Just for fun! These ‘mystery beads’ were passed along by a friend. I snapped a quick photo–can you guess what any of them are?
Carnelian for Virgos
August 3, 2010Carnelian beads…a summer delight.
Some tantalizing carnelian (and its relative natural agate) has crossed our path lately…
Carnelian trade beads in cubes or tubes…
And natural-agate tanfouks (click this glimpse to see complete)…
…Brilliant birthstones to adorn a special day for a Virgo dear to you.
(They’re a great keepsake gift for anyone you enjoy being nice to, in fact!)
Vaseline & uranium salt beads
July 22, 2010Punchline of a joke?
Real beads! Trade beads. Very collectable trade beads, in fact.
7 things you didn’t know about “vaseline” beads:
1: Many fluoresce. Uranium salts were once used to color beads yellow, giving this side effect. Look at ’em in daylight (before). Put ’em under blacklight (after). Whoa!
Uranium salt/vaseline beads BEFORE
Uranium salt/vaseline beads AFTER
Our #22-708-01 clear-glass vaseline bead does not fluoresce, nor does red or
opaque blue. Not all green beads either (depends on age).
2: Why are these generically called vaseline beads in “campfire parlance”? Newer reason: because of their similar shapes — often a bicone — to the beads originally called vaseline beads. Original reason: Vaseline beads were named for having the same shiny, translucent appearance as petroleum jelly.
3: However, not all have the vaseline, “greasy” colors that originally gave these beads their name. Here’s a non-slippery vaseline bead:
Non-slippery vaseline beads
4: The uranium-salt (glow-in-the-blacklight) vaseline beads were most likely made between 1830 and 1915. That’s some old, valuable beads!
5: The Czech names for the green and yellow varieties are “Anna green” and “Anna yellow”. Do you know why? (I don’t–yet. Will a knowledgeable reader chime in?)
6: Vaseline beads with uranium salts are considered safe because vitrification “traps” the uranium inside the glass. Testing suggests that you can wear uranium-salt glass beads for up to 40 years before the radiation exposure equals that of getting a single x-ray at the doctor’s office.
7: We get these beads from Mali, in West Africa. Did you know? Mali is where you’ll also find the ancient city of Timbuktu, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Here’s one more image of the spectacular ‘black-lit’ vaseline-bead effect:
Featured bead: CZ
July 20, 2010The CZ’s are here!
Cubic zirconia are sweet. They’re very popular at our bead shows. And we’ve added some wonderful ones…
Sweet how? Cubic zirconia beads have especially fine faceting and exceptional clarity. They shine like crazy!
Check ’em out in the “Russ’s Picks” section of our online store…
metal stamps "r" us: $
July 13, 2010Bonus points if you spotted the secret Rings & Things code I put in that headline 🙂
Metal stamps of small letters “r” big news right now at R&T. Why?
Short story: we’re selling one of our lower-case letter stamp sets at a smashing bargain price: $20.
We received a shipment with cursive “r’s”, which have been corrected with the right “r.” For a limited, time shipments will be sent out with the bonus cursive “r” — which could double as a wave stamp!
Nickel-free and loving it!
July 6, 2010What’s the wire that’s…
- nickel-free,
- inert metal,
- made into jewelry components,
- and actually exists?
99.9% pure niobium!
Did you know?
Niobium is safe for most people with metal allergies. It’s very resistant to corrosion and other reactions–so much so that it’s used in medical implants.
(Did you also know?)
Niobium findings are gentle on your skin, but we wouldn’t call them “hypoallergenic“. Why? It’s a great marketing term, but has never been turned into an industry standard.
We think the health benefits and durable colors of niobium jewelry parts speak for themselves!
So if anyone’s ears are burning from all the talk about niobium ear wires (and more), it ought to be ours–not yours!
Featured bead: metal-core
June 30, 2010“Metal core”? Don’t worry. No electric guitars here…I’m just talking about a pretty little kind of charm bead 🙂
For charm lovers, it’s a whole Pandora’s box of silver lining (or silver-plated lining) !*
So many kinds to adorn your bracelets…and more:
- Go Calypsoâ„¢ with Rings & Things’ house brand.
- Stay earthy with new metal-core gemstone beads.
- Investigate new styles of metal-core glass beads.
And, did you know? You can even make your own, by lining the center of your own large-hole bead with one of our sterling grommets! (A.k.a. bead spindles, bead cores, eyelets.)
Plus, you should mine our Design Gallery’s “search” feature to dig up metal-core jewelry inspirations…
Metal-core charms have captivated 
Russ Troll, the bead with a heart of pewter! 🙂
* Beware of competitors’ lower-quality, non-silver lined versions.
Bobby pins: favoriter & favoriter
June 24, 2010A jewelry “basic” for years & years: bobby pins.
Several new colors of bobby pins: favoriter & favoriter.
Along with a bunch of brand-new platings to expand your design palette, another great thing about bobby pins is that they’re perfectly made for popular “gluing stuff on” styles.
Bobby pins with buttons glued on
Glue buttons, resin pieces, art glass, Vintaj components…anything that catches your eye and will make a pretty hair decoration…onto a bobby pin!
Make Vintaj bobby pin designs!
Oh, and the 5 new plating colors? Well, a picture tells the story instantly:
New bobby pin colors
Tip: while you’re browsing bobby pins in our online store, you’ll see big, useful chart of gluing tips.
Did you know? Other ways to attach decorations to bobby pins include riveting (cold connections), sewing, or soft soldering.
* Update 6/25/10: I’ve received another photo showing all our bobby pin platings side by side. Thanks Nory!
A Victorian Romance: cameos & velvet ribbon
June 15, 2010Like haiku poetry, cameos are miniature works of art…but you can wear these.
“And full on the bauble-crest alway–
A cameo image keen and fine…”*
WWVD? What would a Victorian do?
- Velvet ribbon is the period-perfect stringing material for showing off a cameo pendant.
- With the availability of ring blanks, you can set a cameo in one to wear on a finger.
- These cameos make a delightful centerpiece when attached to a leather cuff bracelet.
“A pleasant picture, purely set,
Its mood all fair, though grave.
The virtue of an amulet
To my remembrance gave.”**
What’s your inspiration for using cameos? Comment below & share it!
* From “The Cameo Bracelet” by James R. Randall, circa 1860
** From “A Cameo” by Irène Hardy, 1892
Go global!
June 4, 2010Brand new from TierraCast!
Get your symbol without a lot of $$ symbols
Global Spirit is ankhs, mazes, peace signs, hearts, crosses, female symbols – – Just about all the basics to meet your customers’ needs, done in TierraCast’s signature tasteful style.
These sell themselves, so I’m just going to go into the “hamsa hand” a bit: Also known as the hand of Fatima, this one’s a traditional defense against the evil eye.
So it’s functional as well as decorative 🙂