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The Advantages of Glass
Beads, and Aquamarine
- March's Stone
This month explains why glass
beads are the jewelry maker's best friend, plus March's gemstone aquamarine. Scroll down, or click
a link on the html version.
To go to the
MrBead store click MrBead.com or MrBead.co.uk
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Aquamarine - March's Stone
Whopping 20% Off Offer
Why use glass beads?
What's the advantage using
glass beads to make handcrafted jewelry? Glass is not only cheaper than
crystal, but offers more shapes and colors, and looks almost the same.
Variety available
Glass
beads come in bright colors like yellow, red, green and blue - as well as more
sparkling shades like aqua, magenta and rose. Many are multicolored
with abstract designs as seen on glass vases. Mix these beads with other types
of gemstones when designing jewelry. A formal necklace may incorporate a few
crystal beads threaded with the glass beads to give an impression of style and
expense.
Different types
Most
glass beads are made from matte glass, dichroic and lamp worked glass, allowing
them to be cheaply and easily produced. They can be bright individually,
but cost less by the strand. Old vintage glass from Europe incorporates
lots of glass beads. These are usually handmade, more expensive, and hunted by
collectors for customers requiring a rare piece of jewelry to be made. As other
beads, glass are usually sold with holes ready to thread.
Millefiori Glass Beads
Millefiori
means "a thousand flowers" in Italian, first crafted in Venice in the 15th
century. Traditionally, glass rods were made like candy rock with
different colors running down inside. These were then heated under the flame to
cut off slices which could be pressed into mosaic patterns, producing unique
high-priced beads.
However, these days a similar technique is applied to polymer
clays which don't need to be reheated. Making it possible to mass
produce hundreds of thousands of different designs of millefiori beads at an
affordable price.
"Lampwork"
is glass that is moulded in a flame.
Traditionally, oil lamps and blowpipes were used to melt the glass in
seventeenth-century Italy and France - although glass working skills originated
by the Syrians and Egyptians around 3,500 years ago. Today, gas torches are
used, but the basic techniques haven't changed much in Millenniums.
What are Swarovski
crystal beads?
Swarovski
beads are manmade, and have a greater brilliance than other crystal because they
contain around 32% lead. Daniel Swarovski invented the idea of using crystal for
jewelry, rather than just chandeliers, by patenting an electric cutting
machine in Austria in 1892. Swarovski crystal allows light to reflect in a
rainbow spectrum producing a fairytale magical appearance. This is
achieved by coating half of the crystal face with a special metallic chemical.
When the crystal is turned you see the crystal color on one side and the coating
color on the other.
Difference between glass
and crystal
Crystal
is glass with lead added. As little as 1% lead is all that's needed for glass to
be called crystal in the United States. However, defining the exact difference
is difficult with a grey area in between, despite the molecular structure being
different - and although crystal beads weigh more, glass can sparkle almost as
much.
Conclusion
As you can see, glass
beads are the jewelry makers' friend. They allow you to design jewelry
with imagination because of the variety available - and glass also allows you to
sell your designs at an affordable price.
See our Glass Beads
at
MrBead.com or
MrBead.co.uk
Our Lampwork Beads
MrBead.com or
MrBead.co.uk
Our Millefiori Beads at
MrBead.com or
MrBead.co.uk
Our Crystal Beads at
MrBead.com or
MrBead.co.uk
Our Swarovski Beads
MrBead.com or
MrBead.co.uk
to top
Aquamarine - March's Gemstone
Aquamarine is March’s stone – a blue-green gemstone from
South America, meaning Water of the Sea. The stone of sailors, believing it
protects them. Folklore also says that aquamarine protects against gossip, but
will pick up spirits. It is an excellent stone for meditation, bringing great
peace and serenity.
Aquamarine is the treasure of mermaids, and those legends have it that for
aquamarine to be truly powerful, it must be immersed in sea water and bathed in
sunlight. The gemstone is also supposed to have powers that reach to land too,
helping married couples solve their problems and drive off evil.
Aquamarine is associated with the thymus gland and is very soothing worn as a
necklace. It will also help coughs, reduce fluid retention and calm the nerves.
The Romans used aquamarine for stomach troubles and believed it could cure liver
and throat problems. Aquamarine brings courage, aids quick intellectual
response, and gives peace while protecting the aura.
Color ranges from a very light turquoise blue to a bluish green. Darker blue
colors are the best with greener being less valuable. Check the clarity of the
stone. Because aquamarine has a light pastel color, it is important that it be
free of flaws or inclusions. Examine the cut and check light reflects evenly off
the surface of the gem and that there are no scratches. Look at the stone from
several different angles to be sure.
Aquamarine is usually heat treated and sometimes irradiated. However, it will
become paler if left out in the sun. Clean aquamarine in with warm soapy water
and a soft bristle brush. As with all gemstones, protect from scratches and
sharp blows.
To see all aquamarine in our US bead store click MrBead.com or MrBead.co.uk to top
Special 20% Offer !
Sample our beads with
a whopping 20% off any order from our MrBead bead store, just key in "glassbeads" at the checkout (without the
commas) and click "Redeem Coupon".
No minimum order, but offer only valid until Tuesday 1st
March 2011 only - so act now!
Only for use in our
stores at MrBead.com &
MrBead.co.uk and not valid with any other offers
or eBay.
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