This is a wonderful way to bring color to your seasonal wardrobe without the expensive investment of fine jewelry. It is affordable, popular and fashionable. You can create your own style for each season with new and favorite pieces that cross over seasonal fashions.

Create Your Own Style

With the rich heritage in design and style you can create your own style with fashion jewelry. I know I have jewelry sets for different looks and different outfits.

This is also known as fashion jewelry with the term really becoming popular in the 20th Century, even though it has been worn from the year dot. We love adorning ourselves whether that be with precious gemstones or with handmade glass beaded jewelry. Now the desings of the last 200 years are being collected and celebrated and being used for inspiration for contemporary designs.

Swarvoski Crystals Technical Breakthrough

The skills in cutting and setting techniques made a huge leap in the 18th and 19th centuries, including the crystal machine cutting revolution of Daniel Swarvoski that created the Swarvoski crystals we all love today.

Just across the border in Bohemia, now Czech Republic, high quality paste stones and lampwork beads were being created to meet the growing demand by the blossoming European middle-classes. The regional competition between the manufacturing countries created top quality, colorful and creative designs that we are still benefiting from today.

For the first time designers had a wide choice of components with which to work. The designs quickly became extravagant as designers could take greater risks with the non-precious components that they could not take with expensive gem stones like diamonds. So costume jewelry design ended up leading fine design and still does in many ways today.

The Revolution Right Here, Right Now

Costume jewelry is going through another revolution today with the emergence of manufacturing China, the internet with its breaking down of access barriers for independent designers around the world.

Chinese manufacturers are clever at finding stunning designs through out this type of design history to copy but they are not focused on creating original designs. The quality of the Chinese products is improving but it is still miles behind the standard of excellence of the European costume jewelry.

The Chinese work is very cheap and designed for a short couple of seasons life in the most popular colors of the day. While European companies, like Swarvoski, are solidly working on creative and original designs for each season that will last for decades and are already becoming collectors pieces.

Swarvoski is keeping alive the exciting and colorful heritage of this design that is accessible, affordable and leading the way for contemporary design.

Other independent jewelry designers are using the top quality European components like Czech handmade lampwork beads and crystals for beaded jewelry, Venetian glass heart pendants for loving necklaces and the bead charms of Denmark's Trollbeads.

Right Costume Jewelry Designer For You

So when you are going through your wardrobe and looking at your jewelry color themes for the coming season have fun exploring the online stores for the designs that will give you the look you want. Online directories can give you great access to talented designers who can even do custom jewelry pieces for you.

If vintage costume jewelry is what you are after you can find that online too as well as designs created today.

Of course online stores are just one of your options. You can find it at nearly all retailers, at your local shopping mall, arts and crafts fairs, bead shows, wedding expos, markets and fairs, as well as home party plan showings. So enjoy yours, adorn yourself in the colors and styles that reflect your personality and style.

By: Belinda Stinson

About the Author:

Fantasy figures have always been a popular theme from fairies, elves, and dragons through to unicorns, the mythical Pegasus and even mermaids. Fantasy figures and symbols are very popular in jewelry items both for young adults as well for those that are, shall we say, more mature. Fantasy jewelry has also gone more mainstream with the recent Troll Bead line that incorporates the softer elements of fantasy jewelry into different types of beads, rings and pendants that are a bit less edgy than some of the more traditional pieces.

One of the amazing things about fantasy jewelry is that it is well appreciated by both men and women. The handcrafted designs of the traditional silver and gem pieces such as dragons, druids, ruins and circlets have been traditionally popular with men, while the lighter more stylized symbols have been equally popular with women. The jewelry ranges from heavy to light, chunky to fine and highly gemmed and jeweled to plain silver or gold. Since there is such as wide selection of fantasy jewelry it is sometimes hard to categorize it into one big group.

Dragons, which form a great deal of the inspiration for many of the fantasy jewelry pieces are often shown in collections with semi-precious stones. Typical gems seen in these pieces will be amethysts, carnelian and amber. Carnelian is a relatively new gem in commercial jewelry and has a metal ore looking red to rust coloration with variations throughout the stone. Dragons can be curled around the gem, embracing the gem or perched on the stone in rings, pendants and necklaces.

Fairies are very popular with women and tend to be very delicate, feminine and stylized. They may be displayed in the setting with a gem such as lapis lazuli, amethyst, or sapphires. Often the fairy is in flight with delicate filigree wings and accents of roses, birds or vines. Again, like with dragons the fantasy jewelry for women can be in silver or gold and is often custom designed or one of a kind.

Troll beads, unlike traditional fantasy jewelry can have obvious fantasy styling but they can also be incredibly beautiful just as a bead to add to any type of chain. Each style of Troll bead has its own particular story as to how it originated. The beads can be put together with other Troll beads as a type of story bracelet, or they can be mixed with gold and silver beads, which are also available as Troll beads, to add a touch of fantasy to any piece of jewelry. Each year new designs of beads are added, each with their own history and mythical or fantasy background story.

If you have always wanted something different, something that is really unique but you didn't want to go all the way to fantasy jewelry, Troll beads, rings, pendants or starter sets may be just what you have been looking for. Not all stores sell Troll beads, although the company's website allows you to search for retail stores in your area. If you plan to visit the site, make sure you have a couple of hours to browse through the beads and read each history, it is really amazing.

By: Amy Carrington

About the Author:

For 30 years now, fashionistas and jewelry collectors have witnessed the unprecedented rise of trollbead jewelries that has a unique storyline and theme to each of them like animals, fairytales, etc.

It can be made with materials as diverse as their designs. You can have glass trollbeads, silver ones, gold...and that's just to name a few!

A quick glance at online malls and shopping sites will show you the many faces of trollbead jewelry made for different personalities and tastes, which is driving collectors crazy.

It was back in Denmark, 1976 when it this trend was started by Soren Nielson. Nielson created the first trollbead jewelry - a silver one - "The Mask", and used a wax model for it PLUS bored a hole, making it possible to bind similar beads together.

Moving forward to the 1980's, Lisa Aagaard initiated the apprenticeship on creating various patterns like necklaces, bracelets, etc. She started testing other materials where trollbeads can be made from. It's from her creative efforts that the first glass trollbead was born and took made fashion lovers crazy about it in 2002.

Every year, technology advances. And that could only mean we can look forward to better-looking, detail-rich, and MORE unique trollbead jewelries in a not-so-distant future.

You can grab and piece these trollbead jewelries to form bracelets, anklets, necklaces, etc. Now if that's NOT for you, then you can get them in completed form.

Why don't we take a good look at these different trollbeads? This list should come handy when you decide to jump into the bandwagon and be a trollbead jewelry collector.

Glass Trollbeads

The first glass trollbeads were actually crafted in the 1980's by Lise Aagaard. Unfortunately, due to the difficulty of creating designs in full specifications caused it to be released in the early 90's.

But the good thing is - you can now actually choose from different varieties of trollbeads, each having their own designs and colors. Simply put, you can always have the one that suits your flavor.

Gold Trollbeads

The designs of gold trollbeads can be very different from each other. You get to choose from animal-like, fairy tale characters, or even just conceptual shapes. Gold trollbeads go hand in hand with glass trollbeads for you to make your own concepts for a necklace or even a bracelet.

Letter Trollbeads

So what if you want to personalize your necklace or bracelet? You can choose from letters in the alphabet built in the design of trollbeads. You can purchase different beads to create your name or your initials perhaps.

OOAK Trollbeads

OOAK Trollbeads that are created by bare hands are completely unique from the rest.

These trollbeads came from those deigns that turned out to be discarded since it turned out to be quite different from what was ordered. BUT that's the exact reason why these beads are highly valued!

Retired Trollbeads

You can also call these beads as retired ones because it would only be a matter of time before they're completely out of stock. But still, they are there to give way to new versions.

Silver Trollbeads

This sterling silver counterpart began in 1976. Many variations, shapes, and sizes, plus lots of years, paved the way for the silver trollbeads department. It also comes in many mythical and fairy tale-like characters that add MORE flavors into it.

Trollbead Bracelets

You can get trollbead bracelets that still need some puzzling together or you can grab a ready-to-use and completed bracelet if you don't have the time. The chains for trollbead bracelets can come in gold, sliver, or even leather according to your own choice.

Trollbead Clasps

Trollbead clasps, either in gold or silver, give you the privilege to take them off and rearrange them.

It comes in various patterns like animals, flowers, etc. BUT if you prefer plain trollbeads, it would be just fine.

One thing is for sure, more designs and variations of trollbeads will come out. BUT it will still be the best gift you can give to your loved ones or even as a treat for yourself.

Our Trollbead Jewelries Store is updated 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year with new stocks. So if you can't find what you are looking for then please bookmark us in your web browser and come back again very soon.

By: Alan Chan

About the Author:

Troll beads have been around for the last thirty years; these colourful beads each have their own story which is based around fairy tales, animals, flowers, mythology and astrology. The beads are made from a number of materials including sterling silver, gold, glass and precious stones. If you have not yet heard about trollbeads then I suggest you take a look around the internet and get involved in this world wide craze.

They started in Denmark in 1976 when Soren Nielson created a small silver pearl (The Mask) from a wax model, which he drilled a hole through and the concept of putting these charms onto jewellery began. In the 1980s Lise Aagaard began an apprenticeship making troll beads, she began experimenting with materials and developed the first glass bead which became widely available in 2002.

Now more technology means more beads of different shapes, colours and sizes can be made and there are now beads for all occasions and personalities with new designs coming out all of the time. The beads can be made into bracelets and necklaces and designed by you to suit any outfit or mood, or you can buy complete bracelets and necklaces to start your collection.

If you are new to trollbead collecting then to familiarise yourself with the different types you can view the following categories of bead:

Glass Trollbeads

Glass beads were designed by Lise Aagaard in the late 1980's but because of the complexity of making detailed designs on small pieces of glass, these beads were not available fully until the early Nineties. Now there are hundreds of glass beads of all colours and designs available, some with colours running through the glass and others with glass bubbles on the outer surface.

Gold Trollbeads

Gold troll beads come in all different shapes and sizes including animals, fairy tale characters and abstract shapes. They go well with glass beads and the different characters help to create a theme or storyline running through each bracelet or necklace.

Letter Trollbeads

These beads have a letter from the alphabet built into their design. You can buy your initials to incorporate into your troll bead necklace or bracelet or why not buy all the letters which make up your name? This really allows you to personalise your jewellery and make your own storyline through troll beads.

OOAK Trollbeads

These one of a kind beads are hand made and are completely individual. Some are prototypes which have been rejected while others are slightly imperfect and have been removed from production. Often this is simply because the colour is incorrect or the design has not come out as intended, but this just adds to the character and rarity of the bead.

Retired Trollbeads

Some beads are retired after a while to make room for new designs. These retired beads are still available in our store but they can become rare.

Silver Trollbeads

This is how troll beads first started in 1976, they are made of silver from wax models which are cleaned and drilled to make them into bracelet and necklace charms. Over the years more designs have been produced and now all shapes and sizes are available to compliment individual personalities and interests. And like gold beads, different mythical characters add to the story line of the bracelet of necklace.

Trollbead Bracelets

Bracelets can either be purchased as an individual chain or as a completed charm bracelet. The charms only fit onto trollbead bracelets and necklaces. Chains come in silver and gold and black and brown leather bracelets and necklaces are available.

Trollbead Clasps

Clasps are available in gold and silver and a designed so they can be removed to allow the beads on the bracelet of necklace to be changed or reorganised. Clasps are decorated with patterns or are shaped like animals and flowers to fit in with the design of the jewellery. Some are also decorated with gems and stones although there are plain clasps available as well.

Trollbeads are simply the best gifts you can buy a friend or even buy for yourself, they are fun, precious and most of all they are unique.

By: Steven Beckerman

About the Author:

One of the Most Unique and Exciting Jewelry Lines on the market today.
If you don't know about Trollbeads, you soon will. Starting in the east, the jewelry line has been traveling north and south and finally westward quietly waking up marketplaces and creating avid collectors along its path.

Trollbeads is an interchangeable jewelry line from Denmark. The line consists of a few hundred artist designed beads along with the silver and gold chains for use with the beads. That may sound simple but it's anything other than simple. For over 30 years Trollbeads has been gaining in recognition but ever since it was brought to the U.S. by Morten Petersen the line has skyrocketed in popularity. Under his direction Petersen (who owns Lund Trading, the U.S. Distributor for Trollbeads) has given America a line of jewelry that is evolving, sophisticated yet playful and intriguing. In the past 2 years alone the company has experienced unheard of growth rates in sales and judging by the first quarter, 2008 will be another record breaking year.

Imagine a group of extremely talented artists collaborating and combining their talents to design and producing beautiful and wearable beads. Imagine the variety and the pure artistic value. In a catalog offered by Trollbeads retailers you can read about the artists and learn which of the beads they have designed. In sterling silver, 18K gold, fine Lamp-worked Murano glass and Amber, the Trollbeads jewelry line inspires every collector that discovers it. Less commercial than other bead lines Trollbeads appeals to collectors that recognize quality and designs that stand the test of time. Many of the original designs produced in the late seventies and early eighties are still in the line today. Beads like "Happy Universe", "Buddha" and "Transformation" speak to us of deeper meanings and transforms jewelry to reflect meaning and send endearing messages.

Every bead has a story, every story has a bead. It's true and it harkens back to the original charm bracelets and in fact Trollbeads has been referred to as the "New Age" charm bracelet. One of the most beneficial features of the Trollbeads jewelry is that you change and add beads on your own. No jeweler is needed. One day wear your beads in a necklace and the next day wear them on a bracelet.

Some of the beads in the line include the exquisite and colorful Murano glass beads number over 130 and that does not even include the assorted glass beads the company offers to its top dealers, which are unique and are not a part of the main line. All sterling silver beads, all 18K Gold beads and a combination of silver and gold beads comprise the metals offerings. The combination of both metals allows the collector to have a little gold without having to spend as much. The newest material offered is Amber and makes a beautiful bracelet as it has many hues and tones from honey to caramel sunset.

By: Louise Rogers

About the Author:

If you have ever purchased a unique or assorted Trollbead, formerly known as OOAK or One of a Kind, you have probably searched the various websites and wondered why the prices vary from website to website and from bead to bead. I can't tell you how other websites or stores value their unique beads but I can tell you how we price ours and there are many factors taken into account.

The number one consideration in valuing a unique bead is the visual beauty and the singular originality of the bead. You can always identify these beads as being the ones that once you click on "larger view" your breath is taken away.

If you a Trollbeadaholic, you know what I am talking about. These beads are valued the highest because beyond just their beauty and because of their beauty, they are the most sought after by serious Trollbeads collectors. In defining the value the dealer needs to assess the entire order of beads and decide which of the beads are sellable and which are viewed as not desirable. When you price the good beads you have to include the cost of the undesirable beads so the investment is covered. You may be wondering why we even have the less desirable beads.

Each Trollbeads dealer that has the "Gold" designation is allowed a limited amount of unique beads each month. If we choose to, we can order the "whole" quantity but we are not allowed to pick and choose which beads we like. We have to accept whatever beads we are sent. If we have an order of 100 beads and if only 25 are truly desirable, the selling price of these 25 beads are based on what we have paid for the total allotment.

Just remember when seeking new unique beads ask yourself what you are willing to pay and what you, yourself deem the value to be for your collection. If you look at a bead close up and it takes your breath away, buy it.

By: Louise Rogers

About the Author:

In an effort to continually bring our customers the latest and best in jewelry, we have added a new line to our store known as "CHAMILIA". You will be excited to see and learn about this beautiful jewelry line featuring European bead bracelets and necklaces with 14k gold, sterling silver and murano glass. Of course, this new line compliments the already large selection of European bead jewelry we currently offer and gives a distinctive new flavor to our inventory.

What is Chamilia? The name Chamilia is a more feminized word pointing to "Chameleon", which demonstrates the ability to change and adapt to the environment and surroundings. Chamilia's inspiration originates from European styling. Designers create each design which are then handmade by experienced craftsman. Chamilia offers both "Classic" and "Trendy" styling. Chamilia jewelry allows one to design and customize their own bracelet, necklace or anklet, each having unique character and style. Select individual beads from a constantly growing selection of the highest quality, sterling silver, 14k gold, murano glass and Swavorski crystal. One can start with just one bead or as many as you desire.

How much does it cost? Starter bracelets range from $27-59 while the individual beads range in price from $20 to $100.

Who's wearing Chamilia? Such celebs as Usher, Paris Hilton and Shannon Elizabeth just to name a few.

Are you a fan of Disney? Chamilia also offer a complete line of Disney inspired beads to compliment their line.

I invite you to visit Chamilia at their website: http://www.chamilia.com/ and take a look at all of the gorgeous jewelry you find there. Of course, once done, stop by our store and "See it Live"...try it on and just have fun exploring! I think you'll be overwhelmed with how the gorgeous look of "Chamilia" compares to other European bead jewelry competitors such as Pandora or Trollbeads!

By: Bill Warren

About the Author:

The Murano glass beads in Trollbeads jewelry are what give Trollbeads distinction among all other
collectable bead jewelry. The Trollbeads Murano glass bead collection includes over 130 different styles. These exquisite beads are made by hand and are crafted using a century's old method called lampworking. Glass beads are born from of glass tubes or rods that are super-heated and shaped and designed while softened by the flame of a torch.

Lampworking is a type of glasswork that uses a torch that is fueled by a mixture of gases (usually by a propane and oxygen mixture). The colorful glass rods range are generally created for lampworkers in Murano, Italy; and come in an incredible array of colors - transparent or opaque - as well as clear. The lampworker melts the glass rods and mixes, twists, turns and molds the molten creation into miniature works of art. The torch is used to melt rods of colored and clear glass. Once the glass is in a molten state it can formed into a bead by shaping with various tools and hand movements. When studying the beauty of the Trollbeads' Murano glass beads, take a moment to appreciate the efforts involved in each creation. Each bead has its own combination of chemical combinations, colors and shaping.

Lampworking is also known as "flameworking" or "torchworking," as the modern art form no longer uses oil-fueled lamps. This art form has been around since ancient times but made its historical mark in Murano, Italy where it was widely practiced in the 14th century. The early lampworking was done with a flame of an oil lamp, where the artisan would blow air into the flame through a pipe. Most artists today, including the Trollbeads' artists, use torches that burn either natural gas, or a mixture of propane and oxygen. It was not until the 20th Century that lampworking was acknowledged as a serious art form. German artist Hans Gobo Frabel, who had been trained in scientific glassblowing, began creating large pieces of art glass made in the lampworking process.
Lampworking can be done with many types of glass, but the most common are soda-lime glass, also known as soft glass; and borosilicate glass, which is also known as hard glass. Different colors of glass must be carefully selected for compatibility with other colors. The way in which any possible chemical reaction with each is used can alter the desired end result. All glass reacts by measuring its' the "Coefficient of Expansion" (or "COE"). When combined incorrectly, the piece will suffer a breakdown and shatter.

Trollbeads uses twisted canes and stringers and they mix bases of whites, opaques and transparent glass rods with ease and flair.

Glass Trollbeads are all hand-wound on mandrels, with diamond-bit cleaned holes, and then each is hand-fitted with silver tubing which is carefully flared to create the center cores. There is no glue involved, as each core is hand-measured and carefully "hammered" (usually the finishing does require a certain amount of "hand" hammering) solidly into place. These are not rivets that are placed in each side and glued into place- which is a common misconception. Trollbeads are fitted with a silver core tube that conforms to a standard of 4-5mm in the center.

All Trollbeads' creations are kiln-annealed to ensure that they can sustain life-long enjoyment.
Trollbeads' often uses silver mesh (such as that seen in the new "Silver Trace" beads), silver wire (as in the new bead, "Milky Way"), gold and silver leaf and foil, etching (such as the retired "sand" beads), and some even incorporate the use of incredibly beautiful dicroic glass.

This quick primer on the art of lampworking will help enhance the collectors understanding and respect of the effort involved in creating all of the Trollbeads Murano glass beads. Take a look at the beads, whether on your bracelet or on line at http://www.trollbeadsgallery.com and consider the elements that have gone into each creation. History, raw glass, fuel, training, talent and dedication has all gone into making Trollbeads Murano glass beads the honor of being the best in the market today.

By: Louise Rogers

About the Author: