The JOY of CRYSTAL™ Collecting News © 2000-2009

The JOY of CRYSTAL™ Collecting News
© 2000-2009 The JOY of CRYSTAL™
A free collecting community inspired by crystal collectors.
Visit our main website for more crystal collector information and links.

http://www.TheJOYofCRYSTAL.com

Swarovski Star Rockefeller Tree 2008

New York City's most famous Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center is ready for the Season.

The Norway spruce next to the skating rink is being adorned with a spectacular Swarovski Crystal star.

The star is decorated with 25,000 crystals and is 10 feet in diameter and weighs 550 pounds !

A massive crane was used to place the star atop the 72-foot-tall tree on Tuesday.

This year's tree comes from a family in Hamilton, N.J. The tree will be decorated with thousands of colored lights and lit in a televised ceremony on Dec. 3.

CRYSTAL and the 2008 ELECTION

Collectors of crystal are rushing to buy up the election related collectibles made of crystal that will mark the historic 2008 Presidential Election !

We expect these items to disappear quickly with only one week to go in the 2008 Election.

PINK is the new CRYSTAL

SWAROVSKI Crystal has introduced a limited edition 2007 PINKY MO the Cow to their LOVLOTS Collection of whimsical crystal figurine animals with character. PINKY MO has a romantic personality in beautiful crystal.

Fully faceted Rosaline crystal cow with bell in faceted Rose Alabaster crystal, matt Rose Alabaster crystal horns and eyes in Jet Hematite crystal.

Size: 1 1/8" x 1 3/4". Designer: Edith Mair. Limited Edition Available for 2007 only.

Now if they could only make a PINK ELEPHANT, they could call it TIPSY !!

WATERFORD sculpture honors Father Mychal Judge and 9/11

Sean Egan, an engraver at the famous Waterford factory in Ireland for 33 years, said he found a large piece of discarded glass at work one day that seemed to resemble the arch of a stained glass church window.

Aa short time later, he happened to come across the widely used photograph of five New York firemen and policemen carrying Father Mychal Judge's dust-covered body out of the World Trade Center rubble. He felt inspired to replicate that image, using the discarded crystal piece. Waterford asked Egan to make a larger version on the company's time, using fresh crystal.

"It was such an awful day," said Egan. "Everyone in Ireland grieved.

The firemen were rushing into the building as everyone was rushing out."
Egan hopes that others will be inspired by the sculpture.

"I want people to see the pain on the faces of the firemen and police officers carrying Father Judge out," he said. "At the same time I want them to see the peace in Father Judge's reflection. There is peace among death and destruction. Father Judge is giving us a message."

For six months, Egan worked meticiously on his own time engraving the original sculpture on small copper wheels employed by craftsman at the Waterford Factory for centuries. He knew he was going to dedicate the piece to Judge and the firemen but he had no idea how he was going to go about it.

In October 2006, he had a chance meeting with Michael O'Rourke, a New York City firefighter from the Bronx who was on a tour of the Waterford Factory in Ireland. In another coincidence, O'Rourke had known Judge during his 26 years as a fireman, and mourned his loss along with his fellow firefighters.

O'Rourke was moved to tears when he saw the piece. Upon returning to the states, he helped to make the arrangements for the dedication ceremony at Engine One, Ladder Co. 24 - the firehouse on West 31st Street across the street from the St. Franciscan Friary where Judge lived.

The original sculpture will be on display at Waterford in Ireland.