Description
A necklace made of several hundred faceted obsidian micro-beads, two to three millimetres across. At that size the stone stops being a bead and becomes a bright line around the neck.
Each bead carries some thirty small facets, and that is what changes everything compared with round beads of the same size. A tiny sphere returns one point of light; a faceted bead returns thirty, and the necklace sparkles continuously instead of making a matte line. That is the whole point of faceting at this scale, where you no longer see the shape but only the glint.
The catalogue already offers an obsidian bead necklace, in the usual diameter. This one is another object: it sits close to the neck, shows under an open collar, and layers with other chains without adding bulk. An 8 millimetre strand, by contrast, is a piece in its own right and does not layer. Both are here.
The reservation is the thread. Three hundred two-millimetre beads mean three hundred glass edges rubbing on the same thread, and an ordinary thread cuts through in a few months. I use a coated steel cable, not nylon, and that accounts for part of the price on a necklace that looks simple. Even so, a micro-bead necklace stays more fragile than a strand of large beads: that is mechanics, not a fault.
Crystal lore ties obsidian to grounding. None of that is proven, and no piece of jewellery heals anything. I have gathered separately what tradition attributes to obsidian, in the conditional from start to finish.
- Genuine black obsidian, several hundred faceted micro-beads of 2 to 3 mm.
- Strung on coated steel cable, not on nylon thread: glass edges cut thread.
- Sits close to the neck and layers with other chains without adding bulk.
- Steel clasp and extension chain, adjustable length.
What to know before you wear it
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The specifications
- Stone
- Black obsidian, volcanic glass
- Bead size
- 2 to 3 mm, faceted
- Length
- About 45 cm / 17 3/4 in, with extension chain
- Stringing
- Coated steel cable, lobster clasp
- Gender
- Women
- Brand
- Bijoux Obsidienne
Threading three hundred two-millimetre beads
Threading two-millimetre beads is done with a needle and under a raking light, never under a lamp facing you. The reason is that one bead in twenty has its hole partly blocked by a chip from the cutting, invisible head-on and perfectly visible from the side. Force it and the needle splits the bead, and it then has to come out of the strand: at three hundred beads that means starting over if you notice too late. So the sorting is done before the threading, bead by bead, against the window.
This necklace exists because obsidian in large beads makes a piece people notice, and that is not always what you are after. In micro-beads it becomes a line, and a line is worn with other things. The other necklaces are here and the obsidian guide explains the material.
One bead in twenty has its hole blocked by a chip. Invisible head-on, obvious from the side, and the needle splits it if you force.
Obsidian does not mind water, but a strand of micro-beads will not take being pulled. Take the necklace off by opening the clasp, never by passing it over your head. A soft cloth is enough, never an ultrasonic bath. Cleaning an obsidian piece covers the rest.
