I’m always surprised at how attractive clear glass beads and jewels are. Of course part of that is how they’re cut (faceted). Diamond cutters know what they’re talking about – the faceting makes all the difference. But you don’t have to own diamonds to have some pretty jewels to work with. Case in point:

Pros and cons:

Pro – they go with everything;
Pro – they’re clean lined and attractive
Pro – they don’t cost much, whether in brass or silver settings;
Pro – with the addition of earwires, voila, you’ve got a fun new pair of earrings.

Con – okay, they aren’t diamonds.

I can’t think of any more. These are fun!

I just love this color! These glass teardrop beads are red. Yes. But “red” covers a lot of territory. Coral red. Lipstick red – which is really a color “name” they use a lot and isn’t it funny? Because I mean – which lipstick? But anyway. Crimson. Ruby. Apple red.

Then I figured it out: these are raspberry red. Definitely red, with just an under hint of… blue, maybe. But really red, all the same.

Love the color!

You’ll see what I mean. This is just a simple combination of elements – a colorful vintage glass jewel in a faceted octagon shape, and a sparkling round rhinestone. When you combine them, you get more than the sum of the parts:

Add an earwire, these will make fabulous earrings. Slip on a sturdy jump ring or hand-wire to a looped bead or bail and you’ve got a fabulous pendant. Use two-ring settings and they’re bracelet or necklace connectors. You see what I mean? One simple design idea – combine colors and shapes. And you’ve got endless possibilities.

And the stones are available in my Etsy shop of course 🙂