Maiden at work making glittering ornament (8)
I believe the answer is:
diamante
'glittering ornament' is the definition.
(ornament resembling a diamond)
'maiden at work' is the wordplay.
'work' indicates anagramming the letters.
'maiden'+'at'='maidenat'
'maidenat' anagrammed gives 'DIAMANTE'.
'making' is the link.
(Other definitions for diamante that I've seen before include "With cut glass resembling gems" , "Decorated with glass cut to resemble diamonds" , "Glittering decoration" , "Small garden erection" , "Animated, being decorated with sparkling substance" .)