Topic: Glass bead necklace -- date? origin? (Jablonex?)

[jinxi]

Ivo, I bow to you on this one - wish my 'reference library/sources' were as informed, as instantaneous and as reliable!

Veronica

[Cathy B]

Ivo, what about something volcanic that forms quickly, like black obsidian (which is a natural glass)?

[Ivo]

wish my 'reference library/sources' were as informed, as instantaneous and as reliable!

it helps to have an inhouse geologist handy 

and obsidian is a natural glass - correct. but quite impossible to turn into identical beads like this one. Also, do I detect a press seam?

[Anik R]

My sincere thanks for the replies. 

I did think the beads had seams, but on closer inspection, the 'seams' on many of the beads do not align. (See first photo below).  Also, in all fairness, the beads are not exactly the same...   

[jinxi]

Believe Ivo & Co right on this one (can't argue with an expert) but for future reference you can normally tell not top quality gemstone beads by examining the strung necklace and just looking for non-alignment. 

Sometimes, the holes in mineral beads are drilled only part through, bead is turned and same done from other end, hopefully meeting in middle and drilling not necessarily done truly on the central pivot/axis.  Of course, this would be much easier to identify with regular shapes such as spheres, and you can sometimes see that they don't all hang absolutely true to line.  However, in your case, the facets would distract and make this visual type appraisal much harder.

[chopin-liszt]

I thought the inside of the chanel of the hole did look a bit like the bead has been formed on a wire.
I'm in the definitely glass camp on this one, Anik.

I'm coming to the National  :rah: :rah: :rah: - if we're both there, we must meet up and  :hug:  at some point!
No skulking off and trying to be a-nony-mouse!

hmmmm, what beads should I wear ....... I do love them, but they get in a tangle with the set of glasses I wear around my neck. (I have to keep switching between 3 different pairs for different distances. I can't cope with varifocals - severe headaches ensue.)

[Anik R]

Thank you again, to everyone (not least Ivo) for all the help.  I'm extremely happy that my beads are glass.   

P.S.  I do hope to go to the National Glass Fair, and to meet my fellow GMB members.  Right now I'm searching for a safe, but cheap place to stay, not too far from Birmingham city centre... unfortunately, that's not proving to be an easy task.  :spls:  But I'm determined. 

[chopin-liszt]

What about a youth hostel?
Michael uses them regularly abroad - (he only looks young, offset a little by the "distinguished" bits which have been appearing in his hair).
There's a site with B&Bs in it (independant sort of thing, with comments) I'll track down too - Christine and I used it to find a B&B in Edinburgh. :thup:

[Paul S.]

get the violins out..........when I last went to the YHA, it was ten shillings a night (sterling) - you had to take your own thin cotton inner lining for their bed  -  you had to contribute to the domestic running of the establishment i.e. washing up, sweeping, cooking etc.   BUT, most importantly you had to arrive (and leave) on either a push bike, canoe, tandem, or shankses pony.   You were NOT allowed to stay if you arrived in motorised transport.   I guess they now take you in however you arrive.    We used to collect the small triangular and circular badges that each Hostel had made, and sow them onto our cycling shorts or whatever.   ahhhhhhh  nostalgia.   But I guess Anik probably qualifies as 'youth' compared to a lot of us, so she should be very suitable

[Paul S.]

where was I  -  out in the fields....and sow them :pb:.........Sue, I have to use varifocals - but have now discovered that I can get away with contacts (the daily sort - and need only use them perhaps one or two days in a month).   Have you tried them.?