Out with the old, as they say. Well, I was getting a bit bored with that very dark theme. It was originally to match my packagaing- lovely, fine corrugated black boxes, but I think that might be a bit like cart-before-horse, at least that how I feel about it now. So here we are with a spanky new theme, customised with a new logo which reflects that it’s me (Tree) who makes all the jewellery.... 

Amethyst Necklace “Laura”, originally uploaded by www.virtudej.com. Oh it’s lovely to see all the spring flowers and feel the warmth of spring coming… With that in mind I made a couple of pieces this morning with Light Amethyst. This is the necklace, it uses a large (20mm x 17mm) faceted pendant and little amethyst heishi beads. Because I used one of my gorgeous toggle clasps,... 

Platinum Pearl Earrings, originally uploaded by www.virtudej.com. Well my goodness it’s that time of year again! In case the weather wasn’t enough to tell you then TV certainy will. One of my favourite shows “Bones” just had their Christmas episode and the main character, Dr Temperance Brennan was wearing some lovely drop earrings. She wore them a few episodes ago so I set... 

Fuchsia & Black Bracelet, originally uploaded by www.virtudej.com. Ah the 80′s! Back in the 80′s fuchsia was one of those bold signature colours. This jewellery blends that shade of shocking pink with deep burgundy Garnet and black Onyx to bring it up to date and make it altogether subtler, but still on-trend. I kept it simple and just alternated a pink with black and used some of... 

Citrine Bracelet “Melina”, originally uploaded by www.virtudej.com. Most people associate Topaz with Novemebr, but Citrine is also a traditional gem for this month. This is probably because the two gems are very often mistaken for each other, but I’m just guessing. If you know someone who has a birthday this month then consider a Citrine gift- it’s a very pretty gem and ranges... 

Garnet Bracelet, originally uploaded by www.virtudej.com. Garnet is a gemstone that has been in use since ancient times, indeed it is among the stones mentioned in the surviving literature of all ancient languages. Properties of Garnet Garnet is actually the name given to a family of silicate minerals whose members are: Almandite Andradite Gossular Pyrope Spessartine Uvarovite Its hardness is rated... 

"Autumn" Lampwork Necklace, originally uploaded by www.virtudej.com. But then, autumn/fall colours are sooo pretty! The cool thing about left-overs in jewellery making is that after a little while you end up with a sizeable collection that you actually do something with and here’s an example. This one-off necklace features a variety of lampwork, gemstone and other assorted beads.... 

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Green Amethyst Jewellery Green Amethyst, also known as known as Prasiolite, is a pretty, watery shade of green. I have some in supply and I initially wanted to make something combined with smoky quartz, but in the end some little rondelles of purple and light purple amethyst combined better with the colours. It’s great end-of-summer jewellery because the colours look fantastic when worn with... 

I can’t wait for autumn because I’ve recently been buying up beautiful beads in black onyx, green jade, aventurine and also real emeralds. I made a special necklace ahead of time just to try out the materials and see how the colours work together- take a look at “Ellie”: Green and Black Jewellery "Ellie" It’s a long size 80cm necklace and the special thing about...