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Pyritized Ammonite Jewelry

Treasures from the Tucson Gem Shows

Finding pyritize ammonites around the Tucson gem shows is not that difficult, but it is hard to find large, whole undamaged Pyritized Ammonites.

Ammonites are extinct mullusks related to modern day Squids, Octipus, and Cuttlefish. They had compartmentalized bodies. This feature makes them very interesting when the inside is exposed to show these compartments.

The rear

Wonderful, large, Ammonites sporting multi-colored Opalized surfaces fetch many thousands of dollars at the Tucson Shows. These large showy Mullusks are mines in Alberta, Canada. Smaller inexpensive Ammonites are available by the millions from Moroccan dealers. We see Ammonites with a coating of Pyrite and we see fully Pyritized Ammonites like the one I found.

Giant Opalized Gem Ammonite from Alberta

These fully Pyritize Ammonites are from a location about 30 miles from Moscow. Similar ones come from other worldwide locales. I find wrapping these lots of fun but you have to be very careful with your tools as the interior structure is somewhat fragile.

We have had variations of ammonite used in our jewelry. I have made a dual piece with tiger eye, and ammonite encased in mammoth ivory, as well as the expected shiny-bright ammonite. You can see the current selection at our Fossil Jewelry page.

The Ame-banana

Recently, I’ve been cutting a few Amethyst-included Lake Superior Agates. I love the beauty of this variety of Lakers.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Most of the time the Amethyst is a pocket surrounded by banded agate. On rare occasions there may be Amethyst with an island of Lake Superior Agate floating in the Amethyst. These are very scarce and are called Amethyst “Floaters”.

I found a very odd Laker counting Amethyst and translucent yellow quartz (almost like Opal). If the Amethyst had been combined with Citrine, you could call it Ametrine. This was something different; yellow with Amethyst. I named it Ame-banana, and called the finished pendant “Are-Banana.

Ame-banana

I show you the finished pendant as well as the before picture of the agate. You should know by now that Lake Superior Agates are my favorite stones and this one is a favorite of favorites.

My retail outlet Copper World sold one of these one day. I was doing demos there and in 4 days 4 pendants made from adjacent slabs were sold.

An example of a rear Amethyst Floater.

Amethyst inside of a fortification Laker.

Still need a gift for Christmas?

I filled my tree with a few treasures from the website. Jewelry is such an easy gift. No worry about sizes. It is rarely returned. Our pendants are a long-lasting gift, and have no calories. Plus it fits perfectly in the toe of a Christmas stocking.

The pendants you see are linked here for you.
From the top down you might see Sleeping Beauty Turquoise, Teepee Canyon Agate, Gold Dust Fordite, Desert Night Biggs Picture Jasper, Peach Moonstone, Lavender Lace Agate, Sea Green Victoria Stone, Pink Candy Druzy, Blue Bling Druzy, Hard to Resist Aspenite with Chrysocolla, Horizons Lake Superior Agate, Metallic Marvel Mohawkite, and Denim Sweetheart Lapis.

We hope you have a great holiday and thank you for your business.

Datolite, Copper and Quartz Pendant

I’ve decided to write some mini-blogs to keep you up on activities at Snob Appeal Jewelry. I will be keeping you up to date about waht takes place in my shop, on my workbench, and in Bonnie’s Bead Room.

Last week I cut a beautiful Cabochon from a piece of Datolite I bought from a friend in the Keweenaw earlier in August. I don’t usually use White Datolite as there are many more colors of Datolite that are far more coveted. White is common and was found in most all the Copper Mines in the Keweenaw. It is impossible to determine what mine White Datolite came from. Most colored Datolite can be identified with what mine it may have come from.

White Datolite generally has very little “character”, but sometimes, as in the case of this piece, it has character to the max. Copper always adds character to Datolite no matter what color. White Datolite with Copper inclusions and Quartz is especially fine.

I cut this piece into a large bold teardrop shape (30 X 40 mm). Since the Datolite is so showy, the wrap needed to be simple and elegant. I love using Pink Gold whenever I have loads of native copper in a stone. Pink gold’s coloration matches Copper well, but you do not have the Oxidation with Pink Gold like you do with Copper. I combined Pink Gold and Argentiun Sterling for this piece.

Whenever you wrap a calibrated Cabochon, you have to be as identical on the right and left side as possible. Any variation from side to side are readily noticed, and this is why many wire wrappers avoid calibrated cabochons. This pendant could be worn by a man or woman.

I hope you enjoy these small blogs.

Datolite & Copper

My wife, Bonnie, was randomly searching through, buckets, boxes, bins and drawers the other day. She does this occasionally in my shop and storage areas; or she might just decide a dirty bunch of rocks needs to be cleaned.

This cleaning activity produced a beautiful little Datolite/Copper slab that looks like it may have been from the Delaware Mine pile (back before it was hauled away for road fill). This little beauty proved, beyond a doubt, that Copper and Datolite in the Keweenaw are indeed associated. This one was definitely a happy combination.

I cut and wrapped this very simply. A stone this flashy doesn’t need much. Doesn’t the Pink Gold look good on this one?

A Loony Greenstone

In a large hoard of small tumbled Greenstones from Isle Royale, I noticed an odd shaped one. Closer examination revealed it looked exactly like a Loon. I had an immediate inspiration to combine this particular Greenstone with another gemstone of a unique pendant.

A couple weeks later my wife, who always seems to be trying to improve the neatness of my barn and shop, located a great piece of clear Quartz with Rutile ribbons included. The stone remind me of a reed bed in some Northern Lake where a Loon might nest.

The pendant turned out just as I envisioned it. At 2 1/4″ tall and 1 1/4″ wide, it makes an impressive pendant. I made it from Gold wire and Pink Gold wire. I’m going to test-wear it a while and sell it on line.

Tucson Rock, Mineral, & Fossil Showcase-The Main Show-Part 1

The floor of the Tucson Convention Center featured the among booth from Collectors Edge, the largest dealer of fine specimen rocks and minerals in Tucson.

Closeup of the Collectors Edge Display that ook up big real estate on the convention floor.

The Main Show heralds the end of the Tucson Shows every year. I am happy to have survived this mega-show, and pleased with all the awesome new things we purchased. I expect over the rest of the month to show you many amazing pieces of jewelry made from the rocks, minerals and fossils acquired as we roamed the 40 plus shows.

Even though the theme of the show was “Shades of Blue” there were many other shades also.

That’s a great Labradorite on the top shelf.

Tourmaline is everywhere.

There’s blue in this case.

Amazing Malachite.

Carved in Rainbow Obsidian by Master Carver Francisco Sotomayor, the gun, pillow, and bullets are one piece! “Peacemaker”

“Skull Dagger #2” (2014). Another Masterwork by Francisco Sotomayor. Obsidian

“Skull Dagger #1” bu Francisco Sotomayor (2014) Obsidian

Amazingly carved from Black Obsidian by Francisco Sotomayor (Obsidian is volcanic GLASS folks). Other carvers would not even attempt these things.

Aquamarine

Quartz on Adventurine

An interesting display-Notice the autographed Babe Ruth Baseball.

Agates for sale..

If you have read the blog each day, and ogled the pictures I have taken, you only begin to understand what goes on in the largest show of its’ kind here in Tucson. You must come here and see for yourself. As usual, we are over-budget on our spending, but we always expect this, as Bonnie and I see many things we never knew we needed.

The main event at the Tucson Convention Center was packed and will be even more packed this weekend as locals, Rockhounds, and those in the gem, jewelry, and fossil trade visit the “Big Show”. The Tucson Gem & Mineral Society have been putting on the largest, oldest, and most prestigious gem and mineral show in the world since the mid-50s. Their stated goal is the promotion of rocks and minerals in every form and including Geology, Mineralology, Lapidary,and Allied earth sciences. They certaining accomplish this goal every year. The TGMS was established in 1946, and Has grown to be the king of Clubs throughout the world.

the Logan Sapphire, at 42.3 cts, the largest mounted gemstone in the National Gem Collection! It is surrounded by diamonds, and mined in Sri Lanka. You will remeber this from my AGTA Post, but this is a better picture of the amazing red tinge in the blue.

I have only brushed the surface of what takes place in Tucson. Today and tomorrow I will post many photos from the Convention Center Show. Some I will have captions on, and some I will not, but you will still enjoy them all.

Check back tomorrow for part 2.

The

Tucson Rock & Gem Shows-The Miner’s Co-op Grew

Sunny and 83

The Miner’s Co-op is a real Rockhound’s treat

A return to the remote Miners Co-op show brought a real surprise. There were three times the vendors than two weeks ago. This show seems more like Quartzsite than Tucson with all the tailgating and rocks, slabs, and cabs on tables right out in an open lot. I love this format.

Bonnie and I found treasures at bargain prices everywhere. I bought cabs, and Bonnie was hauling around a five pound Chrysocolla rock she liked the looks of. I have learned to keep quiet, even though I have a good supply at home already. Good Chrysocolla seems to be in short supply in Tucson this year.

I found a few pieces of quality Dino Bone at one vendor, picked a few slabs at another vendor, and just chatted with the vendors. I love to pick the brains of other Rockhounds and harvest any trivial knowledge they possess.

You can tell when it is warm in Tucson when water in slab tubs is replaced by mister-sprayers. The water actually can get so hot it burns the hands.

This blog actually involves several days and a couple trips to the Co-op. The last tme I was there, I found a fellow Wingate Pass Agate Lover. This stuff is very rare and Kevin cuts a few pieces each year for Tucson Customers.

The main event show started on the 11th, and we attended and will show you tomorrow. I tell you this because one of the rock-related book dealers had a wonderful book I was perusing called, Collecting Agates and Jaspers of North America by Patti Polk. I mentioned to Bonnie this would be a great gift for me sometime. I swear this is a true Kharma story. I saw the same book in a booth at the co-op; the very booth Kevin was in, and there sat Patti Polk, the author. I bought an autographed copy on the spot. I could not believe this coincidence; or was it? (Twilight Zone Music Playing). Get yourself a copy. It’s a wonderful book, and for those that cannot read, there are lots of fine pictures.

Kevin had some Pietersite from Namibia, I had not seen, that was black with yellow in it. I bought rough and will show you when I cut it. The name is “Golden Sky” var. Pietersite. There is a good supply of rough at this booth. It’s very cool stuff.

Patti Polk & Kevin Kessler

If you are a real Rockhound, and not a Bead Lady or jewelry buyer, this is the show for you.

Tucson Gem, Mineral, & Fossil Showcase-Return to the Arizona Mineral and Fossil Show

Sunny and 83 (Al Roker said Traverse City Michigan is expecting 10 inches of snow).We interpret this to mean 14-16 inches of snow in our driveway back home. Smile.

Pyrite Crystals from Navajun, Spain. There was a whole room full.

Canadian Ammonites. These are always $5,000 ++.

Today we made a return trip to the Arizona Mineral and Fossil show at the Hotel Tucson City Center. Bonnie had not seen the world record Uruguay amethyst or anything else at this show. The show is coming to an end and many vendors were starting to pack up,.

Moroccan Crocodiles abound in Tucson

Bonnie bought some new display items for our booth, and I enjoyed looking at ammonites. We enjoyed talking with the guys at Agates by Rock of Ages and we rummaged through their extensive bins with many types of agate slabs.. The agates keep drawing us in.

A fine Meteorite mount. I did not get the source.

Mastodon Leg just standing outside a room

I observed a full mastodon leg that still had some skin and hair on it. Check out the picture, if you don’t believe me.

The fiberglass dinosaurs were still fighting in the courtyard, and it looked like those raptors were not making much headway.

Old Collection, unknown what mine in the Keweenaw

I talked to Ken Flood from Keweenaw Gem and Gift, and he showed me a beautiful copper crystal specimen that has been featured in his booth.

Bonnie loves the colors of Australia’s Queensland Agate, or Agate Creek agates. She found some agate treasures there that we will have at the Agate Expo this summer, agate stretch bracelets and cute little rain forest jasper frogs. They look like they would be well camouflaged in a real rain forest.

Sea life at the rock show

We were happy to return to our RV and I even cut some of those agate slabs on my saw, getting ready for the next step on the grinder.

PS-The Internet at the RV Park has been so sporadic it’s difficult to do a whole blog without some sort of getting knocked off, losing data, or not being able to sign on; so frusrating to get a blog done, and have to start all over. I’ve foiled this, what I believe to be a communist plot, by doing the blog at 3am. So I’ve corrected this blog this morning. I know you guys have been checking out this blog, and I really appreciate it after all the effort.

Tucson Gem Shows-Westward Look-Part 2

82 sunny

Today I continue on part 2 of our visit to the Westward Look Resort for their specimen show. The most prestigious dealers in the world come there every year to sell what arguably are the finest specimens in the world. I hope my information and spellings are correct on the pictures. I took a lot of time trying to get them correct.

Tourmaline and Lepidolite-Minas Gerais

Sugalite-South Africa ($7500)

Rutile with Hematite-Brazil ($13,500)

From right-Spodomene (Minas Gerais), Aqua with Albite and Mucovite (Pakistan), Halite & Selenite (Thuringia, Germany)-$10,000

From right clockwise: Dioptase -Namibia, Crocoite-Austrailia, Plumbogummite & Pyromorphite-China $85,000

Amethyst with Calcite-China ($12,500)

Aquamarine & Flourite-Pakistan

Stibnite-China (I wondered how the hell this did not break)

Flourite-China

Rhodocrosite-Sweet Home Mine, Colorado

Gelena & Marcasite (Reynolds Co., Missouri)

Tourmaline on Quartz-Minas Gerais

Plumbogummite (Pyromorphite)-China ($85,000)

Bonnie says this is a fine show for several reasons. 1. Amazing specimens, 2. Free parking, 3. We spent no money (because we could not afford anything), 4.The scenic views as we walked out of the rooms and 5. It kept us out of other shows (Where we spend money)

Datolite from Russia

I could have taken a thousand pictures at this show, but I’m just baiting you. Come to Tucson and look for yourself. Tucson should be on every Rockhound’s bucket list.

Tomorrow we return to the Miners Co-Op show and are stunned to see 3 times the vendors that were there a week ago.