Frequently Asked Questions

Yes! The Original MiniVerse Proportional Solar System Jewelry!

Hooray! You've found the original proportional Solar System Jewelry featured by The Planetary Society, NASA, and NPR's Science Friday!

As with any famous or successful design, please beware of low-quality fakes, counterfeits, and knock-offs.

In 2010, NASA made a tutorial from our MiniVerse Necklace, and our kit won the Maker Faire Blue Ribbon! Since then, we've seen cheap knock-offs of the design, often copying our name "MiniVerse", without permission. We are not affiliated with these sellers, and cannot provide any guarantees or customer service for their products.

Here's where you can find our original pieces:
- Our Etsy shop: chainofbeing.etsy.com
- Our Amazon shop: www.amazon.com/shops/chainofbeing
- Our Website: chainofbeing.us

Custom and personalized orders

We take requests!
Please ask about custom designs, custom lengths, or custom clasps.

We can make any size bracelet, to fit anyone!
Send a conversation through Etsy or at checkout,
if you need a specialized length or clasp for any item.

Most necklaces can be made as a bracelet or anklet, and vice versa, and most items can be made with a lobster-claw or toggle clasp.

Please note that custom orders may take up to an additional 1-2 weeks.

Please note, if you order a regular item and then ask for a customization, your item will be considered a custom item and will take up to an additional 2 weeks to complete.

Care instructions

We use durable, high-quality Jeweler's-grade beads and wire.

We test everything, and our jewelry should last a long time under normal fashion jewelry wear conditions.

But, please note, our items are not "indestructible" :)

We recommend removing your jewelry before bathing, swimming, sports, or any activity that will place unusual stress on your jewelry.

These items are not designed to go in the washing machine, dryer, microwave, or dishwasher.

These items are not designed to be load-bearing (please do not hang anything from them or tie them around something).

Bulk Discounts & Wholesale

We can often give a discount if you are buying 3 or more of the same item.
Please send a conversation through Etsy if you are looking for a wedding set, a group costume, or a small number of items for a special occasion.

Most items are available Wholesale in lots of 20 or more,
please send a message via Etsy if you are interested in Wholesale orders.

Gift wrapping and packaging

Each item includes a small folding card with a description of the item and space to write.

Most items are shipped in a small cardboard jewelry box, stamped with our logo.

Please send us a note if you would like to include a gift message with your order!

Materials & Variations

We use high-quality Natural Gemstones for all our Planets! Please expect variations in Gemstone texture and color. We do not use dyed gems. We prioritize quality and color rather than needing to find a specific gem.

All other beads, such as the spacer beads, Sun, and some of the small rings, are high-quality colorfast glass, glass/stone composite, or mother-of-pearl.

Occasional variations in stones, clasps & findings may occur, based on trends and availability.

Our materials are all non-toxic and comply with California's strict Proposition 65 safe materials standards - hooray!

Rush Items

*We can’t always rush items, but we’ll try!*
If you need something to arrive by a certain date,
such as a birthday, holiday, anniversary, or special occasion,
please let us know and we'll do our best to get it there on time.

(Please note, we do not “expedite” orders - your order will still be processed in the order received.)

We thank you in advance for your patience!
We are a small, 2-person shop,
and we make everything ourselves,
so our process can be delayed
by emergencies and unforeseen events,
competition between in-person and online sales,
or high volumes of orders due to good reviews and holidays.

If for some reason your order is delayed,
we will do our best to contact you as soon as we can.

Other things called Chain of Being

We are not affiliated with any other companies, entities, or religions that use or have used the phrase Chain of Being.

As we mentioned in our description above, the name is a pun about science and jewelry. It is based on ancient philosophical texts that are part of the public domain. If other people are using or have used the phrase for other purposes, correctly or otherwise, it is without our approval, support, or association.

We do not support or ally ourselves with any other companies, entities, or religions using the phrase Chain of Being, correctly or otherwise, now or throughout any time in history.