We all get stuck occasionally. We’ll buy gemstones because they’re beautiful but once we get them home, we’ll look at them and ask ourselves: “Now what?”

We can always wait for an idea or an inspiration. But in today’s economy, I don’t know many people who are building inventory. So, sometimes we need a little push.

One way to get started is to keep a folder or bookmark images of jewelry you’ve seen and like. Paging through this resource can often get you thinking.

Another approach is to consider color swatches. What is the color of your gemstones and what color or colors complement them? This can get you thinking about combining gemstones in a single strand or multi-strand necklace.or bracelet or combining gemstones in earrings.

I found a useful free website that generates complementary colors at https://colorschemedesigner.com

The website is for graphic and web designers, not for jewelers, so there is a lot in it you can ignore. But play around with the color wheel in the five variations listed at the top. This will give you ideas on what colors are complementary and may help when you’re stuck for an idea.

Below is a good youtube video describing how to use colorschemedesigner. Again, the website is a service for graphic and web designers, not pearl and bead stringers, but, heck, ideas are ideas. We don’t care about the source.