pearls – Silvercloud's Natural Treasures

Mao, then Nixon, and how that got me started

ANTIQUE CHINESE CARVED GEMSTONE NECKLACES

When Mao took over China, the determined destruction of past cultural reminders drove Chinese citizens to protect beautiful objects and/or prized possessions by hiding them in the many caves in their country. Later, after Nixon traveled to China to open trade talks with Mao, it then became safe for the people to retrieve the hidden treasures, and offer some for sale. I had the opportunity to buy several such gemstone imports; one an exquisite heart-shaped White Opal, carved front and back; two carved Carnelian cartouches; two large incised Jades; and fourteen smaller carved Jade pendants and ornaments.

Some of the resulting jewelry is listed here and shown in the Galleries on my Home Page:

1. Carved Opal Heart, with Aquamarine* and Freshwater Pearls, 26”.

2. Carved Carnelian Cartouche with Aquamarine* and both African and Chinese Carnelian beads, 17.5” with earrings.

3. Jade Drops with Aventurine, 23” w/Bracelets.

4. Jade, incised with fruit branch motif, with Aventurine and two Baltic Amber beads to echo the color where iron oxide had entered the jade before it was mined or while it was hidden in a cave, 23” with 8” bracelet. Handknotted

5. Jade Ornament and Aventurine necklace sets handknotted, one with African Carnelian beads, 25”, one with a 7” bracelet.

6. Jade Peach carved in 3D, with Jade beads, 23”. Handknotted

7. Imperial Jade Disk, with Moonstone, Garnets & Pearls, 23”.

8. Rose Quartz carved Peach, with Aventurine and Rose Quartz and beads, 19”, with 7” bracelet. Handknotted.

1.$1895 2.$250 3. $297 4.$375 5. $400 6. $266 7. $325 8. $272

*I was not told when I purchased and used this Aquamarine many years ago, if it had been enhanced. Not all dealers, even today, disclose whether stones have been treated or not. Since the color of these stones is so perfect, I now suspect they may have been. So do not expose them to UV or moisture, if possible. Silvercloud

I don’t like clasps as a rule. So I sometimes make the necklace 23” so it can be slipped on over the head. If I am limited as to the number of featured gemstone beads I have to work with and can’t make the necklace 23”, I will make use of an uninspired, but helpful (and perhaps necessary) magnetic clasp, to make it easier to put on and off for those who want or need to be independent. I wish I could find beautiful magnetic clasps, but right now women who live with arthritis or other such problems, find that jewelry fitted with these clasps, especially bracelets, are easier to manage.

Also, I have begun to use hook and eyes or S-hooks, as seen above, which are safe but relatively easy to connect. I have even begun making them from Sterling wire and adding a matching bead sometimes! An example is Pewter,Quartz,….

After the press of finishing five sets of jewelry before the final appointment with the photographer, I decided it was at last time to put my work table back in order. As I looked at the remains of three of the sets, I began to see how the iridescent colors of the stick pearls laying there would look good next to some multi-colored transparent Fluorite of the same hues in my collection. I also had some Chalcedony ready to be put away so I decided to try adding a few with the two gemstones I had already seen together in my mind. Yes! Its wonderful translucence gave balance to the opaque and transparent others.

This is a more casual look than the other more elegant “Seafoam” piece. I’m always pleased when I can present a stone in more than one ‘look’, showing its versatility. And by combining a few very costly Chalcedony with less expensive elements, I can moderate the cost of a set that includes the alluring, glowing and rare gemstone (see “Seafoam” Chalcedony and Pearls for more about it).

Please note the unusual location of the featured bead in this bracelet (also see Lodolite, Rose Quartz and Rhodochrosite). Have you ever been frustrated when the accent piece on your bracelet (which is heavier than the rest) kept pulling the clasp (usually the least interesting part of a bracelet) around to the “thumb” side of your wrist? I have, so I placed the large bead nearer the clasp on the back, so the clasp will remain on the back of the wrist where a clasp should stay.

Silvercloud

add title: Seafoam Chalcedony, Fluorite and Pearls

I particularly like to use a bead clasp where the mechanism is hidden in a bead. Clasps can detract from the design, especially if they are ordinary. And if a beautiful costly clasp is added to the piece, it can take over and the rest of the necklace becomes merely something from which to hang that clasp. I much prefer to make a necklace that, when left lying on a woman’s dressing table in a random arrangement (she has more important things to do at the moment), resembles an artful museum display, where a piece of jewelry is “casually BUT oh so carefully” exhibited. Use ‘Cloisonne’ or ‘Carved Chinese Carnelian’