Below are some of the latest jewellery pieces I’ve made, they’re all available in my shop. As you can see I like using more unusual gemstones or gems from locations you don’t really see in the mainstream. All of them have been completely made by hand, and the gemstones are all natural (I polished them myself from their raw state – they were even on the original host rock they came from)
Above: A while ago I sourced in some beautiful rocks from Norway, and found that they had traces of ruby running through them (the Kleggåsen Quarry it came from is well known for having tiny amounts of ruby in the stone there). I’m in the process of cutting and polishing them into different shapes and sizes, and this is a small little cabochon from that rock, which I’ve placed into a hand woven sterling silver pendant – the Celtic pattern style design inspired by the roots of plants and trees in the stunning craggy landscape of this part part of Norway that the rock came from.
Above: This gorgeous neutral beige stone is a type of rhyolite igneous rock that unusually has some topaz gemstone mixed in with it. This fascinating stone was sourced from Utah in the USA, where topaz (along with other types of gemstone) are sometimes found growing in cavities in the rhyolite rock that’s abundant in the area. Again, the inspiration for this pendant was one of roots, and how things are intertwined and woven together to create a unique new story – very apt in this case as the topaz and rhyolite are ‘woven together’ in a sense, by what would have been powerful geological forces many years ago, to create this fascinating blended stone.
Above, strangely under appreciated for many years, kyanite is increasingly common to find set into jewellery, and this orange kyanite was a real find!. Like most kyanite it’s quite included, though I think it’s these inclusions that give the stone it’s personality and add interest, especially when those inclusions catch the light and glow! The inspiration for this handmade silver pendant was one of roots, and how things are intertwined and woven together to create a unique new story – very apt in this case most kyanite is normally blue in colour; orange kyanite is generally only found in Tanzania, and takes on this gorgeous shade when traces of manganese are ‘woven together’ in a sense, into the gemstone, by what would have been powerful geological forces many years ago.
Above: the thousands of years of history and folklore behind Whitby jet probably deserve a blog post of it’s own – there’s far more to this dramatic gemstone than Victorian period jewellery. As a gem cutter I have to specially prepare my workspace when I get Whitby jet gemstone in, as while it’s gorgeous and shiny after it’s finished, the actual process to cut, grind and polish it is incredibly dirty and brown sludge can go everywhere! The inspiration for this handmade silver pendant was one of roots, and how things are intertwined and woven together to create a unique new story – very apt in this case as Whitby jet was originally a type of ancient driftwood which became saturated with bitumen or ‘woven together’ in a sense, by what would have been powerful geological forces many years ago, to create this fascinating and dramatic stone.
Above: While most people know about Baltic amber, there are actually many others types of amber from around the world, each having their own distinct properties. I made this silver tree pendant using Indonesian amber from the island of Sumatra, and amber known for its rich cognac colours but also its notoriously brittle nature – it’s very difficult to cut and this stone in the pendant was originally 3x the size of what you see now to begin with. I created this sterling silver tree motif pendant around the amber as it represents amber’s origins as ancient resin which spilled from a tree as a protective measure if it got damaged or cut (a nod to this is found on the chain the pendant comes on as well, which has two curious little sterling silver swirls which mimic the swirling dripping of amber resin).
Above: apatite is one of the most beautiful gemstones around and comes in a myriad of stunning colours. Unfortunately it’s also incredibly brittle – I’ve occasionally had apatite crumble in my hands whilst grinding it, and this is from a someone who uses traditional hand gem cutting (which is the gentlest form of gem cutting there is). It’s this brittleness which has probably caused apatite’s uncommonness in the jewellery world, it’s definitely a stone for special occasion wear only. I love it though, and when I was able to source in some lovely natural pale green apatite from Madagascar I jumped at the chance. The inspiration for this handmade silver pendant was one of roots, and how things are intertwined and woven together to create a unique new story – very apt in this case, as while apatite can form in all rocks types (as long as they are rich in calcium and phosphate) it’s most famously formed in sedimentary rocks which were created by the ancient accumulation and compression of calcium/ phosphate rich organic matter, such as bones, shells and teeth; to me that signifies the ability of new life and beauty to grow out of old life and decay. Apatite weaves this together in a sense, helped by what would have been powerful geological forces many years ago, to create what I feel is a this fascinating almost rebirth-like stone.
It’s been a while since we’ve had a Q & A session! So here are the latest jewel queries and questions that have been asked (and if you’d like to ask a question please get in touch or leave a message in the comment section below – no question is too small or far out 🙂
Readers Q & A:
Can you share any tips to find beaded necklaces on Ebay?
My first tip would be to write in the search box both ‘bead’ and ‘beaded’, as they’ll bring up more results. Also, do use the ‘Item Specifics’ area on the left hand side of the page – there are tick box lists to help narrow down your search and help filter out 1000s of unhelpful listings, including excluding International sellers (eg, if you need a necklace quickly and can’t wait for longer shipping from overseas).
Be as detailed and specific as you can; what is it that you’re looking for? Glass beads? Plastic? Faux pearl or cultured? Gold colour or bronze metal? Long or choker? Write it in the search box, don’t be afraid to use lots of words – sometimes I’ll type in a long sentence that over fills the box! If listing results are coming up that are no good for you (eg, you are searching for sparkling crystal beaded necklaces, but you’re having to go through hundreds of adverts for wooden religious rosary’s), simply put a dash mark: – minus mark directly in front of the exact word you wish to remove; so if I wanted to search for a white glass bead necklace but didn’t want to see any wooden rosary’s, I would type in the search bar:
White bead glass necklace –rosary –rosary’s –wood –wooden
and this should remove all wood rosary listings from your search. Finally, some people swear by searching for miss-spelt listings, so in your case try “knecklace” “neckless” or “necklese” to perhaps strike it lucky and find the stuff no one else can see. Hope this helps 🙂
What does the lion and anchor on jewellery mean?
A lion signifies that the piece is sterling 925 silver, and the anchor means is was tested and passed as genuine sterling silver (correctly called ‘Assaying’) in the city of Birmingham Assay Office in the United Kingdom. This beginner’s article on How To Read A British Hallmark should help you further.
A sterling silver 925 ingot pendant, with good large clear hallmarks. From the top: a leopard’s head, which tells us it was tested at London Assay Office, a lion ‘passant’ which confirms the silver is genuine 925 sterling, a ‘c’ (1977) which tell us the year it was tested/ made, and on this particular piece a portrait of Queen Elizabeth II, as it was the Silver Jubilee 1977 celebration year.
Is there a fast way of dating cameo jewelry?
Generally speaking, the quickest way is to look at the quality of the carving. Smooth and beautifully detailed cameo’s tend to be pre-1920s, whilst ‘sharper’ crudely carved cameos are post 1940s. Roman mythology cameos are usually 18th to 19th Century, while pretty side profile portraits of young women with shorter or ponytail hair tend to be 1960s onward (though any type of male portrait tend to be 18th to 19th Century, just to confuse things). Pictorial / rural picture scenes are generally 19th to early 20th Century. Please note these are general guidance only, and not hard rules (eg, there are some modern cameos which are so well carved they look Victorian). If it’s a cameo brooch, I’ve written a photo guide on How To Date A Vintage Brooch, which may help.
A circa 1950s shell cameo pendant, quite crudely carved.A Victorian circa 1880s carved shell cameo brooch, depicting Hebe and Zeus as an eagle, from Roman mythology.
Thank you so much for this question, it’s given me a good blog post inspiration to do a quick-glance photo guide to dating cameos 🙂
How do you make micro mosaic jewellery?
Very briefly, tiny tiles (or tiny uniform pieces snapped off thin lampwork glass rods), are placed in a setting that has a strong glue or cement base in it, to form a picture such as flowers. Once everything is set and the glue/cement has dried, a type of grouting is placed over the tiles to secure them in. Unlike most other jewellery, micro mosaic making processes tend to be close guarded secrets, though these Youtube videos here and here may hopefully help further.
A standard mosaic brooch, made from tiny glass tiles (approx 2mm to 4mm) set in cement and a gold plated frame.
Proper supplies are almost impossible to get hold of – I’ve found that searches for micro mosaic tiles only bring up ‘small’ tiles, not the proper tinier micro mosaic jewellery ones. When I was planning on having a go at making micro mosaic jewellery myself a few years ago, the nearest tiles I could find were sold by this supplier who offers a range of Smalti tiles, (I planned use glass nippers to try and cut them even smaller). I never ended up getting round to making traditional micro mosaic jewellery as I didn’t have the time, but if anyone does, please do let us know how you get on, I’d certainly be fascinated 🙂
If you’re not too concerned about keeping to the ‘traditional’ methods of using glass tiles, but are more interested in the final effect of micro mosaic jewellery, I’ve seen some absolutely stunning examples people have made from polymer clay. Glass seed beads set sideways (so you can’t see the hole) may also be an alternative to experiment with.
What does a 1/5 9ct.r.g .. m.k&co .. stamp on my gold bracelet mean?
Any time you see a math fraction mark on gold-looking jewellery, it usually indicates a type of “gold filled” or “rolled gold” metal finish. Rolled gold is a sort of thicker gold-plating on base metal; it’s better than standard gold plating, but not as good as proper 9k/10k gold. The marks on your particular piece of jewellery mean it’s made from rolled gold, while the “m.k&co” stamp is likely to be the jewelry makers initials. You can discover more about the world of gold plating and the strange letter stamps on gold-looking jewellery here (reading it may also save you from getting ripped off by dodgy jewelry dealers!)
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This helpful jeweler stamped “rolled gold” on the bangle rather than confusing us with mysterious math fractions and letters.
How can you tell if jet is genuine?
Surprisingly, real jet feels more like plastic than like glass or gemstone – it’s lightweight, warm and has a slightly ‘oily’ texture (rather than heavy, cold and hard like glass or onyx). Looking at it through a strong magnifying glass or jewellers loupe will reveal some surface texture, not a glass like smoothness. Many people like to use a tile test – ie, scraping a piece of jet lightly on the rough unglazed underside on a tile to see if it leaves dark brown streak, but it’s not something I would personally recommend; it can badly damage the polished surface of the jet, and some materials that look like jet but aren’t, can stain the tile in a similar way too.
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Close up detail of genuine Victorian jet gemstone beads, made with jet found at Whitby Bay in England. Whilst the surface is quite shiny, it’s nowhere near the mirror-like glossiness of onyx or black glass. When held, it’s also quite light in weight.This is a close up of black glass beads – note how shinier and more sparkling it is than the above picture of the genuine jet gemstone (onyx is very similar looking to black glass as well). Just to really confuse things, black glass is sometimes called ‘French Jet’ by jewelers to make it sound more fancy.
I have a vintage Delft brooch, is it worth anything?
Whilst a lot of people do collect Delftware, the jewellery has unfortunately never really been worth that much, which is as shame because it’s really pretty. Generally speaking, I’ve found that vintage Delft brooches sell for between £3 and £10 ($5 to $12 USD), though once or twice I’ve seen them sell for around the £20 mark ($25 USD) – this is not a valuation, just what I’ve personally seen them sell for over the years.
A pair of pretty blue and white Delft earrings, with distinctive Dutch windmill detail.
Does sterling silver from England always have a lion imprinted on it?
No, a full lion hallmark is only legally needed on British sterling silver that weighs over 7.78g 🙂
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What does a crown 585 symbol on my gold jewellery mean?
A crown symbol means it’s genuine gold, and the 585 mark means it’s 14ct gold. Birmingham Assay Office has a helpful guide to hallmarks here.
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In old Victorian morning jewelry what do grapes mean?
They were often to do with Jesus Christ; representing the wine of Eucharist and the ‘blood’ of Christ. However, grapes could also symbolize fertility and hospitality, whilst vines and grapes together were a symbol of deep intimate bonds.
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I struggle putting on necklaces and bracelets because of the fiddly clasps. Is there anything I can do?
It sounds like magnetic clasps may be your answer. You can buy plain one’s which attach to the clasps already fitted on your jewellery, or if you are buying handmade, many artisans have really pretty one’s that they can fit instead on normal clasps (on bracelets also ask for a safety chain to be fitted, for extra security – any decent jeweler will be happy to do this for you). Magnetic clasps are stronger than people realize, and I’m a great fan of them.
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If for any reason you can’t be wear magnets, a shepherds hook clasp and chain can be a secure alternative both on necklaces and bracelets, and for bracelets why not look out for wrap bangles – these are made from memory wire which is strong, flexible and permanently keeps its shape – it literally wraps around your wrist to create a bangle, no clasp needed.
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A fancy diamante studded magnetic copper clasp fitted to a glass bead bracelet.Handmade nature ladybird lampwork glass bracelet stylish bronze colour magnetic clasp, with a safety chain for added securityThis long turquoise Czech bead necklace was decorated with huge focal wedding cake glass beads, which made the necklace very heavy. A normal lobster clasp wouldn’t have lasted very long with such weight, so I made a bronze shepherds hook clasp instead, which was both easier to use for the client, and will last for years without breaking.This sparkling bridal bracelet was created using aurora borealis glass beads, threaded onto memory wire, which is strong yet flexible. To put it on, the strand is simply pulled straight, and then wrapped around the wrist- it will quickly snap back into place.A different way of using memory wire is to cut it into a torque design, and then thread beads onto it, as seen in this black glass bracelet; the wire is flexible enough to pull open, yet strong enough to securely flip back into shape once on the wrist.
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I hope you have found these months Q and A helpful, and as always please do get in touch if you have any jewellery queries, need help or just want to say hi! Many thanks for stopping by 🙂
The Jewellery Muse Blog 