Handcrafted Garnet Earrings shaped into Grape Bunches with Antique Gilded Age Button tops
Tiny faceted Garnet beads are hand sculpted by securely wiring them together to form these juicy and whimsical earrings. The deep color off the garnet is that of Merlot Wine and they are delightful. There are also even tinier faceted bronze coated hematite beads woven into the bunches. With all the facets and color , the earrings sparkle delicately.
Atop the bunches are Antique Gilded Age Brass Buttons that have been dapped to form caps. I will explain Gilded Age Buttons at the end of this description of the earrings!
The earrings hang length is 1 5/8”.
The width at the widest point is 5/8”.
The handmade ear wires are made with 20 gauge gold filled wire. They have been strengthened in a tumbler and the little loops holding the earrings are soldered closed.
Now for your unexpected little history lesson…
The Gilded Age was a term coined by Mark Twain who made it the title of a satirical novel about excess and corruption after the Civil War. The Guilded Age became a label for years from about 1870 to 1900 . It was a time of great opulence but also a time of hardship and destitution as economic growth was matched with tremendous inequality. So, the “gilding” was supplied by the wealthy as they imagined themselves a class apart . Everything in excess from plenty of servants, huge mansions, style of dress and all the rest were the rules of the high society conscious wealthy. What Twain meant was that the “gilded attitudes “ of the privileged and powerful covered up the vast woes of struggling people. Yet, it can also be said that this time also prompted the beginnings of philanthropy and reform by the wealthy towards those experiencing great economic and social hardships, as this could not be ignored.
As I whittle this down to the Gilded Age Metal Buttons… I have noticed that they are extremely well made with lovely chased etching, and can be polished to a very high degree of golden shine, There has been a rumor in the button world that there was actual gold in the metal mixture, but this is hard to substantiate..I only know from years of working with them, they are wonderful and beautiful buttons ,and , as Twain wrote of, a gilded history.
Thank you for your kind interest!
Judy
Tiny faceted Garnet beads are hand sculpted by securely wiring them together to form these juicy and whimsical earrings. The deep color off the garnet is that of Merlot Wine and they are delightful. There are also even tinier faceted bronze coated hematite beads woven into the bunches. With all the facets and color , the earrings sparkle delicately.
Atop the bunches are Antique Gilded Age Brass Buttons that have been dapped to form caps. I will explain Gilded Age Buttons at the end of this description of the earrings!
The earrings hang length is 1 5/8”.
The width at the widest point is 5/8”.
The handmade ear wires are made with 20 gauge gold filled wire. They have been strengthened in a tumbler and the little loops holding the earrings are soldered closed.
Now for your unexpected little history lesson…
The Gilded Age was a term coined by Mark Twain who made it the title of a satirical novel about excess and corruption after the Civil War. The Guilded Age became a label for years from about 1870 to 1900 . It was a time of great opulence but also a time of hardship and destitution as economic growth was matched with tremendous inequality. So, the “gilding” was supplied by the wealthy as they imagined themselves a class apart . Everything in excess from plenty of servants, huge mansions, style of dress and all the rest were the rules of the high society conscious wealthy. What Twain meant was that the “gilded attitudes “ of the privileged and powerful covered up the vast woes of struggling people. Yet, it can also be said that this time also prompted the beginnings of philanthropy and reform by the wealthy towards those experiencing great economic and social hardships, as this could not be ignored.
As I whittle this down to the Gilded Age Metal Buttons… I have noticed that they are extremely well made with lovely chased etching, and can be polished to a very high degree of golden shine, There has been a rumor in the button world that there was actual gold in the metal mixture, but this is hard to substantiate..I only know from years of working with them, they are wonderful and beautiful buttons ,and , as Twain wrote of, a gilded history.
Thank you for your kind interest!
Judy
Tiny faceted Garnet beads are hand sculpted by securely wiring them together to form these juicy and whimsical earrings. The deep color off the garnet is that of Merlot Wine and they are delightful. There are also even tinier faceted bronze coated hematite beads woven into the bunches. With all the facets and color , the earrings sparkle delicately.
Atop the bunches are Antique Gilded Age Brass Buttons that have been dapped to form caps. I will explain Gilded Age Buttons at the end of this description of the earrings!
The earrings hang length is 1 5/8”.
The width at the widest point is 5/8”.
The handmade ear wires are made with 20 gauge gold filled wire. They have been strengthened in a tumbler and the little loops holding the earrings are soldered closed.
Now for your unexpected little history lesson…
The Gilded Age was a term coined by Mark Twain who made it the title of a satirical novel about excess and corruption after the Civil War. The Guilded Age became a label for years from about 1870 to 1900 . It was a time of great opulence but also a time of hardship and destitution as economic growth was matched with tremendous inequality. So, the “gilding” was supplied by the wealthy as they imagined themselves a class apart . Everything in excess from plenty of servants, huge mansions, style of dress and all the rest were the rules of the high society conscious wealthy. What Twain meant was that the “gilded attitudes “ of the privileged and powerful covered up the vast woes of struggling people. Yet, it can also be said that this time also prompted the beginnings of philanthropy and reform by the wealthy towards those experiencing great economic and social hardships, as this could not be ignored.
As I whittle this down to the Gilded Age Metal Buttons… I have noticed that they are extremely well made with lovely chased etching, and can be polished to a very high degree of golden shine, There has been a rumor in the button world that there was actual gold in the metal mixture, but this is hard to substantiate..I only know from years of working with them, they are wonderful and beautiful buttons ,and , as Twain wrote of, a gilded history.
Thank you for your kind interest!
Judy
