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I have a Chamilia necklace and this is perfect for it. It was very inexpensive and looked great for the purpose I purchased it for. I ordered several at a time and had a problem with one but it was easily fixed.

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Very nice bead. Only thing a person might not like is that although it fits on a Pandora bracelet it does not thread on.

If people just spent a little more time internet surfing, they would find glass artists, probably even local ones, that make beautiful pandora style beads. Most studio's are artist owned and operated and you are buying from the person who made the bead. Lampwork Artists take pride in selling quality beads that will last a lifetime. The price per bead is more than affordable as well, especially for a one of a kind original.

This is the basic Murano style glass bead. The green is very pretty, The color is slightly transparent and coordinates with a number of shades of green is one was matching beads to apparel.

Reviews

I heard a review of The Glass Bead Game on National Public Radio and was very interested. It is an excellent counterpoint to my traditional classical collection in the care. The Piers Moktan review above nails it.

James Blackshaw is just so good that every time he releases something new I know I have to get it. And every time I introduce him to a friend I make a new convert. And so the word spreads, slowly but surely. So now Michael Gira has signed him upto his Young God label, and here Blackshaw builds on the move he made towards greater instrumentation on the excellent Litany of Echoes. It's still about 12 string virtuosity, and he's still innovating - surpassing all the great masters in my opinion. But this time the guitar playing is complemented by beautifully captivating choral arrangements, piano and cello. The tracks on The Glass Bead Game fulfill that greatest of musical accomplishments - they transport you to another place - they transform your state of being. I have no doubt I'll still be listening to this in 20 years time just as I have with John McLaughlin's Shakti. This is utterly brilliant music that deserves to find a diverse audience amongst lovers of disparate musical forms. Acquire a copy and enrich your life!

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I just recently had the fortune of being turned on to this recording. I have several thousand jazz CDs - jazz in fact is my vocation. So without hyperbole, I can solidly say that Clifford Jordan's Glass Bead Games is one of the best recordings (if not the best) I have discovered in several years. With Jordan's probing yet always grooving (in large part thanks to "General Swing" Billy Higgins) compositions I never get tired of listening to this CD. It is really tragic that it isn't more readily available... If I had the luck of one of the previous reviewers - to have listened to this for the last 30 years - my life would have been richer...

This is one of the swingingest and most melodic modern jazz recordings in my library. This obscure session makes my top 25 top jazz recordings of all time. Stanley Cowell's solos on this date are some of the most beautiful and melodic I have ever heard. I have been listening to this date constantly for 30 years, and it is just as fresh to me now as it was when I first heard it. ]Highly recommended if you like mainstream, engaging and melodic music. This sessionwill hold your interest from beginning to end.

I was moved to review this because other reviews make it sound cerebral, or "difficult", part tribute to Coltrane, part modernist German literature, and so on. Nonsense! It's a really enjoyable jazz album from start to finish. No duff bits, the leaders sax swings joyously, with a warm tone that induces happiness, and sounds as if he is happy. No skronk at all. The pianist has a kind of liquid fluidity, the bassist has his mournful bits, and the drumming knits it together so well. Perhaps we have been spoilt by the modern jazz of the 80's, 90's, 00's, but this is a relatively straightforward swinging slab of modern jazz that came out a bit ahead of its time and rocks along from start to finish.

This CD has become my mantra. It prepares me to go out into the world each day knowing that music does have the power to change things. It is a righteous homage to Dear John without being a Coltrane-copycat. These cats mean business. Even if Herman Hesse is not smiling I bet you will be when you get an earfull of what Clifford and his friends are putting down.

This is the first and only domestic reissue of the two-LP 1974 release under the leadership of tenor saxophonist Clifford Jordan. Fetching skyhigh prices on eBay, then reissued only as a pricey Japanese import, it's small wonder the session's reputation and following exceed the number who have actually heard it. Rest assured that the music is not simply a "cult" curiosity. Although the instrumententation mirrors that of Coltrane's quartet, the music is strikingly different from "A Love Supreme," admittedly a primary inspirational source. Compared to the predecessor, "Glass Bead Games" is less prayerful and more playful, less searching and more knowing, less focused on the religious quest than its rewards. The rapturous intensity of the earlier date is replaced by the quiet energies of the benefactors of the progenitor-hero's journey. On "John Coltrane" the musicians chant the words "John Coltrane, Black Spirit; John Coltrane, first new born," but rather than the torrential, monolithic incantation of "A Love Supreme," theirs is the song of the children of the forebearer, discretely delighting in their newfound jouissance. The two sessions constitute a revelation on several levels. First, the decade of the seventies was not entirely the funk and fusion, country and disco cultural wasteland it's been portrayed as: it did produce genuinely creative, uncompromisingly "human" new music within the jazz mainstream--and without electronic assists; second, Bill Lee was more than Spike's dad: he's a bassist with a singularly powerful, deep groove; third, Billy Higgins was, as so many musicians insist, a once-in-a-lifetime drummer: I don't hear the relentless swinger that Stanley Crouch raves about in the liner notes but a musician who's more like the bellows inspiriting the collective flame. Most importantly, the always underrated, now largely forgotten Clifford Jordan was not just a formidable tenor player: he was a creator of the first order, his playing so effortless, unselfconscious, mature and profound that at a time when altissimo fury was all the rage, his fate was to be the neglected, overlooked Lester Young of his era. All the more's the pity that his work on Horace Silver's most ambitious and rewarding album, "Further Explorations," is unlikely to be heard because, inexplicably (even with all the other RVG reissues), this Silver session remains out of print. Nonetheless, "Glass Bead Games" does't require corollary support--it's a self-sufficient work of rare beauty. Don't expect to be immediately or merely "impressed." It "intrigues" upon the first listen. With each successive listening the musical conversation yields fresh new discoveries--playful, profound, inexhaustible, and immensely satisfying. Compared to a Wayne Shorter on a session like "Footprints Live" Jordan is at once a more assertive soloist and more enabling force. Compared to a Michael Brecker on "Pilgrimage" Jordan is far more relaxed and low key yet paradoxically a more directive and shaping influence. His tone has as much "bottom" as "top," yet he makes the transitions between the two registers so effortlessly that the listener isn't conscious of them, as is also true of the quick alterations in dynamics. The climaxes, rather than spelled out, are merely suggested so that they register with deep and lasting impact on the listener. He's not a man content with a mere musical "dialogue" with his fellow musicians nor is he about to take the initiative in pulling his troops up to his level. Instead he begins to tell a musical story so compelling that his three comrades cannot resist contributing equally to what becomes a collaborative narrative--rhythmically, harmonically, melodically. This is brilliant music-making by a Coltrane-influenced successor who feels no obligation to mime the predecessor. It may be the most significant saxophone performance on record since Coltrane and, providing the listener stays with it for any length of time and repeated listenings, the most successful, satisfying creative jazz recording of the past 25 or more years. Jordan's game--so effortless, unforced, and centered--is simply inexhaustible. It erases distinctions between composed and improvised, soloist and ensemble, narrator and narrative, musical language and verbal language and, most importantly, performer and listener. To call the playing "remarkable" is to do it an injustice: rather, like Shakespeare's uses of language, it's representative and exemplary as a record of one instance of tapping into and then realizing the potential of the vast energy field that is human consciousness. The 2nd quartet, with Cedar Walton and Sam Jones replacing Stanley Cowell and Bill Lee, doesn't have the freshness and magic of the first--some of the playing is sufficiently "self"-intruding to impede, if ever so slightly, the untampered flow of the game itself. But a single scintillating glass bead game is more than enough to make this recording a singular, quintessential, and comparatively late example of an enduring though fragile art form that America was once not too proud or insensible to claim as its own. [Be careful about ordering the right copy. The problem is that the program listed with the album on Amazon as well as on most other sites, including All Music Guide, is totally inaccurate. It's a program belonging with a Strata-East release from 1975, "First Impressions," featuring Shamek Farrah--one of those Eastern recordings with mystical incantations and theological aspirations if not pretensions. "Glass Bead Games," on the other hand, is a 13-tune treasure that scintillates with inexhaustible life and beauty in the present moment thanks to the collective skills of the players. Don't settle for less. The 2006 U.S. reissue on Harvest Song is the right one, the first-ever complete release, made available in early 2007 by Jordan's widow. It's available, for the present, from only one source. Go to [...], music department, and do a search. The price, moreover, is more reasonable than the Japanese imports or eBay auction copies.]

Reviews

I've owned this cd for almost 2 years and return to it regularly when I'm in the mood for a bit of attitude from a couple of string players... The playing is top notch and the recording quality is excellent. (For the audiophile, the instruments are very "real sounding"). The selections are inspired, I love the spaning of era's and all the pieces "work" in sequence (a tough task to accomplish with music from various composers). This disc has also introduced me to a new favorite composer; Kodaly.This is simply a wonderful disc musically, artisticly and in terms of sound quality. A rare treat.

I am not a violin lover, but I asked John Marks to recommend a CD or two to use for equipment reviewing purposes. Glass Bead Game was one of them. The recording is not only excellent in audio quality, but the music itself in incredibly intriguing.A compilation of short works, the CD is not your typical violin concerto, but a series of unpredictable pieces that hang together in a very involving way. I find myself listening to it over and over again during breakfast as well as after dinner.Not only is Arturo's playing flawless...as best my untrained ear can tell...but the texture of the notes is extremely involving on my high resolution system. I didn't expect to be so delighted with it, but I am. Thank you very much, Mr. Marks.Excellent recommendation!!

Nicely judged program of music for violin and cello, with modern pieces by Kodaly and Martinu balancing Bach and Handel. Sounds especially good if you happen to have a CD player that does HDCD decoding (there'll be an "HDCD" logo on the front if it does). But it's excellent on a standard player too. See glassbead website for more details about the disc.

This recording brings together two important twentieth-century duos for violin and cello. For variety and contrast, they are presented with shorter baroque and classical works arranged for violin and cello. The result is a fascinating and delightful program.Kodaly is neither Romantic not Modern; he is sui generis, in a class by himself. His roots run deep into the Hungarian folk tradition, which he studied and championed and then distilled into a very refined personal style. His sound is sometimes similar to that of his countryman Bartok, but I find it more lyrical, introspective, and subtle. It's deceptively simple on the surface, but this economy transmits musical expression of great depth.Delmoni and Rosen play the Kodaly Duo passionately and with a rich, resonant tone. The Adagio is searching, mysterious and dark, and it is given a sympathetic reading here. Overall, this performance is very smooth and polished, with moderate tempos and very clean intonation and articulation. This is in contrast to the more astringent tone adopted by Josef Suk in his live performance with Andre Navarra on Praga, a more typical East European sound. Delmoni and Rosen sound restrained by comparison, but they are just as expressive in a different and less direct way.The Martinu Duo is a short and powerful piece with some very effective contrasts between the two movements. The first is eerie, spooky, even creepy, but with counterpoint as precise as that of Bach. It is dissonant and tightly organized to great effect. The second movement shares the sense of precision but has a very different feeling; made up mostly of fast runs, it is lighter, even amusing. And the time signature keeps changing. In the middle of this mad Rondo is a short passage where the mood of the Prelude returns, briefly, while the rest of the movement runs rings around it. (My interpretation of the work is as a quasi-religious dyptich of ominous death balanced by exuberant life. And always in the midst of life, the spectre is with us.)Delmoni's brilliant passagework and Rosen's earthy tones are well suited to putting across the various moods of this piece.Tommaso Giordani wrote operas and songs and was based in London and Dublin for the better part of his career. His Duetto is a pleasant, if somewhat predictable, collection of early Classical figures and gestures.No transcription is credited for the Bach Inventions, and I have no doubt they are played straight from the keyboard score. Alongside the bright, inventive pieces described above, the Bach seems somehow dull, and perhaps they are played this way deliberately. The Inventions are included to provide contrast to the Kodaly and Martinu works. After hearing Bach we are more aware of the freedoms these later masters enjoy. The Bach pieces are taken very seriously indeed.The recital ends with a Handel passacaglia, a brilliant set of variations taken from one of the Suites for keyboard. All the contrasts presented in the rest of the program are summed up here, all the colors and moods are repeated in miniature, bringing the hour to a suitable close.The recording and production are excellent, as always from this label. The sound of the performance is captured in a natural ambience, somewhat reverberant, with a very lifelike presence.

Reviews

I took a class in how to make beads and have been rapidly forgetting what was taught to me. I acquired this video recently and, while watching it, remembered a lot of what was demonstrated to me in the class. Unlike a lot of DIY tapes and DVDs, there isn't a lot of useless time lent to the camera panning the audience or showing pretty scenery. The guy starts with a preamble, describing how he added new material to a previous tape. This explains why he's suddenly younger in some of the lessons :). He puts in the previously filmed segments and will follow up with recently filmed segments showing the things he's learned since he made the first tape. Kudos for honesty. Even the experts can learn. He shows a couple of newbies trying to make things right after he does. This is reassuring to the novice - see, these guys make the same mistakes and its OK. Phew! He goes from one type of bead to the next, building on the first lesson. The camera is right on the work. It looks like they filtered the camera, so that the work is not obscured by a sodium flare. This is a big problem with videos I have seen on YouTube. (Note to YouTubing lampworkers: Get a didydium filter for your lens, m'kay?) He talks constantly through the process, explaining air bubbles, shapes the glass takes, and exactly how he makes each piece. I recommend it highly for beginning beadmakers. I am going to watch it again and again.

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I ordered this product and expected the beads to be small, but not microscopic. They were also poorly string together. This item is overpriced and I cannot recommend it to anyone.

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These earrings are stunning. Each set is a beautiful set of color and silver intertwined together to make a fantastic earring. While some are similar like the product description says, there are enough tiny differences to make each one unique. And of course, they come in a wide array of colors. I got a set of 10 earrings, which is a perfect amount to have one for everyday and then some. One of the best parts is that each one has a clasp on the back to prevent the earring from slipping off. I really like that feature as that is how I lost one favorite earring. I would definitely recommend these to any one who likes delicate, beautiful silver earrings. The seller also was excellent, as the earrings came in a little pink gift bag. The shipping was also very fast, less than a week from the date I ordered it and that was with a weekend order. I know where to come now for great earrings!

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I bought this for my 8 yeat old to help her to keep reading time. The watck works for a few hours then no longer keeps time with the other clocks. Overall a very cute watch just for her to dress up in

My daughter received this watch as a birthday gift and loved it. She wore it once and the crystal cracked but the watch still worked. After reading the other reviews, I'm hesitant to buy a replacement watch. It doesn't seem to be durable enough for children.

very pleased with this purchase. Order came very quickly. This was a gift for my niece and she was very happy with it.

No problem with this product. Here's the deal--if the shipment is OK, Amazon is fine. But if you need customer service, as I did for another shipment, you are in deep trouble. Amazon's "customer service" is in Thailand--they are incompetent. They are liars. They are either horribly trained or are purposefully misleading--a horror. Never again will I buy from Amazon.

I ordered two of these for my Grandaughters for Christmas, they were there on time, I have always been happy with Amazon meeting their commitments. One of the watches the stem came out the first time you tryed to set the time. I returned that watch and Amazon replaced it. When I got the new watch again the stem came out when they tryed to set it but it went back in and stayed firm so my Granddaughter was happy. I would always recommend Amazon but I don't think I would recommend the watch.

Reviews

My two year old is really into stringing beads and lacing. The beads could technically be choking hazards, but the letters themselves are quite large. You can take out the smaller beads and still have lots of fun to play with the big beads. Plus the colors are gorgeous, they are smooth and feel great in your hands and the 3D letters are great for little ones learning letters! A great gift!

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While RainX is great for your windshield (and other glass surfaces), this car wash with the supposed Carnuba crystals does nothing great. I bought it when it was on sale for under two dollars to try it out, and it was quite disappointing. I ended up using it to wash only my wheels. Stick to other better brands for car wash like Meguiars or Zaino.

You get what you pay for. I bought this as it was a great price. However, I saw more suds from my dishwashing soap. This formulation wasn't even good enough to wash my lawn mower. Not impressed at all. For a comparable brand try the Wash and Wax from Turtle Wax.

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A respected friend of mine recommended I read this book and I tried so hard to like it, but in the end (and the beginning and middle) I just didn't. I agree with several other reviews who admit the first 50-100 pages are difficult to get past. My problem with the rest is NOTHING HAPPENS! At least nothing important or relevant. After turning each page I kept asking myself, "What's the point? What's the plot?" For me-and probably a lot of others out there-there isn't enough dialogue or action to keep me interested. And in the beginning it was much too confusing and complicated (vague?) to consume my interest.

I wanted a hardback copy of "The Glass Bead Game" I hoped it would be from the main publisher. It was like a bookclub edition which was kind of cheezy. New, in good shape, yes. A library shelf addition, not much better than a paperback.

It's a synthesis. Imagine the sum of human perspectives and knowledge reduced into symbols and played like a symphony to permute meanings and explore conclusions. That's the glass bead game, which approaches a spiritual experience if played correctly. Frankly, it's a wonderful dream. Despite the flaws of old literature and translations, I found this book riveting. The first fifty pages of background is not absorbing, and the style makes it hard it get into. The wonderfulness is because rather than the soul-crushing themes hedonism and nihilism present in so much modern 'literature,' this book is a celebration of living life and the best of man. The conceptualization of the Glass Bead Game itself overshadowed the flaws in plot structure and the overwhelming use of telling over showing into unimportant considerations. A classic work that's stood the test of time, much more than the sum of it's parts. Recommended read for intellectuals.

Can I rate it zero stars? Definitely not a "page turner!" Having read Siddhartha some years ago and as I recall enjoying it, I thought I would like this book. However, I am plodding through and keep hoping it will get better, pick up, become interesting. It has so many shortcomings I don't know where to begin but to summarize I will use a sentence from a 5-star review "Absent from Castalia are action, creativity, originality, and experiment" substituting "the book" for "Castalia." Where is the action? the creativity? originality? (one person says the main theme is the giving up of self to reach enlightenment - what's original about that? it's Buddhism in a nutshell!) Hesse uses (overuses) "big" words in a way that makes it seem we are to be impressed. I reminds me of someone I went to high school with who would write a paper and then go to the Thesaurus to find as many big word substitutes as possible, even though it made the paper awkward and pretentious. Another person who gave a low rating of this book hit upon one thing that I find to be not only a shortcoming but downright offensive - that is the fact that women are totally out of Hesse's thinking. I find it ludicrous that the book is supposed to be set in the 23rd century - so far nothing gives any feeling of its being futuristic! One of the ways that it completely lacks any creativity. In fact, much of the book feels ancient. The plot (?) is weak, the characters uninteresting, the writing cumbersome, arcane and esoteric (in the most negative sense of the word). There is no poetic or descriptive language. Hesse alludes to what "the game" is but never fleshes out the idea or gives any real description. It's all very vague, ambiguous, and unconvincing! Again a lack of creativity. In spite of the fact that I am an intelligent person who enjoys philosophical thinking and writing as well as poetry, so far this book is nothing but a dull struggle. I'm determined to finish it - and maybe, just maybe I'll change my mind. Perhaps I should try (as one reviewer suggests) reading it backwards!

This is a book read best with your mind open and analysis firmed switched off. It is a beautifully crafted novel with profound insight and arguably one Hesse's finest works. I read this shortly after Narcissus and Goldmund and couldn't help feeling it was an extension of the Narzis (the spelling I knew) character. It is insightful and spiritual without being dogmatic. A highly recommended read to be followed by Rosshalde for a refreshing change of pace and place but retaining the genius of Hesse. This of course assumes you haven't read the above Narzis and Guldmund which is another masterpiece. You might have detected, I'm a bit of a Hesse fan!!

Reviews

Content is as fresh an charming. Bright, colorful imagery is included with well thought out instructions.

I have a huge selection of beading and jewelry books and this is now on the top of my list. I've been a fan of Kerry's work, so it's great to see her able to share her specialties through this book. I really enjoy the tone of the book because it feels like she's just there at the table working with you--plus, there is great photography that clearly demonstrates each step, including all the hand placement and tool specifics. That's a great thing in a bead book. :) So, not only can you stare for days at the great, fun beads and designs, you can actually learn something...even if you think you know how to do it already...like I did! haaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

What an amazing book! My book arrived and I was so delighted to receive it...Kerry Bogert is a truly talented lampwork artist and jewelry designer and this book really blew me away. From cover to cover, the color just pulls you in. The projects have beautiful photographs of her work and the fun fanciful descriptions are a delight. It is like a tropical vacation for the eye. The colors in her work bring a bright light to a dark winter day. I thoroughly enjoyed her whimsical writing style...it was like Kerry was sitting down next to you showing you every step it takes to make these beautiful pieces. This is a book for beginner to expert...and a creative inspiration for everyone!

Totally Twisted: Innovative Wirework and Art Glass Jewelry by Kerry Bogert Interweave Press Art glass beads can present unique challenges to a designer. There's a risk of over designing and losing the beads in the shuffle. Art glass beads work best when they're integrated into a design in a way that both celebrates them and allows them to become a part of the whole. Kerry Bogert is a well known art glass bead maker and finished jewelry designer. Her new book Totally Twisted offers a fresh approach to wire working and design specifically focused on showcasing art glass beads, but also applicable to a variety of other beads. This book is delightful to view and filled with interesting new techniques and meticulous approaches to the familiar. How many wire books get you really excited about making clasps, links or ear wires? I was particularly enamored of the color palettes explored in the designs and the way the book design itself reflected them. Too often, jewelry making books lack synergy because the book designer doesn't mirror the author's vision. Kudos to Lee Calderon for creating such a perfect backdrop for Kerry's dynamic designs. The book is beautiful and the step by step photographs are detailed, crisp and easy to follow. There is a definite aesthetic at work here and it's a truly appealing one. I loved the saturated color palettes and the wonderful sense of whimsy of Kerry's work. If you're looking for some new ways to work with wire, you'll find them here. Coiling, wrapping, making links and chains, creating findings...this is one of those books you'll want to have in your studio to keep referencing. It's a fun read too, giving you a fascinating glimpse into the author's design process and experiences. I think this would make a terrific addition to any jewelry maker's library. Margot Potter Author The Impatient Beader Series, Beyond the Bead and Bead and Wire Jewelry Exposed [...]

Having been a fan of Kerry's beads and jewelry techniques for the past few years, I was excited when she announced she had a book in the works. Her use of color, mixed with whimsy and fresh ideas, is refreshing. Having seen her jewelry tutorials in past, I knew Totally Twisted was a must have. From the pictures of finished pieces, to the closeups of how to create these pieces, to her clear list of materials and instructions, I am inspired to try new techniques. Being an intermediate wire work person, I appreciate the thoroughness and care Kerry gives to each project. Looking forward to getting twisted!