Tuesday, November 18, 2008

I bought some beautiful faceted crystal quartz when I was in Rome recently. I love the way the light hits the many facets and bounces off of them.

I've used them to make some earrings, highlighting them in a herringbone weave made of sterling. (You can see them here.)

But this weekend it suddenly struck me that they would be great as the focal for rings. (Palm hits forehead! Duh!)

sterling silver crystal wrapped ring etsyI made a wire wrap ring, with the intent to oxidize it.

I personally like the antiqued look in jewelry. When I look at photos of jewelry, I'm always drawn to those that are antiqued. The contrast between the highlights and the shadows gives the jewelry interest. But I'm not sure most people like the oxidized look. (I've also heard that a shiny silver usually sells better in shops on Etsy.)

After I finished wrapping the stone, I found I liked the way this ring looked with the bright polished silver. (There it is on the right.)

Shiny shiny shiny. The bright sterling in the same color tone as the quartz.

I could definitely see myself wearing this at Christmas decked out for the holidays - and it sparkling on my fingers.

sterling silver oxidized ring crystal jewelry etsyBut since I really had planned to oxidize the ring, I went ahead and did it.

On the left is the exact same ring, oxidized and rubbed with fine steel wool to bring out the highlights.

Hmmm. I'm unsure. I thought the oxidized finish would contrast with and bring out the sparkling quartz. But it seems to me that the stone reflects the dark tones more. Not bad, but different than I had imagined.

What do you think? Which do you like better?




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19 Comments:

  1. T.Allen said...
    While I generally go for the oxidized finish, this piece looks better shiny.
    The Great Ethan Allen said...
    oxidized gets my vote.
    Morrgan said...
    I too usually like the oxidized better, but in this case I vote for the shiny. Mmm, shiny.
    High Desert Diva said...
    I always prefer things to look old....oxidized for me!
    Virginia said...
    Hmmmm. I think I prefer the oxidized. The shiny silver just looks a little one dimensional or something while the oxidation has added some character that it was missing before. But then, I definitely prefer any technique that adds pattern, mottling or detail to anything. The more convoluted, the better.
    All Wired Up TOO said...
    oxidize it! give the silveer some depth!
    Parallax Photo said...
    One more vote for oxidized. To me, silver looks richer to me when it's got some depth of color. (But I can imagine the shinier one selling well)
    Andrea said...
    I often like oxidized, but I love this piece shiny!
    Anonymous said...
    I also can't get myself to oxidize pretty shiny sterling, however if the customer preferred it, oxidized it would be for them.
    I like the shiny on this beautiful ring. I'm new to your blog and loving it!
    barbara said...
    I've never tried oxidizing... yet. I think the shininess of the unoxidized silver compliments the quartz nicely. Very pretty!
    craftyLinda said...
    I had a hard time making up my mind I like them both but I thik I like the shiny best. Although I usually go for the oxidized.
    Keala Legacy said...
    I really like this particular ring oxidized... gives good contrast to the clear bead. But in general, I like shiny objects... ;)
    outofthepinksky said...
    Saw your comment on my blog. Thank you for dropping by! I've been to your site before. In fact, you taught me to wirewrap a briolette! So, thank you for that too! :D
    Contrariwise said...
    outofthepinksky,

    I'm so glad that someone found my tutorial useful!

    Can you believe, someone complained about it! They were upset that I was giving away "trade secrets".

    Sheesh!
    Wear Your Wild said...
    Oxidized for me.
    Unknown said...
    Im torn, oxidised. No, shiny. Both, its both.
    Contrariwise said...
    I can't believe it. Or maybe I DO believe it. It looks like a 50/50 split.

    I really thought that most people would prefer shiny - that's what I've heard on the Etsy forums.
    Anonymous said...
    I like it oxidized, but yes, a lot of etsy people seem to like shiny. If you plan to make more than one there is no reason you could not have both and please everybody :)
    P~
    Little Lovables said...
    I go with the oxidized... it really makes the crystal sparkle.

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