Earthy Fossil Gets Classy

One of my favorite fossils to work with is the natural Orthoceras fossilized squid from Morocco. Orthoceras are a famous and very large fossil deposit of animals that can be found in Morocco, North Africa. Ancestors to ammonites, Orthoceras are extinct sea creatures, and depending on what source you refer to, they date from the lower Ordovician to Triassic ages (500 to 190 million years ago). As they died, their shells accumulated in great numbers on the sea floor where they were aligned by currents, buried by sediments, and transformed over the ages preserved in black limestone. Today, this prehistoric sea floor is ironically, found in the dramatic Atlas Mountain Range in southern Morocco at the northern fringe of the Sahara Desert.

The term 'straight' cephalopods is used in this case to describe fossil examples of straight ammonoids called Baculites, straight nautiloids called Orthoceras and Belemnites. Their bodies were predominantly elongate with conical shells. Some of these creatures evolved into semi-coiled forms eventually giving rise to coiled cephalopods like ammonites and nautili. Another branch of straight-shelled cephalopods continued to coexist with the coiled forms on into the Pennsylvanian Period. These straight forms were much less diverse and abundant than the coiled cephalopods, as a whole.

Straight cephalopods were among the most advanced invertebrates of their time having eyes, jaws, and a sophisticated nervous system. These creatures were predators that swam freely using a jet propulsion system by squirting water from their bodies. They had tentacles and ink sacs also much like the present-day squid.

Except for belemnites, cephalopods had external shells with hollow internal chambers separated by walls called septa. A tube called the siphuncle, connected the body with the chambers allowing the animal to fill them with water or air, changing its buoyancy in order to rise or drop in the ocean. Only the last and largest chamber was occupied by the living animal. Belemnites were different in that they had internal shells called 'guards' which were covered with the soft, muscular tissues of their bodies. These shells were also chambered but much less complex than the straight varieties of nautiloids and ammonoids.

Straight cephalopods probably lived for one to six years, with the majority living two to four years. They fed on plankton (tiny free-floating organisms), sea lilies, and smaller orthoceras. Although many fed off the ocean floor, others may have caught plankton while floating or swimming via jet propulsion, expelling water through a funnel-like opening to propel them in the opposite direction. Because straight cephalopods lived exclusively in marine environments, their presence also indicates the location of prehistoric seas.

Healing Stones

As a healing stone, fossils are believed to increase life span, reduce toxins, anxiety, stress, balance the emotions, and make one more confident. Containing supernatural and physical healing powers, they promote a sense of pride and successes in business, leading on to be open to change and new ideas. Healers use fossils to enhance telepathy and stimulate the mind. Traditionally, fossils have been used to aid in reducing tiredness, fatigues, digestive disorders, and rheumatism.

Visit our online store, Timeless Designs at Ruby Lane to see many different designs featuring the orthoceras and other fossils!

Hot Fiesta Fun in Glass

A hot new design for the season…better yet wears it on any occasion! This necklace features a center drop pendant in blown clear glass heart with swirls of red, green, yellow, and white. Above the pendant I’ve created a drop bail bunched together with lots of hand twisted charms; red hot cloisonné beads, bright lime green lined square glass seed beads and soft champagne faceted crystals.

 

The necklace strands are crafted with orange (dyed) magnesite disks, more faceted crystals, lime green seed beads and cloisonné beads, and accents in gold tone corrugated rondelle and bicone metal beads. This necklace also features an extender chain for wearing at short or long lengths to fit your style.

One of the beads in this necklace is cloisonné; I use it quite a bit when designing with crystals because of the elaborate designs and colors. Cloisonne is an ancient technique for decorating metalwork objects, but in recent centuries they began using various enamels and adding inlays of cut gemstones, glass and linen for more variety and color to the metal beads.

Hot and trendy for the summer, or just about any time of the year…this necklace set fits the bill!

Visit our online store to browse and shop among our trendy and chic jewelry collections!

Vintage Elegance with Twist of Contemporary

This design is described by many of my customers as a vintage or antique design with a classic twist of contemporary. The elegance comes in with the wooden pendant, hand-painted by a Russian artist. She leaves no detail unturned, the fine lines and intercut shades in each flower petal is just breath-taking. The scene is so real, you almost want to reach out and caress each one of the flowers.

A perfect balance to this pendant is crystals and lots of them. I started at the base making a bail of hand twisted faceted crystals in coordinating colors to support the pendant. Next the necklace strands are crafted using more faceted crystal in deep olive, lively blush and light golden topaz.

A little antique design of a lovely pendant paired with the contemporary faceted crystals….makes for a very striking and stunning necklace design that is perfect for that night out on the town or special occasion.

 

Visit Timeless Designs online to browse around our collections to find your perfect match of vintage, contemporary, bold or earthy.

One’s Seashells Another’s Designs

Shells from the sea scatter the beachfronts and coasts in practically hundreds of varieties of shells. One type that is often sought is the volute shell. It is these shells that are most noted for variety and their distinctive color patterns, which make them valued by collectors and designers around the globe. Most are solid heavy shells but vary greatly in size and look.

 

Volutes are found in warm and temperate seas and are most common around Australian waters. All species have folds on the columella (central pillar of the gastropod shell (single shell) and visible within the aperture (opening at the gastropod shell front end). Most volutes burrow in sand and all are carnivorous (meat eaters).

This new design from our Southwest Flair Collection features square cut volute shell beads. The colored markings of dark against the soft shaded tan background are a perfect design companion with natural stone.

At the center focal I’ve used a lovely murano glass spoon pendant with soft tan, yellow and beige colors against a white background. Then I added in the shells, stacking them with the concave inward to create a more chic style; blue-green magnesite disks and bold colored cloisonné beads finish the necklace.

This style is a little flair of the southwest with a hint of the summer beach. Comb the collections of jewelry at our online Timeless Designs store at Ruby Lane! Never know what treasure you might find hidden to add to your jewelry box!

Fossilized Sand Dollars

Fossils come in many different shapes, sizes and varieties; one of the newest for us to work with in jewelry design is the Holectypus Echinoid, or sand dollar fossil. Holectypus, fossil echinoderm genus, of the extinct echinoids genus are much like the modern sea urchins and sand dollars.
 

This species are found as fossils exclusively in marine rocks of Jurassic to Cretaceous age (between 200 million and 65.5 million years ago).  The echinoids, having such an extremely long fossil record, are often used by scientist and paleontologist for dating rock strata and fossil locations.

The Holectypus was bun shaped with a flat bottom and arched back. The mouth of the echinoids is at the underside of the animal. These are rough looking fossil specimens as most have some cracking and chipping on the top of the shell, but the underside of the specimens are very well preserved. The echinoid has an exoskeleton or outer shell with no inner skeleton. This animal lived mostly in shallow seas and would have moved about on the sea floor by way of moving their long spines that stuck out from their shell; eating mostly algae. Today, many collections, both private and public, are comprised of many different species of fossil echinoids.

Our newest designs to our Rock Yard Collection feature the Holectypus Echinoid from the Cretacous Majunga Basin, Madagascar. Each one is unique and has been hand wire wrapped in non-tarnish wires. Each necklace design is unique......

....this one to the right reflects a Mediterranean or Egyptian design style with a mix of golden citrine nugget chips, faceted indian agate and amethyst crystals. 

  

...this set to the left a more chic tribal and ethnic design constructed with a couple of carved onyx stones with a matte finish, painted onyx, turquoise, and rare Arizona ivoryite.

Visit our online Timeless Designs store to browse and shop our collections, featuring uniquely artisan crafted jewelry!

Rawness in Golden Yellow Citrine

The name Citrine is derived from the Latin word Citrus, meaning “lemon”. Until the Middle Ages this name was used to designate a wide range of yellow stones. Citrine has been highly regarded as a gemstone and healing stone for almost six thousand years.

The soldiers in Caesar’s legions wore citrine on their chest because the stone was believed to have life-saving properties in battle. As befits its color, it is recognized as the stone of light, sun and life. (Did you know…..that the yellow amethyst and smoky quartz can be heated to artificially create citrine?)

Citrine is yellow to brownish quartz (silicon dioxide) and resembles yellow topaz. It is colorless by hydrous iron oxide, and is found in the same hexagonal crystals as the other varieties of crystalline quartz. Natural citrine is much less common than amethyst or smoky quartz, both of which can be heat treated to turn their color to of citrine.

Citrine occurs principally in localities that produce amethyst, and it is sometimes found as a zone of citrine in amethyst, when it is known as ametrine. Gem-quality citrine is found in a few places around the world such as on the Isle of Arran, Scotland; in the Ural Mountains of Russia; near Hyderabad, India; in Dauphine, France; and in Minas Gerais, Brazil.

This new specimen just arrived from the mineral company today and is huge (at least to me it is!); measuring about 18"x 16" in diameter in an irregular shape and 3"-4" thick in some places (and is quite heavy).

The large chunk is still in its raw form; jagged crystal cylinders, rough edges…the stories it could tell. This piece of citrine is from Artigas, Uruguay; rich in colors of the golden yellow sun with the light bands of white around the edges and bottom of gray ground.

The chunks of each crystal cylinder are gorgeous; defiantly add this one to your collection of minerals or just to ‘showcase’ in your den or study.

Summer In Dichroic

This new summer piece features triangular dichroic glass in matching pendant and earrings! At the focal I’ve used a lovely dichroic glass pendant in wild colors of pink, copper, green and some gold and touch a red....the bail is hand wire wrapped in brass non-tarnish wire and left with swirling coils.

The pendant is then accented with tons of charms…all twisted by hand onto brass colored headpins in faceted crystals of green, yellow, peach and pink and all strung onto a light olive colored silk cord! The matching earrings dangle with same cluster of crystals and tiny dichroic pendants.

Visit our online Timeless Designs store at Ruby Lane to browse and purchase our artisan crafted designs!