JOANA MIRANDA STUDIO

Christmas Eve…a nod to the Edwardian period:

The Edwardian period (1900-1915), coincided with the reign of England’s King Edward VII, when the upper classes of Europe and the US wore jewelry as a means of displaying their wealth.   The jewelry of this period, which was inspired by jewelry of the French 18th century court, featured lavish use of diamonds, other costly gemstones and the rarest metals.  Platinum was often used for its superior strength in the delicate and lacy settings favored at this time.  Known also as the “Garland” style due to the frequent depiction of flowers tied with garlands of ribbons, Edwardian jewelry also featured the following:

• Pearls and diamonds
• Colored gemstones including ruby, sapphire, emerald, opal and cat’s eye chrysoberyl
• Motifs like garlands, ribbons, bows, crescents, starbursts, Greek keys, laurel wreaths, wings, feathers, crowns, oak leaves, swallows and butterflies

I’m not into showy displays of wealth, but I do hope the starry snowflake above brings a beacon of light, hope and happiness to my readers.