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July 29, 2010

Beauty of Gold Chains

Since the origin of human race, body adornment had been prevalent amongst men and women. In early times, naturally available material such as shells, wood, bones, stones etc. are used for making ornaments. However, later on, as a result of constant innovations more and more precious stones and metals such as beads, copper, silver and gold were used to make jewelry. Gold is one of the most precious and expensive metals for making accessories such as crowns, necklaces, chains, anklets, bangles, earrings, etc.
The onset of use of gold for jewelry making is marked around 2500 B.C. in Iraq. It is believed that Egyptians were one of the first people to wear chains made of gold metal. Gold chains are made in three different types of gold, namely, white gold, rose gold and yellow gold. Yellow gold is one of the most commonly available in market as compared to white and rose gold.
It was believed that wearing gold chains with religious pendants or charms can ward off evil souls. Later on, these chains started to be worn as fashion accessories and adornment purposes. These chains are considered to be a symbol of wealth and prosperity as gold is a very expensive metal and only rich people can afford it. Throughout the history gold has symbolized power, opulence and affluence. Many wars were fought to gain possession of this precious metal.
Today, gold chain are very easily available in the market, however, they can still burn a hole in your pocket. These chains come in a variety of shapes, sizes and designs. The price range usually varies depending upon the weight of the chain and complication of design. One can find a wide range of designs in these chains ranging from light weight with flimsy links to heavy multi-linked solid chains. Also, these chains can be found in all sorts of gold, such as yellow, white, rose and sometimes a combination of all three.
Gold chains can be worn with or without pendants depending upon an individual’s taste and preference. Unlike earlier time when these chains were only used to adorn the neck, these days, people wear them on ankles, writs and even waist in order to make an exclusive style statement. These are now used as a fashion accessory rather than a religious charm to evade any evil situations.
Gold’s purity is measured in carats. The 24 carat gold is considered to be the purest form of gold with 99.9 percent purity. However, this level of purity makes the gold very soft and fragile. Generally, gold is mixed with other hard metals such as copper, silver, nickel, etc.
Both men and women sport gold chains as a fashion accessory. These chains add elegance, beauty and grace to any outfit they are worn with. The future of gold chains is bright and shinning and in the years to come we can see a lot of more designs hitting the market on a frequent basis to give customers ample amount of options to choose from.
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July 17, 2010

Things to Keep in Mind while Shopping for Silver Jewelry

Silver bead jewelry/ sterling silver jewelry are currently in vogue. There is a plethora of silver jewelry and silver accessories that blend well with any kind of outwear – casual or formal. If you have a habit of adding sterling silver jewelry such as earrings, brooches, pendants rings and chains, there are many authentic online and retail shops. However, there are a few things that you need to keep in mind while shopping for silver beads or silver jewelry.

The first and foremost thing is to find a reliable source. Whether you are buying silver beads or silver jewelry gather information about the company that you plan to buy the jewelry from.


If you are planning to purchase a handmade silver jewelry, ensure that you get the piece of jewel that you always dreamt off. You can ask the jeweler to customize the sterling silver jewelry for you. If the silver jewelry on the shelf did not appeal to you, you can always go for customized or personalized jewelry. The jeweler may take a few days to deliver the jewel but it would be worth it. Only ensure to give correct measurements, clear and detailed instructions regarding the size and design of your jewelry.

The lengths of the silver chain, the quality of the semi-precious/precious stones used in the pendants, earrings and finger rings can be personalized or customized. Ensure that the jeweler is ready to follow your instructions before placing the order for the silver jewel.

There are many online jewelry sites from where you can order silver beads or silver jewelry. If you are ordering a necklace or a pendant with precious stones, it is wise to know about the quality of the stones used. You can enquire whether the color of the stones is natural or whether they were improved. If it is a reputed shop, they would share the information willingly.

It is also crucial to know more about the gems used in the silver jewelry that you plan to purchase. For instance you can ask the artisan whether the gems absorb liquids or how to clean them.

Last but not the least in mind to check the quality of silver beads or silver jewelry. If you are buying sterling silver it will have the figure .925 embossed on it. Remember buying silver jewelry is also an investment that can be passed on to the future generations. The jewelry would be treasured as a legacy.
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July 16, 2010

Exclusiveness of Glass Bead Jewelry

Beads compliment a piece of jewelry in a way that none other accessory can. The kind of beads a person wears tells a lot about his personality and attitude. Beads come in all shapes and sizes. Depending upon the kind of jewelry and individual preference, one can pick the type of beads that are best suitable for his/her requirements. One of the most popular types of beads is the glass bead. The jewelry made of these beads is not only exquisite but also possess a distinct quality.


Glass beads have been manufactured since a long time. Various methods are used to create different types of glass beads, however, the most popular process is by winding in which glass is heated at a very high temperature till it starts melting and thereafter wound around a wire made of steel and given shape using graphite or wood.

There are many typed of accessories that are made of glass beads such as bracelets, necklaces, earrings, anklets and pendants. Glass bead bracelets can be found in several shapes, sizes and colors. Mostly crystal, semi-precious and vintage glass beads are used to make bracelets. One can also opt for customized bracelets based on his/her personal taste.

Glass beads are widely used in making stunning necklaces. As everyone must agree that necklaces are one of the most artistic ornaments used for the purpose of body adornment, the use of glass beads adds to their beauty and appearance. Glass beads necklaces are affordable, elegant and available in a wide range of colors. Different sizes of glass beads can be used to make exclusive necklaces to suit a buyer’s preference and requirement.

Pendant made of glass beads are also greatly popular amongst people, especially, the modern day women. These pendants can go with any outfit and occasion. Women of all age love to wear glass bead pendants in order to accentuate their beauty and grace. Glass bead pendants are available in many shapes, sizes and colors to suit a person’s choice.

Due to high availability and great affordability the glass beads can be worn by anyone. One can choose the jewelry made of these beads as offered by the jeweler or can also get it made by providing his/her own design. There are many manufacturing techniques used these days that make this task of making customizes glass bead jewelry extremely easy.

Before buying any piece of glass bead jewelry, one must understand his/her requirement very well in order to pick the right piece. Also, one must check the jewelry for any manufacturing defects such as cracks or broken glass of the beads because due to the fragile nature of glass there could be cases of defects in the piece of jewelry.

Before zeroing on a jewelry dealer to purchase your special glass bead jewelry, a buyer must first perform a thorough research on the credibility and history of the dealer in order to avoid any mischievous acts of fraud by the seller. One all the things have been taken care of you can sport your glass bead jewelry on every special occasion and stand out in the crowd.
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July 10, 2010

An Overview of Venetian Glass Beads

As Glass beads are one of the most ancient forms of human art and technology, they are considered to be anthropologically significant. They fall in to many categories depending upon the methods employed in the manipulation of glass. Venetian Beads that originated in Venice in the late 1800s are one of the most reputed types of glass beads. Even today, handcrafted beads of Venice are sold under the name of “Venetian Beads.”

There is a historical story connected with the origin of Venetian beads in Italy. Marco Polo, the most reputed merchant from the Venetian Republic brought gemstone beads from his travels. The glass workers of Venice found those gemstone beads to be astonishingly beautiful and came up with an idea of creating glass beads that gained so much of popularity and become popular across the world as “Venetian Beads.”

Ornamental beads of Venice are believed to manipulate the highest level of craftsmanship. People often say that, “If you love beads go to Venice.” There is no other place in the world that has a huge collection of a great variety of beads as that found in Venice. However, modern day people have the habit of ordering Venetian beads online, as they find internet shopping to be economical and time saving.

Venetian glass beads are known for their beauty, awesome colours and spectacular designs. They are artistically handcrafted to give a unique floral appearance. Glass bead making in Venice dates back to 1400s when prized beads were used as trading currencies in Africa and Europe. For the first time in history, they used a mandrel to fabricate the bead.

The most popular types of Venetian beads are Seed beads (Conterie), Rosetta or Chevron and Lampwork or Wound Beads or Perle a Lume Venetian Beads.

Venetian beads of very small sizes are referred to as seed beads. They created hollow tubes, which are then chopped and refined to make them smooth and colourful. Seed bead production was popular in Murano only in the early 1900s and the art in not existent today.

Canes known as Rosetta are used to make the so called Rosetta beads. They started manufacturing these types of beads in the 14th century. The production method involved the use of a hollow cane and six different coloured layers of glass that are then ground to get patterns of five concentric stars having twelve points. As they used to chop the cane, they got large quantities of beads for sale. Rosetta beads are the predecessors of today’s Murano Millefiori beads.

The artisans in Venice made the core of the Lume bead by wounding melting glass over a thin ferrous mandrel covered with silicon and clay mix. Sudden cooling caused the glass to contract slightly, making it easier for the bead to slide off the mandrel. As the heated glass is wound over the mandrel, they are also known as wound beads.

Glass bead making is an ancient form of art. Venetian beads are the well known type of glass beads that are known for their unique style, beauty, craftsmanship and intricate designs. Add Venetian beads to any of beaded piece and see how adorable the ornament looks.
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