Visit our Gemstone Guide and Jewelry Articles for more information on the gemstones and metals used in some of our designs.

 

Cloisonné  Beads
The development of cloisonne beads is quite interesting. They are created by affixing a metal wire to the base bead to act as a color seperater, then a powdered colored glass enamel is then painted between the partitions. After a firing and polishing process, the bead is finished by electroplating in a gold or silver film. The art of cloisonne was first developed in the near east.

Czech Glass Beads
Prior to 1918, before the country was named Czechoslovakia, these beads were known as Bohemian glass. These colorful glass beads from the Czech Republic are made from a thick rod that is heated to extremely hot temperatures and is used to stamp or press the glass.

Glass Pearls (Bohemian)
The highest quality glass pearls are either Bohemian (Czech) or Swarovski (Austrian). Bohemian pearls are Czech glass beads that have been thinly coated with a pearl coating. Although they are "faux" by definition, they offer an affordable imitation look to real pearls. The only con about glass pearls is because they are coated they do carry with them the risk of the surface coating chipping or cracking, thereby exposing the plain glass bead underneath.

Swarovski Crystal Pearls
Swarovski Crystal Pearls are uniform in size (usually round) and are created by the same company that produces Swarovski Austrian Crystals. These lustrous crystal pearls are created in a similar manner as glass pearls, however, they have a thicker coating, are more durable and they do not chip, scratch or crack easily.

 

True to the Swarovski name, Swarovski Crystal Pearls also come in a variety of colors.