A guide to Swarovski Crystals | Beads Jar UK
The famous Swarovski brand was founded by Daniel Swarovski in 1895 and is still a family run company today. In 1892 Daniel went on to patent an electronic cutting machine that enabled the production of crystal glass. Swarovski crystals have been unrivalled since in their quality and brilliance. Their range includes crystal sculptures, home décor, chandeliers, couture fashion, jewellery, beads, and cut stones. Swarovski sells it's loose crystal elements to the worlds of fashion and jewellery design under the name Crystalized. Crystalized beads and gemstones are of the highest quality. They also created a cut with the highest level of brilliance, now known as the Xillion cut. These Xillion cut elements result in the ideal distribution of light thanks to the star shaped cut, perfect positioning of the facets and precision workmanship.
Terms associated with Swarovski Crystals
There are a number of terms associated with Swarovki Crystal Elements which can get a little confusing at times as there are so many. You will find a list of some of the more commonly used terms in regards to Swarovski below.
AB
AB stands for Aurora Borealis and refers to the iridescent rainbow like coating given to Swarovski's crystals.
Swarovski Hotfix stones are flat backed crystals pre-coated with a heat sensitive glue. These are applied to various surfaces using a special Hotfix applicator tool.
Special Effects
Swarovski have many special effects, the one pictured below is Golden Shadow. It gives the crystals surface a soft golden hue. Other popular effects include Crystal, Paradise Shine, Alabaster, Comet Argent, Metallic Sunshine, Silver Night, AB2X, Vitrial, Volcano and Sahara.
Flat Back
Flat backs are Swarovski's cut stones with a foiled flat back ready for setting or gluing onto your chosen surface/bezel. These are available in hotfix and non-hotfix.
Pointed Back
Pointed back are cut stones with a pointed back which can either be clear or have a foil coating which enhances the sparkle. These stones can be set into custom made bezels or crystal clay.
Crystal-It
Swarovski Crystal-It's are self Adhesive transfers made up of flat back crystals designed to be used on paper, cardboard, and packaging. They are ideal for scrap booking.
Beads
Swarovski have a huge ever evolving collection of crystal beads in many different Shapes, sizes and finishes. Some of these include: Bicones, Faceted Rounds, Briolettes, Cubes, Fancy Shapes, Encrusted beads (Shamballa, filigree beads etc).
Swarovski Pearls consist of a crystal core coated in layers of luminous lustre resulting in the appearance of a fine natural pearls.
Stones
Chatons
Chatons are one of Swarovski's loose cut stones with a high brilliance, a pointed back, and a faceted surface. Unlike Rivoli's, Chatons have a flat surface in the center and are faceted at an angle around this. They have no bead hole and are designed to be set into custom made bezels or crystal clay.
Rivoli
Rivoli's are also loose cut stones with an amazing sparkle, perhaps even more so than the Chatons. They are symmetrical in shape with a shallow pointed back and pointed surface. The back usually has a foil coating for maximum light reflection.
Pendants
Swarovski have a huge range of pendants available and continue to release new Innovations ™ every year. Some of the more commonly known classic shapes are the Heart, teardrop, butterfly, small and large drops, briolettes, baroque, cosmic and infinity to name a few.
Threading
If you're working with Swarovski's cut crystal beads, it's important to use a good quality beading thread that's both strong and durable so that the often sharp edges of the beads don't wear your thread over time. There are a number of threads on the market today but there are two that are a cut above the rest. Fireline and Spiderwire are the new generation of braided beading threads made from pre-waxed polyethylene. They are the strongest threads available and are able to withstand impressive weights while still being incredibly fine. Fireline and Spiderwire are both available in various different widths.
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