Flowers, chocolate, love notes, cards and jewelry are traditional symbols of St Valentine's Day celebrations in the West. For jewelry designers, anything with hearts are just the ticket to mark the day just as Cathy has done with these cleverly designed earrings.

The deep red hearts and the clear and lighter red crystals and glass beads all combine to remind me of Cupid's arrows. Love darts or love's arrows are metaphors for the concept of falling in love at first sight. Greek and Roman works are littered with the "love at first sight" concept.

Cupid was based on Roman mythology - he was the Roman god of love (Eros in Greek mythology). But today, Cupid is represented by a baby boy carrying a bow and arrow. Sometimes the baby is shown blindfolded to symbolise "love is blind" and sometimes a heart is an arrow tip - just like Cathy's earring dangles!

Gemstones for Valentine's Day

Did you know there were such things as Hearts and Arrows Diamonds? And that last year, one of the most expensive Valentine's Day gemstones offered for sale was the heart shaped pink emerald for a cool $2.6 million? My favourite master jeweler from the past, Verdura has the ultimate signature piece for Valentine's Day - the wrapped heart brooch created for a client who wanted something special for his wife since "she had his heart". You can see his work and the heart brooch design on my past post here.

Beader Design #: 265
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The Beading Gem's Journal
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