A popular beading item today is crystal. Lots of designs use them and
you'll see them described as "glass", "glass crystal" and "Swarovski
crystal". So what is the difference between all of these?
Crystal
is just glass that contains lead. There has to be at least 24% lead in
the glass to be classified as crystal. The higher the lead in it, the
more refractive and shiny the crystal will be. Sometimes you can spot
glass beads that are labeled as crystal just by telling how much they
shine. You can find crystal in lots of places but the amount of lead in
each one will vary depending on the quality.
Swarovski is an
Austrian brand that specializes in selling crystal. The difference
between an unbranded crystal and Swarovski branded crystal can come down
to its lead content, Swarovski keeps a standard as to how much lead is
in their crystal whereas other brands might not.
So the main
difference is that glass has no lead, certain crystals might not have
standards for how much lead is in their crystal and Swarovski tends to
have crystal that are more consistent in lead content.
I hope
this helped clear up any questions out there about these differences,
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