Swarovski "Effects" - Speciality Finishes

Swarovski has it's own line of speciality bead finishes - which they call "effects." In addition to the AB - they have the AB 2x - double AB if you will. This is a coating on all sides of the bead, instead of one side, and is so intense, it can override the natural colour of the bead! (Like the Jet AB 2x - you'd never know that there was black in it anywhere!) The AB 2x is applied to many of the colours, although not all the shapes and sizes!

Satin is another speciality finish, and is also available on a wide range of colours. It's effect is to soften the colour of the bead and make it more subtle. It is light greying effect, like a misty fog.

Matte finish is available on only a limited number of bead colours and styles.

Then there are their signature, speciality finishes. These are applied only to one colour, and so become a colour unto themselves!


Comet Argent Light is a silver coating on half of the bead - you only see it on clear, crystal. There is also a Comet Argent Light 2x - which is another double coating. For all intents and purposes, the bead appears to be silver!










Vitrial Medium is a gold coating on half the bead, that reflects a lot of purple and green. These colours are available in the smaller beads, but the effect is often underwhelming at small sizes. Where these truly shine is in the larger beads, such as the rivolis and buttons!








Bermuda Blue and Heliotrope, in particular, can be hard to distinguish at small sizes. Both are glorious colours - the Bermuda Blue shows more aqua and blue, and the Heliotrope shows more purple and blue.






Volcano shows a lot of purple and red - and is fairly easy to identify.












Metallic Blue 2x is an all over coating that looks like a dark, steel, blue.










Like Comet Argent Light, Dorado is a half-coating of Gold, instead of Silver. Dorado 2x (or Dorado 2 or II) is a gold coating all over, and the beads just look like little nuggets of gold. They tend to be priced that way too! This is the only coating from Swarovski that we have noticed can wear off with just being worn. The rest of the coatings take extreme physical damage to remove, i.e. chipping or scraping.





Jet Hematite 2x is a metallic, gunmetal look, like Hematite. Jet Nut 2x is a warm black, with a hint of brown.








Golden Shadow, Silver Shadow, and Crystal Copper are technically "effects" and were brought out in recent years to enhance the colour lineup. Golden Shadow is soft, champagne colour - and Silver Shadow is just off-clear - it looks like a light grey in the larger beads, in the smaller beads, it's a softer shade of clear, but can be confusingly similar.




Crystal Copper is a hugely rich warm amber honey topaz. (I like it a lot - it's a flattering colour and goes with just about anything!)










White Opal Sky Blue and White Opal Star Shine are only applied to White Opal beads. Again, at small sizes, they are very similar - the Sky Blue is a darker coating, the Star Shine, lighter, more silvery and more reflective.






In addition, there are other coatings, such as "Chili Pepper," "Titan," "Lemon," "Ice," "Champagne," and "Brandy" that are not applied by Swarovski - but are applied by another company that purchases un-coated beads from Swarovski and applies the coating themselves.

These are the "effects" and finishes in current production. Then, there are the discontinued or retired effects - now found only on Vintage beads. Exotics like Scarabee, Comet Or, Vitrail Light! More on those later!