Yoga & Spiritual Jewelry

Kundalini Yoga

2008-10-27T16:45:00.000-07:00

Kundalini Yoga is a yoga that focuses on the chakra system and is heavily meditative. Kundalini Yoga is a bit more energetic than some yogas and typically involves chanting, meditation, and breathing to help align the chakra energies that are naturally stored in your body. Kundalini in sanskirt translates to that which is coiled, referring to the dormant energy that is lying at the base of our spine, just waiting to be released.

Like several other forms of yoga, Kundalini Yoga links its poses specifically with breathing and adds chanting as part of the breathing process, often times Kundalini Yoga is referred to as the yoga of awareness, it's definitely more meditative and spiritually based than many other yogas.

Long ago Kundalini was considered a dangerous practice by ruling powers in India as it potentially led to infinite potential energy, total enlightenment, and mental clarity so great that the powers that be felt it dangerous for the wrong person to practice such a ritual, it was only done in secrecy. Things have since changed and it is now a widely accepted form of yoga practice worldwide.

Any of our Yoga Jewelry is great for a Kundalini routine, we designed one signature piece the Kundalini Spiral Chakra Necklace just for enthusiasts of this Yoga. Also, any of our Chakra pieces can help users align their chakras during their Kundalini routine.

Iyengar Yoga

2008-10-24T15:39:00.001-07:00

Iyengar Yoga was developed by B.K.S. Iyengar, a master yoga teacher. Iyengar Yoga is a form of Hatha Yoga and seeks all the same elements in its practice. What makes it different is its design and use of props, from blocks, cushions, belts, and pads that help users to perform poses they may not otherwise be able to due to age, injury, or other physical limitations. What also makes it unique is that the poses are held longer than usual with more breathing and relaxation in between poses as well.

Unlike some other forms of yoga Iyengar does not encourage their students to find their own way to asanas by imitating their teacher, it is instead very precise and verbal during the class that each pose (asana) is exact and perfect. While there may be thousands of Iyengar teachers, becoming certified is no easy task, it requires at least 2-5yrs for the introductory level and higher levels can take a decade or more.

B.K.S. Iyengar has been teaching and doing yoga for over 75yrs. Born in 1918 in a poor Indian village with many difficulties in his life he began practicing yoga at the age of 15 under the guidance of his brother in law well known yogi, Sri Tirumalai Krishnamacharya in Mysore, India. Iyengar has written dozens of yoga texts and is largely responsible for bringing yoga to the west. His most famous work written in 1966 "Light on Yoga", has been translated to 17 languages and is considered by many as the Yoga Bible. He has been recognized by Time Magazine as one of the top 100 most influential people in the world.

With the slower and less strenuous forms of yoga we always recommend wearing any of our Yoga Jewelry to help achieve balanced chakras and a more meditative state with the power of gemstones.

Hatha Yoga

2008-10-23T15:02:00.001-07:00

Hatha Yoga is considered to be the original and most pure form of yoga. Also called Hatha Vidya, this yoga is a system introduced by Yogi Swatmarama an important figure of 15th century India. He wrote the text Hatha Yoga Pradipika, it is said to be the oldest surviving text on Hatha Yoga. The text has information on a wide variety of topics related to yoga and spiritual transcendence including asanas, pranayama, chakras, kundalini, and more.

The foundation of all yogas, Hatha uses the asanas (poses), pranayama (breathing), dharana (meditation), and kundalini (instinct). Hatha is probably the most popular form of yoga in America as it is most beneficial for stress management and also is a great strength builder and workout.

The word Hatha comes from two Sanskirt words, Ha meaning sun and Tha meaning moon, thus referring to the solar and lunar channels of our body. When combined to Hatha the term now tanslates as forceful, meaning that powerful work needs to be done in order to combine our masculine/solar side with our feminine/lunar side, in the form of yoga. The term yoga actually means to join two things together. Hatha's ultimate goal is to balance mind and body through controlled breating, postures, and meditation, and does so in a calm and soothing matter.

Since Hatha Yoga is done in a more tranquil manner than some other yoga routines we encourage our customers to wear any of our Yoga Jewelry, especially for the Hatha we recommend any of our Chakra Necklace pieces or our Kundalini Necklace both of which are integral parts of this routine.

Bikram Yoga

2008-10-22T14:18:00.000-07:00

Bikram Yoga is one of the more unusual yogas developed in recent history. Often referred to as Hot Yoga, Bikram Yoga is done in 95-105 degree room; this promotes more flexibility as well as detoxifying one's body, if you're looking to lose weight than this is the yoga for you. This form of yoga is truly for wellness and rejuvenation of one's body, it doesn't focus as much on the mind body connection that many of the other types of yoga do. Bikram Yoga strictly focuses on Asana (Poses) and Pranayama (Breathing). Because of the heat and heavy sweating involved we don't recommend wearing our Yoga Jewelry during your routine.

Developed by Bikram Choudhury, an Olympic gold medal weight lifter in 1963, is now the only form of yoga done in a heated environment. Bikram was a student of Bishnu Ghosh, the brother of Paramanhansa Yogananda, the yogi who is considered the first to bring the philosophy and practice to America around 1920. There is some controversy in the yoga community surrounding the Bikram Yoga phenomenon, in that he has copyrighted and trademarked his yoga style and aggresivly pursued protection of these terms. There are over 500 Bikram Yoga studios around the world and each one must have a certified Bikram teacher that is paid and approved by the Bikram group. Many feel that yoga shouldn't become chains or franchises that not only put smaller yoga studios out of business but also don't focus on the fundamentals of yoga, the connection of mind and body to fulfill self-realization.

Ashtanga Yoga

2008-10-21T15:49:00.000-07:00

Ashtanga Yoga is a system developed by Sri K. Pattabhi Jois. Ashtanga Yoga can be very strenuous as it combines synchronized breathing with continuous pose changes many of which take a lot of physical strength to perform. This creates a full body workout with heavy sweating that greatly improves circulation and cleanses the body.

Ashtanga Yoga is generally accepted to have its origins created from an ancient manuscript known as the Yoga Korunta that was interpreted by Pattabhi Jois under the guidance of his guru, however no one besides Jois and his guru have ever seen this text and even Jois himself has hinted that it may or may not exist. A more likely explanation on its development is that Jois's guru asked him to create a yoga routine that was suitable for children and younger adults that had less of an attention span and needed a more active routine. Sri K. Pattabhi Jois currently resides in Mysore, India.

Aside from its more active and strenuous routine some other things that make Ashtanga Yoga unique are the literal meanings of its translations, which mean eight-limbed yoga, each limb correlates to a spiritual practice that leads to the ultimate self-realization. Each of the limbs is a step and one must master each before moving on to the next.

Since Ashtanga Yoga generally brings the practioner to a heavy sweat we don't recommend wearing any of our Yoga Jewelry during your routine as the oils and salts may discolor or tarnish the silver and gemstones used.

Ananda Yoga

2008-10-20T16:52:00.001-07:00

Ananda Yoga is a great beginner's form of yoga. It focuses on the inner peace and self realization of the student by use of Asana (yoga poses) and Pranayama (breathing and energy control). Ananda Yoga helps bring back the original ideals and practices of Hatha Yoga.

Ananda Yoga was developed by Swami Kriyananda who is a direct disciple of the yogi Paramanhansa Yogananda, the yogi who is considered the first to bring the philosophy and practice to America around 1920, his teachings and practice are referred to as Kriya Yoga. Kriyananda was a minister at Yogananda's Self-Realization Fellowship. Ananda is actually more than just a yoga practice, it is a worldwide movement of intentional spiritual communities that practice yoga and meditation.

Some things that make Ananda Yoga unique are a special series of 39 techniques, each of which has its own posture and affirmation to help the practitioner increase focus and control the life force. The nice thing for beginners is that the poses are not a strict set but instead are designed to adapt to each person's style that best suits there needs.

Ananda Yoga is now practiced all over the world and several successful Ananda communities around the globe have been established and have high regards by many in the yoga community. In the pursuit of self-realization and meditation we hope you will browse through our many pieces of Yoga Jewelry, designed to help balance your energy, improve meditation, and let the world know that you find such issues important to you.

Aquamarine Jewelry

2008-10-16T14:47:00.000-07:00

Aquamarine is actually part of the Beryl family, Beryls come in a variety of colors from pink to green, and the sea blue variety is called Aquamarine. Other stones of the Beryl family include Emeralds, Rubies, and Sapphires. Aquamarine is the birthstone of March and is said to protect the wearer in long voyages and ensure a safe return.

The wonderful sea blue color is unlike any other gemstone and goes great in almost any type of jewelry. Today most of the worlds Aquamarine come from Brazil. It is rated between a 7.5-8 on the mohs scale of hardness making it very well suited for jewelry and resistance to scratching and discoloration.

Did you know the single largest pieces of faceted cut Aquamarine is 14 inches tall and weighs 10,395 carats, titled the Dom Pedro, click here to check it out.

We generally use Aquamarine in our jewelry as a enhancement stone combined with many other gemstones. We do use it in an isolated manner in our birthstone jewelry. Here are some of our pieces that incorporate Aquamarine.

Tourmaline Jewelry

2008-10-09T13:03:00.000-07:00

Tourmaline is one of the most fascinating and beautiful gemstones out there. It often comes in multiple colors in a single stone and can vary from a pink to green fade through blue and yellow, it can pretty much be any and every color of the rainbow. The ancient Egyptians believed that this stone on its journey from the center of the earth eventually passed through a rainbow and that's what gave it its magnificent colors.

The name Tourmaline comes from the Sinhalese language of Sri-Lanka "turamali" or "toramalli" translated directly means stone of multiple colors. It is a crystal silicate mineral that includes aluminum, iron, magnesium, and sodium, which is why it can vary so wildly in color. It is mined all over the world and every location generally produces a different shade, color, or type. Tourmaline is said to be the gemstone of love and friendship, one of the reasons we feature it in our Family Bracelets.

Similar to some other crystalline based gemstones Tourmaline has a pyro-electric property. When it is heated and cooled down it becomes electrically charged with one end of the crystal becoming positive and the other negative, a fascinating property that is very interesting to scientists and meaningful to collectors and wearers of the stone.

We use a couple of types of Tourmaline from chips to pink briolette stones. Here are some of our favorites:

Peridot Jewelry

2008-09-25T13:05:00.001-07:00

Having just released a new line of Birthstone Jewelry, we've had many gemstones on our mind and continue to learn and expand our knowledge of these beautiful stones.

One that really stood out as we were designing our new pieces was Peridot. Peridot Jewelry has been around and dated as far back as the 2nd millennium BC found in several ancient Egyptian sites. While very popular in the ancient world it was also very rare and the few areas that were minable were quickly exhausted and the stone more or less fell into oblivion.

In the 1990s a large deposit was discovered in the hills of Pakistan, so large that all demand could easily be met and then some even though the mine is only capable of being worked in the summer months. After this Peridot was in nearly every gem show around the world and a lot of hype was building due to its fantastic olivine green brilliance. Today Peridot is mined all over the US as well as Australia, Brazil, China, and Mexico.

Peridot is actually a mineral called Olivine, when Olivine is of gemstone quality is then considered and called Peridot. Olivine is one of the most common mineral on earth and has even been found in meteorites, on the moon, and on Mars. It is the birthstone for August. Also unlike most other gemstones, Peridot in its pure form doesn't vary in color at all; it is a rich olive green. Although it does vary in shade due to the amount of iron in it from yellowish green to a deep olive green.

We use Peridot in several of our pieces and love its clarity and shine. Here are some of our favorites:

Handmade Jewelry

2008-09-03T16:00:00.001-07:00

We'd like to provide you with some insight into our jewelry making process. All of our jewelry is designed and assembled in our studio right here in San Diego, California. We have two designers, Lourdes Mustain and Dawn Ellis, you can read more about them in our Meet the Designers section.

Our designers will start with a simple concept such as an OM symbol and a circular stone pendant; from there they will build and expand on this concept using a variety of gemstones, pendants, metals, etc. Usually only one or two of these ideas actually make it to our main line that we offer here on our website. Occasionally many of them work out together, for example our stone circular pendant pieces.

Many of our silver and vermeil pendants are true originals that we have hand casted by local metal smiths in small to medium sized runs. We do also buy and import handcrafted charms from artisans worldwide such as our Hill Tribe pendants which are made by the people of Northern Thailand.

While we try to keep our inventory up we often can't keep up and many of our pieces are handmade once the order comes in, even down to the very tedious wire wrapping of each individual bead, you can see this in the photo in this blog and you can see a finished product that makes use of the wire wrapping in our Coral Mala Bracelet.

We hope you enjoy our handmade jewelry and as always we are open to ideas and suggestions on anything and everything about our jewelry, if there is something you want and don't see, let us know, we can create that special custom piece that you may be looking for.

Coral Jewelry

2008-08-21T14:35:00.000-07:00

Did you say coral? Yes that's right coral, while not a gemstone coral is a great natural material that can be cut and polished into beautiful jewelry. Some may ask, isn't coral endangered in certain areas? Yes it is but coral that is used for jewelry is not harvested in locations where reefs are endangered and in the past it may have been harvested by large nets killing the whole tree, today it is done by individual divers that only take parts of the trees and leave the rest to continue to grow, making it a very renewable resource.

Corals are a living organism that secret a carbonic substance that hardens and grows in a tree like fashion. The scientific name for the type of coral used for most jewelry is corallium rubrum, it is used in several homeopathic remedies for ailments from coughs to digestion problems.

Red is the most popular coral color for jewelry making but comes in many shades from pink, salmon, orange, black, and very rare a blue. In the ancient world coral has often been used as a protective force, and was often given to young girls as their first piece of jewelry. Coral in all colors looks wonderful against the skin especially in the reds and oranges; its semi-luster glow enhances the natural beauty of your skin.

While coral can be used as carvings for cameos it is usually made into beads of various styles, size, and polish, we mostly use it in its bead form and have the following pieces we'd like to share.

Garnet Jewelry

2008-08-12T17:27:00.000-07:00

Garnets are one of the most common gemstones used in semi-precious jewelry. They range from a 7-7.5 on the Mohs scale of hardness where a diamond is a 10. The most common garnet throughout the ages is the deep ruby red variety, although garnets come in ever color except blue, and there is even a green variety called Demantoid Garnet that has more brilliance and is rarer than most diamonds. While we unfortunately don't use this type in any if our pieces we do use lots of the red, orange, and some of the green varieties.

Garnets have a history dating back several thousand years to the Bronze Age where they were used as gemstones and as an abrasive, when ground to a powder due to their hardness they make a great abrasive and are even used today in modern tools that combined with a powerful water jet stream can effortlessly cut steel. The word garnet comes from the Latin term, granatus and most likely from the term punica granatus, meaning pomegranate, a fruit that contains a deep red seed that is often the same size and naturally found garnet crystals.

Throughout history many gemstones have taken on different meanings and properties depending on culture and availability of the gemstones within the region. However garnets has generally carried on the same meanings and ideals 5,000 years ago that they do today. Chunks of deep red garnets were found in tombs dating back to 3,000 BC. Garnet is said to offer protection both in this life and the next. Many early explorers would carry garnets with them for protection from evil and disaster, it was believed that at night it would glow with power, and in fact it may seem to glow as it has a very high refractive index creating a brilliant luster even under marginal lighting conditions.

Here are a few of our favorite pieces that use garnets in them:

Opal Jewelry

2008-07-31T10:45:00.001-07:00

Between summer vacations and upgrades to our website and servers we've had little time to blog. Everything is going well, we've got several new pieces to add to our line many of which are using Peruvian Opal, so today we'd like to give you a brief look at the history and types of opal that exist.

Opal is considered to be a mineraloid gel that is created under fairly low temperatures, overall this makes most types of opal a bit softer than your average semi-precious gemstones, generally rated 5.5-6.5 on the Mohrs scale of hardness. So you will want to take a little extra care for any jewelry that has opals in it. Opals have a lot of water in them compared to other gemstones, this means they love to be worn a lot as they can maintain their proper humidity from the wearers skin.

There are generally two types of opal, common opals and precious opal, the latter is only named precious because of its atomic build that contains a very predictable crystalline structure that creates that famous opalescent sheen usually in a rainbow of milky colors, however just because of the name it doesn't represent rarity of value compared to some forms of the "common opal".

Opals history is almost as colorful as the stones themselves. For most of history they have been associated with good luck, calmness, and mental clarity. Australian aboriginals believed that the creator of the human race came to earth riding a rainbow and that when he landed his footsteps left the color of the rainbow and thus created the opal stone. To this day opal is the official gemstone for Southern Australia. Opal is the birthstone of October.

In our most recent batch of new jewelry we obtained a small stock of Peruvian opal beads and stones. This opal is relatively rare and is only found in the Andes Mountains near San Patricio, Peru. It is also the national stone of Peru. Here are our newest opal pieces.

Dorje

2008-06-25T12:18:00.000-07:00

We've had a few questions about the Dorje symbol that we use on several of our pieces. So here is a brief background on the symbol and its meaning.

The Dorje in Tibetan literally means indestructible. The Dorje or Vajra (Hindu word for the Dorje) is a ritual tool used in ceremonies. The scepter often contains diamonds inside of the spokes, this represents the idea of absolute as a diamond can cut anything but cannot be cut itself. Often times it is represented as two scepters crossed over each other this is the symbol of Amoghshiddhi, the fifth Dhyani Buddha.

The symbolism has many meanings depending on the religion or area in which it is used. In Hindu mythology the Varja/Dorje is the weapon for their god or war, Indra, bringing great spiritual power and enlightenment to he who uses it. It is often referred to as the weapon that destroys all ignorance. In Jainism the symbol is associated as the mark of the Thirthankars, a human who has achieved total enlightenment. In Buddhism it is the symbol of Vajrayana, also known as Tantric Buddhism, the symbol signifies thunderbolt enlightenment, that sudden moment in one's life that they realize the nature of all reality.

We combine this symbolism with that of the OM, the symbol for spiritual perfection, to create some powerful jewelry pieces that reminds us of these great spiritual ideals. For now we have two pieces using these symbols combined, and we are working on more that will be showcased soon.

Lapis Lazuli

2008-06-23T11:50:00.000-07:00

We use so many different gemstones it is hard to pick ones to write about. While we eventually hope to have a blog on every gemstone we use for now we are concentrating on the ones that have a long history and cultural significance, mostly because they are just more interesting to research and write about, and will eventually be linked together with all of our jewelry to help you the customer make a better decision about what jewelry is right for them or their loved ones.

Lapis Lazuli is usually just abbreviated to be called Lapis. Lapis is unique as a gemstone as it is technically a rock and not a mineral as many other gemstones are. Don't be fooled though just because it is considered a rock, it has a long history dating back to Predynastic Egyptian sites where it has been found to adorn the graves of high officials and commoners alike. It has also been recorded that Cleopatra herself used a powdered version as eye shadow as it is incredibly brilliant. It is on the record as being mined in Afghanistan for over 6,500 years and still comes from this area today. Lapis is made up of calcite (white), sodalite (blue), and pyrite (gold). The most valued Lapis is that that doesn't have any white or calcite in it just solid blue with flakes or viens of pyrite.

Up until the early 1900's Lapis was used in the making of Ultramarine blue as a paint pigment, one of the most sought after paints by the old masters as it was the most brilliant of any blue ever created. A synthetic material has since been discovered and is now used for the pigment of ultramarine blue. The ancient Romans believe that it was a powerful aphrodisiac and also had many healing properties, it was often ground down to a powder and used to treat skin irritations and mixed with milk to help with ulcers. Written about in the Egyptian book of the dead, lapis set in gold in the shape of an eye was considered to bring great power, and was often pictured on the heads of supreme beings for this reason.

We make use of lapis in several of our pieces and love its brilliant color. Here are a two of our favorites:

Mother of Pearl

2008-06-09T14:17:00.000-07:00

Today we'd like to give you some information of nacre, pronounced "nay-ker", or more commonly called mother of pearl. In fact it truly is a pearl, while it may not be the typical round pearls we think of when it comes to pearls it is made by the same organisms that makes pearls, instead of forming around a piece of material the pearls forms on the interior of the shell of the organism, which includes pearl oysters, freshwater pearl mussels, abalone, and several families of mollusks. Today they use mother of pearls as the material for culturing pearls, it is cut into squares, then rounded by a machine and finally inserted into the oysters as the seed for a pearl. You can read more about the world of pearls in our previous blog.

The use of nacre has been dated back to the ancient Egyptians at almost 4000 BC, far out dating the use of traditional pearls by several thousand years. Today mother of pearl is used in everything from buttons and musical instruments to jewelry and decorative wall hangings.

Mother of pearl has a beautiful iridescent quality to it that can range from pure white to the fabulous multi-color varieties from the abalone, which is one of the most popular as well ranging from pink to green to silver and orange.

We use mother of pearl as small highlights as well as larger full pendants, we hope to use it more often but for now here are a few of our favorites that use this wonderful jewel.

Buri Beads

2008-06-03T11:47:00.000-07:00

As designers we are always looking for new and interesting materials to use. We came across buri beads in our searching and thought they were an interesting product. They are actually nuts that come from the buri tree in the Philippines and are hand shaped. The great thing about them is their versatility. They can stand alone in a design or can be paired with some of the "earthy" looking stones in our collection, particularly jasper. Another nice thing is their price point. We can create nice looking jewelry at a competitive price.

The buri tree is the most common palm tree within the Philippines and has a variety of uses from the buds as vegetables to the stalk used for creating a common alcohol used by locals called tuba. The fiber from the tree is also used in the creating of the famous hats called Baliuag and Lacban seen throughout the Philippines.

We have created one new necklace style using buri beads and it is available in dark teal and plum.

Of course, as our customers, we value your input on the products we create. Let us know what you think by leaving a comment on this blog.

Quartz Jewelry

2008-05-27T15:58:00.000-07:00

Today we'd like to provide some information on the common gemstone quartz, and common it is. Quartz is the most abundant mineral found in the earth's crust. There are so many types of quartz that often people don't even realize that the gemstone they are wearing is actually a form of quartz. Some examples include Amethyst, Citrine, Carnelian, Onyx, Agates, and Tiger's Eye. While it may be the most abundant mineral on the planet it can be difficult to mine varieties that are of good enough quality to be used in jewelry making. Quartz is ranked a 7 on the Mohs scale of hardness where a diamond is 10 and sapphires are a 9, this makes quartz a very strong and durable material for jewelry.

Quartz in its purest form is clear as water and generally grows in a crystal based formation. When the quartz is crossed or twinned with other minerals you get all of the color variations you see today, usually given their own name such as amethyst, but also named simply after their color, such as smoky quartz, rose quartz, etc. Another interesting note is that some forms of quartz such as citrine and carnelian are amethyst that has been heat treated, naturally or mechanically.

Besides being a beautiful stone for jewelry, quartz has what they call piezoelectric properties. You have probably heard of quartz timepieces. When mechanical stress is applied to quartz crystals they become electrically charged. It is this unique property that is likely why crystals are frequently used in healing ceremonies and have different healing attributes associated with various quartz gemstones.

Almost all of our jewelry uses quartz in one form or another. You can use this link to see all our pieces that make use of quartz, usually in the form of smoky quartz, amethyst, citrine, and carnelian. It's clear and shiny brilliance make wonderful accent beads and faceted stones that highlight pieces very well, here are a few of our favorites:

The Sacred Lotus Blossom

2008-05-20T12:52:00.000-07:00

Today we'd like to give a little history and background information on the lotus blossom. Having symbolic meaning in eastern religions it has become an icon in the west as well that represents ideas about purity, elegance, and spiritual growth and maturation. We love the ideas and symbolism behind the blossom so much that it is represented in our logo.

Silver Lotus
Earrings

Lotus Charm Necklace

Triple Lotus Drop Necklace

Tranquil Garden Bracelet

The Hindu religion probably uses the symbol of the lotus most heavily, it is associated with their gods Vishnu and Brahma and goddesses Lakshmi and Sarasvati as well as their creation mythology. In both Hinduism and Buddhism much of their artwork depicts various gods and goddesses perched on or holding and wearing the sacred lotus blossoms. The most revered quality of the lotus blossom is the fact that it comes from a seed planted deep within mud below a pond, and it grows through the mud and water and comes out perfectly clean and pristine as a blossom high above the water, almost as though it has transcended to the spiritual plane.

The Bahá'í Faith which is a faith based on the unity of all major world religions and has approximately 5-6 million followers adopted the lotus from the Hindu and Buddhist beliefs and built one of their largest temples located in New Delhi, India in the form of a lotus, "The Lotus Temple", a marvelous structure that closely resembles the blossom.

The sacred lotus is one of the world's most celebrated flowers and we have used its symbolism in several of our pieces, here is a list of our favorite lotus blossom jewelry:

The World of Pearls

2008-05-16T16:28:00.000-07:00

Pearls have been a part of jewelry for centuries. Initially all pearls were natural and formed without any human intervention, this is why in the early days they were so valuable and rare, a naturally formed pearl is very hard to find, and one of good quality even harder. Today there value is still extremely high.

Today most pearls are cultured on pearl farms where a piece of material is inserted into each oyster or mussel in order to create a pearl. This technique can be done for both salt water and fresh water varieties. While they may look similar, salt water and fresh water pearls are very different in the chemical structure. Also the salt water varieties because of the delicate balance of salt water ecosystems are often times harder to grow and need to be done in protected lagoons. Fresh water pearls on the other hand are easier to culture outside of the natural environment and for this reason don't have any chance of creating imbalances in natural habitats. All of our jewelry uses fresh water pearls.

Here are a few interesting pearl facts:

Cultured pearls can take 2-5yrs to mature.
The saltwater pearls do not come from any clam or oyster that we eat; in fact they are quite inedible.
A natural matching strand of found pearls can fetch upwards of $100,000.
Pearl culturing was not invented until 1916 by a group of Japanese scientists.
Pearls come in many different shapes and sizes from round, oval, flat, oblong, and teardrop.
Pearls are the birthstone for June.

We love pearls and a lot of our jewelry makes use of them, occasionally as a full strand but usually just to highlight and enhance the piece with that wonderful luster that pearls create. Here are a few of our favorites:

Mandala Charms & Jewelry

2008-05-13T12:46:00.000-07:00

Today we'd like to provide some information about the mandala, its meaning, history, and properties. Mandala is a Sanskrit word meaning, circle or completion. The idea and meanings of the mandala mostly originate in eastern religions but definitely hold meaning and value around the globe in almost all religious and spiritual beliefs. In its most generic translation the mandala has come to represent the universe itself both physically and spiritually, it is the human expression of the cosmos.

The mandala is often used as an aid in meditation. The Tibetan Monks will spend days possibly weeks creating intricate sand paintings of mandalas, after a brief moment of pondering they will brush all the sand into a container and dump it into a river or stream as an offering to the universe to help live and realize the idea of impermanence . The creation of these mandalas can be a long and detailed process. Before one is even allowed to begin such a work of art in the Buddhist religion they must learn the meaning of every symbol and practice its design years before they actually form all the elements into a mandala. Some students have been known to create up to 100,000 pieces on their spiritual path to enlightenment.

The mandala is used in a wide variety of uses from paintings and meditation aids to floor plans for Hindu temples. It can represent the entire universe to one of many gods and deities. As a piece of artwork the mandala is used in many types of offerings, from a purely spiritual point to a physical offering to ones guru or lama in appreciation of their teachings.

We have several mandala charm based necklaces that we've designed to help create a balanced energy that you can use in meditation, yoga, or just your everyday routine. Our mandala charms are all pure sterling silver combined with quality gemstones of various styles.

Jade

2008-05-09T17:33:00.001-07:00

Continually thinking about Gemstones and their properties both physically and metaphysically we would like to explore the properties of Jade today.

Jade is a great stone to use in jewelry as it is nearly as hard as quartz so it is very tough. It has a wonderful luster and brilliance to it that very few other gemstones have. Jade comes in many variations of green, blue, red, and yellow and it is really two different stones both of which have similar variations.

The first stone is referred to as Jadetite consists of sodium and aluminum rich pyroxene, the second Nephrite Jade is composed of calcium and actinolite, scientifically speaking these are two very different stones, and in many eastern cultures the distinction is very important, here in the west we usually just refer to both types as Jade.

The Nephrite Jade has been used in China since the earliest Chinese Dynasties through modern day. It is considered the "Imperial Gem" used in everything from fancy table ware to the grave sites of high ranking officials of the imperial family. This type of Jade was used exclusively in China until about the 1800s at which time Jadeite was brought over from Burma and it quickly replaced the Nephrite and the imperial version of the stone. The white version of this stone was often considered to be more valuable than gold or silver, as it is very rare. The Mayan and Aztec cultures also considered Jade to be more valuable than precious metals.

Most cultures around the world relate Jade to being lucky, protective, courageous, and seductive. Many culture also used it in creating weapons because of its hardness and durability, which is possibly why many felt it was protective and inductive of courage. In Egypt the stone was considered to be the stone of love, inner balance, and harmony.

Many of our favorite pieces use Jade, here are a few things to check out:

Hill Tribe Jewelry

2008-05-06T16:12:00.000-07:00

Today we would like to provide some information on the Hill Tribe peoples and their crafts, some of which we use in our jewelry. We'll provide a link at the end to each of our pieces that use these wonderfully crafted items, all of which in our case are sterling silver charms of various styles.

Generally the Hill Tribe people are any one of about twenty or so groups located in Northern Thailand, Myanmar, and Laos. Some of these groups do exist outside of Thailand but generally when you hear of Hill Tribe crafts of any sort, it is known that they come from these regions. In total there are approximately 550,000 people that are considered to be part of the Hill Tribes. There several main groups in which much of the silver handicrafts come from, primarily from the Thailand Hill Tribe peoples. Here are a couple that are more famous for their silver crafts.

The Akha migrated from Tibet and China starting in 1910. Originally known for their involvement in agriculture they now focus more on their crafts. They are also famous for their extravagant and exotic costumes which are very colorful and laced with silver beads, charms, and other pieces.

The Hmong originated in Mongolia, Tibet, and Western China. Traditionally known for agriculture and Opium production which has steadily decreased over the years they are now focusing on their handicrafts as well to supplement their income, they are gaining popularity for their intricate embroidery now as well.

These are just a few of the tribes, to read about many more and their wonderful histories go to Tayara.com to see our jewelry that contains Hill Tribe Silver follow the Hill Tribe Jewelry Link.

During the writing of this blog a huge natural disaster occurred in Myanmar which many Hill Tribe people come from. Our thoughts and prayers go out to all who have been affected by this great loss.

Chakra Jewelry

2008-04-30T11:29:00.001-07:00

Today we'd like to offer a little information about the chakra jewelry that we make and the ideas and history behind the chakra.

Chakra is the Sanskrit word for circle or wheel. Ancient theories proposed by Hindu mystics are based on seven chakras that link the body and the mind into one unit - the mind/body connection. It was through the practice of yoga in India many centuries ago that chakras became identified with centers of energy at major points throughout the body. Beginning at the base of the spine and moving up to the skull, there are seven chakras, each associated with a corresponding color.

Chakra OM
Bracelet

Kundalini Spiral Chakra Necklace

OM Dorje Chakra Necklace

Small Om Beaded Chakra

The first chakra, represented by the color red, is known as the foundation chakra and is located at the base of the spine. It represents the element earth and is related to our sense of being grounded and physically connected with our bodies.
The second chakra is represented by the color orange and is located in the lower abdomen, lower back and reproductive organs. The second chakra is related to water, emotions and sexuality. It connects us to others through our feelings, desires, sensations, and movements.
The third chakra, the power chakra, is yellow and located in the solar plexus. This chakra signifies the element of fire. It represents the power of the will and aids in metabolism.
The fourth chakra is green and located in the heart. It represents the element air. When we are healthy, this chakra allows us to be compassionate and to love deeply.
The fifth chakra, located in the throat is blue. The blue chakra embodies sound and is related to communication and creativity.
The sixth chakra can be either indigo or dark blue. It is known as the brow or third-eye center chakra and is related to our ability to perceive - both with our eyes and intuitively.
The seventh and final chakra, also referred to as the crown chakra, is violet and signifies the power of thought. The seventh chakra helps us know and understand the world around and within us.

Many items of Sacred Charms jewelry borrow from the color concepts of the chakra to convey to the wearer those insights and powers embodied within the chakra. The Chakra Om Bracelet, the Kundalini Spiral Necklace and the Small Om Beaded Chakra are three such pieces. A gift of chakra jewelry tells the recipient you are devoted to the health of both her spirit and her body.

Turquoise

2008-04-29T14:46:00.000-07:00

Is it obvious that we have gemstones on our mind all the time? We know this is the third blog this week about gemstones, first Amethyst then Jasper, and now Turquoise. Well, we've been hard at work designing new pieces and have of course been thinking a lot about the gemstones we use and where they come from, ways to use them, etc, etc. The gemstones we have been blogging about have some very colorful history behind them and we figured it was worth sharing as generally people simply admire the beauty of these stones but don't often think about where they come from, how they're made, history, etc. Anyway let's get onto the Turquoise.

Across most cultures Turquoise has been regarded as a stone that offers protection to all that wear it. The earliest known uses have been dated to 3,000 B.C where it was found lining the tombs of ancient Egyptians. Later on it was noted to often be worn in the ancient Persian kingdoms in hopes of protecting the wearer against unnatural death. It was from these Persian kingdoms that the stone made its way to Europe and this is also when it got its modern name Turquoise, meaning "Turkish". Several cultures also believed that if the Turquoise changed colors it meant that an unfortunate event was coming to the wearer. While Turquoise can change color it's usually due to body oils, cosmetics, or heavy sun exposure, as the stone is generally porous compared to other gemstones.

The color of Turquoise varies from pale blue to dark green. It's the sky blue color which is most sought after and generally the less veins the better, although we like the veins as it is what creates its unique individual qualities, while the pure non-veined variety is more sought after it does not determine value, it has to do more with hardness and color intensity. Because of its porous nature and vulnerability to color change mentioned above, Turquoise jewelry should be worn and stored with a little more care than other jewelry, cleaned after wearing and stored in a separate area from your other harder gemstones that may scratch the Turquoise. To read more on the long history of Turquoise read the Wiki Article.

Our Turquoise Jewelry ranges from using a few small to medium sized accent Turquoise beads to larger Turquoise nuggets as a pendant. Here are a few of our favorite pieces that use Turquoise.