Yes I confess. I am a gemstone and rock junkie. It started out slowly. I began designing jewelry using copper and sterling. Right away I knew that gemstones were going to be part of the designs. In the beginning I learned about a few basic stones and used them exclusively. Amethyst, malachite, turquoise, tigers eye, sodalite, rhodochrosite and picture jasper adorned most of my … [Read more...]
Where in the World can you find Charoite?
Charoite is a gorgeous lavender gemstone that I work with in my designs. It is gorgeous on it's own of course. But pair it with amethyst or moonstone and the gem just pops. Early on in my work with the gem, I researched it and discovered that it is only mined in Russia. This is one of the details about charoite that makes it even more unique and desirable. Recently I was … [Read more...]
Passionate about Purple
This vibrant color makes us feel luxurious and rich! Purple combines the energy of red and the calmness of blue. It is furthermore associated with spirituality and the higher self. Purple’s elite status stems from the rarity and cost of the dye originally used to produce it. Historically purple is considered the color of royalty. Purple was expensive and as a result only the … [Read more...]
Love Purple? You Might be Royalty!
Purple is well known as the color of royalty. Want to know why? In ancient times the only way to replicate purple dye was by harvesting thousands and thousands of murex sea snails . As you can imagine this was not an easy task. It was time consuming and expensive. Only the very rich royalty could afford it. Since purple was relegated to royalty it was only fitting that deep … [Read more...]
Gem Shows Mania
Yep. it's the only way to describe a trip to Tucson for the once a year Gem Shows event. I use the plural for shows because there are virtually 43 different shows during this 3 week time frame (late January through mid February) Each show highlights different products. Some specialize in tools and equipment, while others are known for their precious gems. Even more feature … [Read more...]
