Monday, December 29, 2014

The Beauty of White in Jewelry



Janice's 3 Pearl Clip-on Drop Earrings





The color white represents cleanliness (think a chef's uniform), innocence (a baby lamb), purity (the bride's gown), neutrality, lightness, and exactitude.  In ancient times, it was one of the first colors used by Paleolithic artists and was made from calcite or chalk and used as a background or highlight.  In ancient Egypt white was associated with the goddess Isis. Also, priests and priestesses of Isis wore white linen in ceremonies, and those who died had strips of white cloth wrapped around them. 


Opal Chunks Clip On Earrings




In ancient Greece and other nations white was associated with mother's milk and was written about in mythological stories.  In the Muslim holy book, the Talmud, milk is one of the four sacred substances along with wine, honey, and a rose.  In politics of ancient Rome, if a man wanted to hold a public office, he wore a white toga brightened with chalk called a toga candida (origin for the word candidate.)  A white toga was also worn for ceremonial occasions by all Roman citizens over the age of fourteen. Magistrates and certain priests wore white togas with a broad purple stripe.   Once Augustus became emperor, the white toga became mandatory to wear in order to enter the Roman forum.



Granulated & White Enamel Clip on Oval Earrings



White also became the color worn by priests during mass and monks of the Cistercian order under Pope Pius, a former monk of the Dominican Order. He was the first to wear white as Pope and it continues to be the official color worn by popes.  The color white has other religions associations too. The white elephant is considered sacred in Asian cultures.  In Buddhism white is associated with the birth of Buddha.  Native Americans of the Great Plains considered the white buffalo sacred as it represented fertility and the gods of the earth.   White also has a negative connotation. In some Asian cultures, it is a symbol of death. In the Ancient Egyptians, culture white was considered the color of life when black mud covered fertile lands created any time the Nile flooded.  

Today much of the same symbolic associations are still present today.  A majority of brides still wear white gowns. In home, design white makes a room look lighter and larger in appearance. White is also considered a calming color. In the fashion, world white is used extensively and often paired with other colors like black for major contrast.




Pearl Grape Cluster Earrings with White Pearl Lacy Ring



These are just a small sample of the numerous clip on earrings that feature white alone or as an accent. Cliptomania has a dedicated section for white earrings as well as many scattered in other sections.  If white is not the only color you like, there are countless other colors among the 500+  non-pierced earrings you can check out when you visit the top site for clip on earrings, Cliptomania.com!

Friday, December 12, 2014

Color Highlight - Red: Beyond the Holidays!

BD236



The color red was one of the first colors used by artists in the upper Paleolithic Age most likely because sources for this and other natural pigments like white and black were readily available.  The color red has several sources. These include red ochre (a mineral found in nature) that contains iron oxide, as well as specific insects like the female Cochineal and the Kermes, a scale insect found in Mediterranean regions. The plant world is a source of red dye too. The Madder plant has tiny yellow flowers and grows in Europe and the Middle East where India has used it for centuries to make red dye.

Red has been more than a color for artists who used it to express danger, sacrifice, passion, anger, happiness or pride. Red is the hair color of 1 to 2% of people in the world, the color of certain birds the color of poisonous snakes. It is also a warning color for insects like the Lady Bug and much more.
In Ancient Egypt red was a symbol of life, health and victory and  also used in prayer to the god Isis to protect from evil.  The word "red" (as used in place of words like destruction and harm.) At the same time, red was used in cosmetics and tomb murals as a skin color for men. Sometimes kings, queens and other people with high status dyed their hair red as a sign of beauty, wealth, and power.


CG74





From Wikipedia.org

In Ancient Rome, Tyrian purple was the color of the Emperor, but red had an important religious symbolism. Romans wore togas with red stripes on holidays, and the bride at a wedding wore a red shawl, called a flammeum. Red was used to color statues and the skin of gladiators. Red was also the color associated with the army. Roman soldiers wore red tunics, and officers wore a cloak called a paludamentum which, depending upon the quality of the dye, could be crimson, scarlet or purple. In Roman mythology red is associated with the god of war, Mars.  The vexilloid of the Roman Empire had a red background with the letters SPQR in gold. A Roman general receiving a triumph had his entire body painted red in honor of his achievement.  The Romans liked bright colors, and many Roman villas were decorated with vivid red murals.

After the Western Roman Empire fell, and the Byzantine Empire came to the fore, the princes of Europe and the Roman Catholic Church decided to take the color and use it to project majesty and authority. It was a signature color worn by Roman Catholic Cardinals.  It was used in banners by Emperor Charlemagne and for the shoes we wore on his coronation.  Red clothing was worn by merchants, artisans, and townspeople especially during holidays and special occasions.  While people of wealth wore clothing dyed red from kermes or carmine (carmine acid found in female scale insects),  the red townspeople wore tended to be made from the madder plant.   Another popular shade of red during these times was called Brazilian and came from Sapanwood trees that grew in India, Malaysia and Sri Lanka. Brazilwood that is similar and found in South America was also used to make red dye. Not only was it a  popular export from the region, it gave the name to the nation of Brazil.




RB478





In Renaissance times, red was used by artists to draw attention to their work.  In most instances it was used to depict the cloak of Christ, his mother Mary or other important figures.  Also, trade routes were opened to the New World, Asia, and the Middle East. These routes imported lots of varieties of red pigment and dye into Europe where guilds of dyers specializing in a particular color or type of dye began.  The Rubia plant was regularly used  to create a dye for the common people. A different red dye called Kermes dyed  the clothing of the wealthy, and Polish Cochineal or "Blood of Saint John" to create a high quality and expensive red dye for the very wealthy.


Three centuries later red became a symbol of revolution in France signifying liberty and personal freedom, and was used by the Jacobins and other radical parties of the time.  Many of them wore a red Phyrgian (liberty) cap modeled after caps worn by freed slaves in Ancient Rome.  During the Reign of Terror in the 18th century, women wore red caps around the guillotine to celebrate executions.  Even the French flag was changed to red, but after the Reign of Terror was over the traditional flag colors of red, white and blue were restored.

In Ancient China red was an important color in religion, culture, industry, fashions and court ritual. Silk was dyed red as early as the Han Dynasty 25-220 B.C.   China had a monopoly on red silk until the 6th century A.D. when it was introduced into the Byzantine Empire and in the 12th century to Europe.

From Wikipedia.org

Red played an important role in Chinese philosophy. It was believed that the world was composed of five elements: metal, wood, water, fire and earth and that each had a color. Red was associated with fire. Each Emperor chose the color that his fortune-tellers believed would bring the most prosperity and good fortune to his reign. During the Zhou, Han, Jin, Song and Ming Dynasties, red considered a noble color, and it was featured in all court ceremonies, from coronations to sacrificial offerings, and weddings.


BD347





 Red was also a badge of rank. During the Song Dynasty (906–1279), officials of the top three ranks wore purple clothes.  The officials of the fourth and fifth ranks wore bright red; those of the sixth and seventh wore green; and the eighth and ninth wore blue. Red was the color worn by the royal guards of honor and the color of the carriages of the imperial family. When the imperial family traveled, their servants and accompanying officials carried red and purple umbrellas. Of an official who had talent and ambition, it was said "he is so red he becomes purple.

Red would become a symbol of the 20th century American Revolution, and also a symbol in Eastern Europe's Bolshevik Revolution of 1917.  Even China used red during the Cultural Revolution of 1949. In Russia's U.S.S.R., red became the color symbolizing communism along with Vietnam and Cuba. On a pleasant note, red was a symbolic color used by artists such as Matisse of France and American artist Mark Rothko.

As you can see, red has quite a rich history, but we haven't yet touched on red used for my favorite accessory...clip on earrings!  These can be found throughout the Cliptomania website in categories such as Tomorrow's Heirlooms, My Favorite Color, and Pretty & Petite.  There is no way to avoid shades of red, in the most pleasant sense that is!  So if you are a fan of various shades of red or just like all colors of the rainbow come by www.cliptomania.com where we have nearly every color one would want. 

 

Monday, December 1, 2014

It is that special time of year again. Happy Holidays!


Captured Dreams Clip on Earrings


Ah December, when winter's lion arrives in force, and holiday giddiness rises. And radio stations across the United States, no matter the genre, play holiday songs.

Decorative lights are hung from the gutters or garages of houses and on outdoor trees.  And Christmas theme wreathes are hung against front doors. Inside the house, another tree goes up with treasured decorations, more lights, and maybe a decorative topper.  It is also a month with four birthstones: turquoise, blue topaz, lapis lazuli, and blue zircon.

Even with all of this I still get sentimental over what has happened during the year and the thanks I have another good year lived.  I am also thankful once more for family, friends, and of course my cat Celia!

I hope you will think along similar lines about this year and the special time we are experiencing.  Also please check out the holiday specials cliptomania.com offers and the many clip-on earrings that will make great gifts to the special persons in your life.  

Thursday, August 28, 2014

Meet the Designer: Jan Michaels







One of cliptomania’s newest designers is Jan Michaels whom I met at the NYNow show a few years back.    She is a San Francisco native and metalsmither who over a course of a 25 year career has designed and created clip earrings, bracelets, necklaces and other jewelry accessories.  They all have a touch of antiquity, dashes of current styles and some pieces have a futuristic feel.  

Jan Michaels personally designs all her pieces and will also make the first piece herself by hand. She also works with a group of skilled crafts women who assemble the parts of her jewelry into finished products.  Ms. Michaels feels that although the rest of the jewelry field believes in mass production, she prefers like a few other artisans, that there is nothing like making jewelry by hand because unlike machines an artisan and crafts person cares about what he or she makes.

Ms. Michael’s technique is to take brass in its natural state and give it a golden, burnished luster through an antique process that allows the brass to age, thus developing a wonderful patina.  If it loses its luster, a little rubbing with a cloth will bring back the shine, which fares better than the less environmentally safe electroplating done with metals and a chemical bath.


Ms. Michael’s or one of her crafts women then takes the finished parts and manually combines them with a hand-operated riveting machine then will finish it with semi-precious or natural stones.  These include carnelian, jade, onyx, jade, fire agate, Botswana agate, and many more gemstones.  As well as beads, freshwater pearls, fossilized stones and other items she has collected over the decades.

In many ways Jan Michael’s jewelry collections reflects her personality in the colors she likes, the moods she has, the styles she wears as well as paying homage to past artistry and civilizations Persian, Indian, Roman, Byzantine, Egyptian, Arabian, Chinese, and Celtic.Lastly like the environmentally friendly atmosphere in her shop, Jan Michaels is also supportive of various worthwhile organizations like Sea Turtle Restoration Project, Environmental Defense and others.

I am glad to have met this wonderful designer and a clip earring wearer herself.  Jan Michael’s designs are truly one-of-a-kind and will fit well in our Tomorrow’s Heirloom section with other designers like Michal Golan, Lori Bonn, Katherine Kornblau and others.  See their earrings on the Cliptomania.com website.


Wednesday, August 13, 2014

Shapes of Pearls






Classical Non-pierced Earrings with Pearls
 




Round is the most highly favored and valuable of all the pearl shapes.





Crystal & Pearl Clip on Chandelier Earrings



Baroque or irregular shaped pearls that are ideal for necklaces or for clustered earrings with a crystal or gemstone.


Baltic Lace Non-pierced Earrings




Oval are shaped like an egg and are typically used on drops or dangles.


Ovalicious  Genuine Pearl Clip on Drop Earrings







Button pearls are round and a little flat on one side.  They are ideal for necklaces or clip on earrings like these.




No longer available on cliptomania.com


Mabe pearls are round on the top and flat on one side.  They are ideal for earrings and pins.
 



No longer available on cliptomania.com



The Teardrop shaped pearl is good for drop necklaces & for drop clip on earrings.