Pretty Good Jewelry

Blue lace agate faceted 8mm necklace + earrings

Blue lace agate is a pastel blue and white banded agate.  These particular beads are faceted and are 8mm in diameter.  I couldn't figure out what I wanted to do with them until I bought these fabulous Thai silver wire-wrap beads!  I finished with a Bali silver s-clasp, giving the necklace a final length of 17.75 inches with a weight of 1.4 oz.  (You can see my other blue lace agate necklace here.)

I made matching earrings with sterling silver French hooks and headpins.  The dangles are about 1.5 inches long, and the earrings weigh 0.2 oz.

Price: $83 (shipping is free)

Blue onyx necklace + earrings

These semi-translucent onyx beads are a beautifully vibrant blue.  The color isn't natural--they are permanently dyed, and I washed them several times to make sure.

The beads are round, 6mm in diameter.  I strung them with Bali vermeil spacers, finishing with a vermeil s-clasp.  The necklace is 17 inches long, and weighs 0.9 oz.

I made hoop earrings to match.  The hoops are 3/4 inches in diameter and are gold-filled, as are the small 2.5mm end beads.  The earrings weigh about 0.1 oz.

Price: $45 (shipping is free)

Azurite-malachite 6mm necklace + earrings

Here's another azurite(-malachite) necklace.  (You can see my earlier azurite-malachite necklace here.)  The beads here are a brilliant blue with patches of bright green, & are 6mm in diameter.  The twisted corrugated spacer beads are sterling silver, 4mm in diameter.  I finished with a sterling silver lobster clasp.

The necklace is almost 17.75 inches, with a weight of 0.7 oz.

I made matching earrings with more azurite-malachite beads, 3mm sterling silver twisted corrugated beads, and 0.75 inch sterling silver hoops.  The hoops are the kind that are a bit tricky to put in if you've never worn them before--you have to maneuver them a bit to put the bend in the wire through your ear.  The earrings weigh 0.1 oz.

Price: $41 (shipping is free)

Sodalite 8mm rondelle necklace

These sodalite rondelles were my last purchase in Albuquerque.  I was kicking myself for leaving the shop without buying them, so on our way out of town we made a special detour back to the shop, and I think they were well worth it.  The color is marvelous--blues ranging from almost a dark midnight through a luscious medium to a light faded denim, marked with white tendrils and clouds.  (I have a sodalite pendant for sale here, and other sodalite necklaces here and here.)

The silver rondelles are more of the 99% pure silver beads that I bought from a supplier in Thailand.  I finished with a sterling silver stylized hook & eye clasp (and the small silver beads on the end are sterling silver rounds alternated with sterling silver crimps + covers).  The necklace is 18.75 inches long, and weighs 1.4 oz.

Price: $58.50 (shipping is free)

Kyanite necklace with silver charms + earrings

This is very good kyanite: it's streaked with rich, dark blues, and there are hardly any brown spots.  I've been told that the darker the blues, the "gemmier" the kyanite is.  (I do have a green kyanite necklace posted here, though, and another blue one here.)

The silver charms and the small faceted silver beads came to me from Thailand.  They are 99% pure silver, and look fabulous!  The small faceted silver beads are 3mm in diameter, and the flowers measure roughly 11mm across.  The round kyanite beads are 6mm.

The necklace is finished with a sterling silver lobster clasp, measuring just under 18 inches long and weighing 1.3 oz.

I used sterling silver French hooks and sterling silver wire to make the matching earrings.  The dangles are about 1.5 inches long, and the earrings weigh 0.2 oz.

Price: $90 (shipping is free)

Turquoise tiny coin necklace + earrings

There are a few beads with black specks, but for the most part this turquoise is a brilliant robin's egg blue, with a nice slightly waxy feel.  (You can see my other turquoise necklaces here, here, here, here, and here.)

The little coin-shaped beads measure 6mm across & about 4mm thick.  I strung them with Bali sterling silver spacers, ending with a sterling silver lobster clasp.  The finished length is 17.5 inches, with a weight of 0.7 oz.

I made chandelier earrings to match.  The sterling silver chandelier dangles are from Bali, and I hung the turquoise beads from them with sterling silver headpins.  (The French hooks are also sterling silver.)  The bead & silver dangles are 1.5 inches long, and the earrings' total weight is 0.2 oz.

Price: $77 (shipping is free)

Lapis lazuli silver drop necklace + earrings

Here's another drop necklace, this time with lapis lazuli.  The nine 9x6mm pear shaped cabochons (seven in the necklace & two in the earrings) have a total weight of about 13 carats.  The settings and lobster clasp are all sterling silver, and I used my favorite figure 8 sterling silver chain.  The necklace is about 16.75 inches long, and weighs 0.2 oz.

I made matching earrings by hanging lapis dangles from sterling silver posts.  The earrings weigh less than 0.1 oz.

Price: $75 (shipping is free)

Sodalite pendant + silver chain cut to order (up to 20 inches)

Beautiful, beautiful sodalite!  This particular cabochon has just a wisp of the white inclusions that you usually find in sodalite.  It measures 30x22mm, and weighs about 20 carats.  I used a lovely sterling silver cameo setting to turn it into a pendant.  The pendant is just a bit under 2 inches long, and weighs 0.3 oz.

I am including a sterling silver chain with it, cut from the chain you see pictured above.  You may choose any length up to 20 inches long (plus or minus a few millimeters--I have to begin and end on the bigger links).  The chain is a figure eight pattern
and the clasp will be a sterling silver lobster/trigger clasp similar to this one:

Price: $29.90 (shipping is free)

Sodalite pebble necklace + earrings

Sodalite is often used as a cheaper substitute for lapis lazuli.  Sodalite blues are not quite the same shade as the best lapis, but I think they're very lovely. (You can see my earlier sodalite necklace here.)

The sodalite beads in this necklace are little pebbles, around 5mm in diameter.  I strung them with 4mm cubes of crackle quartz, set off with 2mm round sterling silver beads.  (The crackle effect is made by heating and then quickly cooling the quartz).  I finished with a silver lobster clasp.  The necklace is just under 17.5 inches, with a weight of 0.4 oz.

I made matching earrings by stringing more sodalite pebbles onto silver 0.75 inch hoops.  The earrings are very light, less than 0.1 oz.

Price: $21.80 (shipping is free)

Blue sapphire oval earrings

These sapphires are a lovely, if non-uniform, blue: there's a lighter patch visible in the left-hand stone.  Their clarity is translucent, not transparent.  On the other hand, they are pretty and affordable.

The stones weigh about 0.85 carats total, and measure 6x4mm.  I set them in sterling silver, and the total weight of the earrings is less than 0.1 oz.

Price: $19.90 (shipping is free)