rosary workshop - History
ABOUT HAND PRESSED BEADS
~ THE BIEDERMEIER
PERIOD ~
'they have a singular power of beauty'
+
THE BEADS
The beads were designed and handmade by bead-makers with highly
developed artistic skills from the 1920s to the 1960s. The myriad
of shapes are based on the richly creative era of the Biedermeier period,
a fashion style popular in Germany and France between 1815 and 1860.
There are pyramids, cones, feathers, rectangles, triangles bottles, arrowheads,
rosettes, flowers, olives, acorns, pears, leaves, single hole, double hole,
drops, pendants, stones - the list is quite inexhaustible. Each bead,
no matter how small or intricate, was meticulously hand-pressed from hot
glass cane, one at a time, and then tumble polished to achieve the exceptional
gem-like quality of fine crystal. The beads are extraordinarily versatile
in jewelry designs: whether used alone or combined with stone beads, gems
or clay beads, they have a singular power of beauty.
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THE GLASS AND THE COLORS
The highest quality glass canes were hand-drawn from finely separated
color magmas designed for each specific bead, from single color glass canes,
to canes with a dozen colors wound in delicate circling overlays around
each other, with transparent glass or translucent glass, or opaque glass
in every stage of diaphaneity. The colors are natural, alive and
truly exceptional. Simultaneously antique and modern, they
possess rare depths from single earthy colors, to multi-colored overlays
and mosaics. The color range is imaginative and vast: Magenta,
violet blue, smoky topaz, deep purple, turquoise, pink, coral
red, storm gray, korallin , jasper, hyacinth, garnet, beryl, lilac, dark
ruby, gypsy brown, raven blue, alabaster yellow, carnelian, rose opal,
amethyst, safranine red, black olive, sapphire, Montana blue - and on and
on.
From
GRAY WOLF COMPANY
Importers of fine vintage glass beads for over 20
years.
"With a heritage of beadmakers and artists, we are the forefront
of the 'American Bead Renaissance"
13420 McKitrick Ranch Road - Nevada City, CA 95959
PHONE: 530-274-1101 or FAX: 530-274-1102
