Monday, December 23, 2013

Shocking Pink Gold Watches... Now Trending


Pink gold watches were all over the TV in courtroom scenes this year.  First, a star witness in a high profile Florida murder trial grabbed attention with her big pink gold fashion watch.  Then, Judge Judy, the $41 million lady, appeared to be wearing a solid, pink gold Swiss watch in several scenes on her TV show.


 
 
 
 

The new pink gold watches are true eye candy. The pink gold of newer watches is much more pleasing to look at than vintage watches made with colored gold.  The red gold of vintage timepieces often appears to be bizarrely rusted yellow gold. 
 
Shopping for a pink gold watch has never been easier: Big selections are in all the watch displays at major department stores in the mall. And the pink color, conspiratorially allows consumers to forget that 24K Yellow gold is still too costly for average consumers, at about $1290 per ounce as of December 2013.
 

Gold Plus Copper Equals Colored Alloys

 
Copper used for pink gold alloys
Copper Nugget

Pink gold alloys made with copper
River Bed with Alluvial Gold Nuggets
               
 Copper is added to gold in varying amounts to manufacture  alloys of pink, rose or red gold jewelry.
Maybe you want to upgrade your jewelry accessories with a pink gold watch, but you don’t want anything with too big of a dial face or a rose or red gold metal color that’s too over the top and just too dressy.
 

The New Look of Casio Baby-G Shock

I was, well, shocked to see a Pink Gold Casio sports watch in a mall department store watch display.
You remember Casio watches, don’t you?  That’s one of the Japanese watch brands that forced the Swiss watch industry to redouble their efforts a few decades ago.
 The Casio Baby G’s watch is  trendy looking and not utilitarian. It's a great look for the office and the beach.  The  model I bought is MP-MBGA5-2, movement 3189 3252 BG-169G.
The Pink Gold Casio Baby-G is a pure fun fashion, not too dressy. (Thankfully, there’s no tiny Casio calculator on a  black watch band like back in the day!)
The sales clerk refused to set the watch time for me…he had a line of customers.  So he gave me the dreaded Casio watch manual and told me to read it.   Which I did at home, but I still had to go online to a YouTube video to figure-out how to set the day name.
 
That’s OK.

My Baby G pink gold sports watch was priced right, less than $100.  The size is not too big.  And the sporty fashion color is just too hot… hot pink!
 

 

Monday, December 16, 2013

Look Better with December's Cheery Colored Birthstones


Blue topaz gemstones from Texas unenhanced
Icy Blue Topaz naturally mined, no enhancements

If your skin gets that ghostly look during winter, forget more make-up, here are some amazing gemstone jewelry fixes with December birthstones.

 The cool blue tones of Topaz and Tanzanite, alternative December birthstones, can really cheer-up grayish winter skin:    So will mined Zircon, another alternative December birthstone, which has an enthralling sparkle unlike any other gemstone, including diamonds.

Blue topaz is true eye candy.    And not all of this gemstone jewelry is a dyed or enhanced blue color.   True blue, blue topaz gemstone material is mined in Texas, USA.    It’s an authentic cool glacier blue color.
 

Wake-up Your Skin Tone






Just like make-up, the deep lavender of tanzanite will perk-up anybody’s skin tone dulled by a lack of sun in winter.   The specific color tone  (there's no red tone)  of Tanzanite in stud earrings can work wonders for the skin on your face.  





The same goes for Zircon, a God given element. It’s number 40 on the periodic table.   It’s mined from the earth unlike manmade cubic zirconia.

 White and blue zircon jewelry has a “captured light” sparkle that captivating to gaze at on its wearers.   It’s a great sparkly birthstone look that you can buy without  taking a big hit from the dollars in your wallet.

Monday, December 9, 2013

How To Find Modern Looking Turquoise Jewelry

Turquoise necklace made with petal cabochons
A fresh new take on turquoise bead jewelry



Finding edgy-looking Turquoise jewelry, December’s birthstone, can be a real adventure.   Most turquoise  seems to be made into Southwest style silver jewelry or  Arts and Craft projects with tiny beads. 

Why settle for those styles just because turquoise is your birthstone?

Turquoise has a storied past of  unique and expensive jewelry looks:    From antique Persian baby blue turquoise neck strands to 1920s art deco  jewelry designs with diamonds and onyx.
Turquoise ballerina style rings with diamonds were super popular in the 60s and 70s.

Gold, turquoise and pearl earrings
Turquoise gold  and pearl earrings


 

If you were born in December,  here are tips to find fashion-forward  turquoise jewelry:

  1. Ask your personal jewelry about turquoise styles they have warehoused or not on display.
  2. Check estate jewelers for art deco looks made with turquoise.
  3. Check pawn shops with diverse styles of jewelry
  4. Look at online jewelry stores.

Finding the eye-pleasing blue of turquoise with a modern flair can be a real challenge,  but worth it,   to discover a unique piece of  birthstone jewelry.

 

Merry Christmas To You and Yours!


Celebrate the profound joy of Christmas with Kenny Loggins' Christmas Music "Celebrate Me Home" :



Merry Christmas All!

Monday, December 2, 2013

WHY TEENY DIAMONDS ARE A NO NO FOR CHRISTMAS GIFTS

Warning!!!   Think twice before buying a Christmas diamond jewelry gift designed with masses of smaller carat stones. Here’s why - This video shows how easily a diamond can be shaken out of a setting!

Here are more reasons to avoid jewelry with lots of tiny diamonds:
  • There’s an increased statistical chance of losing a diamond from ordinary wear…which destroys the jewelry look until a teeny replacement stone can be found to be set in tiny prongs.

  • There’s less gold or platinum used in small prong settings resulting in overall less value for the jewelry item.

  • Teeny tiny diamonds are harder to clean and keep clean for maximum sparkle. Ultrasonic cleaning is a no, no!

  • Teeny, tiny diamonds have fewer facets and thus less sparkle or white lightning.

  • Solitaire diamond jewelry is always a hot look.

The above points aren't apparent in flashy TV ads.

Diamonds in Pave, other invisible settings or small prongs are really delicate... maybe too much so for extra special Christmas jewelry gifts.    They are a real no, no for jewelry  like engagement rings that will be worn 24/7 or subject to hard duty like gardening.   I would make exceptions for only very casual or inexpensive jewelry styles.

WHY YOU SHOULD WEAR BLING ALL DAY LONG

Sequin covered platform pumps
Pumps for that Day Glow Look



My sister is working overtime  heat pressing Swarovski crystal designs on denim jackets for a motorcycle club of grown-ass men in their 40s and 50s.   Yeah! Just about Everybody is wearing Bling on their clothes!

On shoes, phone cases, jeans, eye makeup, tee shirts and sweaters, it’s bling, bling  and more bling.   Shiny sequins, glistening Lurex, sparkly crystal fashion looks are not just for evening styles any more…just ask your average 13 year old girl.





Girls shoe trimmed with sequins
Baby girl bling
 



Sequin tank and gold blazer
Bling for the office?
 

 
 
 
Multi-color sequined tank
Bling for casual daywear
 
 
The style is not going away. It’s mainstream now for office wear or casual looks.
 
 The best sequin and bead applique selections are in stores NOW for the holiday season.

So pick-up a few shiny, sparkly fashion looks for EVERYDAY wear to stay hot and fresh looking!
 
Better yet... Take a long hard look in your closet to see what sparkly clothes you already own that would look great as daytime looks.   Next, take a look at your see-through blouses.