The Toe Ring

Toe Ring

Toe Ring

A toe ring is a Ring made out of various metals and non-metals worn on any of the toes. The second toe of either foot is where they are worn most commonly. In most western countries they are a relatively new fashion accessory. There is not a symbolic meaning for wearing toe rings. They are only regarded to be a new fashion jewelry; they often accompany barefoot sandals, anklets, barefeet or flip flops.

Practicing Hindu women in India have implemented the tradition of wearing a toe ring as a cultural aspect of marriage. This is comparably similar to the aspect of Western civilization’s traditional wedding band worn on the finger. These toe rings are typically won on the second toe of the right foot and will be set in silver, symbolic of respect. Such rings designated to this tradition are called “bichiya”. Set in richly elaborate detailing within classic elements, some modern women of India choose a contemporary design as well. Tradition does not permit unmarried women of India to wear toe rings.

While Hindu tradition calls for toe rings as a ritual practice of their cultural beliefs, popularity within United States has soared simply as a fashion statement and an attractive accessory in footwear.Toe rings were introduced to the United States by Marjorie Borell who, after returning from India began manufacturing and selling them in New York in 1973. Her first retail outlet was Fiorucci, a trendy fashion retailer located on 59th Street in New York. The “Original Toe Ring Boutique” sold toe rings in silver, gold and with diamonds.

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The History Of Ankle Bracelet

Leg Bracelet

Ankle Bracelet

Rings, arm bracelets, charms, earrings, and necklaces have always been a popular and noticeable form of accessory for women, but anklets that have also been around for a long time add a certain flair to a woman’s appearance. A woman wearing an anklet with a summer dress or with a swimsuit could have an even more interesting appearance than another woman wearing the same apparel.

Leg bracelet, an anklet ankle chain, or ankle bracelet is an ornament worn around the ankle. Barefoot anklets and toe rings historically have been worn for centuries by girls and women in Egypt and Arab world especially in Bedouin and countryside and married women in India, though in the United States both casual and more formal anklets became fashionable in the late twentieth century.

Ankle bracelets or anklets have always been a popular accessory adorning girls’ and women’s ankles for decades. First worn in India, the fashion of wearing these ankle bracelets have evolved to the Western countries. In the early 50’s, these thin chains have been became a sign of rebellion, and the trend of using them has caught on. In time, women started to wear these chains for a more modern and sexy appearance. Variations of these chains were then designed for each decade, and these anklets never looked better. What better way to show off their sexy calves and legs than with an anklet. They add charm and elegance to whatever you are wearing.

There are ancient civilization that recorded to be the consuming for ankle bracelet:

The ancient Sumerians lived in the Mesopotamian region about 4500 years ago. Unearthed Sumerian graves shows that this civilization was the first in recorded history to leave evidence of wearing bracelets, including ankle bracelets. It is believed that the wearing of jewelry by a wife showed how wealthy her husband was. Graves also reveal the Sumerians wore finger rings, toe rings and necklaces.

The rich and the poor of ancient Egypt both enjoyed wearing jewelry, including anklets. Egyptian royalty wore anklets made of precious stones and metals. The upper eschelon of ancient Egypt were well known for coveting beautiful pieces of jewelry and were very trendy and interested in fashion. The poorer people in Egypt also wore ankle bracelets, but these were inexpensive and may even been used to display amulets or lucky talismans. Later centuries would call these pieces of jewelry charm bracelets.

It’s believed that the styles of ancient times traveled down the Silk Road. Jewelry dealers brought bracelets, including anklets, to the empire of Persia. The archaeological site known as the Golden Mound yielded over 20,000 pieces of fine Persian jewelry. Many of the pieces contained precious gems like lapis lazuli and amethyst.

Indians have worn ankle bracelets for centuries. Their love for this jewelry is even instilled in their literature. The story of Shilappadikaram tells a fanciful story of an unfaithful husband who briefly falls in love with a woman who wears a magic anklet. Today’s Indian wedding customs still include wearing anklet bracelets as a part of the ceremonial wedding garments. Indian women wear some of the most extravagant anklets in the world featuring lots of tiny chains, bells and charms. Silver is a popular medium for Indian anklet bracelets.

The ankle bracelet became popular in the United States in the twentieth century. In the 1950s bobby sockers wore the jewelry to enhance their white socks. In the 1970s, women began wearing anklets that featured their name or initials. While they can be worn by men or women, the ankle bracelet continues to be more popular with women. Today, you can purchase any type of ankle bracelet, from a simple hemp strand to a delicate golden filigree rope. Anklets are considered a permanent fixture of American fashion.

There are various kinds of anklets. There are gold anklets, custom or personalized anklets, anklets with diamonds or other gems, beaded anklets, shell anklets, leather anklets, sterling silver anklets flexible or hinged anklets and stretch, and weave or locking anklets.

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Kandari Traditional Bugis Jewelry

Kandari Gold - Bugis People

Kandari Gold

Kandari is typical of jewelry which particularly belongs to Bugis people in South Sulawesi province, Indonesia.

Kandari has a very unique design and traditionally hand made. Kandari has become a tradition which passed down through generations within Bugis people. The characteristic is located on the gold braid-like threads that make up in particular model. Such as flowers, leaves, and even can also Borobudur temple motive.

The process is start from decomposing the gold chunk into thread and then make it together into one model of design, and the craft men are using traditional method in every step of the process.

Theprocess of making kandari is passing two stages, which is; the manufacture of the framework is done by men and the workmanship of field is done by women. Because it is not using any modern machine, the making of kandari takes quite a long time.

Another distinctive feature of Kandari is in its color. Kandari has brighter yellow gold than any gold in common. In fact, Bugis people are prefer like to have more “blink-blink” in their jewelry.


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The Black Jet

Jet Stone

Jet

Jet is a geological material and is considered to be a minor gemstone. Jet is not considered a true mineral, but rather a mineraloid as it has an organic origin, being derived from decaying wood under extreme pressure.

The English noun “jet” derives from the French word for the same material: jaiet. Jet is either black or dark brown, but may contain pyrite inclusions, which are of brassy colour and metallic lustre. The adjective jet-black is better known perhaps than the substance from which the descriptive phrase derives.

Jet is a product of high pressure decomposition of wood from millions of years ago, commonly the wood of trees of the family Araucariaceae. Jet is found in two forms, hard and soft. Hard jet is the result of the carbon compression and salt water; soft jet is the result of the carbon compression and fresh water.

The jet found at Whitby, England is of early Jurassic (Toarcian) age, approximately 182 million years old.

Jet occurs in black or dark brown and is a variety of coal known as lignite. The finest jet comes from England, and it is also found in the United States, Poland, France, Germany, Spain, India and Russia.

Jet neutralizes negative energies. Hold a piece of jet to clear negative vibrations.

* To release stress, combine jet with lepidolite.
* Psychic protection and purification – use jet with black tourmaline or smokey quartz.

Jet is grounding and balancing, and as it also carries a negative electrical charge, is good for drawing power and knowledge to the bearer. Made of burned, then fosillized trees, it helps to tap into the ancient wisdoms and transformative powers of the Earth. It is also helpful in stabilizing finances, and is said to soothe migraines.

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Organic Gemstone

Organic Gemstone

Organic Gemstone

Organic gems are a group of gem stones whose creation is associated with living organisms which are formed from once living material changed over time into a stone.

Organic gemstone jewelry was popular with the Victorians in the 19th century. Shells were carved to make cameos, delicate seed pearls were used to make elegant parrures or sets of jewelry consisting of pendant earrings, bracelets, and necklaces. Coral was also fashioned into parrures or coral beads with red and pale pink being the most popular colors.

Some stones which we refer as ‘Gemstones’ were once living organisms or were formed by living organisms. In other words, Organic gemstones are gems that are derived from animals, plants or other organisms while they are living or after they die and the usually do not have cleavage as do rock gemstones.

There are several types of Organic Gemstones used to make Gemstone Jewelry. The gems in this category are pearl, amber, coral, ivory, ammolite, shell and jet.However, the most popular among these stones is Pearl. Red Coral is also a popular choice of many.

Types of Organic Gemstones

Amber

Amber is the fossilized resin of a tree. The color of Amber varies from transparent to semitransparent and generally from light yellow to dark brown, but can be orange, red, whitish, greenish-brown, blue, or violet. This stone resembles and is named after ambergris, a sweet smelling secretion of the sperm whale once used in perfume making. Amber has a hardness of 2-2.5 Mohs scale. Amber was the much preferred jewelry of Victorian era. This gemstone is considered as a good luck stone.

Jet

Jet is a shiny black stone and is formed from the remains of wood in a similar process by which coal is made. Jet is also called lignite. This stone has a hardness of 2.5-4 Mohs scale. This stone became extremely popular as mourning jewelry after Queen Victoria wore it on the death of her husband Prince Albert in 1861. This stone is considered as a gem for spiritual enlightenment.

Ammolite

Ammolite is the fossilized remains of ancient sea anemones. Ammolite is similar to the opal in appearance and often has a cracked or mottled surface. This cracking can give the stone the look of ‘dragon scales’ or a stained glass window.

Pearl

Pearl is considered the king of all organic gems and is formed inside the shells of oysters and mussels. Pearl has a hardness of 2.5-4.5 in the Mohs scale. Natural pearls come in various shapes: round, pear, drop, egg, and others. They also come in various colors, such as white, cream, light rose, cream rose, black, gray, bronze, blue, dark blue, blue green, red, purple, yellow, and violet. Pearl Jewelry is considered as the Symbol of Beauty and Elegance and was part of the royal jewelry.

Ivory

Usually the elephant’s tusk is referred to Ivory but these days’ teeth of hippopotamus, walrus, wild boar and some other mammals also serve as ivory. Ivory jewelry was popular during the Victorian period. Since many animals that have ivory tusk were killed to get their tusk the import and sale of ivory is strictly banned in many countries of the world.

Coral

Coral is the skeletal remains of marine animals. Coral has a hardness of 2.6 to 2.7 in the Mohs scale and is found in semi translucent to opaque and occurs in white, pink, orange, red, blue, violet, golden, and black. Coral is used to make figurines, cameos, carvings and beads

Everything is beautiful…

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Betawi Bride Accessories

Betawi Bride Crown

Betawi Bride Accessories

Betawi, one of Indonesian culture, which is mostly live in Jakarta. They have interesting outfit regarding their marriage appearance. The integration of various cultural elements appear in a wedding dress of Betawi woman who impressed so festive.

Beside the dress and make up, Betawi bride has something particular on their wedding dress, which are the accessories. The using of headdress is quite complex. One of them is siangko veiled that symbolizes a girl’s chastity.

Siangko veiled always in golden color, because originally it made of gold, or silver material. Usually decorated with precious stones, even diamonds. The veil is 30 cm long, made of beads. Apart from the veiled, other siangko has 3 pieces. Used as a cover behind the siangko veiled.

Siangko veiled that serves to cover the bride’s face is a symbol of holiness, symbolized by the bride’s face should not be seen by someone else. On top of this Siangko veiled, there is Sigar or crown with motifs of flowers filled with jewels. Other hair ornaments are flower nail or nail puncture about 10 or more which is intended as a repellent reinforcements.

There are also 5 plugs flowers or kembang tancep, that symbolizes pillars of Islam, the obligation to be performed by the bride as a Muslim. Moreover, there are 20 pieces of kembang goyang or flutter flower ornament that put together with 2-4 pieces of coconut flower that is placed on the left and right bun.. They are 20 because it symbolizes the recognition of the greatness of God’s 20 properties, which shall be revealed and taught to children later descendants; the coconut flower is a symbol of hope for marriages that do remain strong, strong like a coconut tree, so it will be a lasting, prosperous and happy marriage.

Phoenix decoration or known as a big flower is also should not be missed. The number four symbolizes the four Rasullullah’s companions, Prophet Muhammad SAW. Meanwhile, the phoenix itself regarded as a symbol of paradise bird that symbolizes happiness of the bride and groom. The location of the phoenix also has its own meaning, relating to the match between the family of the bride and groom.

Beside the bride’s headdress, there is one form of jewelry that is believed have magical powers is a sunting or sumping ear. If the sunting is worn by a bride who is not a virgin or not a girl anymore, then the user will be headache, feel dizziness and even fainting.

Beside sumping as a complement to support harmony, there is also a pair of ear bride kerabu. Kerabu is a combination between earrings and studs which are rolled together, and pierce or tusuk konde.

In addition to jewelry to the head, the bride also wore a dispersive necklace jewelry that used circular neck above the lotus Betawi. Listring bangles and bracelets, and gold rings jewelry to garnish arm, wrist and finger of the bride.

Originally, all of the jewelry that worn by the Betawi bride made of gold and decorated with diamonds. Today, however, generally those are only gold gilding, while the more decorative uses beads.
But they are still beautiful indeed.

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Suntiang, The Minang Bride’s Crown

Minang Bride

Minang Wedding Crown

Minangkabau people is one of Indonesian tribes, like any other tribes in Indonesia Minang has strict rules concerning their custom and way of life. One of those rules are applied in marriage system.

The tradition of marriage according to Minangkabau traditional event that is typically through a number of processions, it is still upheld to be carried out, involving a large family of both the prospective bride, especially from the female’s family.

While, on bride particular outfit, Minangkabau women has wedding crown that should be wear during the wedding feast. It is Suntiang, suntiang flowers are generally graded by odd starting from level seven to eleven. There is also a storied suntiang ranging from three to five which are usually used for bridesmaids or also known as Pasumandan.

However, for the reasons of practicality and adjust the shape of the face, now lthe evel on Suntiang is keep in odd number and adjusted by the ability and willingness of the bride. The crown is heavy, that makes the bride feels inconvenient during the wedding feast. The weight is about more than 5kilograms.

The first layer Suntiang begins with flattering flower arrangement that is used by every bride. At the bottom layer is used flattering flower Suntiang called Bungo Sarunai consisting of three to five rows. The second layer is used flattering flower called Bunge Tower which also consists of three to five rows. Located at the top is Kambang Goyang with other decorations called Kote-kote. In the back there is Tatak Kondai bun and bun Pisang Saparak covering the back.

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Corundum

Corundum

Corundum is a crystalline form of aluminium oxide with traces of iron, titanium and chromium. It is a rock-forming mineral. Corundum is the second hardest natural mineral known to science. The hardest mineral, diamond is still four times harder than corundum. The hardness of corundum can be partially attributed to the strong and short oxygen-aluminum bonds.

The name “corundum” is derived from the Tamil word “kuruntam” meaning “ruby”, it is derived from the Sanskrit “kuruvinda”.

Corundum is rare gem and has crystal lining in their atomic structure. When these are taken nearer to the light, these look like sparkling starts. Star sapphires should be used to render proper guidance and should be minimum 3 carats. The purer variety of corundum is colorless.

The most important of the gem families, corundum provides us with two of the best-known stones: ruby and sapphire. The popularity and price of these gemstones remain strong due to the beauty, durability and versatility of the material. Unfortunately, however, the ongoing development of synthetics, imitations and enhancement treatments has made the task of choosing and buying sapphire or ruby complex and sometimes risky.


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Diamonds Are Forever

Diamond

Diamond

Diamond, looking from the ancient Greek it has meaning as “unbreakable,” “proper,” or “unalterable”. It is one of the best-known and most sought-after gemstones. Diamonds have been known to humankind and used as decorative items since ancient times; some of the earliest references can be traced to India.

Diamonds are the hardest substance on earth. They are more brilliant than any other natural gem. Their sparkling fire, durability, and rarity make them the most prized of gems.

The most popular diamonds are colorless. However, most diamonds have a light tint, usually yellowish or brownish. Yellow diamonds as of recently have gained popularity and are commonly available. Perfectly clear diamonds are much more valuable than tinted diamonds. Very rarely, diamond occurs in deep hues of red, blue, and green. Such diamonds, known as “fancies”, are extremely valuable.

The cut, or facet of the diamond, is the manner in which the diamond is cut. The most preferred cut is the brilliant cut, a facet specially designed to bring out the most “fire” in the stone. Sometimes, this cut cannot be given, either because of flaws or cleavage habits. Other cuts are not as valuable as the brilliant cut. Much planning must be taken before cutting a diamond, as a slight error in the facet may greatly decrease the value of the stone.

The size of a diamond is measured in carats (abbreviated as “ct”). A carat is equivalent to 0.2 grams (about 0.007 ounces). Another weight measurement sometimes used for small for diamonds is the point measurement (abbreviated as “pt”). Each point is one/one hundredth of a carat. For example, a stone weighing 34 pt weighs .34 ct. Larger diamonds are worth more than proportionally smaller ones, meaning a 3 ct. diamond surpasses the value of three 1ct. diamonds.

Diamonds from Indian deposits were known in ancient times. In the West the limited use of diamonds began in the late Middle Ages. The diamond, was thought to give its wearer strength in battle and to protect him against ghosts and magic.The first river-bed diamonds were probably discovered around 800 B.C.

Diamond has some types, which are:
Bort – dark colored, imperfectly crystallized, opaque diamond. May also refer to a fragment of a gem quality diamond.
Fancy – deep red, green, blue, or purple diamond
Canary Diamond – diamond with a deep yellow color

Diamond is a great assistance for all brain diseases. It is beneficial in stomach area. Diamonds strengthen the owner’s memory.

Moreover, diamonds give faith, purity, life, joy, innocence and repentance. They assist in developing concentration and in beeing straight-forward and honest. It is believed the diamond loses its brilliance with the health of the wearer, regaining it only when the owner recovers. Diamond is an antidote to poison and is capable of detecting poison by exhibiting a moisture or perspiration on its surface. Supposedly, the higher quality the diamond, the better it supports these qualities.

Last, Diamonds are forever. It symbolizing persistence, loyalty and a woman.

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Boulder Opal

Boulder Opal

Boulder Opal

Boulder opal from the Opalton mine is often characterized by many many veins of colorful, fiery opal running through the hard ironstone. Most boulder opal is mined in Australia where thin veins of opal form within the brown ironstone matrix, creating a wonderfully unique picture stone.

Boulder opal occurs in two main forms, ‘seam’ and ‘matrix’. When opal intrudes into cracks and seams in the host rock (usually ironstone), it is called SEAM boulder opal. Seam boulder opal is often ‘split’ along the seam so as to produce one or two faces of opal material.

The gemstone Opal is the official October birthstone as adopted by the American National Association of Jewelers in 1912. It is also the birth stone for the Zodiac sign of Libra.

Boulder opal is very durable due to the ironstone backing the opal forms on. Because water content within the opal is very low it almost never cracks or crazes as it ages.

It is believe that boulder opal is good to aids inner beauty, faithfulness, and eyesight and helps recall past lives.

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