My Creative Space - New Earrings

I've had some small Iolite beads for about a year and have been itching to use them.

They have now been incorporated into a pair of sterling silver earrings:

 I've named these earrings 'Sultry' as the gemstone Iolite is such a unique colour. Depending on how the light falls on the stone it could be called purple/blue or blue/grey.

One of my interests in making jewellery is learning about the history and meaning of the semi-precious gemstones I use in my designs.  Iolite has quite a story and was used by the Vikings and other ancient mariners on deck on overcast days to determine the position of the sun for the purpose of navigation.

I've also learnt the word Iolite is derived from a greek word which means 'voilet'. Due to its use at sea, it used to be called 'water sapphire' and 'Viking's compass'.

Whilst we will no longer need it to guide our ships home, Iolite is now apparently known as a stone that supports the healing of the eyes, stimulates memory and helps with sleep imbalances.

There you have it.... a clever semi-precious stone.

For me....I just know I love Iolite's colour and unique beauty and it was great to finally get a chance to use Iolite in one of my pieces.

My Creative Space - A New Necklace

It was time to put away my red and blue beads and give some other colours a bit of a go!

I have a great little stash of Rose Quartz beads and they have been out on my desk this week. They are a very light pink colour and look great on their own or combined with other coloured gemstones or pearls.

I'm not an expert on the spiritual qualities of gemstones but from what I have read Rose Quartz apparently gives inner peace and helps in all matters pertaining to love in all its forms. It is reportedly a stone of unconditional love that opens the heart to all forms of love: self-love, family love, platonic love, and romantic love and is a very soothing and happy stone that brings gentleness, forgiveness, compassion, kindness and tolerance..... quite a good wrap for an unassuming gemstone!

Here is what I came up with - named 'Pearl's Rose'. I've used freshwater pearls to compliment the Rose Quartz beads in a double strand necklace:

Some of the Rose Quartz beads are lovely and smooth and others are faceted to give them a little texture. I'm happy with how this necklace has turned out and have loved working in this colour scheme of soft pink, peacock grey and cream.