This 18-inch necklace is in a region between costume jewelry and precious metal and stone jewelry.  The metal in the necklace is claimed to be gold-plated silver, which should be a good thing for those people who are irritated by non-precious metal jewelry.  The one thing I was not able to figure out, for sure, is whether the chain is gold-plated silver.  My assumption is that all the metal in this jewelry is gold-plated silver, probably sterling silver, since the description says sterling.

The "stones" are a mixture of synthetic and real stones.  I noticed the description says that the cubic zirconia is a "natural" stone.  However, my understanding of cubic zirconia is that they are most often born in a crucible, colored by bits of metal, called dopants.  In my mind, that does not make these "stones" natural.  Perhaps there is something about these stones I do not understand.

The other stone is real, red aventurine.  The stones in the necklace I received are red, with perhaps a touch of orange.  Reddish aventurine is a naturally occurring stone, though the color of the stones in the necklace may be enhanced.  I know there can be variations between natural stones.  However, if the aventurine is enhanced there may be less variation from necklace to necklace than would be experienced with true natural stones.  I just want to reinforce that the necklace in the picture on Amazon shows more orange than the necklace I have, which is a clear zirconia stone surrounded on four sides by reddish aventurine with a bit of orange.

The back of the clear cubic zirconia seems to be translucent, so light shined from behind the center stone lights the stone, but the stone does not seem to acquire color from clothing against which the stone lays.

The pendant is relatively large, being about 0.86 inches wide and about 1.3 inches tall.  The necklace matches well with red or white clothes.  The clear center stone and the red surrounding stones will probably match other clothes as well.  Because of the two colors, this necklace would likely go well with diamond earrings or ruby earrings.  However, because of the color of the surrounding metal and the chain, this necklace matches better with yellow gold than white gold or silver.

The pendant has a solid feel to it.  The back of the pendant is recessed a little, perhaps 3/16's of an inch, rather than having a flat or solid back.  The only improvement for this necklace would be to put the pendant on a heavier chain.  The chain included with the pendant seems relatively fragile, and a heavier chain seems like it would be a better match with the heavy pendant.

This necklace looks classy enough that it makes a great accessory for an office environment, for casual dining, or for fine dining.  The color combinations provide some flexibility, within limits.

Considering the size of the necklace, the precious metal (silver) used, and the general quality of the necklace, the price seems quite reasonable.  I often visit the jewelry section of a club store and the price of this necklace is quite competitive with prices of similar jewelry in those stores.  This necklace seems like a good buy.

Enjoy!