Did you ever ask yourself why on earth did I ever buy that necklace which is stiff and doesn’t hang straight?  And so you always end up tugging it to pieces, or leaving it in the box. We’ve all been there.

'Florentine' - in peacock black with Swarovski crystals

I decided from the start that I wanted highly fluid, draping necklaces and so if I am using cable to string pearls, gemstones or other beads, I only use the highest grade on the market. It drapes beautifully, almost just like using thread for stringing.

When I folded a necklace on my hand into a coil, someone said to me they were amazed, they would have never thought I was using a wire cable!

You will find that most strung jewellery is not strung on the best cable or thread probably as a cost cutting exercise which sadly is false economy as the odds of customer dissatisfaction and breakage are high.  The art of using the right cable or thread is complicated as one has to take into account the weight and type of the beads, too weak a cable and harsh gemstones will chip away at it, thread it too tight and trouble looms in another direction, but the effort is worth it for a long lasting and supple effect.

How many times do you look at a favourite top and think, I haven’t got a necklace to match or tone with that colour? It might be an unusual shade and difficult to match up.

With the 70 plus colours (plus the many different finishing effects in the Swarovski crystal range) there is bound to be a colour which matches or tones in perfectly. I’ve found the Swarovski range to be incredibly useful, now all my ‘awkward’ tops have the right necklace!

I have a couple of styles on the shop in clear crystal and black, the Gio and Icicle necklaces but they can be made in any colour – see the Swarovski colour chart – or even in two tone or complementary colours.  And Gio and Icicle can be adapted to your design, and also sized perfectly for you, after all ladies do not come in ‘one size fits all’ so why does high street jewellery?

'Gio' in clear crystal

Lightweight, and comfortable, these necklaces are constructed with silver beading wire protected by a fine nylon sleeve, sterling silver crimps (the little pieces which hold the beads on and sterling silver findings.  And customers tell me they wear them out on show, over black tops and also under blouses for a hint of something, so they are very versatile as well as being unusual.

The following ‘in progress’ shots show ‘Gio’ with different versions – it was fun to change the original design.

with inverted "V"

For anyone who wants to match certain Swarovski colours which are currently very fashionable – choose their ‘indicolite’ for teal; ‘sapphire’ or ‘capri’ for blue; ‘hyacinth’ for orange; padparadascha for watermelon etc, and don’t forget there are also crystal round beads available, not just the bicone shape as shown on the Gio necklace.

two shades of pink

with crossover front

Added to that, as always, there is an option available in gold wire and gold fill findings – so how many permutations can that make?