Gold bracelets

Gold Bracelets - A Buyers Guide


There are many different types of gold bracelets on the market today and different styles suit different people, so any buying guide needs to inform the consumer about as many types as possible. Whether you are into the latest fashion 'must haves' in the shape of fine jewellery lovelinks bracelets, more traditional ornate styles or the more simple gold bangles, you will be spoilt for choice both in independent jewellers shops and in the bigger chain stores.

Gold Bangle Bracelets

Gold bangle bracelets though very understated in design can show a sense of style and class purely by the reflectiveness of the gold itself catching the light as you move. There are more stylised bangles on the market however that cater for those who like to get people's attention in the street or when they're out for the evening. Stylised bangle bracelets range from simple designs, to enamelled shapes being incorporated into the bangle surround or even gold snake shaped bangles which appear as though a snake has wrapped itself around your wrist. Not a style that would appeal to everyone, but certainly eye-catching.

Gold bangles come in two main types, solid gold and hollow gold. The advantages of solid gold bangles, is that they are less likely to dent or deform than hollow bangles, however they are more expensive as you are getting more gold essentially. Plus solid gold bangle bracelets are harder wearing which means they'll last longer and can be handed down through the generations.

Gold bracelet bangles are a versatile item of jewellery which will compliment a wide range of fashions and suit any occasion whether you are attending a dinner party, birthday or going on a date they will always look classy.

Lovelink Gold Bracelets

If you are buying for the younger generation or for someone who likes to change their look on a regular basis, then you may wish to opt for lovelinks gold bracelets as they allow the wearer to become a jewellery designer themselves. They are basically bracelets with beads which are inter-changeable and the wearer can really put their own touch on the design by adding silver, gold beads and even other types of jewellery along the bracelet. Different lengths of bracelet leather are available so you can style yours to be tight around your wrist or loose with more beads. Jewellers even sell beads which have names engraved onto them, so you could have your partners name featured in your lovelinks bracelet.

Ornamental Gold Bracelets

For those of you who want a bracelet with a little more style and finesse then there are a range of handmade and ornate gold bracelets which are available on the market which have various shapes and designs. The types of designs which are available are things such as inter-twined loops, chain-links in various sizes and also bracelets with more complex loops and twists.

Two Colour Gold Bracelets

If you really want to stand out, why not consider gold bracelets made with both white and yellow gold segments. These range in style from heart shaped loops made from yellow gold and smaller intricate white gold chain links which really have the 'wow' factor. There are even some gold bracelets that are made entirely of white gold if you don't like the idea of wearing silver and don't like the colour of yellow gold.

Which ever style of gold bracelet you choose, you're sure to look classy as bangles and bracelets add another level to other types of gold jewellery. Whether you want to impress friends with unique animal shaped bangles, inter-changeable lovelinks jewellery or ornate classically styled bracelets, you'll be amazed at the choice available online or on the high street. ( By Noah Back )

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Tennis bracelets

The Diamond Tennis Bracelet

Ever wondered where the diamond tennis bracelet started? The diamond tennis bracelet has an interesting history and as a piece of beautiful jewelry it is unparalleled. Let's take a look at how this beautiful bracelet began and what custom design options are being created today.

Is It Just A Diamond Bracelet?

Diamond bracelets have been popular for a long very long time. The wrist is an ideal location to display the beauty and sparkle of diamonds, as the movement of the hand helps display the brilliance of light as it plays with the cut of your gemstones. There are various settings and clasps that can be used with a diamond bracelet, and must be considered carefully, as you might have significant value both emotionally if it was a valued gift and also in terms of dollar value. You don't want to find yourself losing your favorate piece of jewelry because of a poor clasp.

The Diamond Tennis Bracelet is Born

Chris Evert, the famous professional tennis player, did just that, lost her diamond tennis bracelet during an intense match with her opponent. Having discovered that the clasp to her bracelet broke during play, she asked the officials to hold the match until they were able to find her bracelet. Highly publicized and viewed, the association quickly became popular and now these wrist pieces are typically referred to as diamond tennis bracelets.

There are a wide selection of styles for this popular form of diamond jewelry in existence today, limited only by the creativity of the jeweler and the public's demand. You may prefer embellished tennis bracelet sets, vintage diamond bracelets, custom designer diamond bracelets, or antique bracelets. There are many options to choose from and much depends on your style and taste, though, in my experience, any of the above make an impressive and appreciated gift.

Men's AND Women's Diamond Bracelets

Another interesting aspect of the diamond bracelets development over time is the increase in men's bracelet popularity, they are not just for women any more. You can typically choose between platinum, white gold, or yellow gold for the bracelet set itself, and your selection of loose diamonds for placement will have a good deal of impact on your jewelry pieces beauty, desirability and value. As diamond jewelry is concerned the diamond tennis bracelet is here to stay as a hugely popular and beautiful means of showing your love or appreciation as a gift. One need not play tennis to appreciate the beauty and ownership of these custom diamond jewelry pieces. ( By Susan Feingold )

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Accessories fashion

Ancient Rome Fashion Accessories


Jewelry

In the early ages, jewelry worn by Romans was mainly made by Greek craftsmen and was in a predominately Greek style. They primarily worked with gold, glass and semiprecious stones. Specimens were enameled, damas-quined or plated.

As the spoils of military conquest became greater, more sophisticated stones became available, including pearls, diamonds, sapphires, and emeralds. This luxury in jewels corresponded to the periods of Roman commercial expansion during the last two centuries BC and the first two of the Christian era. Although Rome was then an important manufacturing centre, Antioch and Alexandria rivalled her in the execution of fashion accessories in the Oriental taste. Gradually Roman artisans introduced not only their filigree and granulation techniques and their decorative motifs, but also their habit of piling on precious stones.

The tendency towards luxury became more marked in the third and fourth centuries AD, with a predominance of Syrian styles represented by large gems. This translated into heavy pendants, ear-rings or crotalia, and bracelets developed into multiple convolutions.

Footwear

Roman footwear did not differ much from that of their predecessors, the Greeks, the former having adopted the essentials of Athenian fashion. In terms of style, the footwear of both peoples exhibited a marked difference between the right and the left shoe. In terms of function, however, Roman footwear adopted a new meaning: certain types of shoes were a distinctive mark of a social class.

The first roman shoes were rather simple. Known as the carbantina, they were sandals held in place by a thong. The carbantina were replaced by the calceus, a low-cut shoe with a leather sole and thongs crossed tightly over the foot and up part of the leg. Only citizens were allowed to wear the calceus.

At first, the calceus senatorum was black, then, under the late Empire, became white. It was quite high, slit on the inside and fitted with a tongue. The red leather thongs muleus were reserved for the Emperor.

Emperors wore shoes in the current styles, but made of richer materials. Gallienus launched the zancha, a high leather boot fitting closely to the leg, imported from Armenia or the Crimea.

The pero was a light boot made of raw, natural hide. It reached to the calf and laced all its length. The pero was worn in the country.

In the house, Romans wore sandals, either the solea, whose sole was fastened on by cords over the instep, or the crepida, which were leather espadrilles held on by a strap passing through eyelets, with a wide range of fastenings. Women wore the soccus, a s richly decorated slipper, or the calceoli, a term which seems to have been applied specially to shoes worn in the house. The upper of women's shoes was not divided into two pieces, as was usual for men's footwear, and women's shoes were made in red, green or yellow as well as white.

The gallicae, originally from Gaul, were closed boots, which appeared in Rome in the last century of the Republic.

Hair and headgear

During the Republic, hairstyles were simple. Roman women wore their hair parted in the middle and rolled in a chignon, or plaited it and then rolled it. There were variations as married women began to wear their hair coiled on the crown. By the time of the empire, hairstyles had become very sophisticated. The hair was still parted down the center but it could be waved, curled, or worn in a loose roll that sat low on the back of the neck. These complicated and often enormous arrangements, required the work of a hairdresser or ornatrix responsible for adjusting the false switches or wigs, or dye hair blonde or ebony black. Dyeing the hair was a common practice. Originally only prostitutes colored their hair yellow. But with time, women of all classes began to do so. Otherwise the Roman woman bound her hair with a simple red or purple vitta.

Men's hairstyles were also rather simple and careless at first. They grew their hair and beard long only during times of mourning. Baldness was a deformity, so bald men wore wigs or false hair pieces glued to the scalp. During Hadrian's time long hair and trimmed beards became fashionable and hair was crimped with curling irons.

There were several types of headgear. The galerus was a close fitted cap. The petasus, inherited from the Greeks, was a straw wide brim hat wore mostly by women, though senators were authorized to wear it at the Circus. The pileus was a men's cap made from felt, it was round and brim-less, encircling the head. The cucullus was a simple hood, attached or not to a cape.

Make-up and grooming

The thermae were more than public baths. They were social places where men met. Women had their own separate baths or visited the public baths in the morning.

A visit to the bath lasted several hours and comprised four stages. It started with the sudatorium, where bathers could be massaged with scented oil followed by the calidarium, an even hotter chamber with a hot pool. A rest break followed in the tepidarium, a warm room, to prepare the body for the cold water treatment - the frigidarium.

After bathing, they exercised by training with weights, running, or playing sport games. The less active played board games.

Cosmetics, perfume, and skin care products were very popular. Like the Greeks, women used a toxic white foundation made of lead, honey, and fat to which they added a dye made from ocher, saltpeter foam, or wine dregs for color. Soot was applied to the lashes and brows. Face masks could be made from plant extracts, but sheep fat and breadcrumbs soaked in milk were also used. Spots were treated with butter and white lead, sores - with cow placenta. ( By Adriana Allen )

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Amber jewelry

Natural Plastic Jewelry - Amber, Horn and Tortoiseshell

When we think of plastic jewelry, the first thing that comes to mind is colorful molded pieces of bakelite, acrylic or clear lucite plastics.

Long before man-made plastics were invented, jewelry was being made of natural plastics - materials that could be heated, softened, molded, carved or pressed into many designs.

One of the earliest natural plastics to be used for jewelry was Amber. Fossilized tree resin, not sap, amber is 30 to 50 million years old, and is often called "The Gold of the North", since much amber was found in the northern Baltic states and in Poland.

Amber's color ranges from a warm pale yellow, to the familiar honey-gold, to almost black. Clear amber is highly prized, and opaque amber lends itself to intricate carvings and shapes. Some amber jewelry can be found with pre-historic insects embedded inside. Amber lends itself to beautiful beads, pendants, earrings and rings. Beginning in the 1920s and 1930s, amber was imitated by less expensive synthetic plastics such as bakelite and celluloid. To test for amber, you could heat a pin and insert it into an inconspicuous part of the piece. The pin should go in easily. It's better to have a professional non-invasive test performed by a jeweler.

Amber jewelry is plentiful, and can be found at reasonable prices. It pairs beautifully with silver, and the golden color complements any complexion.

Horn and Tortoiseshell have been made into jewelry since ancient times. Natural horn from buffaloes and other animals was ground up, pressed into molds and heated to form boxes, buttons, hair combs and jewelry pieces such as pins and brooches. Natural horn has an uneven, crackled surface, and feels hollow. If burned, it smolders and has an odor like burned hair. Again, a professional opinion is preferred to possibly damaging a vintage piece of horn jewelry.

Tortoiseshell, familiar in its synthetic form as eyeglass frames, is actually made from the shells of Hawksbill turtles. It was used to make boxes, hair combs and jewelry in the late nineteenth century. Real tortoiseshell has an irregular natural grain, will burn with a flame and has the odor of burned hair.

If you have the opportunity to purchase jewelry pieces made of amber, horn or tortoiseshell, be sure that you are getting the genuine article and not a synthetic plastic imitation. Deal only with reputable sellers, and ask for a written guarantee that you are getting the real thing. Have the piece tested by a professional, and care for it as you would any piece of fine jewelry. Keep it clean, wipe it with a soft cloth after each wearing, and store it carefully. ( By Deena O'Daniel )

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Cut princess

Princess Cut Diamond Ring - Make Her Happy!


There are many places to buy rings from. If you really want to make her happy, you need a princess cut diamond ring! Let us find the best!A diamond ring is essential, and a princess cut diamond ring, is even more essential! So, you want to make her happy, and it is shopping time.

These rings can be expensive, so what are you to do? Why not save? Saving doesn't have to compromise on quality, and can make all the difference.

The first point to remember, is that you can actually go through and save quite a lot and still have the quality!

The first step is to remember the options. There are many options, and they can be found.

The first place that most people look, is through the jewelry stores, but jewelry stores are actually not the best place to look, if you really want to save.

What jewelery stores allow, is the ability to see and item, and buy it there and then. Price wise, and selection wise, they often don't contain a great deal of options.

So, some people visit several places, but the key to success, is being able to find wider options.

The first point to remember is that there are mail order options, and this can be good, however, the best option I have found, is to go online.

There are many online jewelry stores, and they can actually save a lot of money. The first point to remember is that researching them is essential, and it is a good idea to make sure they have the association bodies logo or something that shows they have genuine items. ( By Sarah Reddingworth )

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Amethyst pendant

Amethyst - The Calming Quartz

What is an amethyst?

A member of the quartz family, amethyst is the world's most valuable quartz gemstone. Unique for its crystalline structure, it is best known for its varying shades of violet. This eye-catching quartz can be found in mauve, lavender, lilac, or the deepest of purple, offering a shade to fit anyone's taste. Through heating, the stone can produce gorgeous yellow-hued quartz, called Citrine, as well as Prasiolite, a lovely green variation.

Where does amethyst come from?

Siberia once had magnificent deposits of amethyst in the Ural Mountains. The most desired color, deep purple with rose-red tint and even blue tints, came out of these deposits. Like many ancient gemstone mines, it was depleted long ago. Today, your amethyst pendant probably originated in Brazil or Uruguay, though some do come from Sri Lanka, Mexico and Arizona as well.

Mythology

The name is Greek for "sober." Now, this makes sense once you hear the story of Bacchus. He was the Roman god of wine and revelry. One day, he was in a foul mood and set his tigers on the next person to cross his path. This unlucky person happened to be a maiden named Amethyst who was on her way to the Goddess Diana's temple. Diana turned her into a pillar of quartz to stop the tiger attack. Bacchus was so remorseful; he poured wine over the pillar as an apology and stained the pillar purple.

As a result, the stone was believed to have the power to stave off drunkenness. In fact, the ancient Greeks and Romans would carve drinking goblets from the violet quartz rather than wear them as amethyst and diamond rings, in an attempt to remain sober as they drank their wine.

Birthstone for February

Celebrating a birthday in February? You might want to start hinting for the amethyst and diamond bracelet you've been wanting. As a February baby, you have a right because it is your birthstone. Of course, everyone can ask for and wear it, but you have a special connection.

If your 6th wedding anniversary is coming up, you've got another opportunity to hint for jewelry made from the crystalline gemstone. Amethyst rings come in a variety of cuts and colors to fit any personality.

Healing Properties

You already read how the quartz can ward off drunkenness, but it has other healing properties as well. It is said to have a calming effect on the wearer invoking peaceful and loving feelings. It also bestows courage and protection on whoever wears it. Soldiers going into battle may have worn an amethyst pendant or carried a carving made from the violet quartz to keep them safe.

How to care for your gemstone

Quartz is fairly strong and this gemstone ranks a 7 in hardness. It is more than strong enough for everyday wear, but at a mere 1/15th the hardness of a diamond, taking care with it is recommended. To bring back the lost sheen of a gemstone ring, soak it in soapy warm water and wipe with a soft cloth. ( By Andrew Stratton )

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Cross pendants

Multi-Color Murano Cross Pendants - How to Get the Best Price

A multi-color Murano cross pendant is probably one of the most popular religious jewelries in the world. You cannot miss Madonna or George Michael with their customary cross pendants while performing on stage. Whether they did it for religious significance is yet to be determined. But fans have liked them for both secular and non-secular reasons. And the result is that there is an increase in the sale of cross pendants. There are various types available in the market, but the Murano cross pendants stands out among the lot.

The pendant is designed exquisite care and has great artistic value. It has a multi-colored cross and the cross is embedded in silver setting. Wearing this pendant is like making a style statement. Moreover you will be getting matching earrings with this pendant. The earrings will be either oval shaped or square shaped. Before you buy the Murano cross pendant, you should first understand that a pendant is not as same as a charm. A charm is much smaller in size, and they are designed in such a manner so that they can hang from a chain or a bracelet.

But with pendants, there are larger and they can be gifted in any occasion. The charms are generally gifted for luck. When you think of shopping the multi-color Murano cross pendant, you will have two options. One of them is the local store, while the other will be an online store. There are advantages and disadvantages for both of them. However the risk factor is greater with online shops, if you do not choose to be careful. With local shops, you have the option of looking at different pendants before you can finally come to a decision. With online shops, you can only look through the catalogue and the picture in the catalogue might not be the same as the real piece of jewelry.

With an online shop, you have the option of getting a hefty discount on price. The discount can range up to 65%. Moreover if you are one of those few people who love to shop in a peaceful atmosphere, you will love the whole concept of buying the pendant from the comfortable confines of the house. If the multi-color Murano cross pendant is embedded in silver setting, you can buy it with less hassles. However if it happens to have gold setting, them you need to know a little more about gold. To enrich your knowledge, you can easily take help of the Internet which is full of useful information.

24 k is generally termed as pure gold. But you should never buy a 24k gold pendant as the gold will be soft and prone to damage. When you are buying jewelry, the best option is the 14k. Gold which is termed as 14k contains 59% gold. Alloy is added to the gold to make the jewelry strong and durable. The latest trend is white gold. The color is white as manufacturers add nickel or palladium to gold. When you look at the pendants you are bound to be impressed. White gold goes well with diamond and platinum and other precious jewels. ( By John Harley )

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