GEMSTONE JEWELRY - Multiple Strands !

Sometimes it is necessary to use multiple strands of beads to help highlight a special pendant or for that special look which makes for an unusual necklace.

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Here we have a Red Canyon Agate triangular pendant from the Sedona area of Arizona matched up with three strands of gold victorian seed-beads, Carnelian block beads and black Agate (Onyx) beads that taper into a single strand of the same Carnelian block beads and Black Agate (Onyx) round beads. The piece is futher highlighted with hammered silver connectors and a silver toggle clasp to complete the necklace. A matching memory wire bracelet and French Hook earrings complete the set.

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Agate is a semi precious gemstone belonging to the Chalcedony family and is found in a wide variety of colors and textures all over the world. There is no gemstone which is more creatively striped by Nature than the Agate. The stone is said to receive its name from Theophrastus, a Greek philosopher and naturalist, who discovered the stone along the shore line of the River Achates. This particular Agate comes from Red Canyon, one of the many canyons hid among the red-mountains around Sedona, Arizona.

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Carnelian (also spelled cornelian) is a reddish-brown mineral which is commonly used as a semi-precious gemstone. Similar to Carnelian is Sard, which is generally harder and darker. The difference between the two is not rigidly defined, and thus the two names are often used interchangeably. Both Carnelian and Sard are varieties of the silica mineral called Chalcedony and are colored red by impurities of iron oxide. The color can vary greatly, ranging from pale orange to an intense almost-black coloration.
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Black Agate (Onyx) which is truely a died black Agate, is more common and perhaps the most famous variety, but not as common as natural Onyx. Onyx is a crypyocrystalline form of Quartz. The colors of its bands range from white to almost every color (save some shades, such as purple or blue). Specimens of Onyx contain bands of colors of white, tan, and brown. As stated, the pure black form which most people know as Onyx, is not a naturally occuring variety. Black Agate or poorly colored Onyx is heated and dyed black to come up with the pure black form so well liked within the jewelry industry.
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