I used to bead necklaces but the pandemic made me reluctant to go to trade shows to get beads. However, I pop into blogs and suchlike and found a curious thing that I've often wondered about: whether faux "gems" or crystals can substitute for the real thing. I like pinky rings so I bought a couple of small marquise CZ stones, one in orange and other in aqua. Had jeweler set them in gold, a very simple setting. I looked at them and thought that they really were indistinguishable from, say, a real aquamarine or citrine. In in the opinion of the blog poster (who also made jewelry) that faux stones can pass for real. I think the key is a simple gold setting, not ornate like some costume jewelry.
I bought a citrine ring years ago which had a rather brownish stone. I liked the setting but the stone was kinda blah. After a while I asked the jeweler if he could swap stones. He wound up putting in a sparkly pink CZ of size which was custom cut to fit the setting. I get compliments on that ring and CZs are fun to wear especially when they sparkle.
