New necklaces

Those who have been following my blog definitely know about my weakness for jewelry. Pieces in my collection are not really expensive, what attracts me is an interesting design or colours combination, stones or handcraft work. And today I want to show you new additions to my collection, necklaces only. And the first one is a glass necklace from Monsoon. This one was gifted to me by my daughter who obviously knows my taste well enough to chose a piece that I would love. And I do love it!

Jewelry purchases: necklaces

Today I want to show you a few of my recent jewelry purchases, all necklaces as it turns out. They all are made in Nepal and the first three are from same brand, Women's expressions, though I bought them at different time, not all at once. The coral imitating necklace is the very latest addition to my collection, I bought it just a week ago during an International Fair Trade. The Women's Expressions always participate in such kind of events and it is actually there that I purchase their pieces, because they don't have a retail boutique. The necklace caught my eye straight away: bright red colour, interesting design and simply beautiful in overall. Being made from simple beads it looks so striking. And it was not expensive. That's how it looks on me

My peacock jewelry collection

This beautiful peacock set - a pendant, earrings and a ring - I got on Christmas from my husband. It is made from silver but the stones are not real. I am really charmed by it and can't help but sharing it here on the blog. And at the same time it is a good excuse to show you my other peacock jewelry. Somehow, I've got quite a collection. Most of the pieces are bijouterie but there are a few real things.

Sea horse jewelry

Just showing off today my new sea horse earrings that I found recently in a local boutique. Nothing that much special about them, bijouterie, and yet I couldn't resist them, so cute and pretty they seemed to me. I believe it is the sea horse design that attracted me in the first place. That's how the earrings look on me. Obviously, any sea theme jewelry would look great accessorizing a nautical outfit and so I am wearing one here.

Navaratna jewelry

In Nepal, as well as in India, you can often see women (and sometimes men) wearing different multi-stoned pieces of jewelry: pendants, rings, bangles. If you count the presented gems the number will be nine. And those are not just random choice of stones and not random arrangement of them. This type of jewelry is called navaratna and it has a special meaning and purpose. The nine gems represent sun, moon, five planets and the ascending and descending phases of the moon's cycle (together loosely referred to as nine planets).

Yet another Anarkali!

On Monday we were invited to the celebration of the 50th wedding anniversary of an Indian couple. That was the first time that I attended someone's Golden Wedding. What a great occasion! What a great achievement I would say! It is very touching to see two people who spent so many years together, through all the challenges, disappointments, battles, ups and downs that life brings. They looked happy and excited, a little bit confused of all the fuss and attention.

Medieval style Swarovski pendant

I spotted this necklace at the Swarovski boutique right before the earthquake. And then of course, after all the events, I forgot all about it. But recently while passing by the boutique I saw it displayed in the window and this time I liked it even more. And then I suddenly thought that I do need some reward for being through all the quake-related stress. And the best thing that can really cheer me up is a new jewelry piece. Besides, as people are not much interested in buying jewelry nowadays here, there was a nice discount proposal. Doubts aside, I went in and bought it after getting 30% off.

Peacock bra: Nepali jewelers' masterpiece

Today I want to show you how talented and imaginative Nepali jewellers are and what they are really capable of creating. This unique piece made by RB Diamond Jewellers was featured at the Jewelry Show in Kathmandu a couple of months ago. The peacock bra/blouse is made of 9-carat gold and decorated with a total of 3000 precious and semi-precious stones, including diamonds, rubies, sapphires, emeralds, pearls, kyanite and aquamarine. The blouse is held by the pearl strings which are connected at the back and attached to a gold flower. It took about a year to be completed. I have no idea how comfortable it feels wearing this thing but what I know is that it looks stunning.

Indian jewelry: meenakari

Meenakari pendant. Northern India, 18th century. The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

The art of enamelling is called meenakari in India. It was introduced by the Mughals during the seventeenth century. Later skilled meenakars from the Mughal palace were brought and established in Jaipur, which became the centre of meenakari work. Today there are two major jewelry enamelling centres in India with its own distinctive traditional style of work: Jaipur and Benares. The highest quality enamelled jewelry still can be found in Jaipur and some of the finest work being made today is comparable in every way with the best of the Mughal jewelry.

Indian wedding party

In the beginning of December we were invited to a wedding in Jaipur. This Indian city is like a dream itself and to attend a wedding there would be like to find oneself in a fairy-tale. I especially want to see a groom arriving to the bride's house on an elephant. The invitation, actually four of them for each day of the four-day-long celebration, is one of the most beautiful I've ever received.

Surreal clay jewelry

Bone cat brooch

When I first saw jewelry by Ukrainian designer Lera Procopets who works under pseudonym Valeria Myrusso I experienced mixed feelings; her creations are surreal, sometimes a bit disturbing or even creepy (in her collection you can find, for example, a crow skull pendant or bone phalanges hairpins) but nevertheless strangely beautiful and mysteriously appealing. Lera often gets inspired by fairy tales, myths and legends and so, images of many odd creatures appear on her jewelry. She works with polymer clay, coral, semiprecious stones, shells, metal though some of the details she simply finds at flea markets. Each piece of her handcrafted jewelry is unique, there are no replicas or duplicates in her collections.

Indian jewelry: thewa work

Thewa brooch, 19th century, Chased gold over blue glass, set in gilt silver. The Victoria and Albert Museum

Another type of traditional Indian jewelry that I want to tell you about is thewa (another spelling is theva) work. This technique is unique not only to India but to only one its region - Patrabharh town in Rajasthan. Nowhere else in India this skill and fine expertise exists. It was invented in 1767 by a local goldsmith. The technique has been kept secret since then and knowledge of theva work passed from father to son who start learning it at an early age. At present there are four families of goldsmiths in Partabgarh who carry on with this tradition.

Indian jewelry: tarakashi filigree

Brooch with floral motif and butterfly, Kerala, India, c. 1853. Silver filigree. Victoria and Albert Museum

I believe everybody knows what filigree is. This kind of jewelry is created in many countries and each has its own distinctive features. In India it is called by Persian word tarakashi. In this delicate and time-consuming style of jewelry is made mostly from gold or silver wire here. It is amusing how relatively small amount of metal can be transformed into a surprisingly long length of wire. For example, one once (28.35 g) of gold can be drawn into a single hair-thin wire 35 miles (21.8 km) long. And this makes the filigree attractive to both jewelers and customers as a minimal amount of precious metal is needed to create beautiful pieces with a lacy appearance.

Jewelry by Dashi Namdakov: totemic animals and mythological creatures

Perhaps this name - Dashi Namdakov - is not familiar to you. He is a Buryat sculptor and a graphic artist, living in Russian Siberia near the Lake Baikal. In 2000 he became a sensation in the art world. His works are unique and original, they are inspired by the traditions of the people of Siberia, Buryat legends and tales, and ancient art of China and Japan. But what I want to show you today is his jewelry. It is as unusual and original as his sculptures and resembles historical artifacts. He balances both traditional and non-traditional materials, such as silver, gold and mammoth tusk, in one piece, finishing it with colorful precious stones. Inspired by ancient amulets and talismans thought to bring luck or defend from evil, the artist’s wild birds and animals, insects and anthropomorphic creatures have a distinctly unique style.

Dress and accessories from the Museum of London collection

Museum of London was the first in Britain to publish a catalogue of its costume collection in 1933. There are over 24,000 objects in the collection, dating from the Tudor period to the present day, though you can see only around 60 complete outfits and 200 accessories on display in the museum's galleries. Here are a few interesting pieces that I personally liked during my recent visit to the museum.

A tiara front or comb mount, 1840. Made from stamped and pressed gold and set with a variety of coloured gemstones.

Cowrie shells in jewelry and adornments

Kojima cowrie shells necklace with a large Chinese fresh water accent pearl

From my first visit to India I brought as souvenir a cowrie shells necklace that resembled the one on the photo above (unfortunately it got lost somewhere). Cowrie shells have long been valued for personal adornment in India and other countries of Southeast Asia, as well as Africa. What made this shell attractive is its unique appearance, its hard glossy surface and its extreme durability.

Amethyst pendant and buying gem stones online

A few days ago I received a parcel from India with an amethyst pendant that I ordered online from GemPundit. What I like about this pendant is 1) the stone itself which changes its colour from bluish purple to reddish lilac depending on light and angle of viewing

Yellow sapphire: a blend of style and elegance

One of my friends here in Nepal got engaged during my holiday in Belarus. When we met a few days ago the happy bride-to-be showed me proudly her engagement ring. It was not a common diamond solitaire ring (as I would expect). Instead the ring consisted of a medium size yellow stone surrounded by two hearts. So sweet...The yellow stone turned out to be a sapphire. She asked her boyfriend to buy her a ring precisely with yellow sapphire.

this ring looks of very similar design to that of my friend's

I'm sure that most of you if asked about the colour of this precious stone would have answered "blue". Indeed, the deep royal blue is the most popular colour for sapphire and has been so for eternity. However, this beautiful gem comes in a myriad of other fascinating and attractive colors: from pink and orange to green and yellow. The stone really offers itself in a range of shades.
When I asked the woman "why yellow sapphire after all?" she confidently gave me several "because-s". Firstly, because it is her birth stone (she was born in September) and wearing it as an engagement ring will bring her prosperity, peace and happiness. Secondly, "lemon zest" is among top ten "in trend" colours now and yellow sapphire makes a good match for this one. Thirdly, because she didn't want a common diamond ring but craved for something unusual and different.

New purchase: gem-stoned butterfly necklace

When I was in Belarus one of the stones in my turquoise bracelet fell out and got lost of course. I was really pissed off and upset because I wore the bracelet just a few times and now this. Last week I went to one of the jewelry shops in Thamel to find out whether it is possible to fix. As I have suspected to find the stone of exactly same shade and size was not possible but anyway the guy managed to chose one very similar and put it the the hole. It took him around 15-20 min ro complete the work and costed me just 5$. The bracelet looks like new and among 10 other stones the new one doesn't look that much different. I am happy.
Anyway, while the master was doing his work I was bored and of course started to look around. And then I saw this beautiful necklace with a pendant in the shape of a butterfly with multi-coloured stones. Love from the first sight. After little bargaining I got the treasure in my possession.
There are five gemstones input the the pendant: green peridot, pink tourmaline, purple amethyst, yellow topaz and transparent-blue aquamarine. A few words about each of the stones.

Human stuff jewelry and body decorations

Bracelet, 1830. Gold, hair work. The two oval miniatures set into the buckle depict William and Mary of England.

What materials have people not used throughout history to create jewelry and body decorations : stones, shells, wood, metal, seeds, animal horns, feathers, glass. But the most odd and shocking one is the human stuff: hair, teeth, bones. The least appalling (at least for me) of the three is hair. Jewelry made with hair is dated back to at least the 1600's, when hair bracelets were given as love tokens by both men and women. During this time one was likely to find the hair placed under glass and used as a background for initials or some other personal symbol to the wearer.