By "STONES" I mean the stones that either stand alone or in clusters that are not part of any ELEMENT. This is to differentiate them from the stones that make up the ELEMENTs in a crystal tiara.

Stones come in a myriad of shapes called "cut." Marquis, Baguette, Brilliant (the classic 58 facet cut used for diamonds and rhinestones). These are rather arcane and esoteric and a chart showing the name and the shape is in order.

Generally, Stones as we use them here, unless you are lucky enough to own a tiara with genuine stones, refer to what you find in the more common tiara. This glossary refers to the visual characteristics, such as--

OPACITY or TRANSPARENCY: the "see-through"-ability of a stone. A stone can be Opaque and white or some color. Translucent or semi-transparent: not entirely see-through but varying degrees of such (frosted, translucent, semi-opaque). Transparent: you can see right through to the backing. Transparent items can be colorless or colored (transparent red, transparent purple).

COLOR: if a stone has any color, this color can be measured in 3 dimensions. Hue: the actual color; red, blue, brown topaz, azure and like that. Saturation: how strong or weak (washed out) the color is (dusky, smoky. etc.) and Shade: light to dark; pale, pastel, light, medium and dark.

For a fuller, more detailed glossary, go to COLOR CHART and HERE as well.

stones also have a shape or CUT and are also CALIBRATED. For more information, go HERE

NATURAL: Dug up out of the ground.

SYNTHETIC: Man-made but chemically, physically and structurally identical to a Natural stone, this is true for all but the...

SYNTHETIC DIAMOND: a clear stone that is man-made but is not quite the same as the natural one. It will be a bit softer and not as light-refracting as a natural diamond. they go by such names as Dia-Sim, Diamante, Diamonique and the like.

ARTIFICIAL: looks enough like a real stone to do the job but is totally different in material and structure. Rhinestones and Faux Pearls, though attractive and with varying degrees of realism, are Artificial stone.

RHINESTONE: the typical "glass" crystal stone.

FAUX PEARL: a simulated pearl.

STAR: a glass stone cut like a star.

TEARDROP: a glass stone cut in the shape of a teardrop.

DANGLE: a stone, usually a TEARDROP that is suspended from an ELEMENT so that it hangs down and can swing freely.

ACRYLIC: a very transparent stone made of plastic that has a silvered back. can be bought loose in packages at Wal-Mart.

AURORA BOREALIS or AB Stone: is mostly colorless transparent glass or acrylic stone that is coated with a material that gives an "oil slick" or iridescent sheen to the surface.

PRONG SET: a method for setting stones that is very strong and widely used.

INLAY: Also not a stone but a piece of attractive material set in a stone-like position. This can be ivory or some other material and in any shape.

CLUSTER: A group of STONES, not part of an element, in an abstract, geometric or other shape. These can be used to fill the space inside or between ELEMENTS or contribute to the MOTIF and STYLE. Floral: A cluster used to make the image of a flower. The stones can be colorless or some transparent color.

FLORAL: A CLUSTER of stones cut in the shape of leaves or petals that are then arranged in clusters to look like flowers. It is a bit more integrated than a normal CLUSTER since it more than suggests a shape while still being a composite form.

The location, size and other characteristics of a stone or CLUSTER often affects how the tiara appears. as such this can be at the geographic center of the FRONTPIECE and call the eye right to itself and is called a CENTER STONE. or it can be at the APEX, center or on the band in the center. In which case it is called the PRIME STONE. Usually though not always the CENTER STONE is the Prime stone. If you must use a BUTTERFLY shape, I recommend the use of a large CENTER/PRIME Stone to bring the eye back to the center. This will balance out the two peaks and keep the image from "coming apart"

FLOWER: a part of a tiara that is made of (usually) porcelain and shaped and colored as an actual flower and serves the function of a stone.