53.99, it's a real steal!

  Below, one of the few glass stones we have ever used is strawberry quartz.  We just had to have these because the flat, faceted stones are so pretty and chunky.  The horseshoe-shaped clasp and charm hanging beside it are both sterling silver.  And it's under $50.00!

My favorite thing about this chalcedony bracelet (found on our Chalcedony Jewelry page) is the chalcedony gemstones.  They are a wonderful yellow that seems to glow!  How perfect for summer! The sterling silver toggle clasp is large enough to carry these pretty faceted nuggets. We also have yellow chalcedony earrings found on the same page (there are more yellow chalcedony earrings, too). These earrings are special because of the pretty earwires which have intricate roses on the front.

Some of our best bargains in bracelets can be found on our Freshwater Pearl Bracelets page. About 5 years ago I was fortunate enough to buy a huge quantity of freshwater pearls in different shapes, sizes, and colors. I bought so many that I received them at a wonderfully low price and I still have some stockpiled!  Below, this freshwater pearl bracelet is made with creamy marquise freshwater pearls and rainbow moonstone rondelles with pretty flashes of blue! The flower charm and curved lobster clasp are sterling silver. At 51.99, this bracelet with its quality rainbow moonstone is a bargain!

The bracelet below is composed of larger yellow freshwater pearls and Swarovski crystals.  The sterling silver really adds to the feminine look of this bracelet.

   The brown freshwater pearl bracelet below boasts 14 karat goldfilled accents and a gorgeous faceted olive bead of smoky quartz.  It will be on our website shortly.

The earrings you see above can be found on our Coin Pearl Earrings page.These bronze-brown earrings have Swarovski crystals and sterling silver. These are gorgeous and they are only $19.99!

   The earrings below are from our Coral Earrings page and mix peachy-pink coral rounds with vermeil and pretty black onyx faceted teardrops.  They have a wonderful Deco look to them and would be perfect for your summer wardrobe.

Above and below are ruby earrings, yes, genuine rubies! Above, the rubies are mixed with 14 karat goldfilled accents, and below they are mixed with gold vermeil. Can you imagine owning ruby jewelry for under $70.00 - and these are not microscopic ruby chips, either.

Here is a pair of my favorite earrings, found on our Unusual Jewelry page.  These gorgeous earrings are made with 14 karat goldfill, gem-quality Swiss blue topazes and rectangular citrines, and amethysts carved into the shape of flowers.  I love these! Unique and beautiful!

Another good source of bargains on the Cluny Grey website is our Bangle Bracelets page.  Here are two sterling silver bangles, the top with citrines, the bottom with Swarovski crystals. The bottom bracelet is made with older sterling silver stock bought when it was much cheaper. The result: this silver bangle bracelet is only 56.99!  With today's materials, it would be close to twice that much since it not only has Thai Karen Hill Tribes sterling curved, hand-decorated sides, but intricately made accents of Turkish sterling silver.

Also, to keep costs down, don't forget that we ship first class FREE in the USA with every purchase over $50.00 and a low $1.95 for purchases under $50.00! Enjoy shopping!

Jewels for Summer!

I adore summer! Everyone is out and about, especially now before the full heat of the mid-atlantic is upon us, and new outfits are popping up everywhere. And to go with those new summer outfits, you need jewelry! A customer I spoke to mentioned liking lapis and sunstone just in passing and that got me started. First, I put lapis and sunstone together in the two-strand bracelet that you see here. And because lapis is one of those stones that just begs to be played with, I had to make a couple of other lapis pieces as well.

Below, for those who like something simple, a lapis bracelet with one pretty blue borosilicate lampwork bead for a focal; it's surrounded by Thai Karen Hill Tribes sterling silver then finished with thick disks of lapis sprinkled with sparkling pyrite.  The sterling silver toggle has a flower on both the bar and the ring as well as a flower charm hanging to one side.

I really love lapis with gold. Here all the gold is 14 karat goldfill.  Lapis with gold always makes me think of the riches of early Sumer and Egypt.

 I've had these beautiful and odd lampwork beads for some time. They were made by Lynn Nurge and while the three long pieces at first make one think of coral, they have tiny "bumps" all over them which makes them look like octopus tentacles.  Sounds creepy? They are gorgeous!  I mixed the colours with Swarovski crystals in copper and light tanzanite.  I can just imagine this necklace worn in the early evening with a white dress - or an orange one, or a light purple one or . . . . After I finished this I tried it on wearing a khaki coloured shirt and it was wonderful.  Major sparkle!

This necklace has been on the site, but I made it in the winter (I guess I was longing for warm weather).  This fantastic necklace is made with sterling silver and all Swarovski crystals, including Swarovski crystals in the clear coral shape. This is chic and very, very elegant with plenty of sparkle.

Are you enjoying the warm weather?  I'm getting ready for a trip to Paris soon, so I'm trying to find things to take that are cool but dressy at the same time.  You can bet I will have plain basics and lots of not-so-plain jewelry!

The Colors of Spring in Chalcedony and Aquamarine!

I love Spring colours! Color blocking is a really big trend in fashion this Spring and I've "color-blocked" as well in some of my bracelets.  I am especially fond of the deep pastel colors found in chalcedony and so I've used it in this group.  Above and below, deep aqua chalcedony and pink chalcedony feature in this handmade bracelet with color-blocking. It's lacy and feminine with the sterling silver filigree toggle and charm.  The aqua chalcedony is faceted and sparkly while the pink is smooth and polished.

Above and below, the look of shining sterling mingles with aqua chalecedony in another handmade bracelet. This bracelet definitely has a modern twist with its large hammered circle, bean bead, and little circle with cut-outs. I love the tulip (so perfect for Spring) toggle clasp.

Below, I haven't done one of these bracelets before, but I see so many braided bracelets and bracelets with suede that I decided I had to try one! The suede is in Spring colours of lilac, green, and aqua, and an aqua chalcedony faceted oval is next to the heart-shaped toggle clasp. Little Thai Karen Hill Tribes spiral charms hang around the bracelet. I really like this! To me, the charms lift it up from a bracelet to be worn only with jeans to a dressier look.

Above and below, I love mixing unexpected colors! While aquamarine and amethyst seem to go naturally together, I like to put a punch of color in by adding carnelian, in this case, faceted carnelian squares cut on the diagonal.  One of my favorite rope chains makes the second strand and dangles little flowers from the Thai Karen Hill Tribes.

A remake, below, of one of my favorite styles: An aquamarine bracelet with a single faceted nugget of amethyst. The beaded heart toggle of sterling silver is gorgeous. 

Don't forget! FREE SHIPPING  in the USA on any purchase above $50.00; only $1.95 for purchases below $50.00!

Happy Easter!

I've been using Swarovski crystals lately.  For some reason, I will go for a long period and hardly use Swarovski crystals at all; then, suddenly, I want them for every bracelet.  You can see my obsession with them especially expressing itself in the Swarovski bracelet above.  It is a charm bracelet made only with Swarvoski charms of rounds and bicones in fairly bright colours with a few pastels thrown in.  It is gratifyingly full and sparkles like the dickens!  I attached the crystals in groups of three so that the bracelet would be especially lush - and it is!

  Appropriate for Easter Sunday are the two Salvation Bracelets that you see below.  Again, both are made with Swarovski crystals.  The first salvation bracelet is made with larger bicones, rounds, helix and cosmic crystals.  It has flat beads with a cross in relief on each side, and a little prayer box charm near the toggle clasp.  And yes, this tiny prayer box charm opens!

 The second salvation bracelet is a bit more conventional and has round Swarovski crystals, sterling silver and a pretty cross by the toggle clasp.  It has two extra Swarovski crystals on the sides to represent purity.

The handmade bracelet below is a favorite combination: artist's lampwork beads, carnelian, and lapis with plenty of golden pyrite in it. Little lapis and carnelian charms hang from two places on the bracelet.  All sterling silver.

Below are some charm necklaces that I have been working on. Charm necklaces are very, very much in style now and can be seen on everyone from celebrities to teenagers.  I like these charm necklaces because they are simple, and unlike many of the charm necklaces that one sees, these are made with real gemstones, Swarovski crystals and sterling silver and goldfill.

The first charm necklace has a gorgeous faceted flat garnet nugget surrounded by two charms: one filigree, and one textured ring.  Two little bezel-set garnet charms hang from the chain just above the larger garnet.

This charm necklace is my favorite.  A sterling silver flat hammered wire forms an odd teardrop shape and has a pretty aqua faceted chalcedony teardrop hanging inside it.  A sterling silver horseshoe charm hangs just above (and the horseshoe is upside down so the good luck won't spill out!).

  The next charm necklace features a filigree cross in sterling with a small angel (or putto) hangs beside it.  Just up from the charms is a dangle in the salvation colours made from Swarovski crystals.

The last charm necklace is in 14 karat goldfill. It features a unique harmony ball.  The sterling silver filigree harmony ball holds a brass ball that can be removed so that the sterling silver filigree "cage" can be worn alone. The top of the harmony ball features a black agate cabochon.  A Swarovski crystal in crystal copper hangs on either side of the harmony ball. The harmony ball makes a very faint gentle chiming sound.

Wishing everyone a Happy Easter this beautiful day!