Article fashion jewelry

There is something about a cameo that it truly captivating. Be it the attention to fine detail
the elegance of the portraits
there is simply nothing quite as beautiful as a cameo
and they never go out of style. Cameos can be made from variety of materials
such as abalone
wood
bone
coral
ivory
agate
glass
plastic
various shell types
and layered hard stone which comes in a variety of colors.

Molded cameos are usually made of glass. They usually consist of either one or two colors. Often the colors are swirled together. Glass cameos are usually quite shiny. Molded cameos are also molded from plastic. The wedgwood style cameos were made from plastic. Plastic makes a terrific imitation shell cameo. Older cameos were often made with celluloid using two colors. Occasionally
but not very often
natural materials are molded. One way to tell if a cameo is molded is to look for a roundness in the detail and a lack of sharp and precise lines. To identify glass cameos look for the presence of mold marks and ridges or dimples on the back.

Shell cameos are carved from a single piece of shell. Shell is soft
so it is very easy to carve. Shell cameos are usually two colors. Shell cameos have a thin concave back
with the exception of abalone and mother of pearl which are usually flat on the back and somewhat thicker. Coral Cameos are usually a single color
and also have a flat back.

Agate cameos are carved with the same technique that shell cameos are carved. Agate has one main advantage
because the carver is able to see the layers of color from the side and knows that these layers will basically be flat. Stone is much harder to carve. A good hard stone cameo is often under carved at the junction where the portrait meets the flat plaque. At a quick glance stone often looks like an applied cameo
however upon closer examination one can determine it to be stone.

Amber Cameos are rather new to the market place. Amber cameos are carved from natural amber with the reverse intaglios being hand carved.
Practice will make it easier to tell molded cameos from carved cameos: Usually natural materials are carved
while glass and plastic materials are normally molded but could be carved though not very likely. Molded cameos can be two colors by the simple device of pouring one color into the mold in a thin layer and then following with a thicker layer of another color.

If you are buying for value distinguishing the type of cameo could be very important. However
if you are buying because you simply "love" the piece
then determining the type of cameo and the value are not nearly as important. We suggest if you are purchasing a cameo because you want to add it to your jewelry wardrobe then choose what your heart falls for
just be certain you are not overpaying for what you are getting.

Cameos make a wonderful fashion statement! And they never go out of style.