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Chatter
- Granny Nancy on “A few Necklaces”:
“I love kyanite and agree with K that the first necklace will likely sell. Mother's Day…” read »
- K Ralston on “A few Necklaces”:
“I can tell you that if you put this first necklace in your shop it will…” read »
- Stingray on “Earring Collection”:
“It won't let me comment! These are all really cool.…” read »
- Hagin S on “What's Your Mood Ring”:
“Really good stuff. Love em…” read »
- Andreap at Lima on “Cosmic Tulip Earrings”:
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“Thank you all for your kind words!…” read »
- dolllady aka Pam on “Earring Collection”:
“Oh my! They are all beautiful and unique. The purple hot air balloons would…” read »
- Melody F on “Purple Bliss”:
“Just noticed these. I really like the pendant with all the swirly things at the…” read »
- K Ralston on “The Earrings & Bracelet in Progress”:
“Nice set. You obviously put a great deal of work into these. I especially like the…” read »
- K Ralston on “Amethyst Clusters”:
“I like the soft color of these teardrops.…” read »
- K Ralston on “Some New Bracelets”:
“Sweetjane bracelets are the best.…” read »
- K Ralston on “Earring Collection”:
“Beautiful earrings. I'm especially fond of the red ones.…” read »
- Little Round Chick on “Earring Collection”:
“Great use of colors and techniques. I especially like the design of the last pair.…” read »
- Althea A on “Earring Collection”:
“WOW! Absolutely gorgeous earrings! They are all so beautiful it’s hard to pick a favorite but…” read »
- sweetjane on “Some New Bracelets”:
“Thanks so much everyone for your comments!! I really love making bracelets!!…” read »
- Alissa U on “Dragon Necklace”:
“Delightful & original!…” read »
- nutkitten on “Some New Bracelets”:
“These are all beautiful!…” read »
- nutkitten on “Dragon Necklace”:
“Thank you Moonshan
…” read »
- Alissa U on “Wildflower Fields Necklace”:
“Gorgeous - I’ld happily wear that one ! (Not OCD enough to make one - maybe…” read »
- moonshan on “Dragon Necklace”:
“I absolutely love The Green Dragon!…” read »
- moonshan on “Dragon Necklace”:
“I absolutely love The Green Dragon!…” read »
- moonshan on “Dragon Necklace”:
“I absolutely love The Green Dragon!…” read »
- moonshan on “Dragon Necklace”:
“I absolutely love The Green Dragon!…” read »
- moonshan on “Dragon Necklace”:
“I absolutely love The Green Dragon!…” read »
- Granny Nancy on “Some New Bracelets”:
“The black and white is my favorite. Its gorgeous.…” read »
- dolllady aka Pam on “Some New Bracelets”:
“Gorgeous bracelets! Each bracelet has its own character, color scheme and outstanding colors.…” read »
- Little Round Chick on “Some New Bracelets”:
“Fine collection of bracelets. You make so many of them ... do you do it…” read »
- dolllady aka Pam on “Amethyst Clusters”:
“Ooooh so pretty! These colors play so well together! Of course they are my favorite…” read »
- Little Round Chick on “Amethyst Clusters”:
“Very versatile ear rings for Spring! The color reminds me of the spring flowers that…” read »
- dolllady aka Pam on “The Earrings & Bracelet in Progress”:
“I agree with Althea, but you are the person seeing it right in front of you…” read »
- Althea A on “The Earrings & Bracelet in Progress”:
“I love the earrings and necklace set. I don’t really think that the eye pins are…” read »
- nutkitten on “Dragon Necklace”:
“I guess it is 'semi' original? I browse thru sites with handcrafted jewelry to get…” read »
- Little Round Chick on “Dragon Necklace”:
“I was born in the year of the Dragon so I've always been fond of them.…” read »
- Little Round Chick on “Easter Set”:
“What a wonderful whimsical set of bunnies and a novel use of ribbon crimps. I…” read »
- dolllady aka Pam on “Dragon Necklace”:
“This green Dragon will be a great attention grabber!…” read »
- K Ralston on “Very Green Bracelet”:
“Gorgeous greens. The large nugget could be emerald. It looks very similar to some raw emerald…” read »
- sweetjane on “Very Green Bracelet”:
“Thanks to everyone for your comments!! It is a lot of fun making bracelets.…” read »
- Althea A on “Czech Glass Medley”:
“Thank you, nutkitten. This is the bracelet that was featured on the Lima Beads homepage. …” read »
- nutkitten on “Czech Glass Medley”:
“Was looking thru and you have some really nice bracelets, this is one of my favorites!…” read »
- Stingray on “Easter Set”:
“Very creative and a unique way to use ribbon clamps.…” read »

Beautiful Iolite
by Nancy Mc on 06/06/15
About this design:
Here's a fun design,using Iolite. Iolite doesn't get a lot of attention,and it's a yummy stone. In this case,I had a few with chips on the side,so I did my beloved rustic wrap to disguise the damage. It's hard to capture the color of these stones with a camera.
I used natural light,but I'm not skilled in photography. Any tips at all would be greatly appreciated.
Components:
Green Onyx ovals and faceted rondelles,SS craft wire 24G,Iolite briolettes approx 10x6 mm if memory serves,SS jump rings,and SS ear wires.Read the comments (or add your own)
Add your thoughts!
-
On Mar 30, 2023 at 11:05 am
YOU say:

On Jun 07, 2015 at 1:05 am #
dolllady aka Pam says:Nancy, these are great! I love the mix of the green with iolite. They are so feminine and will go with so many colors.
On Jun 07, 2015 at 1:10 am #
celticivy says:Iolite is a very ‘yummy’ stone, they turned out great with the green onyx. When you use natural light, are you still inside? Sometimes you need to step outside to take pictures. Also try a subtle prop like a clear quartz crystal when trying to take pictures with pieces you make with stones and crystals.
On Jun 07, 2015 at 1:55 am #
Nancy Mc says:Thank you,my fellow night owls. Celticivy,I appreciate the tips,and I’ll try that. I have been looking for a big slab of Quartz to use in photos.
On Jun 07, 2015 at 9:06 am #
celticivy says:Nancy Mc, if you go on my page here on limabeads page to my designs, and go on page 2 and scroll down till you get to Chrysicolla on wire wrap, ( 7th down). I have a nice peiece of Chrysicholla on the piece of Quartz outside on a bed of grass, and the Chrysicolla ”pops”.
On Jun 07, 2015 at 10:26 am #
Fresh Baked says:Gorgeous color combo and design! Love that Iolite!
On Jun 07, 2015 at 2:36 pm #
puppychick labratbecky says:Fantastic pair! That is some gorgeous iolite!
On Jun 07, 2015 at 4:47 pm #
Nancy Mc says:Thanks ladies! It is a great stone. I like the way it looks gray,then purple,then blue,in different lighting. I read that the Vikings used to as a crystal to find direction. It may be just folklore.
Celtic,,that you so much. That’s a very pretty picture and I am inspired by that. Gotta find a good seller.
On Jun 07, 2015 at 4:47 pm #
Nancy Mc says:Gotta find an edit button as well. sheesh!
On Jun 07, 2015 at 5:57 pm #
Crystal Canary says:Nancy, I really like this color combination! And I will agree, Iolite is an exceptional stone. I love your description of ‘gray, purple & blue’ all rolled into one! The uniqueness of the added dangles in this design give that something extra special. These are really done nicely!
On Jun 07, 2015 at 6:47 pm #
Nancy Mc says:Thank you,CC. I had an iolite tennis bracelet and lost it on vacation . You would have thought I was mourning a death lol! So bummed out! I cried like a Mafia widow.
On Jun 08, 2015 at 5:35 am #
pearlsandme aka Monica says:I’ve had some iolite, but it wasn’t nearly as pretty as this!
This looks like it has a smoky spirit inside…
About the photo: sometimes it’s enough just to change the angle of the camera, or turn the whole setup to get the light from another direction. I also usually try different adjustments of the camera: automatic and macro treats also the lightning slightly differently. But just trying different background colors is very effective, and white is seldom the best! Then you could just wait for that natural light to change, if you have time… I think you got the best light in the second last pic!
On Jun 08, 2015 at 5:36 am #
pearlsandme aka Monica says:And BTW, agree with Celticivy that actually going outside is usually best (unless it is pouring down…).
On Jun 08, 2015 at 2:25 pm #
Nancy Mc says:Thanks so much,Monica. I will try that. Sometimes I think I bought “too much camera” because it’s very complicated,once you start reading the booklet. I try so hard to absorb what I’m reading,and I always “drift.” LOL
On Jun 08, 2015 at 4:50 pm #
A Rozmin says:Don’t feel bad about your photos; I majored in photography in college (pre-digital) and I have had a hard time photographing jewelry. I found that shooting from farther away and zooming in helps it quite a bit. Usually the problems for me are depth of field and managing the automatic focus feature. A medium color background may work better for you. That’s why I usually use cork for a background. The built-in light meters make white darker and black lighter, so its better to be in a medium range.
Your pics are really quite good. Just experiment a little with these suggestions to find what works for you. We are always our own worst critics.
And, I love the earrings!
On Jun 08, 2015 at 7:04 pm #
Nancy Mc says:Thanks so much,A.R. I’ve noticed that about black backgrounds.
I did read your previous tip about zooming, and can’t seem to keep my hand steady.
I need hands on help with photog. It’s complicated to my ” sensibilities” LOL
It reminds me of the way I felt with algebra .
Depth of field? Shutter speed?
Mommy!!!!! Hahaha!
On Jun 09, 2015 at 7:51 am #
pearlsandme aka Monica says:You’re so right! At work I’ve encountered a camera (for photoing bacterial colonies, that’s hard too!) that makes me feel just like that, and I’ve sometimes ended up bringing in my own simple Olympus just to get a photo!! It has programs, but you don’t need a manual to use it! The only thing I hate is the autofocus, and someday I will get a camera with manual focus…!!! I’ve heard they exist.
Just afraid it will cost a bomb, and have a manual the size of a dictionary.
That depth of field and shutter speed thing was easy when you did it all by hand, no auto whatsoever. But when there are a million dials and menus… give me a phone!
On Jun 09, 2015 at 8:55 am #
kye says:Beautiful earrings! Love the lolite and the wrapping. I struggle with photgraphing too so I’ve enjoyed the helpful comments.
On Jun 12, 2015 at 1:35 pm #
DayLily aka Del says:Beautiful.
On Jun 14, 2015 at 10:29 am #
Asia says:Gorgeous beads and work, outside on a cloudy day works best for me, I also use manual focus and settings, manual is not as hard as everyone thinks