Thursday, April 9, 2009

Why facets don't fascinate me.

So I've plunged into a different world lately, one of wire gauges and understanding the difference between sterling and fine silver (and silverplated) and what tarnishes, what the heck gunmetal finish is, and that a nylon hammer won't flatten wire...it strengthens or straightens it. I've made a point to look at as much handmade jewelry as I can get my eyeballs in front of because I know what my style is but I love to see what bits of other styles might work with mine and what I don't like.

So what is the fascination with facets? Gems that are cut so they catch the light...they immediately turn me away. I've realized that my favorite bits of stone and whatnot are irregular i.e. sea glass and freshwater pearls but that I enjoy them most when they are embraced by wire swirls and logical arrangement. It's like the act of setting them makes them whole because they were never ugly to begin with.

I keep looking at faceted stones and surfaces, waiting for something to truly catch my fancy, but so far, I enjoy the opaque, the rough, the wobbly.