Shiny...Pretty... or what I did at the Gem and Jewelry Show

If you couldn't tell from my prior post, the G&J show is one of the highlights of my season. I love to see the trends - what stones, what colors, what styles - that, in my experience, often show up in stores soon thereafter.

This trip, I heard "the onion briolette" was an upcoming trend. I'm increasingly seeing this cut, but it was interesting to hear from the point of view of the sellers that they saw this as a trend.

Generally, I pick up colors and styles that appeal to me - not necessarily because I have a piece in mind or that it's trending, but just because I like it and think it interesting. As a result, I've amassed quite a palette of colors, textures and cuts to work with once I sit down to create. Setting a budget is essential (unless you're independently wealthy) because it's very easy to get carried away. I usually go over my budget, but I know when I hit that threshold it really has to be fantastic to get me to go beyond!

This trip I did pretty well. I stayed within $20 of the budget I set. I was pleased with the treasures I found. I was mainly looking for 4mm and 6mm beads to integrate into my button pendant necklaces. I want to make those more interesting. I was also looking for briolettes in pinks, purples and greens, but didn't find anything as large as I would like. (Thus, my onion briolette conversation!) And I'm always on the lookout for pearls for wedding jewelry.

I found a pretty little acorn cast in silver that I'm still creating around in my head. There were some lovely coral colored cloisonne flowers and some Tibetan looking beads with red glass cabochons. I also found some beautiful carved coral flowers that offer many possibilities.

My FAVORITE find, however, was a strand of pink amethyst onion briolettes. The fact that they were pink amethyst was fun enough, but what made them extraordinary was the aurora borealis coating (AB) that's been fired onto them. It really gives them interesting texture and I'm thinking of combining them with keshi pearls to bring out that lovely array of color. That's assuming I can ever bring myself to pay for the quality of pearls they deserve!

So anyway, more fun options and a wonderful time with a new friend. You can't beat that!