The fashions of the Victorian era mirrored events in Queen Victoria's life. Flowing, romantic pieces sprang from her marriage to Prince Albert. After his death, she wore mourning jewelry. In the post-mourning period, light colors and restrained elegance were the keynotes. If you have a vintage dress, and you want to make a Victorian beaded necklace to go with it, what should you make it out of?
Early Victorian Era
Victoria was crowned queen when she was only eighteen. Two years later, she married Albert. The jewelry of this period reflects her youth and optimism.
Early Victorian Materials
Agate, malachite and cairngorms (a form of quartz): These were used together to create Scottish-themed pieces, which rode on the popularity of Walter Scott's historical novels.
Amethyst: This purple stone was popular throughout the era, as purple's ecclesiastical connection allowed it to be worn during mourning.
Coral: The early Victorians often bedecked children with bright reddish-orange necklaces because they believed the coral held curative and protective powers.
Pearls: Seed pearls were beaded into patterns to create fanciful images of flowers, seashells and other nature motifs. Larger pearls were often fashioned into several strands to accent a conch shell cameo.
Middle Victorian Era
Darkness descended for Victoria in 1861 with Prince Albert's death. That same year, the Civil War broke out in the United States, causing many on both continents to put on mourning clothes. Black became fashionable, even for those not in mourning.
Middle Victorian Materials
Black onyx: Black onyx was a popular choice for mourning jewelry.
Jet: This fossilized wood became popular when Victoria demanded her entire court to don black. The demand grew to the point that jet substitutes, such as French jet (black glass) and vulcanite (vulcanized rubber), were widely used.
Garnets: This is the stone most commonly associated with the Victorian era, and the dark red continued to be popular until the end of Victoria's reign. The similar-looking bloodstone was worn at the beginning of the period.
Enamel: Queen Victoria's interest in history led to a revival of jewelry from other periods, including Egyptian, Etruscan and Renaissance-style pieces. Metallic beads coated with enamel (fused glass) were common in these pieces.
Glass: The industrial revolution came in the middle of the Victorian era, making pressed glass an affordable option for the working class. Choose colors that imitate garnet, onyx or other period materials. The Victorians also favored goldstone, a type of heat-reduced glass that glitters due to suspended copper crystals.
Late Victorian Era
As Victoria's influence waned, her daughter-in-law, Princess Alexandra of Denmark, became the new trendsetter. Victoria herself remained in mourning to the end of her life, but her people had had enough of funerary garb. Stones too expensive for beads, such as diamonds and alexandrite, were popular at this time.
Late Victorian Materials
Opals and moonstones: These pale stones match the light colors of late Victorian fashions. Opals would not have been used earlier due to a superstition that they were unlucky.
Tortoiseshell: Tortoiseshell, appropriate for "half-mourning," at the very end of the Victorian era. If you're concerned about the tortoiseshell trade having driven the hawksbill turtle onto the endangered list, opt for celluloid, a type of plastic authentic to the era, instead.
Turquoise: This was considered exotic during the Victorian era, as travelers brought it back to Europe from Asia. It had been popular briefly in early Victorian times, but really came into its own later, when trade with the orient was reopened. Cinnebar also became a popular import.
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