November's Birthstone: Topaz

Topaz Vintage Swarovski Crystal Rhinestone Navette.

November's birthstone is topaz.

 

The gemstone topaz comes in a couple of general color hues: "imperial" or "precious" topaz in shades of yellow, orange, and pink, and the blue topaz.  When it comes to vintage glass, generally the term "topaz" refers to the color of the glass, specifically the golden yellow shades and their variants.  We have a large collection of faux topaz glass at Bumbershoot Supplies and Bumbershoot Designs.

Dark Topaz Vintage Teardrop Rhinestone Earrings.

Light Topaz Vintage Swarovski Crystal Rose Montees.

Topaz Vintage Swarovski Crystal Diamond Shaped Rhinestones.

Real topaz gemstones are often mistaken with similarly colored quartz. Smokey topaz is often mislabeled quartz. In vintage glass, smokey topaz is a unique color that has been made into many spectacular cabochons and rhinestones.

Smoked Topaz Vintage Glass Cabochons.

Light Smoked Topaz Vintage Swarovski Octagon Rhinestones.

Smoked Topaz Vintage Deco Glass Rectangles.

Sometimes we'll come across vintage glass labeled as "Madeira" topaz; so named for it's deep reddish tones, reminiscent of the wine. Madeira topaz is a color unique to vintage glass stones - it is not an official color of topaz gemstones. 

Madeira Topaz Vintage Octagon Rhinestone.

Madeira Topaz Vintage Swarovski Rhinestones.

Madeira Topaz Vintage Swarovski Rhinestones. 

Topaz is Utah's state gemstone and blue topaz is the state gemstone for Texas. Topaz has been said to be a symbol of friendship. 

Topaz Vintage Swarovski Crystal Rhinestone Earrings.

Blue and Topaz Vintage Rhinestone Necklace with Dragonfly.

In 1870 Tiffany & Co. published a birthstone poem in one of their pamphlets. The poem for November goes: 
 

"Who first comes to this world below
In dreary November's fog and snow, 
Should prize the topaz amber hue, 

Emblem of friends and lovers true."

Topaz with Aurora Borealis Coating Vintage Swarovski Octagon Rhinestones.

For friendly inspiration, we invite you to browse our vintage faux topaz collections!

Topaz at Bumbershoot Supplies

Topaz at Bumbershoot Designs

October's Birthstone: Opal

Vintage Fire Opal Harlequin Round Cabochons. 

October's birthstone is the opal.

The gemstone opal comes in many different hues, including warmly colored "fire opals" as well as striking blues. Vintage glass also displays a rich variety of hues made to mimic the various types of gemstone opal. We have a large collection of faux opal glass at Bumbershoot Supplies and Bumbershoot Designs. Typical among this style of glass are those that have a colored base, speckled with different colors of glass and foil, often with a layer of clear glass on top to provide a magnifying effect.

Vintage Ruby Red Fire Opal Pear Cabochons.

Vintage Blue Green Opal Cabochon.

Common gemstone opals, with their distinctive milky opacity also have inspired glass makers, resulting in a type of glass that is translucent with a golden glowing and sometimes fiery presentation. This type of glass is sometimes referred to as opaline, and the degree of fire varies from subtle to flashing.

Vintage Japanese Cherry Brand Opaline Glass Beads.

Vintage Opaline Leaf Cabochons.

You will also sometimes find these two types of glass worked together, a milky glass layer applied over a foil studded and speckled base.

Vintage Opal Glass Teardrop Rhinestones.

Opals have been the source of much folklore and superstition over the years.  Sometimes said to provide good luck and clarity to the wearers, they also have been associated with bad luck and death. 
 

Vintage Fire Opal Gold Filigree Cocktail Ring.

In 1870 Tiffany & Co. published a birthstone poem in one of their pamphlets. The poem for October goes: 

"October's child is born for woe,
And life's vicissitudes must know,
But lay an opal on her breast,

And hope will lull those woes to rest."

For hopeful inspiration, we invite you to browse our vintage faux opal collections!

Opals at Bumbershoot Supplies

Opals at Bumbershoot Designs

A Giveaway from a Featured Artist!

 

Our friend--and one of our featured artists--Anne Toprak from PlumCreek22 Studio on Etsy is giving away some lovely gift sets!

 

The sets include some of her marvelous hair pins made with vintage cabochons, elegant greeting cards, and some gorgeous bohemian paper stars. See all of the information over at Anne's blog! For a chance at these lovelies, leave a comment, and note that you can get an extra entry by following her blog.

If you'd like to learn a little more about Anne you can read our featured artist blog post and be sure to check out her Etsy shop.

Using Vintage Flower Cabochons: DIY Embellished Sun (flower) glasses

 

We've been long enamored of Dolce & Gabbana's Autumn/Winter 2012-13 collection. Big accessories with even bigger jewelry makes this collection remarkable.  

With spring vacation just around the corner, and the promise of warm sandy beaches in the near future, we got to thinking about some pairs of stand out sunglasses.

Inspired by Dolce & Gabanna and this and this, we whipped up a couple pairs of our own beflowered sunnies.

 

We pulled out a large box of flower cabochons and used glue dots to temporarily adhere the cabs to the glasses to plan out a design. 

All of the vintage Japanese and vintage West Geman flower cabochons used are available at Bumbershoot Supplies.

 

 

When we were pleased with the arrangement of flowers, we used E6000 glue to permanently adhere the cabochons to the glasses. (Our pointers for working with E6000 glue here!)

Definitely wait a while for each piece to become firm before gluing the next piece on. 

With these bright sunnies everyone at the pool will know that you're no shrinking violet! 

Estate Sale Vintage Glass Cabochons From Bumbershoot Supplies

I have previously blogged about our recent estate sale purchase of vintage Venetian glass flowers, you can read that post here.  I am still working to photograph and list these flowers on Bumbershoot Supplies.

However, I wanted to let you know that we were also able to purchase many rare and unusual vintage glass cabochons and a few lovely vintage rhinestones from this same estate, and some of these are now listed at Bumbershoot Supplies.  Check ‘em out! Many of these lovely vintage glass cabochons and rhinestones are available in limited quantities.

We use natural light for photographing all our supplies and designs because we have found it best reflects the colors and character of the vintage materials we offer. And natural light is somewhat limited at this time of year in Seattle. For this reason and because and we did purchase quite a large lot of vintage glass from  this estate, we expect to be listing new items for several weeks. You can always visit the “new arrivals” section at Bumbershoot Supplies to see what is most recently available.  Or send me an email – maybe we have what you are looking for.

2012: The Year of Tangerine Tango

Happy Tangerine Tango 2012!

Pantone has chosen Tangerine Tango as the color of the year for 2012.  On the Pantone website, "Tangerine Tango, a spirited reddish orange, continues to provide the energy boost we need to recharge and move forward."

Sounds like a good start for a new year, yes?

Tangerine Tango caught my attention because so many of the vintage coral colored supplies sold at Bumbershoot Supplies are pretty much tangerine tango by another name. 

Sometimes orange can be a bit of a challenge to execute in designs or in personal adornment, but these vintage shades are really accessible and may add just the touch to reenergize your designs and creative process as we enter a new year. 

You can learn more about Tangerine Tango on the Pantone website, try here and here.

You can search Bumbershoot Supplies using the term "coral" to see all of our vintage coral items.