Rummaging around through a century-old Czech

                                                                                                              antique store, Cynthia Bloom discovered a stack

                                                                                                              of dusty boxes tucked away in a corner, behind

                                                                                                              some WWI-era clothing racks. She peeked inside

                                                                                                              the top one and discovered a treasure trove of

                                                                                                              vintage rhinestone buttons in mint condition.

                                                                                                              “They were so beautiful,” she said, “that I instantly

                                                                                                              imagined them as focal pieces blending and

                                                                                                              accenting with antique Czechoslovakian glass beads and Swarovski crystals.” She purchased as many buttons as she could carry out of the shop.

Back in Austin, Cynthia refashioned the old rhinestone buttons as pendants and launched her effervescent Garden Party Collection — aptly named because “it was like you are wearing a garden party around your neck ... complete with the champagne bubbles.”  

Cynthia hopes to be able “to get them back into my line in the future. They are really spectacular and very popular.”

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