How much do you know about rhinestone ?

All that glitters is not gold — sometimes it's rhinestones. They shimmer, sparkle and dance in the light, and they are nothing more than faceted bits of glass.

The name rhinestone originated from pieces of crystal or glass found in Austria's Rhine River. Rhinestones, however, have been around for centuries and were originally cut and finished by hand.

In the 1700’s, a French jeweler developed a technique for applying lead to the back of glass. This process greatly enhanced the brilliance and sparkle of the glass. In the 1800’s, Swarovski created a glass cutting machine which cut faceted glass that had dazzle and brilliance far superior to hand cut crystal. This became known as "Swarovski Rhinestones". Swarovski's invention allowed for a speedy mass production while still producing a magnificent finished stone. Today this process is still being used world wide by companies other than Swarovski. While there may be some quality differences, many companies have successfully mimicked the Swarovski technique.

Today's rhinestones are relatively inexpensive, and are made from glass, acrylics, paste or gem quartz. They can be used to embellish everything from wedding tiaras to Vegas showgirl headdresses, from competitive figure skating costumes to costume jewelry pieces.

One kind of rhinestones: point back rhinestone , is also called chaton. The pointed back gives a more intense sparkle, greater than flatbacked rhinestones give, due to the extra facets reflecting off the foiled backing. you can see point back rhinestones everywhere, in girls’ skirts ,hats, and even on people’s phones. They can make everything shining wherever they are.