Shades of Blue and Purple

 I love the colors of Spring this year! The turquoises, blues, and purples are my favorites, and they are becoming on everyone no matter what her skin or hair color.  Swarovski crystals just continue to get more and more popular, so you will be seeing quite a few on the pages of Cluny Grey Jewelry!
The first bracelet, above, is a luscious shade of orchid complemented with 14 karat gold-filled accents, charms and clasp.
Below, the neon aqua apatite is a favorite gemstone of mine. It is translucent and looks wonderful usually combined with other gemstones.  In this case, those gemstones are gem quality amethysts and real Lightening Ridge opals from Australia!  The perfect metal is gold,  of course!

 Above Swarovski crystal bracelet, Swarovski's Pacific Opal looks fantastic with sterling silver and a single artist's lampwork bead.  The second strand of sterling silver chain (from the Thai Karen Hill Tribes) dangles more Swarovski crystals.
Below, Swarovski's Chrysolite and Pacific opal look great with the opal cyclamen.

 Two versions on an aqua and white theme: top, Swarovski's Pacific Opal and marquise freshwater pearls, in one bracelet and below, Swarovski Azores and freshwater pearls in the shape of clovers or trefoils. Both Swarovski bracelets feature pretty sterling silver toggle clasps.

Oscar Nominees and the Cluny Grey Jewelry They Should Wear

As I was looking at the Oscar nominees for this year, I thought about what Cluny Grey jewelry I would choose for several of them, not for the Oscars, of course, since Harry Winston and Bulgari among other famous jewelry houses generally outfit the stars. But I thought it would be fun to choose some jewelry for them for other occasions.
 Here are my picks for some of the Oscar Nominees:
Amy Adams:  I love Amy Adams' look, and that she has that gorgeous red hair.  With her warm coloring, she just has to go gold!

I chose the lariat necklace below as a piece for Amy because it features copper Swarovski crystals and bright gold which would look great with her hair and skin.  I've also noticed that she apparently likes to wear small chain necklaces and lariats based on her photos.

Lariat Necklace

For a striking statement, I would love to see her wear the Biwa pearl necklace below.  It has large Swarovski red magma crystals in it and a gold toggle clasp.  It would look dynamite against her wonderfully fair skin.  I would need to make a pair of earrings with the red magma crystals in gold to match this necklace and to sparkle against her gorgeous hair!

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Below, aqua and turquoise look great with hair this color.  This Peruvian opal 14 karat gold-fill wrapped necklace suits Amy Adams perfectly!

Meryl Streep:  I love the way Meryl Streep looks here.  The simple black dress with that wonderful collar, her hair pulled back, she is the epitome of elegance.  The necklace, above, made of tourmalinated quartz faceted ovals would look great for an elegant look everyday.  Plus the colors, with the black and many shades of grey, would not overpower her features although the gemstones themselves are rather large.

The ruby earrings, below, would also enhance Meryl's look by adding color and shine to her face.

Garnet Necklace

Cate Blanchett:  I am a huge Cate Blanchett fan; she is probably my favorite actress. I think of her as a chameleon, which is a good thing to be if you are an actor. Whether she is wearing stark black hair as in The Shipping News, red hair as Queen Elizabeth, or a pale blond, her looks are striking, interesting.
With her shorter blond hair, I would put her in garnets; above is a wonderful, double-stranded garnet necklace with a gemstone cross pendant that would look fantastic on her (shades of Queen Bess?), and the garnet earrings, below, would be marvelous with her skin.
Cate would also look amazing in the citrine necklace with the carved carnelian flower pendant, below.

Citrine always enhances blondes!

Sunstone Jewelry

Sunstone was made for Cate Blanchett.  The peachy-orange color of the sunstone with the sparkle and gleam is reminiscent of her complexion and would add to her already amazing glow.

Lupita Nyong'o: She looks stunning in red, but I think I would put her in some softer colors. Above the rose quartz necklace and earrings would add a touch of femininity. With a pink lipstick and a white dress, rose quartz would be beautiful on her.

I also think that clear quartz crystal would add sparkle to her look without overpowering her.  Her beauty is such that she needs strong jewelry, but not too much of it. When your looks are this strong and your complexion is this dark and beautiful, you simply need to let it shine through!

Handmade Necklace

Those are my Oscar picks!  What do you think?

All of the jewelry above can be found on the Cluny Grey Jewelry website.

I'm Loving Multi-Strand Gemstone Bracelets

Snow for two mornings in a row here in the Washington, D.C. area! I am in heaven!  It's a wonderful snow, pretty while it's falling, sticking to the grass, but not to the streets (or the sun or higher temperature is melting it).
The first bracelet, above, was influenced by the snow.  It features bright sterling silver with what I call "snowflower" charms as well as rainbow moonstone, and genuine deep blue aquamarines. The three strands have a healthy dose of my favorite Thai Karen Hill Tribe tiny sterling beads and a sterling silver toggle clasp.

This unique bracelet, pictured above and below, has gemstones of all colors as well as sterling silver. The toggle clasp is one of the sterling hand-decorated ones that I get from Bali. Little charms, both gemstone and sterling silver, hang at intervals around the bracelet. The gemstones include chrysoprase, carnelian, ruby, iolite, sapphire, lapis, garnet, apatite, and labradorite.

The cultured freshwater pearl bracelet below is made with my favorite silvery-grey pearls and those deep blue aquamarines. Four pearl charms hang from one strand; another strand finishes with Karen Hill Tribe chain links.  Everyone needs a pearl bracelet in her wardrobe, and one with gemstones is the way to go!

Keep warm, wait for Spring, and wear your jewelry everyday!

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Thinking of Spring, Weddings, Bridesmaids, and Pretty Things!

 It's never too early to begin thinking of wedding season.  While I don't do a lot of bridal jewelry, one thing that I've done since I began jewelry-making was making jewelry for bridesmaids. After being my friends' and son's weddings, I was familiar with the frenzy of wedding planning, and especially the difficulties of finding gifts for the bride to give her bridesmaids.  I thought bridesmaids' bracelets were the perfect answer to the problem.  Not only does the bride have a long-lasting gift to present those who are in her wedding, but the bridesmaids can actually wear the bracelets as part of their bridesmaid attire. Also, it's easy to personalize each bracelet just a bit, so that each bracelet is a slightly different from the other while keeping with the wedding theme.  For one wedding, a very caring bride sent me an email with a description of her bridesmaids' personalities so that I could make a bracelet that would fit with their styles.  All of the bracelets were made of amethysts, but each was unique!

The bracelets and earrings here feature two staples for bridesmaid jewelry: Swarovski crystals and freshwater pearls. The first bracelet, above, with creamy white freshwater pearls, a large cosmic Swarovski crystals, and a single blue heart is my favorite. With the blue heart (something blue) it also makes a great bridal bracelet. The bracelets are made either with sterling silver or 14 karat gold-fill.

Above, genuine coral mixed with Swarovski crystals is great for a beach wedding.

Earrings are also great for bridesmaids.  Again, Swarovski crystals and freshwater pearls with sterling silver or 14 karat gold-fill is not only on trend, but a classic look!

Snowfall, Lampwork and Turquoise

I am sitting in my fourth floor studio with a window halfway open even though it is 29 degrees outside (it does get warm up here with an eastern and southern exposure) and I am joyfully awaiting the snowfall that is supposed to be coming our way.  I am hoping that we get at least the 4 to 8 inches promised by the forecast and I will do a jubilant dance in the street if we get the 12 inches the forecasters say is possible.
Before you erroneously think that I am some kind of outdoors woman or snow bunny, let me assure you that I enjoy the snow mostly from inside my townhouse, snug and warm, watching heavy flakes fall past the windows while I make hot tea and eat dark chocolate. I simply think that snow is one of nature's most beautiful products, and it produces in me a feeling of loving home, snugness, happiness, and links me, for some reason, to a past when snow meant people huddling around fires trying to stay warm.  The snow gives me energy and inspires me as well, so it's no wonder that I await its arrival with happy anticipation.
I have been working without real direction lately so  you see a mixed bag of jewelry here. Above is a fantastic necklace with deep blue genuine aquamarines and pretty 14 karat gold-filled accents.

Swarovski and Lampwork Bracelet

I have also been working on lampwork bracelets as you can see above and below. The bracelet above is a wonderful aqua blue with Swarovski crystals and sterling silver. The second strand is a chain that comes from the Thai Karen Hill Tribes. The lampwork bracelet, below, features sterling silver, black Swarovski crystals, and artist's lampwork beads that have an almost tiger-striped look.   The clasp has a cabochon black onyx set into it while a dragonfly charm hangs from a sterling chain.

Last, a prayer box necklace made from very nice blue turquoise tiny, tiny pebbles. The prayer box itself is a favorite since it has crosses on three sides with a cabochon gemstone set in the middle. The stones are turquoise, black, and red. The necklace also features a toggle with an onyx cabochon.

Here's to loving snow!
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Fantastic Gemstone Bracelet, Earrings, and February's Birthstone: Amethyst

 I am in love with this unique bracelet featuring iolite, garnet, and rainbow moonstone.  The idea for the 6 strand bracelet came from the sterling silver box clasp with its cabochon garnets and rainbow moonstone. The 6 strands include 2 strands of rainbow moonstone, 2 strands of garnet, 1 strand of iolite, and one strand of tiny sterling silver beads from the Thai Karen Hill Tribes. The rainbow moonstone was all chosen for its flash.  The result is beautiful and versatile since it looks great with almost every color that you can think of.

 Below are dangling earrings with faceted gemstones, in this case pink chalcedony and garnet, bezel set in sterling silver. The earrings hang from some of my favorite marquise shaped sterling earwires..

 Below, a necklace made entirely of dark blue faceted chalcedony briolettes strung so closely together that they have a ruffled look.  14 karat gold-filled chain makes up the very back of the necklace so that the gemstones won't get caught in one's hair.

 Amethyst is the birthstone for the month of February although I have found that lovers of amethyst pay no attention to whether they were born in February!  The gemstone is a perennial favorite and diehard amethyst lovers cannot have too much amethyst jewelry. The amethyst necklace, left, is a favorite of mine, mainly because of the amethyst gemstones which are faceted as though they were meant to be mounted in a ring.  They are also AAA quality, so they sparkle beautifully! The amethyst necklace has a simple S clasp in sterling silver and tiny sterling silver beads separating the amethysts.
Below the necklace are more gem quality amethyst, this time in a faceted briolette that hang from sterling silver earwires.

 The amethyst earrings above are simple but elegant.
My favorite amethyst piece is the bracelet below that is created using roughly faceted flat amethyst nuggets that are translucent with 14 karat gold-filled accents and toggle clasp.  The amethyst bracelet is large, but because the nuggets are flat, they do not get in the way of daily tasks making it easy to wear.

Yes, I am wishing for more snow!
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Agates, Pearls, and Cluny the Cat

 I've longed for these days of snow, but they find me a bit under the weather! If you've ever had back and neck problems, you know the pain that can be involved, especially when trying to work at a desk. But Valentine's Day is fast upon us, so work I  must!  
Above, an agate bracelet with some of my favorite blue agate faceted ovals. They are as blue as can be, shiny, and chunky. All accents, including the toggle clasp, are sterling silver.
Below, another agate bracelet, this time featuring faceted blue agate rounds with areas of translucence and a "crackled" effect that provides texture and interest.  The bracelet has three strands: one strand is wire-wrapped agates strung together with sterling silver wire, one strand of tiny Thai Karen Hill Tribes beads, and one strand of oval links of sterling chain dangling little coin charms (all sterling, of course).

 Below is an agate necklace which I liked so much that I made one for myself.  These faceted ovals are huge! They are a wonderful silvery grey color with translucent areas and wispy black inclusions. 14 karat gold-filled beads are between each of the ovals and a 14 karat gold-filled toggle.

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 Below, 14 karat gold-filled earstuds dangle coppery golden freshwater pearls.

My Cluny cat, resting on the studio sofa where he spends a good bit of his time.