My adventures today comprised of roaming through the medium sized JGM Show. There are great vendors, I like this show, but it is a cozy show. After drifting through JGM, I took a random shuttle to see where it went. I do this on occasion and get off wherever..In this case I exited at the Hotel Tucson for the fossil show. There are a very large number of rooms I had not explored. Not much writing today, just pictures.

I Discovered that that Ape picture from the other day (you remember do you not?) Anyway you could own that ape for $7500, which seemed like a fair price.

Near 80 and Sunny

The 22nd Street Show is always worth a second look. Things seem to appear that you had not seen before. I’m sure they were there the first time through last weekend, I just missed them. I usually just touch the surface of the shows the first week, and return to certain shows and specific dealers the second week.

At 22nd Street you can opt for free parking or paid parking, the only difference is on the paid parking you are closer to 22nd Street, allowing you to walk under I-10 to access the “Strip” on the the North side of I-10.

I took many pictures of the unusual things I saw at 22nd Street as well as a few while walking the Strip. Let’s just eliminate the chatter and show you some of the things I saw.

Some have asked me, “How much was this?” My standard answer is “Whatever you pay”. Seriously; in most cases there is a price posted or asked for, but negotiation is expected. Many dealers put very inflated prices on their goods, but will sometimes accept a fraction of the asking price. Negotiated prices are a way of life in most of the world. I find the last couple days of the show, when the dealers start thinking of putting their goods back in storage or paying to ship them somewhere else is a prime time for a bargain; sort of like end of the year car sales.

After exploring the Strip, we took the free shuttle back to 22nd Street. I took a friend who had never been to the Shows. He was looking for a set of Sapphire Earrings, but as you can imagine, are expensive, even at a discount . As we awaited the shuttle, he slid into a room at the Days Inn, flagged me in to see earrings. I had to inform him that they were not Sapphire. The dealer confirmed this; they were crystal Kyanite; beautiful stuff. They matched his wife’s ring perfectly. Valentine shopping done! Unless she tells someone no one will know he paid1/10th the sapphire price.

I’m on my own Saturday. Where do I want to fight the weekend crowds? Hmmm.

 

When I first started coming to Tucson I kept thinking,”I’d sure like to see what is in those wholesale shows.” This included the AGTA show at the Tucson Convention Center, GJX show across the street from the convention center, the GLW show and the Holidome show which was actually in the Holidome. At that time I did not have a business license, but came to the shows because I was a rock hound.

 

 

Parking at the the Tucson Convention Center is $9 but worth it to men(Parking is a business expense isn’t it? You can park remotely and take a free shuttle in also, if you prefer, or park for around $5 in a parking ramp nearby.

But now that I can get into all these wholesale trade shows, they don’t interest me. The AGTA show is comprised of hundreds of jewelry store suppliers, and direct importers of diamonds, rubies, emeralds, topaz, sapphires, opals, and pearls. This is the stuff you see in every jewelry store, and that is not what we sell. Bonnie accuses me of running (!) through the show, but the heaps of sparkly clear stones don’t interest me. I find a couple of vendors that have beautiful cabochons or Koroit opal like we told you about yesterday. Hugo referred us to see his dad Rod Griffin at the AGTA show which we did.

In the GJX tent the products are similar with a higher emphasis on finished jewelry. I located some beautiful old stock Bumblebee Jasper and a couple pieces of Yellow Delaware Mine Datolite. The Delaware Mine rock pile has been hauled away to be road gravel, so we can’t expect to find more of that in the Keweenaw. Gary Wison lives in Tucson, but also has a shop in Downtown Traverse City. Wirewrappers and silversmiths flock to his booth to purchase the colorful and unusual Casbochons he has. I am always facinated by the feeding frenzy at his booth. Since I cut most of my cabs (unlike the majority of wire wrappers) I don’t need to purchase a lot of finished cabochons; but I will not turn down an exceptional cab if I see it.

The prices have to reflect the costs of being in these top-drawer shows, so if you are just browsing around some of the other shows, you may find bargains better than you would get at these wholesale shows.

Photos are not allowed in these wholesale shows. No one wants other people copying their jewelry or targeting for carrying high priced stones.

Back years ago I used to see piles of loose gemstones on tables, and buyers with optivisors sorting and selection. This policy of just pouring piles of gems on tables has ceased, but the gem dealers still allow buyers to sit and pick from trays and trays of high-end jewels.

Today I continued my search for things I didn’t know I needed. The Holidome tent and GLW comprise 4 big tents. I bought a few rose gold chains to enhance our beautiful stone pendants.

I really think we are finished with the Wholesale shows. The next week will be going back to other shows already visited to find the hidden treasures. The temps are expected to be mid-80’s this weekend, so to my Northern friends I say “stay cool” whilst I bake.

Sunny and 70

Along the west side of the Interstate is an area collectively known as The Strip. We parked in the middle, walked to the north end and worked our way south. Wear your walking shoes! You can see the show list at the end of the blog.

We spent around an hour at Rod Griffin Opals talking with his son Hugo and picking through loads of trays. He has Koroit Boulder Opal in trays of different prices. It was a treasure hunt where we sifted through them trying to find the best ones in several price ranges. Hugo referred us to a new video showing how the opals are mined. You can see our Opal pendants.

 

I lusted after a bead-drilling machine that I saw along the way. I will go back and have a closer look at that another day.

 

Some labradorite cabs called out to me. Often people cut it at an incorrect angle and it doesn’t have the shiny gleam that it should have. Well-cut pieces should shine their blue, green and yellow colors at viewers when you wear them.

Every year we see things that show up at every show. Carved skulls seem to be every popular. We saw lots of turquoise and also dyed howlite masquerading as turquoise. Gem trees have always been a popular craft, but this year we saw many large trees. You could spend $11,000 on your centerpiece tree! A couple of these show have large areas of metaphysical vendors with crystals, wands, massage tools of every important variety.

At Rapa River in the back we talked with an Arizona man who had historical stories to tell. He was representing Blue Bonster-Collectibles with some wonderful Peridot from the Apache reservation. Bonnie Sarnelli the owner had made some fun items out of wood and gem “found” objects.

Large amethyst geodes are always a big draw. Sometimes amethyst has been heat treated to convert it to citrine, man replicating a natural process. Not all amethyst will convert to citrine, sometimes it turns gray instead. So they do a test on a small piece to make sure they will get the result they want. Geodes from both Brazil and Uruguay are everywhere.

We noticed that many dealers have begun oiling their large mineral specimens. This makes them look shiny and bright, but can cover up flaws. This seems to be a new trend. We saw oiled adventurine, emeralds, rubelite, tourmaline. Buyer beware.

 

Bonnie found a few beads today, dark blue Lapis chips and pink Rhodochrosite. I bought some Larimar cabs because Bonnie found one cab with copper in it. We think our Copper Country folks will really like it.

If you need some 60’s era tie-dyed clothes, just follow the powerful speakers to the acid rock. The music was bouncing off the Interstate wall and bounding around happily. Peace, love and all that.

The shows along this Strip are the Globe-X Gem & Mineral Show at Days Inn, Rapa River Gem & Mineral Show, the Pueblo Gem & Mineral Show at River Park Inn, The Howard Johnson Gem and Mineral Show, and the Quality Inn Gem, Mineral and Metaphysical Show. All of these have vendors in tents and in their hotel rooms, so you move along in and out of tables, rooms, and large and small tents. It is easy to see different things if you take a different turn on a second visit.

 

The morning conversation always involves making a plan involving which of the 45 or so shows we are going to. The decision was to return to Kino then see what we feel like.

Arriving early morning resulted in getting a nice paved parking spot instead of a dirty field. Indeed we did find a fine spot under a large Mesquite. Shade is at a premium in Tucson.

We explored some vendors we had not seen in our last visit and looked through some rough rock. I saw nothing I needed, although there was some nice Mexican Lace Agate. I took some random pictures of things you may not expect to see at a “rock show,” then explored the largest tent on site.

 

This tent is full of dealers selling everything: Jewelry, Beads, Cabs, Knives, clothing, display and shipping things, carvings of wood and rock. It’s sort of like a fair with an excess of beads and jewelry. You could talk to people offering facials, get your jewelry cleaned, or just chat with some foreign person. Bonnie talked to one guy that could not speak English. She had lots of questions but could not understand the answers. What fun!

We decided since we had a fine, shady, paved spot, we’d just leave the car and take the free shuttle over to the GLW, Holidome trade shows (business credentials required). You might think that a Holidome would be at a Holiday Inn instead of a huge white hard sided tent in the middle of a huge field. Well the show used to be at a Holiday Inn that is now a Radisson and has its own show. And now this Holidome Tent is about 30 times bigger than any Holidome I’ve ever seen. Maybe this show should get a new name. These are the largest combined shows in Tucson. Bonnie says I do these tents faster than anyone else who has ever come here.

There is a massive amount of buy/sell jewelry here imported from the Far East and India primarily. You see the expected cabs, facetted stones, jewelry, and beads, but also an eclectic mix just as we saw at Kino, but thousands of booths as far as the eye can see. This show takes two days for us to see, but I skip past all the jewelry and move fast. If you come, wear your walking shoes.

The Holidome tent was “creaking” and moving due to heavy winds. I know it made me feel secure. I can see the headlines. ” Heavy Winds Kill Thousands” ( One survivor that was awaiting bead shopping wife survives). That’s Why I was sitting by the door.

I think I spent under $20 here, that’s how much I like it. Bonnie made up for me though. Enjoy my pictures from the day.