The Color of Stones: Meanings, Uses, Psychology and Fashion

Color is powerful.  Colors are fraught with symbolism, tradition, and psychological influences, much of which we internalize only subconsciously.  Everyone has personal preferences, but none of us can escape the context of our own culture.  This context shapes how we perceive color, and how it fits in as an integral part of our lives.

Gemstones and glass have been chosen and created specifically for their colors for thousands of years.  All forms of personal adornment have included colorful stones, shells, and wood since prehistoric times.  Colors were chosen to convey status, mood, wealth, and other information.  Some stones were only to be used by the ruling class, or in places of worship, because their color was considered sacred.

Today the psychology of color is a major area of research, since it has direct applications in industry, politics, marketing, medicine, sports, education, and just about every other sector of society.  Color can change how we make purchases.  It can change how we cast our vote in elections.  It can make us feel energized, peaceful, or tired.  It can change how we perform in sports and on exams.

One of the primary aspects of gemstone jewelry creation is the use of color, in harmony, unity, or contrast.  Similarly, the buyer of gemstone jewelry makes their choice largely influenced by the color of the piece.  Again, we all have personal preferences, but are likely to move towards pieces that have appeal for a variety of reasons.  For example, white might not be one's favorite color in jewelry, but in western culture most brides choose white pearls for weddings, and sport white diamonds on their fingers.  The context and symbolism of a wedding greatly influences our choice of color.  And the reverse remains true - white gemstones bring up thoughts of weddings, new starts, cleanliness and purity.

So to delve deeper into color, I've been doing a bit of research, and will be posting a series on "The Color of Stones."  I'll be posting about some of the symbolism, studies into color, the nature of chakra points, and some of their interrelationships.  This will give consumers of gemstone jewelry some insight into their own minds - why they choose the colors they do, and conversely, how they can choose colors to enhance their own moods and possibly change the perceptions of those around them.

So stay tuned here for information on color you can use to improve your gemstone jewelry buying awareness!  Not to mention interest and fun ...

Jennifer

Crystal in Handmade Jewlery - Part Four: The Shape of Things

Structure and composition aren't the only characteristics that help define the word "crystal" in common use.  For some people, the internal order and composition are not important, and what they mean when they say "crystal" is "has a regular geometric shape ending in a point."  In other words, the shape of the stone is the key factor.

This is a meaning often encountered in sites that deal with gemstones and their symbolic properties, such as healing.  This meaning might also be encountered on sites interested in selling materials for use in wicca, like wands for altars or pendulums for divination.  As noted in previous posts, this use of the word "crystal" is not incorrect - it is a reflection of history and culture.  There are many people who would be disappointed to purchase a "crystal" and find it isn't "crystal shaped."

Crystal points do make lovely jewelry, either drilled through as beads or wire wrapped as pendants.  The shape evokes a sense of mystery and magic.  Depending on the nature of the stone, they might range from delicate to sharp, and so might need to be treated with some care.  No two points are ever exactly the same unless they are mechanically cut or lab grown - gemstones all have natural variation.  Because of this pairing them for earrings or to use in sets takes some patience and design skill.

So to wrap up this four part series on crystal, the "point" again is know what you are using in your designs, and purchasing from your favorite sites.  One simple word like "crystal" does not mean the same thing to everyone, and so be sure to get specific details before you buy.  That way you can be certain you will love your jewelry when it arrives, and treasure it for years to come.

Image Credit: Quartz Crystal, Rob Lavinsky, CC 3.0, Wikimedia.org

Lampwork Glass and Some New Charms

As our designer has mentioned before, glass is a wonderful material and especially nice for making jewelry. Gemstones are so popular right now--and for good reason, they're gorgeous--that it's easy to forget how beautiful and versatile glass can be.

Our chief designer loves to work with a variety of beads called lampwork glass. The artisans who make this kind of layered, colorful bead start with solid rods of glass, then use a gas torch to melt the rods. Once the glass is melted, the artisan can use tools or simply blowing on the glass or through a tube to shape the material and add layers of design in any color or shape she chooses.

Not surprisingly, this practice of lampworking glass was perfected in Murano, Italy, a location reknowned for making many kinds of beautiful, high-quality artisan glass. I'm wondering if I can write off a business trip to Murano. You know, to check out the glass. :-) (Find more information on lampworking here.)

We have several lampwork glass items in our shop, the newest being our lampwork glass phone and zipper pull charms. You can find them here.

Do you work with or purchase lampwork glass items? Do you specialize or find them a nice occasional alternative to gemstones and other materials?

Crystal in Handmade Jewelry - Part Three: Crystal Versus Glass - Composition

All Swarovski crystal (in
other words, lead glass)
and sterling silver suncatcher

Having taken a look at Crystal Versus Glass - Structure in my most recent post in the series, let's talk here about chemical composition.

First things first - how is it that a 'wine glass' can be 'crystal'?  Didn't I say previously that crystal had an ordered structure and glass did not?  Yes.  Crystal wine glasses aren't crystal.  They are made of glass.  They are made of a specific kind of glass that has had lead added to it to make it more reflective and prismatic.  The use of 'crystal' to describe this substance is historic, coming from Murano glass manufacturing in Venice.  In those days the manufacturers were trying to imitate some of the properties of natural quartz crystal.  This idiom, or convention, has remained.  'Lead glass' is the same as 'lead crystal' is the same as 'the stuff my crystal wine glass is made of.'

This confusion of terms has translated to the bead market, where both glass, lead glass, and synthetic and natural crystal are all used side by side.

So what is it about high quality, expensive 'crystal', like say Waterford, that makes it so desirable?  Regular water glasses, even if nicely etched and cut, do not have the flash and brilliance of, say, Waterford crystal faceted wine glasses.  As I said before, lead has been added to regular 'glass' to make it 'lead crystal'.  Lead increases the index of refraction of regular glass, which means that light going through the material is reflected around more, and also split like a prism.  'Fine cut lead crystal' is a phrase that means a sparkling, fiery wine glass that will look impressive on the dinner table.

Gorgeous trio of designer glass
earrings.  Even the Swarovski crystal
accents are of course glass.

The same is true for beads.  Beads made of standard glass will not have the same flash and brilliance as lead crystal, even if they are the exact same color and cut in the same way.  This does not mean that 'glass' is bad.  Not at all.  Remember, these kinds of 'crystal' beads are in fact glass.  This is simply glass with lead added to it make it sparkly.  Glass is a fantastic substance that makes highly desirable and sought after jewelry.  I adore glass, and am a huge fan of Murano beads, designer lampwork, and glittering dichroic creations.  The point is to know what you are using in your work as a designer, and what you are buying as a consumer.

I'll talk more about why I choose to use various glass and crystal materials in a later post!

Images:  Suncatcher and earrings are our designs, and available in our Etsy store.  Stop by to see these and similar items!

Crystal In Handmade Jewelry - Part Two: Crystal versus Glass Structure

Our 11" Suncatcher Talisman showing
off a variety of crystalline solids, such
as a smoky quartz faceted crystal
teardrop.

In Part One of my series of posts on 'crystal' I talked about many of the different definitions and uses for this common word in handmade jewelry business.  As this series continues, I am going to focus on each of the various views of 'crystal' and hopefully dispel some of the ambiguity.

A common place to find confusion is in the use of 'crystal' versus 'glass' in the materials listed for a handmade piece.  To a geologist, these terms have a specific difference based on structure.  To a bead artist, these terms are more likely to be differentiated based on chemical content.  Let's talk about structure first ...

'Glass' is a solid substance where the structure of the atoms is irregular and amorphous (and which will turn into a liquid when enough heat is applied).  There is no large scale order to be found in 'glass'.  Conversely, the structure of a 'crystalline' solid is very regular.  The internal matrix of a crystal is repetitive and highly ordered.

It is possible to have a 'glassy' form of a material that has the exact chemical composition as a 'crystalline' form.  The most most well known crystal is quartz, made of silicon and oxygen, SiO2, in a nice repeating pattern.  But SiO2 is also the major constituent of 90% of the glass in our everyday lives.  A crystalline substance can be formed by cooling a liquid slowly, allowing the atoms to line up into a nice, repeating pattern as the stuff becomes solid.  A glassy substance can be formed by cooling a liquid very quickly.  The stuff becomes a solid before the atoms have time to line up.

This means that any 'crystal' in a necklace need only be made of a solid with a repeating structure to be referred to as 'crystal'.  A designer that uses quartz crystal in a necklace will call it crystal, and be absolutely correct.  Yet this can be misleading if you imagine all crystal means 'Swarovski.'

I'll post soon about crystal versus glass - composition!

Jennifer

Crystal in Handmade Jewelry - Part One: More Than One Definition

Quartz crystal point in back, propping
up a rhyolite gemstone flecked with
crystal inclusions

Hello Gemstone Fans:

'Crystal' is a common constituent of handmade jewelry, but the word is very often used in ways that are confusing.  Is the designer talking about the composition of the material, its shape, its clarity, or saying it is a single piece of rock, uncut?  When designers describe their jewelry, sometimes they do not provide enough information to let the buyer know exactly what they are getting.  Unscrupulous sellers may even allow misinterpretations to remain unaddressed, hoping the buyer will think they are getting something of higher quality than what is actually included in the piece.

So to start, I simply want to point out how problematic the word 'crystal' can be.  In the first image above, we see a nicely formed quartz crystal.  Some people would call it a crystal because of the regular geometric shape.  Others might think 'crystal' because it is made of solid quartz.   A geologist might call it a crystal because it is a uncut chunk of a mineral in its natural form, or because its atoms are in a nicely regular matrix, instead of scattered about amorphously.  A geologist would also use the word 'crystals' to describe the granules of different minerals found in the rhyolite.

Crystal martini glass displays a pair
of earrings, each with a crystal
bicone bead on top.

More examples of 'crystal' are in the second image.  For some, the only crystal they are familiar with on a daily basis are cut crystal glasses and bowls used for dining or serving.  For others, the word crystal always means bright, sparkly, glassy looking beads, like those found atop the shells in this pair of earrings.  It may be that the chemical content of the beads isn't at all what they are thinking of, simply their common shapes, colors, and flash.

So with all the different ideas for what a 'crystal' is, or what 'crystal' can mean, there is no surprise that confusion exists.  Stay tuned here for more information about how you can be more informed about what is in your jewelry, and how to make sure you are getting exactly what you want!

Jennifer

February Friendship and Romance in Glass and Stone

Hello Gemstone Fans:

The big event in February for many jewelry fans falls on the 14th, with the arrival of Valentine's Day.  It has become one of the most popular celebrations in the United States.  Everyone seems to be looking for a personal and special way to express affection to friends and loved ones.

We've added a new line of products to our offerings at Lunar Blue Designs - lanyard charms you can use to add personality and sparkle to almost anything, anywhere.  Slip the lanyard through zippers to create zipper pulls, use as charms for cell phones, or jazz up purses, belt loops, key rings, or whatever your imagination suggests. 

This is one of the first lanyard charms I created, celebrating Valentine's Day in my own way.  The charm centerpiece is an elegant, puffy Murano-style glass heart with embedded silver foil, topped with a pink bicone of Swarovski crystal, and highlighted with all sterling silver findings and spacers.  The length is about 3.75 inches.  This is one of those pieces that almost didn't make it out of the house.  Although I am partial to skulls and darker themes and icons, this charm has so much appeal.  It showcases so much of what makes glass an attractive material for beaded jewelry and accessories - shine, smoothness, glow, flash, and lovely color.

Jennifer

Image Credits:  Murano Glass Heart Charm posted in our Etsy store January 2011