For the 12 Days of Holiday Deals, I’m offering one item on my site at a discount of 30% – 50% off the original price of the item. You only have until midnight EST to make your purchase on my limited edition pieces the day I post them on my blog. So if you want this item, don’t delay. Tomorrow, this deal will be gone!

And as a little extra to everyone who stops by during my 12 Days of Holiday Deals, for each item purchased or each comment left (1 each a day), you’ll get entered to win a $50 gift certificate to my shop! That’s 24 chances to win over the course of 12 days!

The Bromeliad Cascades – Amethyst, Pink Pearl and Opal Chandelier Earrings…Reminiscent of beautiful bromeliad cascades, these absolutely gorgeous earrings remind of a flower garden in full bloom. With two jaw dropping onion brio focals totaling over 20 carats worth of flawless and beautifully faceted AAA Amethyst, these earrings are not for the faint of heart. Hovering below is a bed of faceted Amethyst rounds and pink dyed button pearls, with a beautiful pink Peruvian Opal faceted barrel bead. All of these beautiful components are securely handwired to a wire wrapped frame and hang from handshaped vermeil earwires.

Due to the size of the Amethysts, these earrings are more on the heavy side weighing in at approximately 1.25 ounces each.

This piece is part of my “Inspired” collection. Inspired by Jujem71′s photo Matchstick on Flickr.

The earrings are 2 5/8″ (6.67cm) long from the top of the earwire. All metal is 14kt gold-filled or vermiel.

These are one-of-a-kind. Once they are sold, I cannot remake this pair of earrings!

January

Garnet (deep red in color) – Symbolizing love & passion.

February

Amethyst (purple in color) – Symbolizing luck & good health.

March

Aquamarine (pale aqua in color) – Symbolizing happiness & understanding. An alternate birthstone for June is Bloodstone.

These pieces were made by Katja of Katja Adams Design, Debbie
of Crysallis Creations and Holly of Bijoux d’Odalisque, respectively.

April

Diamond (clear in color) – Symbolizing eternal love. For a less expensive piece, you can look for jewelry created with rock quartz.

These pieces were made by Ginger of MsBellee, Sheela of
Eclettica The Atêlier and Holly of Bijoux d’Odalisque, respectively.

May

Emerald (deep green in color) – Symbolizing love, fidelity & goodness.

These pieces were made by Asta of Anastassias Atelier,
Heather & Mel of Heather & Mel and Jo of Gemheaven, respectively.

June

Pearl (lustrous white in color) – Symbolizing peace, beauty, nobility & purity. An alternate birthstone for June is Moonstone.

July

Ruby (red in color) – Symbolizing love, strength & devotion.

The second and third pieces were made by Anna-Karin of små blå
and Holly of Bijoux d’Odalisque, respectively.

August

Peridot (pale green in color) – Symbolizing success, dignity & protection. An alternate birthstone for August is Sardonyx.

These pieces were made by Amy of Amy Olson Jewelry,
Catherine Marche Jewellery and Susanna of Suzy Q Jewelry, respectively.

September

Sapphire (blue in color) – Symbolizing purity, truth & sincerity. An alternate birthstone for September is Lapis Lazuli.

These pieces were made by Anna-Karin of små blå,
Catherine of Modeste Parisienne and Lotta of Silverknuten, respectively.

October

Opal (rainbow in color, but also found in blues and pinks) – Symbolizing beauty, success & happiness. An alternate birthstone for October is Pink Tourmaline.

November

Citrine (yellow in color) – Symbolizing hope, fidelity & health. An alternate birthstone for November is yellow Topaz.

The second and third pieces were made by Ann of Beadiful Things
and Jennifer of Lee Ohio Designs, respectively.

December

Topaz (orange/brown/blue in color) – Symbolizing wisdom and courage. For a less expensive piece, you can look for jewelry created with Whiskey Quartz stones. Sometimes they are the same as jewelers may not know the difference between the quartz and topaz stones as seen with the naked eye. An alternate birthstone for December is Turquoise.

From traditional to modern, ancient to mystical, there are sure to be numerous variations in charts. Ultimately, the best stone selection is one that has meaning to the recipient, whether that happens to be their birthstone or not.

Are there any differences in lists that you use for selecting birthday stone jewelry? Let me know!

For more information on these earrings and additional pictures, you can find them here in my shop.

• Moses described Amethyst as a symbol of the Spirit of God in the official robes of the High Priest of the Jews.
• Ancient Greeks believed that wearing Amethyst jewelry would prevent intoxication, going as far as crafting drinking vessels and amulets in this stone.
• Greek mythology states that Diana turned a nymph whom Bacchus loved into an amethyst; hence Amethyst is also known as the Bacchus stone.

• Tibetan monks considered Amethyst to be sacred to Buddha. They fashion rosaries from it, believing it to be an excellent stone for meditation.
• Egyptian royalty believed that the tears of the gods had stained the Quartz purple and created the Gemstone as it is today.
• Egyptians also used the stone in intaglios.
• In early history, purple dye was scarce and expensive and therefore reserved for garments of royalty. Due to its hue, the Amethyst gemstone followed suit.
• Due to Amethyst’s symbolism of spirituality and piety, it has adorned numerous churches and crosses. It is also worn in rings and on rosaries by clergy members.
• Amethyst is the gemstone for the 6th wedding anniversary.

Did I miss any other interesting facts on Amethyst? Let me know!

1st picture: cloisonne beads
2nd picture: crystal, rutilated quartz, mixed stone rondelles, fire cherry quartz

1st picture: moss agate, lemon quartz, green dyed chalcedony
2nd picture: keishe pearls, crystal quartz, tourmaline, hessonite, labradorite

1st picture: pink dyed chalcedony, amethyst, labradorite, prasiolite
2st picture: aquamarine, tourmalinated quartz, green tourmalinated quartz, rutilated quartz

quartz

Keep an eye out for new jewelry using these lovelies!

More goodies just came in today. I’ve been waiting for these since March. So excited! Pictured from left to right:

• rhodolite garnet rondelles
• prehnite rondelles
• almandine garnet rondelles
• apatite rondelles
• iolite rondelles
• almandine garnet drops
• rhodolite garnet drops
• citrine drops
• black spinel drops
• amethyst drops
• prehnite drops
• crystal quartz twists
• peridot drops
• rhodolite garnet hearts.

This past weekend, I got to see that reaction from two different people. After showing some of my latest pieces to both, I got commissions for 3 more pieces. I thought I’d share two of them with you now:

The thing I love about this criss cross bracelet and the coordinating earrings is the color combination. For some reason, while I can see the purple tones in peacock colored pearls, I have never thought to pair them with amethyst stones. So I’m very glad the color scheme was requested, because I feel the final result is surprisingly complimentary.