An amazing Ammonite!

Early this morning we went over to a Lake Superior Agate dealer friend and bought some of his best agates. The Lakers come from his “private” stash and not available to but a few.
I use these flawless beauties to make the pendants we sell on this site.

We went to the Arizona Mineral and Fossil Show at the InnSuites Hotel this morning. I located some Muonionalusta meteorite slabs I use in my jewelry and Bonnie bought some assorted drilled fossil beads. I bought a few real nice Queensland Agate cabs, and some other assorted things of little interest. We enjoy the dinosaur display that The Black Hills Institute has.

We went to the Tucson Bead show and found it disappointing in size and selection. It was not our style of show, mostly retail prices.

Tomorrow we will go to some of the shows next to the freeway in Tucson. These are usually interesting shows in variety and quality. Each dealer has a hotel room like the fossil show today. We roam from room to room in search of bargains. Anyone can go to these shows and you do not have to be a dealer to buy. It is also a wonderful opportunity to talk to the dealers close up. Today I met Jeff Scovil, one of the top rock and gem photographers in the world. He was taking a photo of a mineral and it was interesting to watch the detailed lighting set-ups he uses. I watched for 20 minutes as he meticulously adjusted reflections of light onto the specimen he was taking a photo of. I can see why he is considered the best.

Today sunny and 68.

The Black Hills Institute DisplayWe happily sorted gemmy "Lakers" in the sun

The dealers could pluck juice right off the tree!

Today we started out at the Gem & Lapidary Dealers Association show at the spectacular Starr Pass Marriott Resort.
I wanted to see it I could find some killer Black opal cabs.
I was successful in locating just what I wanted and found that they were about twice what they cost just two years ago. Considering the low crowds at that location and fewer dealers then normal I may have paid a little too much.
Having said that I found no better opals anywhere else I went today, so I feel better. I will pay good money for quality goods.

The next stop was the Tucson Convention Center for the American Gem Trade Association Show. This is a hugh wholesale show this mountains of gems all over. Really over the top and any gem and size you can imagine.

We bought some real nice sunstone, but mostly looked and ogled. This show caters to those that trade in facetted stones. As you all know, our stones are much more rare than the common jewelry store fare.

Wading through the convention center took us until noon, then we waled across the street to the giant tent that holds the Gem & Jewelry Exchange (GJX) show. There are in the neighborhood of 1500 dealers at just this one show. We waded through most of the show, but we may or may not go back for the rest. This show got into my wallet fairly heavy with loads of good merchandise for reasonable prices if we carefully shopped. We found some great Druzy quartz treated cabs that I purchased for my friend John (I’ll keep what he doesn’t want). I also found some wonderful pink Moonstone that I have plans for. I found some unusual Amethyst/Goethite/Iron cabs which are exciting to see. Bonnie found a few beads and some nice pearls to string into necklaces. Other assorted cabs were also found that I liked.

We left that show around 3PM with heavier bags, but lighter wallets.

I’ll add in here a couple pictures: One is the Tucson Convention Center showing some of the hundred of booths. Photography is not allowed at this show, but I risked being arrested because you needed to see it. The other photo is a sampling of some of the stuff we bought today.

The Convention Center was packed as was the parking lots. We had a problem finding a spot in the $8 lot, but drove around and eventually one turned up.

Everyone seemed to have money and we did not see anything that would indicated a resession here in Tucson.

It was near 70 today, t-shirt weather. I liked this!

Stand by for our continued adventures!

These cabs will make great jewelry!

Well, we spent the whole day in three planes (every one full). No time for any shopping today. The only excitement is that we almost hit a deer before we got to the airport this morning. Now that would have been a terrible start for a vacation.
Traverse city this morning 19 degrees and snowing
Minneapolis 0 degrees and clear
Tucson 54 and scattered showers
We’ll be up and hitting the shows starting tomorrow. We will keep you posted.

Bonnie and I are flying out to the Tucson rock and gem shows for the next couple weeks. I try to attend every couple years, not because I need any more rocks, but just to soak in all the excitement of attending forty plus trade shows and seeing all that is new, old, and exciting.

The attached photos were taken in past trips to Tucson. We don’t have these funny looking trees, that you see in one of the pictures, where we live. This time of year rain is not uncommon in Tucson, and according to the weather report is does indeed predict some rain. But any rain and 65 degrees is better than the snow we have and 10 degrees.

Each show has from 100 to 500 dealers from all over the world. This is a great time to connect with others who have mutual interests to ours.

Rather then doing a normal monthly blog, I thought it would be fun to write a journal as we explore the shows. I hope to include photos so you can share in the thrills with us.

I think Bonnie would like to help with the blog and you all can pick up a woman’s prospective also. Should be fun!

A few things you need to take if you go to the shows are money, money, credit cards, and checks to spend. OK, that was just a joke (sort of). Some of the shows are strictly wholesale, so you need a sales tax license, and business ID to get in. Other shows are what is called wholesale/retail, and anyone can attend. If you want wholesale prices at these shows you need to show your business credentials, but anyone can go to these shows. It helps to know what you are buying and what you should be paying for it. There seems to be a wide variety of prices and qualities of items, so intense shopping may be in order.

I usually take a quick check over the shows the first few days making careful notes as to where and how many items I’m interested in are. If you don’t make notes you will NEVER remember where you saw something later. I then go back and bargain in earnest on items I’m interested in. There are also dealers I know have the best stuff, and I am willing to pay top dollar for the best stuff. My customers deserve this. There are also a few dealers that have merchandise so unusual or spectacular I buy immediately.

I also take a jeweler’s loupe for closer examination of stones, a camera to take photos (with permission from the dealer), and a sharpie marker to label the bags–how much I spent, where I obtained the rock, and any other information I might need later. I always get a business card, write on the back notes on the items and put everything in small plastic lockable bags.

Come back tomorrow for our latest info!