Swarovski Crystal

Swarovski's world headquarters and factory are both located in Wattens, Austria. In manufacturing their crystal, Swarovski uses a mixture of natural minerals and quartz sand which is fired then cooled slowly to avoid stress and inclusions. Various parts of a crystal object are joined together using a special glue that doesn't yellow with age. This ensures that the joints don't become visible over time, and the crystal piece remains clear indefinitely.

So-called "fair market values" reflect how much collectors are willing to pay for a piece at a given time. I don't list any prices on these pages because my primary intent is to showcase the beauty of Swarovski crystal. I have no qualifications as an appraiser but will be happy to offer my opinion on current Swarovski prices. If you have questions about what a retired piece may be worth today or its original retail price, leave me a note in my guestbook. To protect your privacy, I hide all guestbook entries as soon as I receive them.

Crystal and glass collectibles usually lose most, if not all, of their value when not mint. However, some condition issues like parts coming loose or very small chips can often be repaired with little or no adverse effect on value, as long as the work is done by a professional. If repair services are not available from Swarovski, independent glassware and crystal restorers can do an excellent job of gluing back pieces that have come apart. I've personally gone to Mark Harrington in San Francisco and was very pleased with their work. For seriously damaged pieces, either chipped or broken, professional restorers may be able to replace broken parts or regrind the crystal to essentially remove the chip mark. In her article that appeared on the Swarovski website, Diane Carnevale Jones recommends two restoration companies: The Crystal Cave (Wilmette, Illinois) and China and Crystal Clinic (Tempe, Arizona). In a resale situation, documentation from a reputable restorer goes a long way toward mitigating the negative effect on value of a piece that is not in its original state.

Swarovski decorative product ranges include Home Accessories, Silver Crystal, Jewelry, and the high-end Daniel Swarovski Objects.

Slideshow                                                      Designer Signing Events

Home Accessories    Decor slideshow

Green Macaw	Red Cockatoo	Toucan	Green Rosella	Kingfishers
Bee-eaters	Roller	Woodpeckers	Surgeonfish	Batfish
Butterflyfish	Panther	Dolphins	Bull	Bear
Posacenere (Ashtray)	Petit Vase	"Euclid" Caviar Bowl	"Shiva" Box	"Colorado" Bowl
"Apollo" Bowl	"Astro" Box	"Wa" Bowl	"Toh" Vase	Large Waterlily Candleholder
Large Chaton	Small Chaton	Bunch of Grapes	Giant Pineapple	Giant Tortoise
Giant Owl	Maxi Swan	Maxi Dolphin	Chaton	Dillia
Dorora	Dacali	Dalmally	Damboa	Dacea
Dellaria	Dalisa	Damarys	Darigold	Danuba
Drina

Silver Crystal    Slideshow

The name Silver Crystal was coined in the mid- to late 1980's by a Swarovski craftsman who commented on "the silvery glow created by the object's spectral brilliance" when holding up a finished, faceted piece to the light. The crystal contains no trace of silver. A design team that has grown from about seven members to a dozen in 2008 regularly contributes to the Silver Crystal range.

Lute	Harp	Grand Piano w/ Stool	Violin	Saxophone
Apple	Pear	Maxi Flower Arrangement	The Rose	The Orchid, pink
Waterlily, large	Waterlily, small	Mare	Stallion	Foals
Siamese Fighting Fish	Baby Sea Turtles	School of Fish	Lion Fish	Shell with Pearl
Dolphin	Baby Dolphin	Longnose Butterfly Fish	Hermit Crab	Sea Horses
Owl, large	Fawn	Doe	Grizzly	Grizzly Cub
Stag	Bald Eagle	Swan, large	Baby Lovebirds	Swan
Silver Heron	Flamingo	Spoonbill	Malachite Kingfishers	Budgies
Mandarin Ducks	Swallows	Hoopoes	Baby Giraffe	Giraffe
Mother Elephant	Little Elephant	Gnu	Cheetah	Leopard
Camel	Tiger	Cobra	Arabian Stallion	White Stallion
Dragon	Unicorn	Santa María	Sailboat	Sailing Legend
Ballerina	Young Ballerina	Bear, small	Orchid Blossom	Orchids
Rose Blossom	Roses	Oriental Flacon	Rose Flacon	Napoleon Flacon
Solaris Table Bell	Sweet Heart Jewel Box

SCS Annual Editions    Slideshow 1987-2010        Slideshow 2010-1987

The Swarovski Crystal Society or SCS – formerly the Swarovski Collectors Society – and the Annual Edition figurines were started in 1987. Each year's design is selected out of several prototypes submitted by the creative team and conforms to "themes" spanning three-year periods. Beginning with Wonders of the Sea, Swarovski has offered a trilogy completion gift to SCS members who purchase all three designs.

Silver Crystal Numbered Limited Editions    Slideshow

The Eagle was the first Numbered Limited Edition, released in 1995. The Peacock followed in 1998 and the Wild Horses in 2001. Although the edition size of 10,000 worldwide is extremely large, the quality and artistry of the designs have made them very successful. The level of interest from collectors seems to have dropped significantly for the more recent editions, undoubtedly due to the economic recession being felt around the world.

The Black Bull, issued in 2005, is the first Limited Designer Edition. The opaque, jet black color is rarely matched by other crystal manufacturers and gives the piece a dramatic effect that makes it especially desirable, despite the fact the very same design in clear crystal – the Bull – was released the previous year. Designer Adi Stocker hand-signed every Black Bull  in the edition of 1,000.

The Eagle	The Peacock	Wild Horses	The Bull	The Elephant	The Rhinoceros
The Black Bull	Black Panther

The technical advances of the last several years allow ever more complex designs. In a 2007 online collector survey, I submitted a few ambitious ideas for future limited edition pieces that I hope will some day materialize:

Water and Grace or Winged Vision – Swan splash landing with spread wings and spraying water effect
A Whisker Away – Lynx leaping after a duck or a hare
Cutting Corners – Gazelle's evasive maneuver with cheetah in pursuit

Silver Crystal Commemorative Editions    Slideshow

The Commemorative Editions are limited to the year they are issued. Anton Hirzinger's Centenary Swan marked the Swarovski 100-year anniversary in 1995 and the Crystal Planet was the Millennium Edition. The Anniversary Editions of the Crystal Society, or SCS Jubilee Editions, are issued once every five years, beginning with Gabriele Stamey's Birthday Cake in 1992.

Centenary Swan

Crystal Planet

The Birthday Cake

The Squirrel

The Vase of Roses

The Collector

SCS Member and Event Exclusives

Panda Cub

Gorilla Cub

Tiger Cub sitting

Blue Dart Frog

Galapagos Tortoise

SCS Ornament 2009

Christmas Ornaments, Annual Editions    Slideshow

There are several Christmas Ornament series available from Swarovski. Perhaps most popular is the star and snowflake ornament series, which began in 1991 with the Annual Edition Star by Hilde Nagler.

Snowflake Martin Zendron 1992	Snowflake Martin Zendron 1994	Star Martin Zendron 1995	Snowflake Martin Zendron 1996	Star Martin Zendron 1997
Snowflake Martin Zendron 1998	Star Martin Zendron 1999	Star Heinz Tabertshofer 2000	Stellar Snowflake Heinz Tabertshofer 2001	Stellar Snowflake Elke Kumar 2002
Stellar Snowflake Martin Zendron 2003	Stellar Snowflake Edith Mair 2004	Star Gabriele Stamey 2005	Snowflake Anton Hirzinger 2006	Star Eva Maria Ried 2007
Snowflake Verena Castelein 2008	Star Elke Kumar 2009	Snowflake Eva Maria Ried 2010