Now I'm kind of glad I caught that cold that kept me from going to Oakland - because if I hadn't been sitting at the torch yesterday, with a hazy head and a dripping nose, I might have never discovered this cool effect (and no, the secret of this look is NOT a new tool called a "Bead-Sneeze"). I am not sure how well the picture shows the color and texture of the bead, but they look almost exactly like black pearls! Depending on the angle and the light, the beads look like a pearlescent peacock, in other light they seem more like a muted cocoa brown, and then in other type of light it has a cold "steel" look to it. The delicate gold-stone decoration adds just the right amount of warmth and "romance" to the otherwise metallic looking beads. The focal is almost 1 1/2 inches long, this set would make a really beautiful necklace I think. Very unusual! Geee, am I ever glad I caught this cold! And as you can guess from the title, I made these while watching all three "Lord of The Rings" DVDs.....there is a "matching" auction with small bracelet size beads coming soon. Handmade lampwork kiln annealed and free Priority Shipping.