Recently, I’ve been uprooting Greenstones and Copper Agates in my shop. Both these treasures make extraordinary jewelry, and both are difficult to find. Fortunately, over the past couple decades, I’ve been able to acquire some of both, in old collections, as well as hunting them on old Spoil Piles in the Keewenaw.
This is what I saw when I took off the rind of the nodule I found.
I rediscovered a stone from a few years back. I recall finding the large nodule in matrix, in the Kearsarge Lode near Calumet. I left the half-dollar size stone sticking our from its’ host rock, and just polished the face of it. I thought it was a Quartz/Epidote, salted with Copper specks (nothing remarkable). I just left it for a specimen. That stone sat around of a while, until the other day. I decided to cut the stone out of the matrix. I assumed the pattern would be the same throughout the stone.
I cut that nodule out of its’ matrix, and lo and behold, and awesome big Copper Agate. It’s the largest Copper Agate I have personally discovered.
You can’t imagine my pleasure and thrill to find that big nodule was a Large Copper Agate! This was the largest Copper Agate I have ever personally found. After cutting that stone from the host rock, enough remained to create an improbable Gemstone for another pendant.
The next slice of that big Copper Agate, produced an amazing copper agate. There was a clear Quartz top in this one, that I set one of my Island Greenstones into. Even though improbable, awesome none the less.
Last week was one of the luckiest lapidary weeks I’ve ever had lately. Unfortunately I do not have any more mine rock with giant Copper Agate Suspects in them, but I can hope I find another big nodule out in the Lode. I’ll look this year.
I never looked in the bottom of this dish. What a surprise when I found bigger pieces of old Victoria Stones.
Imagine my delight and surprise when some old Victoria Stone was uprooted in my shop!
Out of all the blogs I’ve published in the past decade, my blogs on Victoria Stone stay consistent in their’ popularity. Victoria Stone was a man-made material, manufactured by Dr. S. Iimori in Japan in the mid-60s. At that time this beautiful, chatoyant material was marketed as Iimori Stone. Within a couple years the name of Iimori’s creation, started selling at the Tucson Shows as Victoria Stone. Victoria Stone was a hot seller, and a renowned lapidary material through the mid 60s to around 1980.
Victoria Stone Boules
The two boules I have are “Quiet Green” and “White”. The white boule has not had the crust removed. Boules were all approximately 5″ tall, the top is the bottom of the boules in the picture; the top was about 4″ across, and the bottom tapers down to around 3″.I have to carefully peel off the crust of my white boule prior to slicing. My green Victoria Stone boule is ready for slicing.The top of a Victoria Stone boule became depressed from shrinkage as it slowly dried. TThe green bole clearly shows the unique crystallization that apps at the top of all Victoria Stone Boules.It appears that this boule is celebrating its’ 60th birthday.The bottom of a Victoria Stone is a clear indication of the shape of the vessel it was poured into.
The process of manufacturing Victoria Stone was similar to making glass. Molten material was poured into vessels, called Boules. The boules were approximately. Boules were tapered like a glass, larger at the top with a bowl-shaped bottom. A glass like material was used as a releasing agent for the boule after it was cooled and dried (this liner material appeared like a glass-plaster on the boules, and had to be ground off before the boules were ready for cutting into slabs). The top of the boules showed shrinkage, and became slightly depressed. The top also displayed unique crystallization. My understanding is that the cooling and drying process had to be very precise, or the Victoria Stone would not be useable. Many hours were involved in this slow cooling of the boules.
For a very long time, slicing my two boules has been on my to-do list. I think I have just been fearful (OK chicken) of cutting these boules. When I do, I’m going to produce a Youtube video of cutting them. I first have to carefully “peel” my white boule (and this also is a concern).
Three blue colors of Victoria Stone. The top two are “Sky Indigo”; Left bottom is “Sky Blue”; Bottom right is “Deep Indigo”.
Victoria Stone came in many colors. Here’s a sample.
Over the years several attempts have been made to duplicated Victoria Stone, with little success. Only recently have makers come close. It has been a real challenge over the years to create a Simulant of this Simulant. I admit that some of these simulants are wonderful, but no-one has duplicated the classic, original Victoria Stone.
Let’s get back to my Victoria Stone Surprise.
I am genrally totally unorganized in my shop. Bonnie (wife) occasionally will decide she is going to “straighten up” my area. She can’t help that she is a retired librarian. To be honest, she has accomplished wonders. One of her recent finds was a container of Victoria Stone scraps that I have saved. These “scraps” were saved for making earrings or rings at some point. I actually have looked at that small dish; thinking “I should do something with those scraps”.
The other day, I rooted through those small pieces of Victoria Stone, and to my delight and suprise, there were larger pieces of nice Victoria Stone, UNDER all those small pieces. These were large enough to make into pendant cabs. About half the slabs were cracked and crazed (Victoria Stone often gets that way), but a half dozen were still in amazing condition.
Don gets excited
Black Victoria Stone was not a hot color back in the day. This makes it quite a rare find today.G
To say I was thrilled to find these treasures, after hiding for nearly 6 decades, is an understatement. Needless to say, they went right to the grinder. Grinding and polishing Victoria Stone can be challenging, but it waa like everything came back into focus. I was back in the mid-70s again, happily grinding and polishing Victoria Stone. Let’s throw on a little Disco Music and get to work!
Magically, there were three different Victoria Stone Blue colors in my finds– Sky Blue, Sky Indigo, and Deep Indigo. These three colors were all very popular. I also found a chunk of Black Victoria Stone; a distinctive color, and now more rare because it was not one of the most popular colors.
Gazing upon a polished piece of original Victoria Stone is such a treat. The crystallization, chatoyancy, and rich colors are just delicious. These pictures just do not do justice to this material.
Lapidary Stuff
Clearly a top slice from a Victoria Stone Boule. This type of pattern only appeared at the top of a Victoria Stone Boule. Compare this top crystallization to stones in previous pictures.
One of the blue slabs was a surprise because of its’ crystallization. The top of all the Victoria Stone Boules developed a star-like cross pattern ONLY the top of the boule developed this pattern. I’m not sure how this happened in Victoria Stone, but that first slab off the top of the boule was always the most coveted and rare slice. because of this rare crystallization. A Deep Indigo slab had this tell-tale pattern. I was doubly excited about this piece and took extra caution with it.
From the bottom of a scrap container to a finished Pendant.Sky Indigo Victoria Stone Pendant Victoria Stone wedding Pendant
Victoria Stone is sensitive to harmonic vibrations of the hard genie wheels. I used an old, broken in, very smooth, perfectly balanced, Galaxy Wheel (220), then went to the 280 soft Nova wheel for most of the forming. I never recommend using a newer Galaxy Wheel for Victoria Stone, but I have one that is super smooth and true, so I got away with it. I can’t tell you how many times a nice Victoria Stone has become a victim of harmonics, but it’s not pretty when it happens. In addition, use lots of water and do not overheat Victoria Stone. My polishing involves white rouge and a high speed buff, being careful not to overheat the stone. It is safer to use a flat lap for polishing, if you have one.
My wife, Bonnie’s personal collection of Victoria Stone includes EIGHT Victoria Stone Pendants. If you asked her why she has so many pieces of VS jewelry, she would say ‘There are just so many colors and patterns’. she’s in a position to grab stuff off my workbench and claim it for her own. Not a problem with me; She’s been my best friend, and has put up with me for 45 years. We both agree that Victoria Stone is pretty special.
Did you ever think about how similar Marra Mamba Tigers Eye and Binghamite are? NO, you mean you haven’t? It’s amazing to me how unrelated rocks, that came from places so remote from each other, resemble each other. Let’s first look at Binghamite, then talk about Marra Mamba.
Characterstics of Binghamite
Binghamite/Silkstone Is a highly sought after gemstone material from Minnesota’s Cuyuna Iron Range. The mine where Binghamite was found is long closed, and even the spoil piles are depleated. Binghamite can still be found at swap meets and rock & mineral Shows. Binghamite is also sometimes known as American Pietersite, because of its’ silky chatoyancy. My opinion is that it has the appearance of fine Tiger Iron from Australia more than Pietersite from South Africa. Pietersite generally contains no iron and loads of chatoyancy. Tiger Iron, Marra Mamba, and Binghamite, all contain the iron element, and in my opinion have much more character than does Pietersite.
A flashlight on the face of this amazing Binghamite shows the “glow” of the Goethite and the Hematite in this gorgeous pendant. Binghamite, like this beauty, are very difficult to find.
Do Old Collections Yield Rare Stones?
Purchasing old collections is a wise investment most of the time. When you find things like high grade, picture Binghamite, in an old collection, it’s a special day. Every time I looked at one particular little slab of Binghamite I found in an old collection, I saw new things. I thought I would bring this Cab to the top of my “make jewelry” list; but guess what? I put it in a “safe place” and forgot about it for 10 years! I rediscovered this shiny stone, and put it in a tray to travel to Florida with us this winter. I placed it on my work bench, and looked at it for a couple months. This Binghamite Cabochon was begging me to make it into a pendant, all that time. I cut and polished it with My Pixie Machine out on our picnic table. Man, that stone sparkled in the sun. I cut and shaped this slab into a square picture, a Magical and Ethereal Cabochon indeed.
Binghamite is a rock containing Chalcedony (a form of micro-crystalline Quartz). In the case of Binghamite the Chalcedony contains fibrous iron oxide, Hematite and/or Goethite. It has been explained to me that Binghamite is a Chalcedony replacement of Fibrous Goethite-Hematite. It’s hard to get my head around how this causes a play of color not unlike Tiger’s Eye, but it does.
What is undercutting?
The hardness of Binghamite varies. The more Hematite in the stone, the more difficult to cut and polish. The term “Undercutting” is applied. Undercutting occurs when cutting material with different hardnesses within one stone. Because some areas are softer they tend to cut deeper than surrounding areas. A lot of finesse is involved when cutting, and this is the case with Binghamite. The best polish obtainable may be a Matte Finish.
Really good Binghamite will certainly outshine Tiger Iron, but will not hold a candle to Marra Mamba.
Characteristics of Marra Mamba
Marra Mamba is considered the finest form of Tiger’s Eye ( I refer to Tiger Eye and Tiger’s Eye in this Blog. Both are acceptable) by many collectors and lapidarists. In the Hamersley Ranges of the Pilbara region in Australia, there are a iron rich areas where Australian tiger-eye has been found. The best-known area is near Mount Brockman. A ridge of hills a few miles long has produced good quality golden-colored material from a number of small deposits. The “true” Marra Mamba is a very rare type of Tiger Eye, and was only found in two areas. Vivid chatoyant blues, reds, yellows, gold, and greens! (see note below) can all be present in Marra Mamba.. These areas have been mined out of Marra Mamba since the early 70’s. Hematite is also a major component in Marra Mamba, and in the case of this particular cabochon, makes polishing it very tricky.
Is Marra Mamba still available?
Marra Mamba may be scarce but I found some in Tucson a few years back.Seven years ago I was checking out the tables of Australian Outback Mining at the Tucson Shows. Looking through Glenn Archer’s stash of Tiger Eye and Tiger Iron, I noticed unusual blue colorations in one of his rough pieces. I mentioned to Bonnie that I really thought it was Marra Mamba, but rough MM is very difficult to find and quite expensive. AFTER I bought the rock, I showed it to Glenn, and he confirmed that it was Marra Mamba; “I guess I missed that one”, was his comment. I would not have seen the telltale signs had the bright Tucson sun not been shining on the rock at precisely the right angle. If you are lucky, you can still find this gemstone. What I look for in Marra Mamba that is different from Tigers Eye, is some Blue areas, that you don’t see in ordinary Tigers Eye.
Here’s Binghamite Out in the Florida sunlight,,,AMAZING!! See the picture of the Tigers Iron slab below, and compare to the Binghamite.A large and spectacular, polished piece of Marra Mamba for sale by legendary Miner, Glenn Archer (Owner of Australian Outback Mining) several years ago at the Tucson Shows. I intentionally inserted the short movie of my Binghamite Pendant to directly compare it to the Marra Mamba slab seen at the Tucson shows. It’s unfortunate you cannot see these stones in person. No picture can do this justice!
Another picture from a Tucson gem show trip: Looks like giant Bacon Slabs; and I LOVE Bacon!
About my Finished Binghamite Pendant (It passed Quality Control)
I decided on Gold wire, and I did not “cheap” on the quantity. I piled those wires into a 12 wire high bundle. My usual rule in no more than 10 wires. I wanted to achieve a simple, elegant, yet expensive look, and nothing does this like being extravagant with the gold. Careful planning and excecution, and a couple hours of intense concentration, produced a wire wrap job befitting this stone. Quality Control (Bonnie) smiled, and declared it “elegant”. Winner Winner, Chicken Dinner!
Piles of Tiger Eye are occasionally seen in Tucson and Quartzsite. You won’t find piles of Marra Mamba though. These piles are better searched when they are wet.
I understand, from my metaphysically inclined friends that Marra Mamba is a favorite of female Shamans, and has multiple benefits. It is said to invoke the powers of the far seeing eye, and bring health and well being. I know it makes ME happy. I see new things each time I look at this gemstone; amazing landscapes, and fantastic colors seem to reflect different features within. The evening sun shines thru, reflecting rich, chatoyant colors, and mysterious places. Trivia Alert! The Dalai Lama often wears Tiger’s Eye Beads. That may, or may not be and important fact, but I love trivia.
Beautiful Marra Mamba pendant.
Beware of False Claims.
I have noticed much of the Australian Tiger Eye on line, being sold as Marra Mamba, is not real Marra Mamba. Buyers must beware.
Ordinary Tiger’s Eye from Australia is somewhat dull as compared to Tiger Eye from South Africa. Tiger Iron from Australia, on the other had, can be very gemmy.
In Conclusion
Tiger Eye is found in many places around the world, but Australia is the only place where Marra Mamba was, and is, found. While Tiger’s Eye is quite common, Marra Mamba is not. I would love to have more Marra Mamba, as would most Lapidarists and Jewelry Makers, but it is quite scarce. Occasionally I exhume a piece from my old rock piles.
I do not believe I can channel all the metaphysical powers of Tiger’s Eye or Marra Mamba, like the Dalai Lama, but making jewelry from Marra Mamba certainly makes me happy.
An amazing Float Copper Cabochon, with a perfect Quartz Crystal inside, inspired me to wrap up a great pendant. This pendant is named “Float Copper Marvel”.A close up of the included Quartz Crystal included in my piece of Float Copper.Another picture of the Crystal under different lighting.
Quite a few years back, at the Tucson Gem & Mineral shows, I, as usual, checked in with my friend Ken Flood. Ken owns Keweenaw Gem & Gifts in Houghton. We go back a long way, and he knows I enjoy making jewelry from the rare and unusual Rocks & Minerals from the Keweenaw Peninsula.
Ken sells multiple Keweenaw products that his business manufactures. Ken said he had something special for me to look at. He produced a quantity of Float Copper Cabochons with beautiful Quartz inclusions. I have never seen such unusual Float Copper. He has a special wire saw that he uses to cut Float Copper. You need this special saw, as pure Copper really gums up the normal Lapidary saws. Normal Lapidary saw blades produce so much heat they tend to warp.
Usually Float Copper pure native copper, but in these special pieces it contained Quartz; some gorgeous Crystals. It was a surprise when to find this Quartz in the copper.
For those that do not know, Float Copper is copper that was ripped from copper-bearing basalt by the Glaciers thousand of years ago, then transported in the glacial till (floated) and deposited in other locations, usually not far from the source.
From many years ago–my buddy Chris Cooper. I told Chris to check a newly logged property in the Keweenaw for Float Copper. Chris headed out and within 10 minutes I heard a “YELP”! He came out and lo and behold, his first piece of “Float”Here is Chris’ Keweenaw treasure all cleaned up.The world record, 19 ton piece of Float Copper at the AE Seaman Mineral Museum.
Today, diligent searching with metal detectors, sometimes yields these transported pieces of copper. Smaller chunks are normally sold as specimens to rockhounds. Sometimes the Float Copper is very massive in size. The official Guinness World Record Float Copper specimen is 19 tons and resides at the AE Seaman Mineral museum (Michigan’s Official stare Mineral Museum) on the campus of Michigan Tech in Houghton.
Quartz Garden Pendant-Quartz Crystals in Float Copper.
I have wire wrapped a couple of the cabs I acquired from Ken. One has a group of Quartz Crystals we call “Quartz Garden”, and one has a beautiful single Quartz Crystal. Completion of this pair or pendants has been a long time coming. I’m so pleased with these.
If you have followed my blogs over the years, you should have noticed many are about Isle Royale Greestones. I am amazed by orders from all over the country for cabochons, pendants, and earrings. How do these people know about these rare, one-source gemstones?
Many people have visited Isle Royale National Park, and know these stones can be found on the Island, but park regulations do not allow collecting Greenstone, as well as other specifically listed rocks and minerals. Having said this, the National Park Service policies have changed over the years in regards to picking up Greenstone. Isle Royale Greenstone have actually been protected since isle Royale National Park was estabished in April of 1940. There are individuals, even today, that harvest a few Greenstones while visiting Isle Royale. I guess my personal feeling is neutral on this subject, but they could pay a price if caught.
The Park service looked the other way, back in the day, when visitors picked up a few Greenstones on the beaches. Tiny little Greenstone, although fairly tough, were eventually ground up by the mighty Lake Superior, so why not let a few go home as mementos. The problem came with commercial Greenstone expeditions, where thousands of Greenstone were harvested by divers or “professional pickers”, and sold on the mainland for massive profit. The park service cracked down on these greedy private business collectors, and began enforcing the collecting rules that were always on the books. Today, there is a strict and enforced policy against removal of certain Gemstones and Copper from Isle Royale.
Over the years, I often have conversations with customers about old rock collections from decades ago. The collections are sometimes discovered by heirs in basements, garages, or sheds. My ears perk up at the sound of “grandpa’s old rocks”. Last year I bought an old Greenstone collection that was stored in a barn for fifty years, the rockhound that collected them was remembered by the jewelry he made, but some stones remained.
I am an obcessed person when it comes to cutting and polishing Greenstone. I try to limit myself to 100-150 of them for marathon cutting and polishing (I can oly average 4 Greenstones an hour). I’ll select the beach tumbled stones from my stash, throw them in my redneck bowl (CoolWhip), and take them to my shop to flatten the backs for Dopping. FYI; the rough Copper-Greenstone, featured in the opening blog photo, is at 12 O’clock in the bowl. I thought it was just a Thomsonite-included stone. There was no indication it had Copper in it until it was cut (with me smiling).After the backs are flattened, I push them, flat side up, into that crispy Styrofoam used for making wreaths. Sometimes I get lucky, and am able to get broken scraps.
Finishing Isle Royale Greenstones
Whenever the urge presents itself, or my inventory depletes, I decide to have a Greenstone production week. Production usually involves sorting out stones for both pendants and earrings. Earrings are generally sorted for color, size, and quality AFTER the Stones have been dopped, cut and polished, and removed from the dopsticks.
Depending on the size, pendant stones may or may not need to be dopped. Dopping involves gluing or hot waxing a stone to a wooden stick, a nail or a screw, to allow safe cutting without the skin touching the diamond imbedded wheels of the Lapidary Machine. Some bleeding is often present even though the stones are Dopped. I tell Bonnie, that a little blood on the stone improves the polish (NOT). I do heal fast. Some of my cutting and polishing of Greenstone methods I keep under wraps, but standard methods work well for most. I may continue, starting with how I remove the stones from the Dopsticks, and proceed from there.
A tiny Greenstone, from the Jeremy Graham collection, I recently wire wrapped for him. An unusual yellowish-green Island stone with Thomsonite inclusions.. Many times good things come in small packages.
Greenstone Quality
Island Stones are usually superior to Keweenaw stones in all respects. They generally harder and the pattern goes completely through the stone. The pattern most often, is a finer pattern, and often the color is a pale sage green. Because of the hardness of the Island material, Isle Royale Greenstone take a super deluxe polish. You can read more about the colors and inclusions in Greenstone in the Snob Blog article, The Shades and Patterns of Greenstone (Chlorastrolite).
Island Stones make wonderful stud earrings due to the fine pattern that is usually present. Isle Royale stones cost a little more money, but are lovely.
Another phenomena of Island stones is their color variations; some are so unusual you can have doubts that they are actually Chlorastrolite.
Custom lapidary, or stone cutting, is a way to turn your favorite vacation stone into a jewelry piece you can wear forever to remind you of your great day on the beach or rock pile.
Many times people will send stones for cutting and/or wire wrapping that aren’t necessarily beautiful, but have a deep sentimental value to the owner. These might include stones that were picked up while hunting rocks with Grandma or Grandpa as a child, or something found while on a memorable vacation, honeymoon, almost anything that when they think back makes them smile. I carefully cut and polish your stone, and either send the Cabochon back for another jeweler to finish or make something for you myself according to your wishes.
Rutilated Quartz. I love the ribbons
Laguna Agate. This one had much shadow.
Pudding Stone found in the road.
A few new Laker Cuts.
An atypical Greenstone. No color touchup on it. Sometimes with Greenstones you see weirdness; but that’s OK.
Some recently acquired Fire Agate I recut.
Anadara (Salt Water Clamshells from Northeren California). The patterns are amazing.
Wedding jewelry is also something we specialize in, both for the bride, and also for the attendants. You would be amazed at some of the things I’ve done and made for people. Most recently someone ask me to cut out the shape of Yap Island and somehow combine it with a Petoskey Stone the shape of Yap Stone Money. I had to research where the hell Yap was and what it and Yap Stone Money looked like. This project is still developing in my creative mind.
In addition to some custom lapidary, I have had a little time this month to make a few nice cabs myself. I’ve decided to show you a few, primarily from Great Lakes Rocks and Minerals. Most of the rocks I have been working with Bonnie discovered while attempting to organize my shop area. When you buy up old collections, sometimes by the pickup load, bring them home, and toss them in piles, you have the tendency to forget what you have; or never really knew what you have in the first place. So this sorting can be surprising.
Datolites with Copper Inclusions
A few new Laker Cuts.
Top: Copper Included Agate from the Kearsarge Lode Bottom: Copper included Keweenaw Point Datolite. Good things and come in small packages that are re-discovered in my shop.
Bonnie’s recent barn finds include a bucket of Lakers hidden in the recesses, some nice Datolite from years ago, and some things we have purchased at the Quartzsite and Tucson Gem Shows over the years. So we are concentrating on some of these finds. As they might say, “so many rocks, so little time”! Which slab should I cut today?
Bonnie and I both got excited about a little yellow Keweenaw Point Datolite with copper that she found in the bottom of a cottage cheese carton with other treasures. I am not messy on purpose, but sometimes I dump whatever is in the top tray of my Genie or Titan Cabochon machine. This occurs when I have to change wheels, or move machines around, or even change for some clean water. These random stones and unfinished cabs get heaped in a little dish, with full intentions of returning them to the tray, after the dirty water is dumped. Sometimes (OK often), I forget and have little containers around with treasures from the tray. They get dumped together and forgotten until Bonnie or I re-find them. So a couple of these cabs are from those lost troves.
A small bucket of top grade Laker slabs and cabs was also found and I cut a few. Enjoy the pictures.
See more examples at our Custom Work page. If you are interested in any of these beauties in a pendant or have an idea for other custom lapidary, give us a call for a custom piece.
Custom druzy wire jewelry to match the brides wedding colors.
For a unique touch, the bride created her own bouquet out of comic books. The pendant matched the dress and bouquet perfectly.
Special occasions call for special jewelry. If you are looking for custom special occasion stone jewelry, cut and wire wrapped just for you, please consider our custom lapidary services. We have created jewelry for Renaissance (and other) Weddings, special gifts, and lots of personal mementos. The services we frequently provide at Snob Appeal Jewelry include:
Special Occasion Custom Lapidary
If you find a nice Petoskey Stone, I can polish it so you don’t have to lick it to show off the pattern!
These freeform Thomsonite cabochons are highly desirable.
These beautiful examples of Copper Country cabochons are cut and polished for use in jewelry.
Perhaps you have a favorite rock or slab that you have finally decided to have worked on. I can cut and/or slab most any rock up to twelve inches. Prices can vary for this service depending on size, number of rocks or slabs. People often bring me rocks they have found, or rocks with sentimental value. Since each rock is different, after studying it, I look for attributes to highlight, and point out flaws that I may be able to repair or work around. I am honest with my customers. My trips to the Upper Peninsula involve new and repeat customers bringing their finds to me. Many repeat customers stop to get my opinion on their Lake Superior Agates, Datolites, Greenstones, and uncounted other finds. Some want a Cabochon cut and wire wrapped, while others might just bring in a Petoskey Stone for me to polish. Whenever I do custom lapidary on any customer owned rock, I treat it as my own, not shortcutting my procedures in any way. My best advertising is word of mouth, and I do not want my integrity and honesty besmirched. I hope you’ll tell your friends about your new favorite!
2. Custom Wire Wrapping
A wire-wrapped dragonfly was a whimsical pendant for a dragonfly-loving customer.
Old stock Mexican crazy lace agate with opal turned into one of my favorite wire wrapped pieces I ever made.
A big, bold double-hinged copper nugget pendant created from a customer’s stone collection, including copper and greenstone.
A beautiful candy-striped Lake Superior Agate elegantly but simply wire wrapped, not distracting from the perfect agate.
I love it when someone wants me to make a pendant from their stone. I try to get some feel as to their style and choice of precious metal wire. I make pendants from Argentium Sterling (Tarnish resistant Sterling Silver), 14/20 Gold, both pink Gold and Gold Gold). Many customers like a mix of colors that allow different chains to match a pendant. This two or three-tone approach allows someone to purchase a gift pendant for someone they are not sure of the metal they wear. Sometimes a stone just yells for accents of a silver or pink metal, so we can discuss the choices.
A custom wire wrapped cubic zirconia faceted by a talented customer is my more recent custom piece. How’s that for bling?
As you can see from photos, my wire wrapping style is classical. I do nothing that takes away from the star of any pendant, THE STONE. With some wire artists, you will see a lot of wires running all over the place. I appreciate that some may like this “Wire Sculpture” style, but that’s not how I do it. My wrapping is very precise both in design and construction. Some multi-stone pendants are a combination of engineering and design in unison.
Prices of pendants are dependent of the amount of wire (size and thickness of the stone), how complicated the wire wrapping is, and the time it takes. To evaluate your special occasion custom lapidary, I really need to see the stone and discuss what you want done in order to give a price. I do not “cheap” on wire; In general the more wire, the better the jewelry looks.
Elegant stone wire-wrapped jewelry is my specialty. To make your custom lapidary special, the addition of gemstones or sparkly cubic zirconias might make your piece just right. Occasionally a stone calls for a playful look.
Send me a picture or give me a call and let’s see what we can do with your favorite rock or stone! Custom lapidary and custom wire wrapping are our top services! The bottom line is we love and understand rocks and can make great special occasion custom lapidary for you. Try us!
Check out our Testimonials page to see what others have said about our work.
Bonnie has a good hole dug, and is looking for little green nodules that may be Copper Agates.
I’m not too far away in my own hole.
After 20 years of searching the mine spoil piles in the Keweenaw, with great success, I have to admit one of my biggest blunders. I used to dig large holes in the what was left of the C&H pile, near Calumet, with my buddy Bill, looking for Datolites. At that time, if I came across a piece of copper while Datolite digging, I would keep it, but I would also find other Chlorite covered nodules, that we would call copper balls and just heave them out of the hole.
You would never believe whats may be inside these nodules.
Here’s the suprise.
Today these Chlorite covered nodules are coveted by collectors around the world. You guessed it–Many of these nodules we threw away were Copper Banded (Infused) Agates. Nobody knew at that time that these things would end up being valuable gemstones. Later I learned that my friend, the late John Perona and his brother knew about these agates for many years. Today, we also know that these special agates are found nowhere else in the world except in the Kearsarge Lode. The Powebic Lode to the South where the Quincy, Mesnard, and Franklin Mines resided, have not produced Copper Agates. You do not see Copper Agates in the rocks of the Fissure and Stratiform Deposits to the North either; so the Kearsarge Lode of the Calumet Conglomerate is very unique indeed.
Careful cutting is involved with these Copper Agates.
It’s been so many years that I forgot where my hole was, and the area has been tilled up a few times, so all those agates I threw out; who knows where they are. I actually looked for my old hole last time I was in the area. I clearly forgot where it was.
A diligent and alert Rockhound can still find Copper Agates in the Kearsarge Lode if they are willing to put in some work excavating and carefully observing the pieces of spoil rock that might contain nodules that read “hot” with a pinpoint metal detector. I enjoy sitting down and digging, especially in late August, after Black Fly season. It’s even better if it’s raining. These little balls of glory stand out a whole lot better in the rain. the usual scenario is you see a rock of rubble with nodules in it and try to extract them with tools.
How these agates formed is debatable, but the theory that makes the most sense is suggested by the Lynch brothers in their fine book Agates of Lake Superior. You’ll have to read the book to see what they say about Copper Infused Agates. I prefer that term over Copper Replacement Agates, but most of the time I just refer to them as “Copper Agates“.
My last trip involved some very successful Greenstone digging, but no Copper Agate hunting. I only had limited rock hunting time this trip, so I had to chose between Greenstones or Copper Agates.
Copper Agates are rarely really large, but some real sizable. Fully banded beauties, are sometimes found as large as a half dollar. I’m happy to find a dime sized one, but like Greenstones, a big hunker is very welcome, and always elicits a “WHOOP!”.
Here are most of those Cabochons from above turned into jewelry. All these are for sale at: www.snobappealjewelry.com
I do have miner friends in the area that usually have some Copper Agates for sale, so I always buy a few. I purchase these agates with the question; Can I make these better? If I believe that I can, I will take them home for a re-work before making jewelry. Most often Copper Agates are cut in half and sold as a pair, but often I take a pair and grind the rind off the outside where better banding may appear (or may not). Often, the odd shapes of these nodules do not allow working the outside rind, due to all the gaps and dips in the stones, so these I either work with what the slice has produced or just sell or trade these for specimens. Most Copper Agates are bought as specimens and not so much for jewelry.
The Kearsage Lode also produces small pastel, banded agates that have little of no copper in them, but are very fine; we refer to these as “mine agates”. When found these are also Chlorite covered, just as are the Copper Banded Agates. I take everything and sort them by removing the crust in my home shop.
I work Copper Agates using my soft wheels only with loads of water to keep them cool and, for proper lubrication, an additive is added to the water when cutting. Special grinding techniques are used also. I generally treat these Copper Infused Agates with a coating to make them tarnish resistant, rather than polishing them. The coating I use is one of my trade secrets.
I sell Copper Agate pendants on line, at art shows and within a mile of where I find them, at Copper World, in Calumet. The jewelry I make from these rare agates is spectacular, simply because the Copper Agates are spectacular. It seems as though Copper Banded Agates are becoming very popular as of late. I have a good selection now, and you should remember, the closer to Christmas, the more your choice narrows.
I hope you have sensed my frustration at having tossed out hundreds of Copper Agates. I’ve got to work on my memory, because if I get it back, I’ll be INFUSED with Copper Infused Agates.
The Diamond Pacific Titan is big and bold. The Pixie (on top) that I take in my RV is a dwarf compared to its “daddy.”
People who have seen my shop will agree that it is pretty well equipped. I was able to cut and polish about any rock, but two things I was not able to do was cut and polish big Petoskey Stone.. I’ve solved this issue with a new machine I found in Tucson.
I own three cabochon machines; the Popular, six wheeled, Diamond Pacific Genie, a seven wheeled Diamond Pacific X-pert, and a Pixie. These machines have limits as to how big a stone you can polish. It has always been difficult to polish that large Petoskey Stone due to the wheels on these machines being close together. The six inch wheels on these machines have their limitations also (the pixie has 4″ wheels).
My dream machine has always been Diamond Pacific’s monster machine, the Titan. It has 8″ wheels, a 3/4 HP motor (Compaired to 6″ wheels and 1/4 HP for the aforementioned machines). Those large Petoskey Stones are no longer out of reach with my Titan. The story of the Titan’s acquisition is interesting.
With credit card in pocket, on the first day of the Tucson Gem Shows, we headed out to the Kino Sports Complex, where Diamond Pacific has their display and sales. But first, we decided to stop in and have a look at the 22nd Street Show.
While having a preliminary look around the show, Bonnie and I separate. Different things interest her than me, so the usual procedure is to set a back and forth pattern so we have some idea where each other may be. The 22nd street show tent is about 1/8 mile from end to end, so things can be missed. Bonnie caught up to me near the end of my 1/2 mile walk (back and forth four times). She ask if I saw the display that a couple had that were going out of the rock business. She said they had some rocks they were clearing out. ROCKS? I’m there.
Upon arrival at this booth I missed, I noticed many 8″ grinding wheels. What takes 8″ wheels? Correct, the Titan. I also noticed a small sign for a used Titan for sale. The elderly gentleman was a Diamind Pacific Dealer, and due to health reasons, was getting out of the rock business. It didn’t take me long to strike a deal after looking at his machine out in his SUV. Since these machines are almost indestructible, a used one is usually as good as a new one, except new wheels are sometimes needed. Since he had new grinding wheels, I bought a new set.
The Titan is a monster 16″ wide, 42″ long, weighing in excess of 130#. We had to come back the next day and pick it up, after clearing the back of our Tracker. The machine fit in the tracker with less than an inch on either side. Fortunately our daughter lives in Tucson and kindly loaned us a space in the garage for storage. Happy me! The Titan rode back to Michigan in the back of the towed Tracker.
Let’s see how long it takes to polish up this Petoskey.
I haven’t had this too long, but thus far it’s been great.
It’s coming!
The soft wheels really get the scratches out.
Now to the polish.
The lights in the shop really make the colors odd, but in the studio lighting the true colors and patterns appear.
The Titan, as mentioned, is capable of polishing those larger Petoskey Stones. I set the machine up and tested its mettle by polishing a 4″ X 5″ Petoskey stone. I show you the grinding procedure that took about a third of the time as the Genie; really amazing.
First cabs cut on the Titan
I also took some Lakers from rough to cabochons to test the Titan on smaller projects. I thought “why did I wait so long to get one of these?” Everything is so much easier and faster with better results. Now the possibilities have expanded. I eagerly look forward to going to “work” each day.
Sue, A longtime patron of our jewelry, brought me a Thomsonite brooch that had been in her collection for many years. She wondered if I could convert it to a pendant.
This was, arguably, the finest North Shore Thomsonite I’d ever seen. I thought I could just cut off the clip, wrap it with a prong set, and be done with it. The more I looked at the vintage brooch, the more I thought it demanded a rework by a goldsmith rather than a wire wrap by me. Sure, I could have wrapped it; took her money and ran; but I felt the character of the historic piece deserved a stately simple solution.
Fate showed itself at our next Rock Club meeting, when I won the door prize; a custom made pendant by one of the club’s master silversmith’s Ken Schug. I told Ken that I probably did not need one of his pendants (we laughed together over my win), but told him I had a project for him. He agreed to a pin removal from the brooch. I no longer have the delicate tools needed for this removal. Although I am a trained Silversmith myself, I gave it up for wire wrapping and sold my Silversmith tools years ago.
Let me talk about what I found out about the brooch. First it was 18kt gold and custom made. Unbelievably meticulous effort was used by the master Goldsmith that produced it (probably in the 60’s), used small grey seed pearls, that were prong set and glued surrounding the oval Thomsonite cabochon. Because of the pearls, we could not use a torch for soldering the piece. A Laser for soldering was required, as lasers produce little or no heat.
Rear view.
After Ken removed the pin and associated brackets from the brooch, I went to Korner Gem in Traverse City. Korner Gem is owned by my pal Kevin Gauthier. We refer customers to each other regularly. I traded the gold left over, for a new bail; soldered to the former Brooch Mike (one of the Goldsmiths’ at Korner Gem), soldered a bail on, using his laser. I payed for the time taken, and some laser time, but the price was much less than if I had not had a this trade of gold.
I took the pendant with me the next time I went to the Upper Peninsula, and Sue came and picked it up when I was doing jewelry demonstrations at Copper World in Calumet. She was very pleased.
The pendant turned out fantastic, and you could not tell that this was a conversion. I enjoy the camaraderie of jewelry making networks, rock club buddies, and appreciate skillful work from others. My customer was delighted, and even though I was only the director of this work, I too was very pleased. Because of good fortune, and having skillful friends, I was able to provide Sue with something new from her something old.
You can see Thomsonites that I have wire wrapped by clicking here.
