Category Archives: Special Stones

Bumblebee Jasper-So cool it looks phony!

Like a utopian landscape, this Butterfly is surreal.

Like a utopian landscape, this Bumblebee pattern is surreal.

I first saw Bumblebee Jasper (?) two or three years ago at the Tucson Gem Shows. I should have bought some at that time, but I really thought it was phony like Rainbow Casilica that the Mexicans claimed was a real find. They even went to the trouble of “dummying” a mine up to appear like a seam of the Casilica was a natural occurance.

Amazing cabochons ready for jewelry.

Bumblebee Jasper has amazing yellows, oranges and blacks and if any rock looked artificial this one does. Unbelievably, this stuff is REAL. It’s from hydrothermal vents on Mount Papansayan on West Java, Indonesia. The yellow and orange coloration is caused by Sulfur that is then opalized and silicated. Other trace elements are also present, producing a striking range of colors and pattern with the yellow and orange stones highlighted with black, gray, tan and crystal.

Fall colors enhance Bumblebee Jasper.

Although claims are made that this material is Jasper, it is much softer than most Jaspers I have cut, and is closer to Onyx in hardness. The banding also resembles Onyx. Onyx is a form of Chalcedony as is Agate and Jasper, but is generally softer. Agates allow light through them, and Jasper and Onyx are generally opaque. Sometimes Jasper and Onyx are combined with Agate to create combination Silicates. Bumblebee seems to be one of those combination gemstones. I sense variable hardnesses within the Bumblebee, making it somewhat prone to undercutting.

Only a small amount of Bumblebee Jasper is produced from the source each year, and most of it is snapped up for the Chinese bead trade. We saw Bumblebee beads in Tucson, but they were expensive. I saw some rough, but the quality of it was very Iffy.

The nature of Bumblebee is to have varied hardnesses and also have many holes and flaws. I found it best to bite the bullet and buy quality, finished cabs. They were very expensive, but had no issues as seen in the rough.

I made a few Bumblebee pendants that I am sharing in this blog and post up on the website. There is no other natural stone that is even close to the patterns and coloration of Bumblebee Jasper, but if you want one, I would get it now. The quantity is very limited.

Amazing Cats Eye Jade and Stunning Greenstone with Thomsonite

I had a dream last night. I often dream of rocks I covet, but on rare occasions I have dreams of jewelry I must make. I woke right up at 4 am and pulled the rocks out so I would not forget that which my brain had imagined.

What will Don do with these?

I was looking at a piece of Cats Eye Nephrite Jade that I had bought in Tucson. I had never seen this material from Siberia, but I had heard of it. The lovely green looks like that optical glass that marbles are made of and has a “cats eye” effect similar to Tiger Eye. I bought this one piece because it was so intriguing, and there were no others like it.

My dream brought this Jade together with a wonderful piece of Moonstone that had another phenomenon called Labradorescence. I also invisioned Pink Topaz in the picture. I laid out the stones on my workbench and when I awoke went right to work.

These multi-stone pendants are a real challenge and take a great deal of time and deep concentration level. Success! A wonderful pendant was produced, just as in my “Nice Dream”.

Cats Eye Jade, Moonstone, and Pink Topaz in Argentium Sterling.

Also today, off the workbench, came one of the most amazing and stunning Greenstones I’ve ever made. I cut it a few weeks ago and could not believe what I was seeing. As I ground the stone the most beautiful Thomsonite unexpectedly broke out of the center of the Greenstone! I never have seen more gemmy Thomsonite in any Greenstone, nor have I seen such a large quantity of georgeous pink Thomsonite in one Greenstone–“Unexpected Romance”.

Greenstone with a Thomsonite Inclusion. WOW!

This especially large (4.5 gram) stone is so amazing I have to show you the picture. Yes, it is for sale until gone–one only! Some stones are so stunning they cannot be described.

Snow and Snow Scenes

This month’s blog has been delayed slightly for the following reasons:
1. I wanted to tell you about some of the jewelry I have been making out of the stones I obtained in Tucson and I needed some time to get something made.
2. 15″ of wet snow fell over the weekend and I needed to clean up that mess and that weather delayed making jewelry and taking pictures.

Have no fear jewelry fans. I know some of you look forward to read whatever the little voices tell me to write here.

One of these Snow Scene Agates looked like a snow scene at night while the other stone looked like a snow scene during the day.

This past few days found me busy in the shop, as well as in my studio (I couldn’t go anywhere anyway due to all the snow). Two lovely, facetted, Snow Scene Agate cabochons called out to me to wrap them. A product of Peru, they sport amazing snow scenes in contrasting blacks and grays. What is nice about this agate is they can be worn with just about anything, fancy or casual. You don’t have to live in a snow belt like we do to love these black and white beauties.

A classic "Candy Striper" Lake Superior Agate.

I cut and wrapped one of the many Lake Superior Agates I acquired. If this does not sell on line I will take it to the upcoming Celebration of Agates show in Minnetonka, Minnesota. If you like stones, this show should be on your Bucket List.

Lavender Lace Agate (Bonnie's favorite agate).

The fourth pendant is Bonnie’s favorite, the Lavender Lace Agate from Mexico.

Lastly, a remarkable Royal Imperial Jasper found its way to my workbench. I found the pattern on this piece irresistible. This is one of those stones that talked to me. It wanted me to add a colorful Twilight Mist Topaz enhancer. I never argue with what the stone wants. It doesn’t pay to argue with a rock anyway (You’ve heard of “as dumb as a rock”).

Royal Imperial Jasper from 50 miles north of Guadalajara, Mexico.

Blue Lace Agate for "Yooperland Pendants".

I also am working on Blue Lace Agates, and Greenstones for my new “Yooperland” Pendants, as well as catching up on producing more pieces of Isle Royale Greenstone (Michigan’s State Gemstone). More on these in the future, after I slog my way through the snow back to my shop!

Tucson-You didn’t Think I Was Done; Did You?

69 sunny

I was going to be really depressed today. Tomorrow we head back to snowy northern Michigan. Except for the one I sent out today, all the flat-rate boxes should be awaiting our arrival.

In order to get over this downer I was in, we went to look at some mineral specimens today, and wow, did that turn out to be fun!

This piece of Ray Mine Chrysocolla will make fantastic jewelry.

Close-up of previous specimen.

I was not expecting much when I saw a small classified ad in the paper for two mineral collections for sale. Today we went to see them. What we found was some of the nicest Chrysocolla I’ve seen, from the old Ray Mine. The Ray Mine has not been hunted much in the past few years, but back in the 70’s it produced some of the finest Chrysocolla specimens ever

Drusy (druzy) Chrysocolla on Ray Mine specimen mined in the 70's. The druzy is actually clear quartz over chrysocolla.

A nice selection of Ray Mine specimens.

found, including gem silica, Druzy Chrysocolla, and remarkable cutting and jewelry material. Some of this collection was old material from the 70’s. Joe said he had a friend at the mine, but the last time he (or anyone) was allowed in was a couple years ago. I guess the liability issues came into play as is common in many of the good hunting grounds anymore. I know this will make top-notch chrysocolla pendants.

Joe had many other Arizona specimens that he was weeding from his personal collection, as well as other southwestern and Mexican minerals. Money was exchanged and we left very pleased, but what do you do with approximately 100 pounds of rough rock the day before we leave?

The solution presented itself at a UPS Store nearby that was open, unlike the Post Office today which was on holiday in honor of our Presidents. We wrapped some of the material up with some packaging material Joe had given us, and the store, for a fee, took care of the rest. I carefully explained to them what was valuable, which was not wrapped, and what was not so important (the wrapped stuff). We left the store with a relieved feeling. I now have a good feeling that the valuable druzy will arrive safely.

This striking piece of Peacock Ore (Bornite) is most likely from Zacatecas, Mexico. This particular specimen has amazing colors. Borite is a copper ore.

Bonnie hinted quietly when she spotted a really great piece of Mexican Peacock Ore, so I bought that also.

Man I hate the thought of snow, but we are also eager to get home.

Firebrick & Greenstone Pendant

I have a most creative customer (Nelson) who is always thinking outside the box when it comes to jewelry design. His latest concept was a Upper Peninsula representative pendant with an Isle Royale Greenstone placed approximately where Isle Royale is located. Nelson was given the honor of naming this pendant which he called “Yooperland”, so for here on out they will be Yooperland Pendants.

After some thought Nelson decided on a U.P. cut from firebrick. Firebrick has been talked about in my blog before but let’s review: When the copper smelters were build in copper country, they were made of brick. Over the years as copper was smelted, the copper vapors and solids permeated into the brick and replaced everything except the silica materials. After the mines were closed the ovens and stacks were either taken down or fell down. Enterprising individuals then took away some of this heavy material and used it in lapidary projects. Today fire brick is quite scarce, but there are still stashes around. Since firebrick has such a great story of the Copper Country, it makes wonderful conversational jewelry.

This "yooper special" is a wonderful design.

This "Yooperland" is a wonderful design.

I usually coat my firebrick jewelry with a two-part epoxy resin to prevent it from tarnishing. This will keep the “Yooper land” pendant shining with a coppery look.

I used a 30X40mm Blue Lace Agate cabochon as the base for this project. After cutting out the firebrick and prepping it, I polished a wonderful Greenstone. Both of those stones were glued to the Blue lace so it appears as if everything is floating in Lake Superior.

The wire wrapping in gold and silver is quite elegant as befitting Nelson’s Queen. I added additional height to the perimeter to protect the firebrick and the greenstone. I expect Nelson’s wife will have a wonderful birthday gift. She loves U.P. themed jewelry.

I expect to make several more of these before spring. I believe these pendants will be one of our most popular, especially for our U.P. shows.

Nelson wrote me after giving his wife her Yooperland: The YOOPER LAND pendant is OUTSTANDING! I gave it to my wife for her birthday and she loves it. However there is a small issue that I must deal with when we go out in public. Nearly everyone comments on her necklace- BUT the rest of the people just stare. Sometimes I get a little jealous . MAYBE the solution would be a turtle neck shirt!

By the way my wife says “THANKS”

Copper Shoots–an Amazing Greenstone

Check out the copper in this one!

A most fascinating Greenstone crossed my workbench this week. When you cut a piece of chlorastrolite, you expect to see green, or dark green. To see the shine of copper throughout, and feel the resistance of tough metal when cutting, you know you have a most unusual Greenstone. Normally when copper appears in a Greenstone, it is a spot, or a small part of the stone. This has copper from bottom to top! The Chlorastrolite on this one does not exibit the classic alligator skin pattern generally expected on a grade “A” Greenstone, but this has a shiny character highly regarded by folks who appreciate a most distinctive gemstone. The Copper Country does not often offer up a stone this large, with so much Copper! We have many Michigan Greenstone cabuchons for sale as well as Michigan Greenstone pendants, but as you look them over, you can see this is one-of-a-kind.

Due to the approximately 50% copper content and it’s large size ( 7 gram weight), this Greenstone pendant is showy and unusual.

Click here to see our available Greenstone pendants.

Deer!

Deer on Onyx

I acquired some outstanding black Onyx Cabochons today with etchings of a pair of deer in the face. The first pendant came off the workbench today. How do you like it?

I think it well represents where we live in NW lower Michigan and we often see similar scenes out our windows.

The cab is a 30X40 and is wrapped in Argentium and 14/20GF.

Azurite-Malachite. My latest “Pièce de résistance”

Pendants are my specialty–I have made over a thousand and lost count along the way. I can make a good quality pendant in an hour or two if I am not interrupted. When I am doing a demo of wire wrapping, customers often ask “How long does it take you to make a pendant?”. I try to field this type of question with care. Is someone fishing to see how fast they can make a pendant? Or are they just showing real interest?

Generally these curious people never think of the time I have in finding the stone, cutting and polishing it, and then finishing up the piece of jewelry. This is a question that cannot easily be answered and I usually explain this to a customer. What used to take me four hours, might take one hour now that I am more proficient both in skills and tools.

When I get down to the actual wire wrapping I can get it done in a very proficient manner.

What, you may ask, can Don make in 8-10 hours? I’ve been sitting on a project that I just have not had the time to do. Fortunately and unfortunately I have been laid up recovering from a knee replacement. This has given me the opportunity to tackle these challenging projects.

A great stone is always the start for my jewelry. I bought the finest matched pieces of Azurite-Malachite I’ve ever seen at the Tucson Gem Shows last February. I could envision the finished pendant the minute I saw the stones.

After my successful operation I decided to jump in and challenge myself.

I first laid out the pendant. I would make this as four separate components. Any time I do a multi-stone pendant, it requires a lot of thinking ahead, about how the various parts will mesh together, as well as what stones to use.

The dark blue azurite perfectly matches the coloration of London Blue Topaz, and the pendant needed something at the bottom to “anchor” the design. I decided on a 16X12 mm, 12 ct gemstone. Pinks and shades of lighter blue also fit into the color palette. I decided to run a strip of 5mm facetted stones down the center between the two mirror Azurite-Malachite cabs. After some experimentation I decided on Pink Tourmaline, Apatite, and London Blue for the 2.5 caret facetted stones. I roughly laid out all the components.

Pendant components laid out

Now the real work began. I had to think on how to to best combine all the components, so I had to slow down and really decide how things should go together.

The pendant progresses.

Now let’s push on the the finish while fighting the tiredness the pain medication is causing. I just love a challenge. Fortunately the plan came together. The finished pendant is named “Lasting Romance”. I think that just about sums up one of the most beautiful pendants I’ve ever created.

Lasting Romance--the finished pendant.

WOW!

Dinosaur Bone Jewelry

I found some wonderful Dinosaur Bone in my shop the other day. This finding rocks in my shop is not unusual, but finding such spectacular, jewelry grade, d-bone was really exciting.

Closeup of red dinosaur Bone showing agatized cells.

I am not expert enough to tell what dinosaur the bones are from, nor do I really care, but I can testify that this stuff makes wonderful jewelry. I pride myself on offering the most unusual quality stone wire jewelry on the internet.

I recall buying this material in Quartzite in January this year. At the time I thought this was the highest quality d-bone I ever saw. The colors are spectacular. The red pieces I have are deep crimson red with black between the cells. If you look at an individual cell with a magnifying device you see that each cell is an individual agate. Jewelry grade red is considered the hallmark for dinosaur bone, and is the most popular color.

You can tell the exceptional quality by the bone’s solidity and its’ ability to take a glass-like polish. Another piece of dinosaur bone I found is large celled with multi-colored agate cells. Each cell is an individual fortification (banded) agate. This bone is mustard yellow with floating red agates floating within it.

D-bone pendant

It is very hard to find this quality anymore as Dinosaur Bone, being a vertebrate animal, has not been legally collected in years. This bone was from a very old and famous collection, legally collected many years ago. All the bone I have is well documented. Amateur fossil hunters can be arrested for collecting dinosaur bone on BLM and federal lands. Current laws lean toward the scientific value of dinosaur bone versus the aesthetic value. This was not the case many years ago. If you found the bone, you could keep it.

Rare colored dinosaur bone

Closeup showing detailed agate cell structure.

Ordinary dino bone-nice but less colorful

Enjoy these pictures of my dinosaur bone jewelry.

On The Workbench (9-13-11)

“Orange-aide” Agate wborangecabs

I’ve been slicing some elite Lake Superior Agates that I recently acquired. As you may know “Lakers” are my favorite gemstones. The colors and variety of patterns and types are incredible. This week I cut some amazing stones including one so unusual it defies description.

I would describe it as a wild orange and black atypical “Laker” that is unlike any I’ve ever seen (and I’ve seen a lot of lakers). To me it looks like orange and black paint dabbed haphazardly on it. Bonnie thinks it looks like Mexican fire opal, it has such a depth and bright shimmer. I saved a piece of the stone to prove it is a Lake Superior Agate. That one agate begged me to wrap it, so this is one of my workbench projects this week.

wborange11

Orange "lakers" on the bench

As you can see the “orange-aide” agate is really fantastic. I decided on upscale wraps that enhances both cabs, yet does not take away the beauty of this agate. I wrapped both these agates in Argentium sterling and 14/20 gold fill, allowing the use of either a gold or silver chain.
This Lake Superior Agate is so stunning that they allowed me to add a bit of “bling” to the top of the pendant, and not take away from the stone in any way. I have always felt that one should never allow a wire wrap to distract from the gemstone. I see so many wire wrappers that do too much wire and cover up the beauty of the stone.

In many cases these “sculpture” people cover a perfectly good gemstone. Most wire wrappers also buy their stones and do not cut them. In most cases the cabochons are as bad as the wrapping. Check the web if you don’t believe me. OK, I’m off my soapbox for now.

wbpendant2

I hope you appreciate my style and stones. Thanks for checking out my blog. wbfinish11