Large size Windows Studs, are a combination of beautifully octagonal faceted Rhodolite Garnets, cut in the gorgeous "Emerald" style, set into our Windows of Sterling, an open airy setting allowing light to enter the stones from all sides.
- Rectangular in shape approximately 5/8" long by 1/4" at the widest point and will sit on the earlobe, held in place with large Sterling backs.
- Garnet is the birthstone for January and the gem for the second anniversary.
- Rhodolite are cooler red garnet, the name originates from the Greek word “rhodon”, which means rose.
We Antique our Sterling, naturally, and then hand-brush it before setting the gems, giving our Sterling adornments a satin, antiqued finish. Our Garnets are a rich red, exhibiting a beautiful translucency, enhanced by the fine cut, with the large "table", the top front of the gem.
Our Windows Studs were inspired by the quarantine period of 2020, when it was important to stay in and peering out into the world took on new, enhanced meaning. The world carries on, and some views are better than others, but for a while the view was all many had in which to connect abstractly with their neighborhood and the world at large. Our specially cut Rhodolite Garnet Octagons represent the power and beauty of a window, a portal onto the larger view.
The use of garnets in jewelry design can be traced back to prehistoric times. Pharaohs wore red garnet necklaces in ancient Egypt, and the red gems were widely traded in ancient Rome, where carved garnets, set into rings, were used as a wax seal embellishing one's signature. Garnet has had many revivals through the centuries, including in the Middle Ages, when they were worn by the nobility, and in the Georgian and Victorian eras, when they were used more widespread in jewelry designs.
Painting, “Western Motel” (1957) by the great Hudson Valley NY painter, Edward Hopper. Oil on canvas.
©2023Teresa de la Guardia
