




BEAUTIFUL GEMSTONES: Here you'll see breathtaking gemstones, and there are many: Topaz, Citrine, Amethyst, Garnet, Peridot, Aquamarine, Kunzite, Cornflower Blue Quartz,Zircon, Tourmaline, Sapphire, Ruby, and Emerald. 

EASY SPARKLE: CASUAL TO DRESSY: Whether breakfasting at IHOP, lunching at an exclusive restaurant, attending a power dinner party, or just running around town in jeans and a tank top, hand-wrapped gemstones and crystals offer a fashionable look. The design easily swings from casual to dressy. Hand-wrapped gemstones and crystals give most other jewelry a run for the money in terms of originality, rarity, and sheer beauty. Diamonds are a girl’s best friend, but white diamonds alone can be a bit boring. You need some color ... semi-precious colored gemstones are popping up more and more in fine faux jewelry. This is reportedly because consumers are spending less, and are considering fine faux jewelry over fine jewelry. Whether you like a simple, dainty, super thin chain -- or a thick, bold, chunky chain -- a big, sparkly semi-precious gemstone or crystal dangling around your neck will make a unforgettable jewelry statement. Fine gemstones and pearls are seriously sexy, but so are hand-wrapped gemstones ... true jewelry fashionistas are enouraged to experience wearing a gemstone or crystals wrapped in my CrystalHugger Twistwrap design.

At CrystalsCrystals.com, custom-made crystal and gemstone jewelry has never been more beautiful or affordable. CrystalsCrystals.com creates dream jewelry, that is versatile and timeless. I can incorporate your ideas and preferences for beads, stone, cuts, color combinations into beautiful one-only hand-wrapped gemstone jewelry. I source fine diamonds in small and large carat sizes, as well as fine pearls.



This is a hand-made item and all are rare and very beautiful: my signature hand-wrapped crystal pendant design. An AAA+ grade crystal in either 8mm, 9mm or 10mm which possesses a rainbow of beautiful colors. The cutting is blinding and sends shimmer and sparkle out from every direction within the stone. The iCe360
design line features hand-wrapped crystals and pendants designed in my CrystalHugger TwistWrap wire-wrap design which allows for a 360° view of transparent faceted stones. You see ALL of the sparkle, and there very little mounting covering up the beauty of the stone. Definitely a conversation piece pendant all eyes will attract to. The material is hand cut and lab-grown from diamond crystals. The minimalist, clean, simple design is both elegant and earthy, and perfect for daytime to evening wear. 

Various types of lighting will reveal all of the colors in a gemstone. In the beautiful gemstone Tanzanite mother nature combines the hues of blue sapphires with rich hues of purple amethyst, and adds tinges of every other color in the rainbow in the prism sparkle. 
Tanzanite is actually a mineral called fosterite. It was discovered in 1967 in Tanzania, so it is a "new" gemstone. It is classified as a "semi-precious" stone because only diamonds, rubies, sapphires and emeralds are classified as "precious" stones by the gemology profession. It is a very popular gemstone because of its trichroism. As the crystal is rotated its color shifts from blue to violet to red to green, even hues of gold are found in the fire of Tanzanite. Trichroism is a most a unique type of beauty in gemstones, and adds to their "captivating" power. 
Beverly Hills is an important city for jewelry shopping, and anything and everything you can imaging in jewelry, is there. The most fascinating families in jewelry, decades of mining, cutting and design experties. All of the major mines and leading industry designers are represented in Beverly Hills in one way or another. Some of the finest jewelry design, gemstones and diamonds can be seen in the shops that line the Rodeo Collection. Ten miles east of Beverly Hills (east on Wilshire Blvd.) takes you to the 7th & Hill Street Jewelry District, a section of Downtown Los Angeles where a variety of jeweled products and jewelrymaking merchandise is sold.
Jewelry can be a small (or large) extension of one's jewelry fashion persona. We're all different, with different tastes and senses of fashion, that's why there is such variety in jewelry, there truly is something for everyone.
My mother was a trailblazer of sorts in African-American dance troupe history, she was a featured showgirl as one of the original Moulin Rouge Dancers. Mom nurtured my creative talents, including my love for jewelry. Her favored gemstones were emeralds, diamonds and pearls. I have many memories of people complimenting her and asking about her jewelry. The Moulin Rouge Dancers were DIVAS during a time when that status was not envisioned for African-American women. They were pioneers, and they brought so many admirers from the main strip casinos into the Moulin Rouge that journalists of the day owed the demise of the casino partially to jealousy and envy of these beautiful women (who at the time could not eat in many restaurants on the main strip casinos. My grandmother enjoyed jewelry as well. Grandma Clara's favored gemstone was ruby, it was the gemstone in her wedding band. Grandma wasn't bitten by the jewelry bug there way my Mom and I are, she was old school, jewelry was not something she focused on as important in her day. But as so many of us who own beautiful gemstones do, I regard my gems as important! They are my special friends - they go through everything I go through and they are right there with me. Countless times when the day brings crazy energy or a low point, I look at my stones and they take me to a happier place. I can relate to a comment Elizabeth Taylor made about a canary diamond she owns, the drama of life will never get a beautiful gemstone down, no matter how terrible the day's events, "the stones continue to sparkle, and uplift." That is very true. When you are happy, having a thing of beauty to focus on can make you happier and when you are sad it can comfort you.
Owning the Finest of Gemstones ... it was Liz Taylor who once shared "... there hasn't come a dark day yet that my 26 carat canary diamond doesn't brighten. It's like having my very own piece of sunshine."
















Interested In A Particular Gemstone or Crystal?

  
The only way one can truly learn gemstone quality is to study and view a lot of gemstones. You must observe natural gems regularly to develop and maintain an eye for top clarity, color and cut in diamonds and colored gemstones. This holds true for simulants as well, as all simulants are not created equal. Today's gemstone and diamond simulants often look better than their natural counterparts, thus the enormous growth in simulated gemstones and diamonds. I feel privileged to have seen some of the most beautiful diamond and gemstone material mother earth produces. I can appreciate the masterful cutting work of world class gem cutters. Because my art so heavily depends on beautiful stones, I am grateful for the cutting machines the jewelry technology industry employs today, which exquisitely cut crystals and simulated gemstones. No doubt, there are gemstones you have to see to believe - words could never describe their divine construct and brilliance. Because I know of the stunning beauty of rare gems, I completely appreciate and honor that excellence in my work with both gemstones and crystals. I am a stickler for sparkle. The clarity and play of light in the stones I use must be flawless. A small stone (.25 carat in size) with top clarity and top color will out sparkle a larger stone of poor clarity and color. Quality matters. When it comes to the transparent gemstones and crystals I choose for my clients, they must be top quality and possess great clarity and sparkle.



ANGELINA IN THE MOGUL EMERALDS Marvelous work by jeweler Lorraine Schwartz. Who can ever forget world-class beauty and power maven Angelina Jolie in these spectacular 115 carat emerald earrings on the red carpet at the 2009 Oscars. Stunning.
And how much would these royal baubles cost ... try a cool million, or more. These stone have history. Rarely are emeralds this large, fine and inclusion-free seen outside of a museum setting.
The settings are nearly invisible, all you see is emerald. The hue of green is captivating, and there aren't visible inclusions as would normally be the case in emeralds. The emerald has been a gem of fascination in many cultures for over six thousand years. It is so prized, that carat for carat, a fine emerald may be two to three times as valuable as a diamond. It was known that Emerald was a favorite gem of Cleopatra, the Queen of Egypt, and the Emerald mine in Upper Egypt, rediscovered a hundred years ago near the Red Sea, was one of the earliest Emerald occurrences in the human history. Emeralds also adorned Russian crown jewels. The Irani State Treasure contains an exquisite collection of Emeralds, as well as the Emerald tiara of ex-Empress Farah. Shah Jahan, one of the moguls of India that built the Taj Mahal, loved Emeralds so much that he had sacred texts inscribed into them and used these gemstones as talismans. The ancient writings of Veda, the sacred text of Hinduism, testifies to Emerald as being the “gem of good luck” and the “gem that improves one’s well-being”. Large, prized quality emeralds such as these are called “Mogul Emeralds." There was much lavish bling about on Oscar night ... much ... but Angelina in the Mogul Emeralds ... unforgettable.
Few manufactured designs showcase the luster, color, fire and clarity of a gemstone or crystal as does the open, naked, and artsy design of the CrystalHugger TwistWrap. 

DESIGN INSPIRATION:The CrystalHugger TwistWrap was inspired during a brief study of architecture which brought me to photographs of early architecture - i.e., tribal huts, where I came upon photos of "tools" used by hunter-gatherer tribes.
I developed an interest in the ways in which they twisted, tied, knotted, weaved and looped various types of soft bark twigs, tree vines, and flexible leaves around river boulder to create flatbeds for dragging wood stacks across the terrain, and to sling the vine-knotted rocks high into the trees to knock down the fruit. Other hand-crafted tools were used to hunt animals. These vine and twig knotting, twisting and wrapping techniques were used to construct huts and other parts of housing such as flooring and walls for protection from the elements. Wood stacks were tied with heavy vines and used to lift heavy materials from the trees down to the ground.
The various tying, looping and weaving techniques helped them greatly.

This is a hand-made item and all are rare and very beautiful: my signature hand-wrapped crystal pendant design. An AAA+ grade crystal in either 8mm, 9mm or 10mm which possesses a rainbow of beautiful colors. The cutting is blinding and sends shimmer and sparkle out from every direction within the stone. The iCe360
design line features hand-wrapped crystals and pendants designed in my CrystalHugger TwistWrap wire-wrap design which allows for a 360° view of transparent faceted stones. You see ALL of the sparkle, and there very little mounting covering up the beauty of the stone. Definitely a conversation piece pendant all eyes will attract to. The material is hand cut and lab-grown from diamond crystals. The minimalist, clean, simple design is both elegant and earthy, and perfect for daytime to evening wear. 
  
  

Zircon has no relation to Cubic Zirconia (a simulated diamond crystal). It's a birthstone alternative for December birthdays, and top quality ZIRCON is used as an alternative to the sparkle of diamond. It has been mined since the Middle Ages. The oldest known zircons are from Western Australia some 4.4 billion years ago. The name zircon is thought to come from the Persian word "zargun" which means "gold-colored." Although zircon comes in a wide range of different colors, including colorless white, the most popular zircon color is the electric blue variety. My favorite is the light yellowish gold zircon. Zircon comes in many exceptional colors, including colorless, green, red, violet, yellow, honey gold and orange. I have seen truly remarkable zircons from Cambodia, as beautiful as any other gemstone on the planet. This gemstone is highly underrated, but when one tries to purchase a large, top quality zircon they quickly discover how rare and pricey they are. Large quality zircon in exceptional colors such as pink, electric gold, electric blue, electric blue-green, violet and red are of my very favorite gemstones. They are rarely sold once obtained. It is a highly dense gemstone and though a Zircon will look much smaller in size than another gemstone, both stones could have the same weight. Due to its high refractive index and very strong dispersion, zircon has a great brilliance and intense fire. The luster is vitreous and quality zircons are absolutely brilliant. Although zircon is relatively hard, (rating 6.5-7.5 on the MOHS gemstone hardness scale), it must be worn with care.
Hand-wrapped gemstone and crystal jewelry can adapt to design elements of any and every jewelry period because you start with the stone that has been wrapped and add your design elements comprising what YOU like. What colors, textures, shapes so you like? What do you want the piece to express? Original design constructs blend influences from your imagination into an original piece of jewelry, and that is how couture is born.
The classic jewelry design periods are so important, such as the Georgian Jewelry Period, known for its highly dimensional repose, floral and scroll motifs and use of garnets, precious topaz, coral and faceted diamonds set in distressed silver. I tend to like the use of ornate metals in my design work, popularized in the Victorian Jewelry Period. This Period also incorporated the most varied and eclectic motifs in fashion and textile design, with a merger of influences like Egyptian, Renaissance and the richly classic Etruscan design elements. This era featured almost exclusively the use of yellow gold often designed with contrasting black and colored enamel.
The Edwardian Jewelry Period offered designs which were delicate, romantic, feminine and lacy. Edwardian styled fashions blend wonderfully with CrystalsCrystals' Platinum Lace hand-wrapped gemstone designs. Take a look at Platinum Lace to see that it has the classic antique look - right at home with Edwardian styled jewelry. The Edwardian Jewelry Period was an exceptional decade in detailed workmanship. Lacy, dainty, delicate, openwork, micro filigree and gemstone encrusted designs from this Period are collector favorites.
Everyone wanted sapphires, diamonds, platinum and pearls. During the end of the 1950s jewelry design started to get more modern and trends got younger and bolder. Abstract jewelry design took hold, pavé set diamonds became the rage, and the success of mass-manufactured "affordable," and "popular" jewelry styles was realized. This success paved the way for the "expansive" jewelry departments we enjoy today. It is common to find twenty or more lines of jewelry on display in an average department store jewelry center.
Perhaps you've seen a photo in our Photo Design Galleries featuring a design that you like ... right click the photo and select "E-mail picture" to send it to us at sales@crystalscrystals.com with your question or comment. LOOKING FOR THE CLASSIC PLACE SETTING GIFT FOR YOUR PARTY?: Custom gift-wrapped wire-wrapped gemstones or crystals as place setting gifts will not be forgotten. Present an original, custom crafted and beautiful jewelry design gift to your special guests.







This huge 72.22-carat, "D" flawless white diamond went up for auction with a pre-sale reserve of $10-12 million through Sothebys. As is always the case with stones of this caliber, the phenomenal diamond was sold to a private buyer from Hong Kong for an undisclosed sum. The blazing pear custom cut gemstone is the third largest pear-shaped, IIA type diamond ever auctioned by Sothebys. The IIA rating is given only to the most brilliant of colorless or white "D" color diamonds. Recent years have seen rare polished diamonds achieve all-time highs in per carat prices. 

AMETHYST 101:
Amethyst is the purple variety of quartz and is a popular gemstone. If it were not for its widespread availability, amethyst would be very expensive. The name "amethyst" comes from the Greek and means "not drunken." This was maybe due to a belief that amethyst would ward off the effects of alcohol, but most likely the Greeks were referring to the almost wine-like color of some stones that they may have encountered. Its color is unparalleled, and even other, more expensive purple gemstones are often compared to its color and beauty. Amethyst usually grows as crystals that are six sided on either end, and it also can form as drusy which are crystalline crusts covering the host rock surface. It is found inside geodes and in alluvial deposits all around the world and occurs in both crystalline or massive forms. It is the manganese present in clear quartz that produces amethyst, and it is the amount of iron contained in the specimen which determines the depth of purple. Although it must always be purple to be amethyst, it can and does have a wide range of purple shades. Amethyst also is produced in shades of green, known as Prasiolite. Amethyst can occur as long prismatic crystals that have a six sided pyramid at either end or can form as druzes that are crystalline crusts that only show the pointed terminations. As a mineral specimen, amethyst is popular for its color and nice crystal shapes that produce a handsome, purple, sparkling cluster. Often cut gems of amethyst are graded using the terms: African, Brazilian, Siberian, Uruguayan or Bahain; to represent high, medium and low grades respectively, regardless of the actual source. Because of the patchyness of the color distribution in the crystals, Amethyst is often cut as brilliant round cuts to maximize the color. Other custom and exotic cuts can be used when the color is better distributed.
Hand-wrapped gemstone and crystal jewelry brings smiles. CrystalsCrystals.com hand-wrapped jewelry designs feature beautiful beads designed and crafted by independent artists throughout the world. Many of the artists are women in villages who are involved in various women's empowerment programs. We support their efforts by purchasing their beads and incorporating them into the original designs created for CrystalsCrystals.com. Art made by special hands in far away places such as SriLanka, Gulu Uganda, Kumasi Ghana, Bangladesh, Kenya, Nepal and Honduras. The art of these woman is both beautiful and pride-inspiring to own and wear. Many times these beads are a perfect fit in the jewelry visions I create, and for me supporting the art of indigenous artisans is an honor, and a welcome benefit to my artistry. A CrystalsCrystals.com purchase can be good for the soul.
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