All that glitters

© Elena Moiseena/Fotolia.com
All that glitters
With thousands of individual glittering rhinestones on the average dress,
there’s never a shortage of sparkle on the dancefloor. But, as Rachelle
Stretch finds out, there’s more to these tiny jewels than meets the eye
F
or dancers, costumes
are an integral part of
performance; setting
the scene, catching the eye
of the judges and attracting
the audience’s attention, while
remaining practical for movement.
In ballroom and Latin dance – as
well as other styles, and general
fashion, too – rhinestones are
a popular way to add a certain
wow-factor. The overall sparkling
effect is the result of hours of
intricate work on the part of a
designer, who takes the time to
stick or sew thousands of these
individual jewels onto the fabric.
And before that stage can even
begin, the stones themselves
must be manufactured.
A rhinestone or, Chaton, is
made of glass, rock crystal or
acrylic. Its top surface contains
eight pentagonal facets and a
central, regular octagon plate.
The bottom part also consists of
eight facets which are slightly
rotated towards the top facets
and which taper together to form
a tip. This design has developed
over the years to allow the
optical properties of the crystal
to be put to best advantage
and the stone to sparkle to
its maximum effect. Stones
range from 0.8mm in diameter
(SS000) up to 11.9mm (SS49);
SS refers to Stone Size. Circular
rhinestones are the most popular
design, but a variety of different
shapes including octagons,
squares, navettes, baguettes
and ovals, are produced.
The name itself originates from
the rock crystals that were taken
from the River Rhine in Austria,
but since the 18th century
manufacturing processes have
been developed which allow
modern producers to mimic the
brilliance of these stones. Crystal
is a colourless glass with high
brilliance that is produced by
melting ingredients including
silica sand, soda, potash, minium
and sodium sulphate together in
a glass furnace at a temperature
of around 1400°C. The exact
ingredients and proportions in the
batch determine the properties
of the resulting glass. The molten
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Below, Chrisanne apparel for
“Strictly Come Dancing”, as
seen on Cherie Lunghi in week
two of series six. Page 43, “The
Bird of Paradise” dress from
Chrisanne’s Isabell Kristensen
design range. The two love
birds have been accented with
Tanzanite, Bermuda blue and
Cobalt Swarovski crystallized
elements. Opposite and page
46, Preciosa rhinestones.
glass is then shaped at just under
1000°C. Cutting and polishing
techniques take advantage of
the optical properties of glass
and its high refractive index,
to produce the sparkle that
characterises rhinestones.
The brilliance of rhinestones
is enhanced by adding a thin,
reflective silver layer – protected
with a resistant varnish – to the
flat side of the stone. This idea
was developed as early as the
1770s when a metal coating
was added to the back of clear
crystal to increase brilliance. The
application of this layer is known
as foiling and can be classed as
Golden (with a bronze pigment
in the layer), Silver (with an
aluminium pigment in the layer)
or Aluminium (the layer itself
consists of Aluminium, which
produces a mirror effect). Silver
foiling is most commonly used
for rhinestones. Colours are
then added by coating the
stones in a vacuum. The
result is so similar to the
actual gemstone that many
colours of rhinestones take
their names from similar
gemstones as can be
seen on the colour charts
produced by manufacturers.
R
hinestones are
available as glue-on,
sew-on or hot fix. Hot fix
stones have their back
surface finished with a thin
layer of low-melting glue,
which attaches stones
to the fabric through
pressure and heat. This
can be achieved using a
soldering iron or by using
a purpose-built hot fix
applicator. The glue layer
can be manufactured
in several ways: (i)
transparent, whereby glue
is applied onto stones
without foiling, (ii) with
aluminum, when glue is
applied to an aluminum
or silver layer, (iii) with a
green layer, whereby glue
is applied onto foiling with
a green interlayer or (iv)
with a grey layer, whereby
glue is applied onto
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foiling with a grey interlayer.
Mylar or transfer tape can
be used to create motifs and
to apply stones more easily.
A mirror image of a design is
marked out onto the tape and
the stones applied; the tape
is then placed on the garment
and ironed over to transfer the
hot fix stones. Stoning glue for
glue-on rhinestones is designed
so that even when dry it is
slightly flexible. This means that
if the base fabric the stone is
adhered to is stretched, the glue
moves with it, preventing the
stone from falling off easily.
T
he leading manufacturers
of crystal rhinestones are
Swarovski in Austria and Preciosa
in the Czech Republic. Both
regions are steeped in glass-
“
The brilliance
of rhinestones is
enhanced by adding
a thin, reflective
silver layer
”
cutting history. Daniel Swarovski
was born in northern Bohemia
(today part of the Czech Republic)
where he trained as a crystalcutter. In 1883, apprenticed to
his father, he indulged his love
for innovation and technology
by devising the first machine for
setting crystal stones. Three years
later he set out to invent the first
mechanical method for cutting
and polishing crystal jewellery
stones and in 1892 he was ready
to patent the idea. The Swarovski
company was founded in 1895
in Austria with members of his
family and the first Swarovski
crystal stones were able to be
mass produced. Over the years
the firm set up laboratories
experimenting with colour and
began to work closely with early
20th century designers to refine
their designs. In the mid 1950s,
Christian Dior turned to Manfred
Swarovski, grandson of the
founder, for a new expression for
crystal. Swarovski experimented
with different techniques, until
they came up with a special
coating that created a crystal
stone, shot through with lightning
flashes of rainbow colours. This
effect became known as Aurora
Borealis (AB), as the effect is
reminiscent of the Northern
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Lights. The company’s latest
development is the Xilion cut;
alternating facets of different
sizes help to produce perfect
refraction and result in an
intense light distribution.
G
lassmaking in Bohemia
can be traced back to
the 13th century. It developed
quickly during the 17th and 18th
centuries as in 1711, the Fischer
brothers brought the technique of
stone-cutting to the region, which
was rich in natural gemstones. By
the 19th century many plants and
factories had been established.
Bohemian glassmakers gradually
improved the batch formula by
adding potash, thereby obtaining
a considerably harder glass that
was easier to cut. In the 18th
century it was discovered that
adding lead oxide to the glass
significantly improved its optical
and aesthetic properties as well
46
“
Chrisanne
estimate they buy
sufficient stones
every year to fill
an Olympic-sized
swimming pool
”
as making it easier to polish,
and the popularity of this crystal
spread. The Preciosa company
name was registered in 1916 and
the company formed officially in
1948 by merging a number of
glass cutting plants in Bohemia.
They have also experimented
with design and colour and their
“H.Y.T Colours” are produced
using a technology to impart rich,
glaring hues on the stones. This
involves coating the bottom of the
crystal stones with various colourreflecting metals, or their alloys,
in a particular sequence. This
has helped to resolve problems
with shade inconsistency
in some rhinestones, and
the company continues to
develop new methods of
production while working to
protect the environment.
The trend in design over the
years has been to add more
and more stones in increasingly
complex designs. Noelle Nadal
from Chrisanne explains, “Today
more than ever, people are
searching for that extra sparkle
to make them stand out on the
dancefloor and to give them the
edge over their competitors.”
Designers at Chrisanne
say the average number of
rhinestones on a ballroom dress
is approximately 90,000, and
they estimate they buy sufficient
stones every year to fill an
Olympic-sized swimming pool.
“Contemporary trends indicate
a preference for sew-on flatbacks
in the dazzling AB, Crystal, Jet
Hematite, Siam, and Heliotrope
colours, especially on dancefloors
like Blackpool and the Royal
Albert Hall,” continued Noelle.
“I noticed at the UK Dance
Championships in Bournemouth
that sequin fabric is also
becoming increasingly popular,
with colours such as silver,
gold, and gun metal being used
more and more for dancewear.
Crystal pendants are also being
added more often to embellish
costumes to eye-catching effect.”
So, next time you admire
a sparkling dress on the
dancefloor, consider the historical,
chemical and engineering
contexts that are each such
an integral part of achieving
that unmistakable sparkle. ●
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