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Rhinestone

Rhinestones are a very important component of modern jewellery. These are diamond imitations made of glass, which have existed since the 18th century. The name comes from the inventor of the glass stones Georg Friedrich Strass, who worked as a jeweller in Paris and was supposed to satisfy the king's high demand for jewellery, which he also succeeded in doing with the rhinestones which are still popular today. The shine of rhinestones is similar to that of a diamond, although the artificially produced glass stone does not have the refractive index and is of course not as hard as a diamond. Rhinestones consist of glass flux with a certain lead content. The bottom side of rhinestones is usually foil coated in order to give them the reflective and shiny effect of diamonds. The lead content in the rhinestones serves to prevent a disturbing green tinge in the glass. Today, these artificial gemstones are also produced by steaming with metal oxides. Rhinestones are used as a cheap material in costume jewellery of all kinds in order to make the high-quality and exciting look of a diamond available at favourable conditions. In addition to their use in the jewellery industry, rhinestones are often also used as ornaments on textiles, which is possible thanks to modern hot-glue rhinestones. These can easily be ironed onto the desired surface using a thermal adhesive.