A Pearl of a GIVEAWAY from Plantress...

Now confess, you love getting something for nothing...right? Well I know I sure do! That's why we all love to enter giveaways, the chance to win a prize, get a lovely gift, a little freebie.

Well here's a wonderful giveaway that you have to check out. Plantress has a pair of enchanting pearl earrings that would look divine on any girl or lady and her requirements are simple and easy...Just head on over to her blog and check it out ... tell her aBeader'sBlog sent you. :)
But hurry as this Giveaway ends on Sunday...

Another Day Another Shop...

Have been working on the layout of a new shop at ArtFire : AlmostPrecious at ArtFire . I have my banner up and my avatar in place, wrote my bio, loaded the shipping info. Basically got the bones in place now I need to flesh it out a bit. At the moment there is only one item listed. Of course with the freebie version of Artfire I can only list a maximum of 12 items and the basic package doesn't have all the bells and whistles that the "verified account" offers. However the premium package is $12 monthly and so for the price of zero down and no listing fees or commission fees, how could I argue over such a limit ?

I decided to do a promotional piece, a gemstone and pearl, princess length necklace (22") with expensive 14 kt gold filled beads and clasp, at least $25 dollars worth of gold filled components all for $21 + S&H !

Six millimeter fancy jasper beads in a lush earthy green are use to accentuate ivory freshwater pearls, of similar size, while smooth, round gold filled beads break up the pattern and add a sparkling note of interest. Center focal bead is an 8 mm corrugated lantern bead flanked by gold filled saucer beads. No, not avante garde, just very classic, very traditional and ultimately very timeless.

I realize that not everyone appreciates timeless classic pieces but I have my hopes up and my fingers crossed. As I mentioned this piece is offered as a promotional piece so I'm actually losing money on it ( have over $25 invested in 14 kt gold filled beads and clasp alone). The promo price is $21 not including S&H (which is less than $3.00 and includes a gift box). Even if you're not interested, please check it out and at least give me a couple of "hits" on my new site.

Now I need to take more photos...and also figure out why ivory pearls come out pink in my photos ! Drat it all !!!

First True Sales Pitch....

I’ve highlighted these Carnelian fringe earrings before but today I’ve decided to actually hype them. Salesmanship is not my forte, I dislike spam mail and find myself put off by individuals who are constantly spewing a line of buy, buy, buy. But eventually I do need to sell something and therefore must delve into the despicable...gasp ! Yes, a sales pitch ! For the first time on my blog I’m taking a cue from Michael Mays, that blaringly loud TV "KABOOM" pitchman. Only I promise I won’t be nearly as loud...no need to lower your speaker volume!

I’ve always been fond of this fringe pattern, mainly because it is highly versatile and adaptable.
Here "Carnelian Carnival" is fabricated with 3 different varieties of #11 Delica seed beads: a metallic Copper lined, a hex cut metallic Rust and a hex cut dark Topaz with an aurora borealis finish (also called a rainbow finish). Delica "Dyna Mites" seed beads in Rainbow Rootbeer were used to fashion the triangular shield or base for the fringe. Rainbow rootbeer has become my favorite color in the kingdom of seed beads, it has a richness and luster that compliments all other colors...and I’m really fond of rootbeer floats !
Along with lovely seed beads are rondelles of genuine Carnelian. These carnelian rondelles crown the tops of freshwater oval pearls, I used grade A pearls in a natural (undyed) pale peach blush color.

#15 charlotte seed beads look like tiny drops of hematite, they grace the fringe ends. The triangular seed bead shield is embellished with more Carnelian rondelles, Freshwater Pearls, 4 mm Czech firepolished beads and of course more seed beads. All of this swings fluidly from 14 kt gold filled "Perfect Balance" earwires which I’ve accented with faceted, fiery red-orange crystal beads.

A fantastic color combination that plays remarkably well with many other colors, from neutral beiges, browns, tans and golds to greens, turquoise (gorgeous with turquoise), reds and yellows. They are feather light, have a flirty swing to them, are fun but sophisticated and with the right outfit can be very elegant.

Earrings measure 2.25 inches ( 64mm) from loop of earwire.
One foot note: These are truly more beautiful in person than in any of their photos !

The price $22 including USA shipping fees.
Shipping fees on Foreign shipping can be anywhere from $2.50 to $5 additional, depending upon country destination.
To order you may contact me through my etsy shop-click here if you have questions or wish to order, just let me know of your interest and I will make a special reserved listing for you. If it is a foreign order please let me know the country and I’ll e-mail you a quote on shipping costs.
Payment is easily done through PayPal which accepts all major credit cards and does the calculations for currency differences.

Whew ! Well that advertisement wasn’t too bad was it ? Uh, anybody...was it ?

What's in a Name ?

Recently made a pair of earrings very similar to these using Delica #11 seed beads, decided to make another pair using different elements.
This pair utilizes Delica #11 round and hex shape seed beads, tiny rondelles of real carnelian topped off with freshwater pearls and micro #15 seed beads in a hematite finish. This pattern has always been a favorite with me and even though it is an old pattern, probably dating back to Victorian times, it is so versatile and can be adapted to suit most tastes. Here the rustic, hand hewn carnelian rondelles give a slight primitive edge to an otherwise very sophisticated and elegant earring.
Ear wires are 20 gauge, 14 k gold filled that I've embellished with orange-red crystals, compliments the orange-red of the carnelian quite nicely.
Haven't really come up with a name for them...maybe Carnelian Carnival...then again maybe not, some might think of carnival as being cheap or tacky, though I was thinking more like Rio deJaneiro ! What would you name them ?





Sophisticated, elegant with just a dash of primitive charm.

Pearls the Care and Feeding of

Part I

Often people assume that since gemstones are called stones that they’re indestructible, but even granite is not impervious to damage by acids and abrasive substances.
Pearls, for example, appear to be hard, however they are not and can be easily damaged by the simple act of adjacent stones and other pearls rubbing against them. The outer layers of the pearl is a shiny, pearlescent material called nacre, this is the same substance that the mollusk uses to coat the inside of it’s shell, the thicker this layer of nacre, the richer and more lustrous the pearl and also the more valuable. Nacre can be easily abraded and that is the reason that higher quality pearls are strung on silk thread and carefully hand knotted between each precious pearl.

I can vividly recall talking with a young lady who was just getting into the jewelry making business. She informed me that she was remaking older pieces of jewelry, items that she had bought cheaply at places such as Goodwill and local thrift shops. She also confided that she had inherited a number of pieces from her grandmother and one of those pieces had been a pearl necklace. Unfortunately this young lady found the look of the hand knotted strand "old fashioned" and "out-dated", so she took it apart and strung the pearls close together along with other beads for interest. Upon hearing this my heart literally sank. Her grandmother’s necklace was probably fairly old and the quality of the pearls many years ago is far superior to those available today, her grandmother’s pearls could easily have been worth $300 or more.

As gently as possible I explained that truly good, expensive pearls should always be strung on silk or other smooth nonabrasive threads and hand knotted between each pearl to protect them from abrasion. I knew my advice was proving fruitless as this young, budding jewelry designer looked at me as though I was from outer space. Ah well, what do I know, in her eyes hand knotted necklaces were unattractive and only desired by little old fuddy duddies such as me.

Pictured above, some of my pearl supply.