Coral beads have the most vivid color to be found among semiprecious stones. They have represented blood and passion as far back as archaeologists can trace. Unquestionably, coral beads make hot, eye catching jewelry, but the intensity of the color can make jewelry designs a bit difficult when factoring in other gemstones. Many new beaders that favor coral stop and realize that all their coral beads are paired with one of three colors: black, white, silver, or more red. So what can be done to make coral jewelry more different and exciting? It might be a surprise that the number of suggestions is staggering.

To start with, a growing fad is to pair coral with turquoise. It's true that bright blue and red can be a little odd, but turquoise has just enough green in it to complement a coral design. The colors will contrast with one another and your jewelry will have a fun, tropical feel to it. But look out since a lot of turquoise beads just aren't as bright as coral beads and can look washed out when you put them together. Try turquoise with black matrix as it will often bring out the color of an otherwise dull shade. To find your best combination, hold a strand of coral beads up to the turquoise you're considering.

If you're really looking to make your jewelry jump out at someone, your best bet is to pair opposites. In this case, we're talking green, and in the gemstone world that means jade or malachite. You'll definitely want to try the ol' flower and leaves combination that coral's been sought after for since the early 1600s. Find coral beads carved into the form of a rose and add jade or malachite beads carved in the form of leaves. Don't always assume that the flower has to be your center piece; put it off to the side if you want. Or add butterflies. Or interweave strands of leaves to make vines. I've even seen small, playful kitten beads added among the foliage. Remember, your design is only as simple as your imagination.

For a jewelry set that matches an earth tone outfit, put apple coral and tigerseye together. Since the red can be more fetching than the brown, a lot of beaders like to use small tigerseye beads as spacers between large apple coral beads. The brown-yellowish color adds just enough neutrality for the jewelry to match many outfits. But be cautious of pairing highly glossy tigerseye beads with more natural-looking coral beads. The glare can cause eyes to focus on the brown instead of the red and make your necklace look strange. The shine of unimportant beads should not compete with your main focus.

There are a variety of other stones that look nice with coral, but I won't mention them. I'll just say that the closer you get to black or white, the more it matches with coral. So dark lapis lazuli, dark amethyst, dark you-name-it is worth holding up to a strand of coral beads. Same goes for the very light stones. Break away from the norm and experiment!

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