Monday, March 9, 2015

Old Carnelian

I've talked about my Mother-in-Law before and the fact that she grew up in India. Through the years, she collected many pieces of jewelry. Mostly from local vendors selling bits and pieces, polished stones or hand knotted jewelry. Some are simply strands of beautiful stones. This past Thanksgiving she pulled out another strand from the jewelry box to give me, and simply said "I figured you could pull this apart and create something new and pretty." She knows me well. That is for sure.

There were several types of stones in this recent strand including carnelian and a green turquoise. Typically people do not associate turquoise with India, but actually it has been mined there for centuries and there are some beautiful colors of this stone across the foothills of the Himalayas from Northern India, into Pakistan and beyond.  

As for carnelian, I have such a weakness for the rich, honey color of these stones. Especially some that have been weathered from the years like these. This pair has already become some of my favorite new earrings that I'll be wearing for years to come.

13 comments:

  1. Those earrings are gorgeous, Cynthia!

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  2. What a beautiful color these stones are! I can see why the earrings have become a favorite!

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  3. Lovely earrings and great color. What a lovely thing to be able to repurpose your mother-in-laws jewelry. I'm anxious to see the green turquoise remade!

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  4. It's a beautiful pair of earrings, made even more wonderful by the fact that they contain beads that were given to you with love.

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  5. Gorgeous earrings! I love carnelian beads.

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  6. These are beauties! Don't you love when someone gives you a piece of old jewelry to play with? It can be such a treasure to us!

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  7. Seeing them in person and seeing the little inclusions made them all the sweeter! Carnelian is in my top 3, sometimes clocking in at #1. That they came from your Mother In Law and she got them herself in India makes these earrings so special for you to wear :-) Droplets of love swaying gently from your ears.

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  8. One of the very first gemstone strands I ever purchased was Carnelian - I just love the color .... not really red...not really orange - very unique, to me! These earrings certainly shine set in silver! And, I love the fact that these stones are not "new" but now have a new life!

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  9. The silver caps are just perfect, they let the stones pulse and glow, radiating warmth. Carnelian is one of my favorites.

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  10. Those are beautiful! It was nice of your mother in law to give them to you to make such special earrings!

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  11. I never knew about turquoise and India? I love carnelian too! Gorgeous earrings!

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  12. These earrings are stunning! I can see why they'd become a quick new favorite! Also - thanks for the little tidbit about turquoise. As many others do, I simply associate it with the southwest.

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  13. Beads are always a great gift for a beader- you were blessed. The earrings are beautiful.

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