Sangfroid
Black onyx, transparent rock crystal and silver grey haematite in various shapes come together in this short 48cm necklace that projects cool and calm. For more info on the necklace, please click on Details, and if interested in my musings, please go to Story.
The identification of the beads start from the bead in the centre, moving upwards, with measurement for some of the bigger beads, with metal beads named last.
Length: 48 cm (almost 19”)
Weight: 125 gms
Black onyx in various shapes & sizes: ‘football’ in centre is 19 mm, cuboctahedron is 16 mm by 16 mm, and bigger rounds are 13 mm
Rock crystal rounds, biggest 16 mm and a pair of disc
Haematite rounds 13mm, small round haematite spacers, and a pair of disc
Silver crimp tubes
Silver box clasp
I set out to design a necklace contrasting onyx with rock crystal, and somewhere along the design process, added haematite to the mix. I think that what makes this necklace works is the different shapes of the three stones. The centrepiece is a carved onyx round that looks rather like a football. There are also plain onyx rounds in different sizes as well as a pair of onyx cuboctahedron (a polyhedron with eight triangular face, and six square faces), and a pair of hexagonal bipyramid (two hexagonal pyramids joined at the bases). The rock crystal rounds are also in different sizes as well as in disc form, and besides the two pairs of 14 mm haematite, I added haematite spacers which I feel enhances the overall design
I am very pleased with the liveliness of this necklace. Black onyx and haematite can be severe looking, but the transparent rock crystal ‘chills’ it, and the different onyx shapes lend a relaxed quality. So I am calling this necklace Sangfroid (pronounced ‘song-fwa”), that French phrase that denotes coolness and composure! At 48 cm (almost 19”), you could wear inside of an open collar, or v- neck, or over a round neck, slash neck, and with a range of colours, from a strong white to charcoal to various reds.
