Can a girl ever get enough Turquoise ...

When I saw these oddly shaped nugget chunks I instantly envisioned chips and sterling silver ...

Look mom, I'm designing ...

scarves for holiday gifts ...

this Roseanne Peachskin Pasiley is my favorite.  I brightened the picture up so you can see the lovely coloring.  This one I keep for myself, along with this Three Strand Kambaba Jasper and Sterling Silver necklace ...

3 Strand Multi-colored Coconut Wood and Sterling Silver

Coconut wood and sterling silver

I love these colors, but ... did I make a mistake in going out and buying 2 pounds of these lovely lite weigh multi-colored (cream, tan, brown and black) oval coconut wood beads???  I'm at a loss for what to do with them.  I mean, I put them out on my three strand bead board and oogled them for two days.  Last night I decided enough oogling - I grabbed four sterling silver oval twist beads and a bag of sterling silver spacers.  Here's what I came up with, somebody tell me what you think?

Honey Maple Wood

About three weeks ago I visited my local bead shop.  I walked in and was greeted by everyone and momma came out from back and said Hi!  She's adorable and reminds me of my mom she's so tiny.  Instantly I spied behind the counter, a big, bold, honey/green/gold/jade 22mm puffed oval Honey Jasper choker.  This was no ordinary puppy, this was the big daddy for sure!!!  I couldn't believe my eyes.  Momma said, Honey Jasper, you like?  I blinked about 10 times, and here's how the next few seconds played out (after I gathered my wits my hands went to my neck and I poised myself):

Lovely, how much?  $165  Choker only?  Yes  Do you have a strand?  No.  Can you order another strand?  Let me see.  Can you wait ...  Sure, find me and let me know.

Folks, I couldn't believe my eyes.  I was in love for real.  But $165???   I could buy a lot for that and make my own, but ....

As I walked around and around I couldn't for the life of me find anything that remotely resembled those Honey Jasper beads.  Onward.  I got to the back of the store and spied 18mm wood beads - looked like they were just carved from the branch and dripping with honey.   First time I passed them - zoomed in.  10 minutes later - picked them up, heavy.  10 minutes after that, third time - twilled them in my hands, too woody.  Kept moving. 

One hour later - Done.   I'd finished shopping for that day - let me inquiry about the Honey Jasper and pay for my goods.  Yes, I left the wood beads on the wall. 

No more Honey Jasper for now, I'll keep checking back.  Oh well (dagnabbit), let me pay for my goods.  Honey Jasper/Wood, leave it be.  I turned to leave, and yall won't believe me but I heard my name!  I turned and, YUP, my eyes went right to the back of the store at the strand of wooden beads hanging on the wall looking like they were dripping in honey.  They called to me ... I ran back and grabbed MY beads!  Hey, I got a lot of stuff that day.  What do you think? 

Honey Maple Wood with gold-filled

And bet your last dollar, when that strand of Honey Jasper comes in, its mine.  Ain't life grand ... 

Tiger's Eye

Beautiful, brown, gold, royal - the eye of the tiger indeed.

Antique Brass Kit

Ovals with 14k gold

Nuggets with white gold and stretch bracelet

Jasper

Let me introduce you to my Jasper. 

Who wouldn't fall hard and fast for these multi-colored jasper stones.  In all honesty, the greens won me over in a heartbeat, and the rich creamy tans.  These are heavy lil nuggets. 



Multi-colored Jasper with sterling silver and green leather, 3 strand necklace

 And when I saw the lovely deep green/black multi-sized Kambaba Jasper beads, I knew they found a home. 

Kambaba Jasper rectangle, ovals and puffed square beads, with brass Grecian columns finishing

And lastly, these red marbled stones with the various shades of gray and cream ...

Red marbled square, oval and rectangle jasper beads with antique brass finishing

What's not to love.

More Turquoise

How do I love thee ... your bold chunkiness and deep veins.  I'm seriously in love with this stone.  I've had contact with the blues, greens, and yellows, now I need to hold the pink and dark red.  These chunks are heavy so I used heavy duty nylon wire, and the rich bold veins run deep.  I priced a similar strand of chunkiness at a local bead shop - $1,182 - you read that right, my mouth is still hanging open.  This necklace sold in October 2010.
 

Turquoise chunks with sterling silver

Coconut Wood

I like the way this turned out.  Coconut wood is extremely lite.  I purchased two pounds in black, cream and tan because I'm looking forward to experimenting with silk - maybe knotted, sterling silver oval beads, maybe leather .. the possibilities are endless.  Let me know your thoughts.   

This set was purchased in August, 2010.



Black coconut wood choker with silver plated leverbacks

Hematite

This is a sexy, shiny, and sleek stone.  It's a solid stone that's stunning whether dressed up or casual.

Hematite with silver plate

Hematite, black onyx and silver

Natural and African Opals

Natural Opals with 14k gold

I love these natural opals.  From a pale green, to a creamy yellow, to a soft orange.  Lovely!

Check out these African Opals.  I decided to go with a trio here, and opted for a toggle bracelet for easy closure. 

African Opals with gold and toggle bracelet

African Opals with black onyx and gold

More African Opals - two sets here.  Both with black onyx (which pops). 






All in all, I fell madly in love with Opals and will always keep an eye out for bigger beads.  I bet a 16mm African opal would be stunning with black onyx em ...

Turquoise

What more can I say about the rich shades of gold, browns or black that marble their way through the robins egg blue, or serpertine greens or yellows.  Its a natural stone that's stunning in perfectly smooth shades of blue or marbled in its bold, smooth, chunky, or bulky state other than I love it! 



Rich brown marbling with gold



Combination black marbling thru nuggets and rounds with sterling silver highlights



Chunky green nuggets with rich bronze and bronze finishings



Chrysocolla

The beads that started my infatuation ...

These big, bold 16mm Chrysocalla beads literally fell into my hands and so I combined them with 14k gold spacer beads between every two, for a natural drap of 18 inches.  14k gold lever backs earrings with matching spacer beads make this set worthy of the Smithsonian.



Chrysocolla & 14K Gold