Hottest Bridal Jewelry Trends

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The bridal jewelry trends this year indicate a deviation from the traditional white diamonds and pearls for bridal jewelry, instead young brides are opting for stones with rich colors that compliment the bridesmaids' dresses or the wedding theme. The bridal jewelry trends show a preference for layered necklaces. The cuff bracelet is another hot bridal jewelry trend that looks elegant and modern. Organic and whimsical themes with natural and feminine designs are a big hit in the bridal jewelry scene today. Such pieces of bridal jewelry have become increasingly popular and there are a varied number of designs with natural shapes and textures available for the bride to choose from. A wedding is symbolic of the love between the bride and groom, bridal jewelry too is incorporating this symbolism.

I Love all Kinds of Crystals, including Those in Watches

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In looking for a graduation gift recently I was looking for a watch online, like luxury watches at watchsea24, and I started to get interested in how watches work. Since I love crystals in most forms, I was intrigued by what the term means precisely in the watch world. The crystal of a watch is, of course, the protecting transparent covering over the actual watch face. I found that there are sapphire crystals, made of synthetic sapphire and which are the hardest type of watch crystal. There are also mineral crystals, which aren't as hard as the synthetic sapphire crystals, but are harder than another type, which is the plastic or acrylic crystal, the least hard of all. It was fascinating learning more about watches, and it made me appreciate more the complexity involved…the complexity underlying the otherwise fashion statement that watches are! I love accessorizing with different watches in fact!

Oil Crystal Jewelry

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A local resident in the Gulf Coast city of Roswell, Georgia has found a way to turn an ugly disaster into something beautiful. Rochelle Nation and her business partner Shondra Leigh of Decatur are transforming the oil from last year's Deepwater Horizon spill into hauntingly beautiful and unique crystal jewelry.

The oil from tarballs washed up on area beaches is sealed under crystal quartz, and then encased in refined, 100% recycled silver, gold and refined leathers from vintage coats. Sales of the pieces are also helping the people of the Gulf Coast because the duo is donating a portion of their proceeds to assisting people affected by the spill. Nation and Leigh began making the tarball jewelry in October to assist a fellow artist, Holt Webb, with his non-profit Vanishing America Project. 20% of the profits from their pieces are donate to this project which promotes conservation and raises awareness about environmental issues.