New Whiskey Quartz Earrings

Warning -- these are huge!  Not only are they huge, but they're gorgeous too.  The faceting is amazing and the color is that of golden honey with a touch of olive green.

These earrings are for sale in my etsy shop.  Click on the photo to go directly to the listing.

Remember, my 20% off-everything-sale is still going on in my shop!

Faceted Pearls

It's no secret that I love pearls. Faceted pearls have become a bit difficult to find. I think they may have gone out of fashion in the world of beads, but that never bothers me. I still crave them.

This pair of earrings features faceted pearls in a deep teal color. I fused the circles from fine silver wire and textured them with a riveting hammer.

The earwires are handmade by me. I oxidized all of the silver and selectively hand sanded it to highlight the high spots.

These earrings are for sale in my etsy shop.


*Note - I will be at a 2 day craft show this weekend in Wasilla. Yes, that Wasilla. I'll be back to posting here on Sunday or Monday!

Crystal Quartz

There's something very clean about crystal quartz. I'm sure it has to do with the fact that it's well. crystal clear. At least these beads are. They are actually quite amazing. The uniformity in the strand was a welcome characteristic. Trying to make pairs from an inconsistent strand can be very frustrating. I digress.

Back to the earrings. I wrapped them with sterling silver wire and added a tiny drop of black spinel and more crystal quartz. Perfectly suited for a night on the town, a wedding or black jeans and a t-shirt.


Click the photo to go directly to the listing in my etsy shop.

Aqua Chalcedony Earrings

I may have blogged about these before, so forgive me if I repeat myself. These stones have proven to be quite popular! The color is a gorgeous aqua and chalcedony has a natural luster that's hard to beat.

Several pair have sold in my etsy shop and locally. I have a bunch more "matched up" to make more earrings. But what happens when there are no more matches to make? You beaders out there know what I'm talking about. You still have plenty of stones, but there are no two that actually look like a pair. It can be frustrating.

I believe that's why necklaces were invented ...

September Birthstone ...

... is Sapphire. While most of us think blue when we think sapphire, it occurs in a wide variety of colors, including pink, which I'm featuring here.

This necklace starts with a rather large faceted nugget of pink sapphire. I topped it with a cluster of garnets, golden freshwater pearls ruby rondelles and faceted citrine rondelles. While this is quite nontraditional as far as sapphires go, the color combination seems quite regal to me.


If you have any September birthdays to consider, this necklace would be a wonderful choice! Click on the photo to go directly to this listing in my etsy shop and to see the necklace from some different angles.

Prasiolite ... or Green Amethyst

I listed these earrings in my etsy shop yesterday. The shape of these stones is amazing. They remind me of those hanging crystals from a fancy chandelier. But they really are prasiolite, or green amethyst.

They need little adornment, so I wrapped them with oxidized sterling silver wire and suspended them from my hand formed sterling earwires.

I must remember to save 2 of these stones for myself!


Once again, I'm featured in the Etsy Weekend Deals. My deal is 20% off your entire order August 7-9. You must enter the words "weekend deal" in the message to seller. I will refund the appropriate amount via Paypal.

Looks Like a Full Moon

This creamy colored coin pearl remind me of a full moon. I teamed it with a large faceted briolette of whiskey quartz and small briolette of golden tourmaline.

The combination is warm and appealing. The neutral colors make this necklace so easy to wear. The sterling silver chain is 17" long.

Now is a good time to mention that I purchase most chain styles that you see in my etsy shop in bulk. This means that if you need a different length than offered in a particular listing, I can do it! Just be sure to mention it when making a purchase.

I have a special going on right now in my etsy shop -- but you need to be a newsletter subscriber to be eligible. Sign up using the form on the right and I'll send you my latest newsletter.

Pink and Green

The color combination of pink and green seems timeless. When I see a garment with this colorway, the pink is usually bright and the green is of the lime variety. For this pair of earrings, I went in a slightly different direction.

The pink quartz cubes are fully faceted and yes, they are a bright, bold pink. Above them, the flying-saucer (my description, not a real gemologist's term) shaped green tourmaline is a deep dark green. For those of you that grew up with a box of crayola crayons as your main color reference, these tourmaline beads are pretty close to Forest Green.

I have suspended them on my hand made sterling silver earwires, which I oxidized and tumbled for a shiny, steel gray finish.

Large Citrine Briolettes

These beauties are huge! They are a nice medium yellow color and not nearly as heavy as you might think. I wrapped them with sterling silver wire and suspended them -- all by themselves -- from lever back earwires. Click on the photo to go directly to the listing in my etsy shop.

You may have noticed that many of my newest earrings are simpler than ever. The beauty of the beads so often speak for themselves, that I've decided to let them do just that. I will still do plenty of earrings with tiny gemstone clusters and more complex designs.


On another note, I'm planning my next newsletter, so be sure to use the form on the right to sign up!

Blue Topaz . Necklace

This is a gorgeous slice of the clearest Blue Topaz. It was part of a strand of mixed gemstone slices, so they were all one of a kind stones.

With such a special stone, simplicity is the best approach for me. I wrapped it with oxidized sterling silver wire and suspended it from sterling chain that has been similarly oxidized.

This necklace is for sale in my etsy shop.

More Citrine!

The cut on this stone is fabulous! It's a fancy cut marquis citrine. A marquis like this has four vertical lines and faceting all around.

And the color is like the deepest golden honey you've ever seen. This stone is so beautiful on its own, that I decided it didn't need any other elements. You will notice several new necklaces in my shop along these same lines of simplicity.

Click on the photo to learn more about the necklace.

New Petite Earrings

I've recently listed two new pairs of earrings in my etsy shop that fall into the petite category. I have several more pairs all photographed and ready to add over the next week.

In the spirit of "keeping it simple", this collection of earrings feature single beads that are beautiful enough to stand on their own.

Amethyst cubes with oxidized sterling silver:


Faceted yellow pearls with oxidized sterling silver:


Sometimes, a single bead can speak volumes. Click on the photos to go directly to the listing.

Awesome Spectrolite

I purchased several of these spectrolite nuggets from my dear friend Deb. Spectrolite is a form of labradorite found only in Finland. As with all stones with a chatoyant quality, getting a truly representative photograph is a challenge. It tends to look very different on different background colors.

For this necklace, I added some sterling silver spacer beads and a teal colored faceted freshwater pearl at the very top. The color of the pearl comes pretty close to matching the color of the flash in the stone.

I've added this pendant to a sterling silver chain. It is for sale in my etsy shop, or click on the photo to go directly to the listing.

Really, Really Big Amethyst

I listed this necklace in my etsy shop on Friday and it was immediately purchased! So I made another one. These amethyst briolettes are beautifully clear and very deep purple.

I found it very difficult to get a good photo that captured the richness of the color, but this one isn't too bad.

It's hanging on an oxidized sterling silver chain. More details can be found here.

Lemony Goodness

I've never been a big fan of the color yellow ... until recently. Now, it seems I can't get enough of it!

These citrine beads are cushion cut (at least I think that's what it's called) briolettes. The faceting is amazing and allows the light to reflect at every angle. Sometimes the beauty of the stone speaks for itself and needs very little adornment. These stones certainly fit that category.

These earrings are perfect for spring, summer ... oh, what the heck, wear them year round!

They are for sale in my etsy shop. Click on the photo to go directly to the listing.

Lemony Citrine

The color of these citrine marquis cut briolettes is astoundingly yellow. The faceting enhances that color by reflecting light at every angle. I've used oxidized silver with this stone, as the contrast between the yellow and the gray is just lovely.

I've used large link chain on the necklace. The earrings are on leverbacks, for maximum security.
If you love yellow, these items are for you. Click on the photos to go directly to the listings in my etsy shop.

Double Garnet Earrings

I love garnets. I mean who doesn't? They are my birthstone and I never realized how many shapes they could come in until I started creating jewelry 12 years ago.

These earrings feature small diamond shaped briolettes topped with a rondelle. The two faceted stones are separated by a sterling silver bead.

The red in these garnets is of the deepest burgundy with a hint of plum.

Simple and elegant. With just the right amount of sparkle.

They are for sale in my etsy shop. Click on the photo to go directly to the listing.

Pink Chalcedony . Earrings

I just listed these earrings in my etsy shop a couple of days ago. The pink of the chalcedony briolettes is bordering on lavender, but when I added the pink pearls, the stones appeared more pink. That's the nature of a translucent stone such as chalcedony.

The pearls are in a loose cluster atop the chalcedony and will swing freely. They hang on sterling silver leverback earwires for maximum security.

They are for sale in my etsy shop. Click on the photo to go directly to the listing.

I sent out my latest newsletter yesterday. If you would like to be added to my mailing list, please fill out the form to the right.

Garnet Cubes . Earrings

The little bows on these earwires make the earrings look like wrapped presents. And who wouldn't want these gorgeous faceted garnet cubes dangling from their ears?

I formed the earwires from sterling silver wire and made the headpins using a small torch. All of the silver is sterling. It has been oxidized and tumbled for the sleek, steel gay finish that I love.

Have a look at these earrings in my etsy shop for some more details.

Blue Chalcedony Teardrops

This is a new style of earring that I introduced recently. I handcraft the earwire from sterling silver wire and embellish it with tiny gems on the leading edge. Not only is this decorative, but it keeps the main dangle from sliding off the back of the earwire.

This pair features stunning faceted blue chalcedony teardrop beads at the bottom. I used tiny faceted rondelles of mystic topaz on the leading edge.

These lovely earrings are for sale in my etsy shop.