Saturday, February 02, 2013

Auditioning Stones

Stones are everywhere in jewelry nowadays, and I find myself also drawn to them even more than usual. As I've started anew in the studio this year, I've been pulling out the stash and exploring what I can do with the stones I've collected over time. Of course, I want to shop for new stones (more on that soon), but I need to utilize what I already own.


So I whipped up some 6mm bezel cup studs to hang flower drops from. It's time to set stones and I'm trying to decide which direction to go. It seems lately that most of what I've made is in the aqua family, like these gorgeous rainbow topazes, but there are plenty of other choices. I purchased several sets of rose cut stones last summer, including these amethysts.


There are more contrasty options available, like salmon coral, shown here (the color is too intense on my monitor; it's paler in real life) with another plain light blue topaz.


Or perhaps a neutral would be better, like moonstone? Then again, green is the color of the year (and my personal favorite), so perhaps the best combo is these rose cut peridots.

What do you think?