Paradox in blue

This magatama necklace was inspired by two contradictory emotions linked with the color blue: sorrow and healing.

The main necklace strand (and matching earrings) have a repeating water-drop motif of dark blue cobalt-glass rounds, paler blue and mostly roundish freshwater pearls, and large smooth teardrops of dark aqua glass. The pearls are naturally patterned with rippling rings that run completely around them; relative to the boreholes, the ripples run from pole to pole rather than around the equator.

The pearls are the key to the central paradox: each one is formed by its parent mollusk as an external scar around a core of pain-- with natural pearls, usually an injury or a stuck grain of sand; with cultured pearls like these, a small inserted piece of shell or grafted flesh. But as the mollusk heals itself in this way by covering the core with layers of shimmering nacre, it creates a precious and beautiful jewel.

Similarly, the teardrops run downward from both sides, but when they meet in the center, a third teardrop inverts downward to bloom them into a stylized flower, suspending a blue magatama pendant in the traditional Shinto "curved jewel" shape that simultaneously resembles a drop of water, a tongue of flame, or a sprouting seed.

The magatama pendant is made of simulated lapis lazuli, which seems to be a durable ceramic-like material with an occasional metallic fleck to emulate pyrite inclusions. Except for that and the color-enhanced freshwater cultured pearls, all of the beads are imported glass (the little silver-lined cobalt seed spacers came from Venezuela iirc; the others are from the Czech Republic).

I've hand-strung all of these components onto 20lb-test gel-spun polymer (a high-tech fiber stronger than steel wires) for the necklace, or onto sterling silver headpins with hand-wrapped eyeloops for the earrings. All of the other metal parts (half-round pierced earring studs/backs, necklace endcaps/clasp) are also sterling silver.

The clasp-to-clasp length of the necklace is about 23"; its centerpiece drop is about 3" long from the main strand down to the bottom of the magatama. The earrings are about 1-1/2" long.