Praseodymium is surprisingly cheap for so strange an element ($200 or so the kilo), and has an attractive greeny-blue patina; so casting decorative beads from it doesn't seem too absurdly ridiculous an idea (though it may emerge that the overlap between chemistry geeks and wearers of beaded jewellery is empty).
It's a bit reactive, however; melting under argon doesn't seem _that_ impossible, but I don't think it would be at all safe to wear praseodymium next to the skin.
Is there any standard way of getting a really durable transparent overcoating by basically physical means (IE mechanical rather than chemical adhesion)? I suppose whatever process is used to embed objects in lucite for commemorative plaques might work, but then you've got a lucite bead with a weird green-metal blob in the middle, rather than an apparently-metal bead.
Tom (clearly doesn't know what he's letting himself in for)