Sea Pearls,Freshwater Pearls And Cultivated Pearls

The natural pearl was among the most prized of all jewels from the earliest times.Pearls are found inside oyster shell and have been fished by divers off the coasts of Sri Langka and Australia, in the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea, in the South Seas off the Tuamoto archipelago.

The divers risked their lives as they plunged 50 to 100 feet on one lungful of air, searching for oysters, swiftly prizing them off the rocks with hands or knives, putting them in a sack, then quickly returning to the surface for air. My husband and I had these experinces in Perth, Australia when we were fishing for abolone during its season.The life of the diver was never an easy one.

Many of the pearls from Roman and Renaissance times came from the Persian Gulf.
Freshwater pearls have been found many in Scottish rivers, such as the Tay and the Doon, for more than 2,000 years. The River Conwy in Wales and streams in Ireland, France, Austria and Germany have also been fished for pearls. River pearls are also found in Nova Scotia and in streams in the Mississippi valley.

Cultivated Pearls .
Biwa freshwater pearls are cultivated in Biwa-ko (lake), in Japan. Freshwater mussels were grafted with tissue from another mussel in up to 20 places and after much experimentation, produced small rice-shaped pearls. If the extraction was done carefully, a second and third crop from the same mussels was possible without further grafting

Swarovski Crystal JH Earrings (ECJH-G-701)

S$28 (SOLD)
Jewelry Code: ECJH-G-701
Length: 1.75inches/4.5cm
Materials: Swarovski Crystal Jet Hematite(6mm),Swarovski Crystal Pendant(13x6.5)
Accessories: Gold Plated Earwire

Swarovski Crystal Jet Hematite Necklace (NCJH-G- 700)

S$98.00 (SOLD)
Product code: NCJH-G-700
Length: 20inches/50cm
Main material: Swarovski Crystal Jet Hematite
Accessories: Gold plated clasp,Crystal Gold Spacer Rondelles (7mm)

Swarovski Crystal Topaz Baroque Earrings (ECT-G-699)

S$28 (SOLD)
Jewelry Code: ECT-G-699
Length: 1.75inches/4.5cm
Materials: Swarovski Topaz Baroque Pendant(16x11mm),Crystal(6mm)
Accessories: 925 Gold Plated Earwire

An Exploration of Beads

Most of the world's earliest beads have disappeared and organic material such as seeds and wood have long since decayed, but there are occasional finds of simple shapes in natural materials dating back some 10,000 years.

As the great civilizations of Egypt, the Indus Valley Mesopotamia and the Far East rose and fell, beadmaking flourished. Trade routes were established: from 6,000B.C., Mediterranean coral was traded to the cities of Asia Minor, by 3,000B.C., Afghan lapis traveled the 1,500 miles to Sumeria, and the Greeks of Mycenae traded bronze for Baltic amber.

The discovery of metal and glass produced technological advances that inspired a flowering of creativity. Graet bead traditions gradually emerged. In Venice glassmaking skills which for a period were solely a Venetian preserve, were directed into beadmaking. In turn, these skills were to travel north to Bohemia and west to the Netherlands.

Beads are increasing both in popularity and value. During the last 20 years more and more people have become fascinated by the history of beads, their significance, their collectibility and their availability.

Antique trade beads from Africa, 19th century millefiori beads from Venice, pumtek beads from India and Myanmar, dZi beads from Tibet, kiffa beads from Mauritania, chevrons, cowrie shells, Hudson Bay and white hearts - are all part of a rich history to be explored and collected.

Contemporary beadmakers especially in Europe and North America are creating beads as fine as any of their predecessors. Today's successors to those early craftsmen are still making beads: Austria continues a glass making industry once centered in Bohemia, France makes glass beads and rocailles, Spain manufactures maiolica pearl, a popular substitute for natural or cultured pearls

Lately, I have motivated by friends to create my own jewelry. I like both the Swarovski Crystal and Pearls.