- rhinestones are sparkling and eye catching are great to add brightness the accessories.
They look like diamonds but they are not diamonds.
Definition of rhinestones
The definition of rhinestones is "a fake diamond, used in costume jewelery and to decorate clothing. " According to Oxford dictionary.
The rhinestone is “one high luster imitation stone made of glass, plastic or gem quartz. "
From high-end Swarovski crystals to regular glass stones or cheap plastic stones like acrylic or resin rhinestones, all of them can be called rhinestones.
The origin of the rhinestone
The original rhinestones were small sparkling quartz stones found near the Rhine River, in Austria, in the 13th century.
The original English name rhinestone derives from the discovery of the crystals found at the River Rhine, in English Rhine.
The rhinestones are produced since the 18th century when the founder of Swarovski, Daniel Swarovski, invented the machine to cut and facilitate crystal stones.
Over the past few decades, different types of rhinestones such as glass or plastic stones have come into production. Rhinestones have become more affordable and are widely used by designers.
Glass rhinestones
The glass rhinestones they are made of glass and formed by machine cutting. The glass itself is transparent. Manufacturers apply a layer of metallic coating on the back side of the stones so that the light can reflect and make the rhinestone shine like a diamond.
Crystal rhinestones
When lead oxide is added to the glass, a crystal is produced. The Lead enhances the brilliance of crystal and helps reflect colors better than pure glass.
The higher the lead content, the better the quality of the crystal. Glass must have at least 1% lead content to be classified as a crystal in the United States. In Europe, the lead content must be at least 4% to be classified as a crystal.
Crystal rhinestones like Swarovski and Preciosa Crystal are more expensive than glass rhinestones.
Plastic rhinestones
Plastic rhinestones are also called "plastic gems ”and“ fake stones". Mass-produced, low-cost, they are lead-free, lightweight and do not break easily.
Acrylic rhinestones
The acrylic rhinestones are formed by injection molding. The acrylic material is transparent, easy to shape, light and shatterproof. They can be easily mass produced with various shapes, cuts and colors of rhinestones.
Source: https://www.sunmeibutton.com/
