Guarantee:    27.5” long, 10-strand turquoise and brown clam shell heishi necklace by Kewa Native American necklace artist, Jennifer Calabaza. 117 grams total weight. Sterling Silver clasps and end cones. Inventory #JNJC10Th1902.

Size: 27.5” total length. Weight: 117 grams.

Materials: brown clam shell heishi; turquoise; Sterling Silver.

Detailed Description.  This 10-strand necklace is NEW, not previously sold, used or worn by anyone since being crafted by in Fall 2019, by Kewa Native American artist Jennifer Calabaza. Total length is approximately 27.5” end-to-end.   Each end consists of 1.5” long Sterling Silver clasp and cone, followed by 2.25” of each strand covered with brown clam shell heishi and the rest of each strand comprised of irregular-shaped small turquoise stones, spaced approx. 0.15” apart by 5-6 brown clam shell heishi beads interspersed between turquoise pieces. 

Turquoise: each strand contains 80+ turquoise pieces, so the 10 strands contain a total of 800+ turquoise pieces of irregular thickness and shape, ranging between 0.2 to 0.3 inches in length [most 0.2”] & 0.01 to 0.1 inch thickness.  [All measurements approximate] Heishi:  the brown clam shell heishi beads are circular in shape ranging between 0.09 to 0.1” diameter and 0.01” to 0.05” thickness. Each strand contains over 450 heishi beads, resulting in a 10-strand total of 4500 hand-strung heishi.  Shape and thickness irregularities are due to natural shell and turquoise characteristics and effects of polishing and hole-drilling the individual pieces.

Turquoise colors in photos. The color of turquoise changes with lighting changes—sometimes looking more blue and other times looking more green. You will observe differing shades of blue or green in the photos we posted of this necklace’s turquoise. We purposely take the photos with varying types of light so you can see the turquoise colors in differing light conditions

Detailed Dimensions. [Measurements are approximate, using a micrometer; there are minor variations inherent in hand-made jewelry and consistent with variations in natural materials.]

·      End-to-end length:  27.5” includes Sterling Silver clasps & end cones

·      Heishi bead diameter variation:  0.09>>0.1”

·      Heishi bead thickness variation: 0.01” > 0.05”

·      Turquoise pieces length variation:  0.2 > 0.3”

·      Turquoise pieces thickness variation: 0.01 > 0.1”

·      Weight:   117 gramsWeight: 

Comments. We are pleased to offer this beautiful 10-strand necklace by Kewa [Santo Domingo] Native American necklace artist Jennifer Calabaza.  Jennifer’s turquoise and heishi necklaces are moderately priced because Jennifer does NOT cut, polish and drill her own turquoise stones or heishi.   She purchases the heishi and turquoise already cut, polished and drilled, as do other of the more moderately priced Native American jewelry artists.  Jennifer then decides on the necklace design she wants to create, selects individual turquoise pieces, arranges and strings the heishi and turquoise consistent with her vision for the necklace.  The irregular shaped turquoise pieces are separated by very tiny 5-6 heishi, creating a beautiful overall effect with the overlapping 10 stands.  Think of the skill and patience involved in envisioning and stringing over 4500 tiny heishi beads interspersed with over 800 tiny turquoise stones.  Obviously, any multi-strand necklace that contained hand-formed, hand-polished and hand-drilled turquoise and heishi would be much more expensive due to the hundreds of hours required to do so. We appreciate your time and interest in considering Jennifer’s attractive and modestly priced necklaces.  This style of necklace looks great in either informal or formal situations. In purchasing this authentic Native American jewelry, you also are supporting the preservation of art and culture passed down by generations of Kewa Native Americans.