Special & Sparkly – There’s Just Nothin’ Like a Handmade Gift!

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Awhile back, I had a delicious and fun brunch with some lovely lady friends (side note – it’s incredibly uplifting when you experience first hand, women supporting women – Yay!). Anyhoo’s… I was wearing a Swarovski Crystal necklace that I handmade myself, and I hear from across the room…I love Harmony’s necklace, I need one just like that in my life!

I was deeply touched that she liked my jewelry style and to be honest, when you hear something so nice about your creative work, you just never forget it! Right then, I was inspired to make her one! Fast forward a couple of months later, because you know, life gets busy…it’s her Birthday and what a perfect time to surprise her with her very own necklace. Oh what fun it is to be able to make gifts for the people in your life that you know will sincerely appreciate them!

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Let the creativity begin…

When you’re making jewelry for someone else, either as a gift, or for resale, I believe the best place to start, is to draw their unique personality into your heart. Then think about who they are, their lifestyle and what they like to wear. Ultimately, all of these aspects come together to reveal what they are drawn to and how they express themselves. This is an excellent foundation to begin creating something distinctive just for them, that you know they will truly love.

This particular friend is a tough woman, with lots of talents, she’s a personal trainer (her muscles don’t lie 🙂 She’s also an esthetician, a wifey, and a mom, so I wanted to make her something that was bold, but not too bold, pretty, but not overly feminine, and something somewhat simple, so that she could wear it with all of the proverbial “hats” that she wears. Here’s what I came up with…

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The color pallet that I chose was Grey. I’m sure all of you hip fashionista’s know that grey tones have been wildly popular in the last couple of years. It’s true what they say; Grey is the new black, so I thought this would be a perfect tone to compliment her wardrobe style.

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I started with the 6106-22mm Swarovski Crystal Pearshape Pendant in the new Graphite color. This was the going to be the focal point of the necklace, and I incorporated similarly colored crystal beads to compliment this influence.

I didn’t want this crystal necklace to have a pattern, I wanted it to be asymmetrical to give it a little bit of an edgy look.

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I added the 5328-4mm Swarovski Crystal Bicone Beads in Graphite. I also used the 5328-3mm, 4mm, 6mm & 8mm Swarovski Crystal Bicone Beads in Black Diamond and Black Diamond AB. I utilized the Swarovski Crystal 5000-4mm & 6mm Round Beads in Black Diamond and Black Diamond AB,  as well as the Swarovski Crystal 5000-5mm & 6mm Round Beads in Crystal Satin.

There are three different grey tones that Swarovski offers in their 5810 Round Crystal Pearls and I chose to use the Grey color. It’s a medium tone that works well in this piece, but I also could have also easily used the Dark Grey.

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I integrated one larger bead on one side to give it some depth and distinction, which was the Swarovski Crystal 5650-16mm Cubist Beads in Crystal Silver Shade. I love this style and the light sparkly hues of the Crystal Silver Shade create an extra touch of elegance.

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For the final details, I included a few thin silver-toned flower spacers throughout the piece, especially where the crystals met the pearls. This helped to unify the silver toggle clasp with the sprinkles of silver throughout the necklace.

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Overall, I loved how it turned out and more importantly, SHE did too!

Her eyes lit up and she put it on right away! Even though we were camping, hiking and playing games in the beautiful mountains of Colorado, she wore it all day!

Happy Friend = Happy ME 🙂

I’ve been making handmade gifts for friends and family ever since I can remember, and it honestly never gets old! That same fantastic, fuzzy feeling pulses through me as I eagerly watch them open…..and….YAY! Excitement and gratitude are abound!

I hope this inspires you to make your own handmade jewelry as gifts, or resale, because you really can’t ever go wrong by surprising someone with SPARKLES! I’m always happy to help you with any color, style, or design combinations you may be interested in!

Shine Bright Sparkle Tribe!swarovski_authorized_reseller

At Rainbows of Light we only sell Genuine Swarovski Crystals Wholesale to the Public, offering you thousands of shapes, colors and sizes to choose from. We have no tax or surcharges and always provide Free U.S. Shipping on all orders over $100.00. This Guarantees you receive the best prices anywhere on all your favorite Swarovski Crystals!
We can order anything Swarovski makes within the components division – even if it’s not listed on our website rainbowsoflight.com. Please contact us for anything you’re interested in, as we are ALWAYS happy to help!
Harmony and Kashi
Keep Smiling & Keep Shining!
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Magnificent Marsala ~ 5 Inspiring Swarovski Crystal Jewelry Designs for the Stylist in You!

Marsala Pantone Color of the Year 2015

(Color Love – Pantone Marsala by suelibertiny on Polyvore)

My new color crush is emphatically, marvelous Marsala!

I adore this color, not only because it’s the color of the year, but because it provides a versatile platform for which so many complementary colors can emerge from, such as deeper or lighter red colors, as well as purple or pinkish – salmon hues. This intoxicating tone also has the added benefit of pairing incredibly well with standard colors, such as gold, silver, white and black.

You just can’t go wrong with the multi-talented Marsala!

Swarovski Marsala Ruby and Gold Bracelet

Bracelet designed by Fineheart handmade jewelry on Etsy.

This gorgeous Swarovski Crystal bracelet features the 5520 Graphic beads in Ruby along with charming accents of 5020 Helix Beads in Crystal Golden Shadow. These color combinations work remarkably well with the 14K gold wire and clasp, creating a stately, sophisticated and high-end piece.

Swarovski Crystal Pearl Bordeaux Bracelet with silver pave beads

This bracelet design was created by DebraAnnCreations found on her Etsy page.

This beautifully simple yet very elegant Swarovski Bordeaux Pearl bracelet is accentuated with silver crystal pave beads. The silver really pops against the rich maroon-like red pearls.

 Marsala pearl and crystal necklace with silver tones

This twisted pearl and crystal necklace was created by JoyKatharine found on her Etsy site.

The berry-like tones found in Marsala pairs exceptionally well with silver hues as well. This multi-stranded Burgundy, Blackberry and Light Grey Swarovski Pearl necklace incorporates a touch of sparkle creating a youthful, energetic look that is fashionably chic. These are not Swarovski crystals, so to make this more of a luxurious, timeless piece, incorporate Swarovski Beads in light to medium grey tones such as Crystal Silver Shade, Crystal Satin or Black Diamond.

Swarovski Crystal Ruby, Padparadascha and Light Rose Earrings

These earrings were designed by Crystal Victoria found on her Flicker page.

Similar Marsala colors include Siam and Ruby which coalesce especially well with soft pink and salmon-like hues such as Light Rose and Padparadscha found in these lovely Swarovski Crystal Bicone earrings. A natural complimentary tone to tie these influences together is gold or rose-gold finishes.

 Swarovski Marsala Burgundy Emerald Cut Necklace

This necklace was made by BeYourselfJewelry and found on their Etsy page.

This stunning necklace is so captivating, it’s a standalone Burgundy beauty!

The Swarovski 4627-27 x 18.5mm Emerald Cut Fancy Stone boasts a brilliantly robust and earthy red wine color. This elegant style radiates an exquisite faceting structure that is graceful and timeless.

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“The best way to predict the future, is to create it!” ~ Peter Drucker

You have a wealth of brilliant, sparkling potential inside you… now go have fun and create it!

Swarovski Color and Trend Inspirations Spring/Summer 2015 – Progressive Theme Color Inspirations

Swarovski_Color_InspirationSwarovski Crystal Color Inspirations for Spring/Summer 2015 Innovations

This beautiful display of colorful crystals begins on the left with the vibrantly stunning Crystal Astral Pink, which is a gorgeous blend of hot pink and orange hues coated with an iridescent rainbow effect. This unique finish has been extremely popular and will continue to be so as we move into the warmer months of summer and will be a nice transitional color moving into the fall with hints of Crystal Chili PeperCrystal Copper and Crystal Brandy undertones. It’s a fabulous color to pair with the new Tangerine color as well as Topaz, Topaz AB , Topaz AB-2X, Fire Opal, and Fire Opal AB. For a softer look pair with Light Peach or for a little more sparkle Light Peach AB. Furthermore, it serves as a beautiful blend into the bright pink hues of Fuchsia and deeper to lighter purple tones such as Amethyst, LilacLight Amethyst, and Violet.

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Swarovski Transfer Flag Color Inspiration from the Progressive Theme

The Crystal Lilac Shadow is a gorgeous coating expressing  a unique purple and crystal effect, which you can see above blends nicely with the purple hues as well as a transitional color into the blue family tones. Lavender is a soft blue hue that works perfectly as a transition color into Light Sapphire and then into the rich Sapphire blue. For a more subtly blue family start with the very light coating of of Crystal Blue Shade, which transitions nicely into Denim Blue, Crystal Montana Blend, Montana and Montana Satin.

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Swarovski Transfer Flag Color, Product and Material Information

Fern Green, Dark Moss Green, Emerald and Emerald Champagne are rich and vibrant green tones, that blend beautifully with the lighter Peridot and Chrysolite greens.

Jet black is a classic color that goes with almost everything and Swarovski has created many beautiful coatings and transitional colors that successfully blend into clear Crystal and Silver. Jet Hematite is an elegant coating applied to Jet that gives it a silver sparkle to half of the bead and Jet Hematite 2X is a fully coated version of this. This then can unify all of the grey to silver tones such as Crystal Silver Night, Crystal Satin, Black Diamond, Crystal Silver Shade, Crystal Moonlight, Clear Crystal and then Crystal CAL (which stands for Comet Argent Light) for a half silver and half crystal look, moving finally into Crystal CAL 2X, for a fully coated silver appearance.

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Swarovski Components Flag Color Inspiration

A blend of African and Asian culture is expressed through patterning and bold colors to create a stunning yet simple effect.

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Swarovski Components Flag Color, Product and Material Information

Swarovski Color Chat

Swarovski Color Chart: View All of the Color Codes and Colors of the Rainbow

Swarovski Elements Rainbows of Light

Fashion Trends and Color Inspirations for the New SWAROVSKI ELEMENTS Fall and Winter 2014/15 Innovations! Featuring Progressive Nature’s Lab

Progressive Nature Lab Swarovski Fashion Trends

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The design world has its focus firmly on the future with the rapid ascension of 3D printing. “Indeed, the future will see us able to buy an item online and print it out at home. With digital files so easily manipulated, it will also enable companies to more quickly adapt their products as to what works, or let the user themselves experiment with the design to enable true personalization.” (Peter Weijmarshausen, CEO and cofounder of 3D printing marketplace and community Shapeways.) With the escalation of 3D printing capabilities, the architectural and sculptural will offer a different sense of luxury. In parallel with this, the designs of the future remain firmly committed to green issues. These concerns, coupled with the advance in technology, have created an entirely new design ethic, with structures mimicking nature enjoying a new-found success as wearable pieces of art. In what has been termed “Next Nature,” technology and nature will now coexist, with nature providing endless inspiration for technology. The meeting of these polar opposites – nature and science – is transforming not only urban spaces but also our wardrobes.

THE MOOD

Progressive the mood Swarovski Fashion and Color Trends

Repetition of organic patterns look as complex and detailedas nature’s element.

“Fabrics normally reserved for the evening are worn in the day.”

Technology and nature merge with a focus on the biological in-futuristic materials.

Advanced technical possibilities and the rise of 3D printing create personalized jewelry and fashion forms.

Functionality and easy usage are crucial for New Segments.

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Progressive Product Inspiration Swarovski Fashion and Color Trends

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Small to medium graphic shapes merge with natural organics for a new look.

Crystals in gray and metallic tones add subtle shine to industrial designs.

Nature-inspired organic cuts mimic unique, biological structures and forms.

The repetitive outline of Cupchains is reminiscent of skeletons and spines.

Ceramics with their natural soft luster contrast perfectly with transparent crystal colors to create an unexpected, fashion-forward look.

Crystaltex, with its shimmering radiance, highlights the perfect blend of nature and technology.

The deep, vital radiance of Dark Moss Green perfectly emulates the lush green of nature.

Jewelry designed by Philippe Audibert

JEWELRY INSPIRATION MADE WITH  SWAROVSKI ELEMENTS

Progressive Jewelry Inpirations Swarovski Fashion and Color Trends

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SWAROVSKI CRYSTAL LEAVES EARRINGS

Swarovski Crystal Leaves Earrings jewelry design inspiration

CREATE YOUR STYLE with SWAROVSKI ELEMENTS Design Inspiration Featuring 6320 Rhombus Pendants

SWAROVSKI CRYSTAL QUEEN’S RING DESIGN & INSTRUCTIONS

Swarovski Crystal Queens Ring

Featuring the Swarovski 4627 Emerald Cut Fancy Stone encased with a beaded element of 5328 Xilion Bicone Beads in Crystal CAL 2X.

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Swarovski Crystal Ring

Featuring Swarovski 5601 Cube Bead, Round Stones and Fancy Stones

Inspiration is taken from technology and nature to create colors, cuts, and shapes that merge nature with technical materials and production techniques.

SWAROVSKI COLOR COMBINATION INSPIRATIONS

Progressive Color Combination Inspirations Swarovski Fashion and Color Trends

Featuring the following Swarovski colors; Clear Crystal, Crystal Luminous Green, Crystal Golden Shadow, Lime, Chrysolite, Peridot, Fern Green, Dark Moss Green, Olivine, Emerald, Crystal Sarah, Crystal Silver Shade, Crystal Satin, Crystal Silver Night and Jet Hematite.

SWAROVSKI SEGMENT INSPIRATION

Progressive Segmant Inspiration Swarovski Fashion and Color Trends

Accessories become structured, mimicking the form of precision-cut crystal.

Broken geometry and detailed patterning in crystal influences designs.

Repetitions inspired by skeletons, biology, plants, and mechanical parts create futuristic looks.

“Tactile materials merge the high-tech with the natural.”

Organically inspired and offset crystal geometrics create a new breed of fashion and accessories.

Technological influences and natural structures come together, all adorned with radiant crystal.

Clear lines, simple shapes, and minimized complexity show up in New Segments.

TRANSFERS FLAG MADE WITH  SWAROVSKI ELEMENTS

Progressive Transfer Flag Swarovski Fashion and Color Trends

Geometric structures with deliberate attention to detail and clean lines offer a subtle yet strong design element.

Deep undercurrents of saturated green tones such as the traditional Emerald green color, blending into greens with yellowish hues infused such as Dark Moss Green, Olivine, Light Olivine.

Incorporating a soft yellow such as Crystal Champagne and then transitioning with a neutral tone such as Crystal Golden Shadow with balances nicely with the silver tones such as Crystal Silver ShadeBlack Diamond, Crystal Satin and Crystal Silver Night.

COMPONENTS FLAG MADE WITH  SWAROVSKI ELEMENTS

Progressive Components Flag Swarovski Fashion and Color Trends

Featuring unique styles inspired by the organic and geometric shapes found in nature such as the Swarovski 4230 lemon Fancy Stones with Settings, the octagon shape 2611 Solaris Flatback and the 6026 Cabochette Pendant that resembles a water droplet with it’s faceted top and completely smooth rounded base.

Placing the two-holed 5533 Column Bead vertically resembles sticks of bamboo or tree trunks that lend a trend towards nature and it’s complexities. Complimenting Swarovski Crystal Pearl Colors include Antique Brass, Dark Green, Light Green and Powdered Green for a matte look.

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“In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous.”
— Aristotle

Top 10 Pantone Fashionable Color Trends For Fall 2013! Featuring Turbulence

Pantone color trends Fall 2013 color InspirationPantone Fashionable Fall Color Trend Report Featuring Turbulence!

This fall celebrates the classic, cool grey tone of Turbulence as a chic and in vogue shade that provides a grounding neutral expression that is a cornerstone for the cooler months ahead. Grey offers a timeless and sophisticated impression that embodies a wonderful adaptable quality, in that it pairs well with all color pallets.

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The Elegant Swarovski Style 6106 Pearshape Pendant Necklace and Earring Set Featuring Crystal Silver Night

The versatility of a grey color pallet is a fabulous foundation of inspiration! It’s graceful and intriguing quality adds strength and depth to any design. The Swarovski color Crystal Silver Night is a deep and stunning grey/crystal combination with hints of lighter grey tones shinning through. Black Diamond is a traditional medium grey color that is simple and enduring.

Turbulence Gray Trend For 2013 Fall Weddings

Turbulence Wedding and Color Inspiration

The Crystal Satin has a similar influence with highlights of clear sparkling effects shinning through for a subtle elegance. The Black Diamond Satin is a strong and exquisite grey conveying a slight silver sparkle effect. Greige is a neutral color, one that brings both grey and taupe hues together seamlessly. The Crystal Silver Shade is a soft and lovely light grey crystal effect that will enhance any design.

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Wedding Dress Crystal and Grey Color Turbulence Inspiration

There are several enchanting Swarovski Pearl colors that compliment a grey color pallet. Crystal Dark Grey Pearl is a dark charcoal grey color with a touch of metallic pearlescent shine. Crystal Grey Pearl is medium in tone expressing a refined classy look with enhanced with a pearlescent coating. Crystal Light Grey Pearl is a light almost silver grey color with a lustrous quality and blends nicely with Grey and Dark Grey.

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Swarovski Crystal 3265 Cosmic Sew On Stone Featuring Crystal Silver Shade with 5328 Bicone Beads in Crystal Silver Night

Swarovski Crystal Silver Night Crystal Rocks Necklace

Swarovski Necklace Featuring the Cutting Edge Crystal Rocks Product in Crystal Silver Night

Swarovski Crystal Heart Pendants Black Diamond

Swarovski 6228 Heart Pendants Featuring Black Diamond

Smile and Sparkle On!