Category Archives: Wire and Gemstone Jewelry

Beautiful Larimar Jewelry ( What I did with my Tucson buys-part 1)

Treasures from the Tucson Gem Shows

I believe this is one of the best I’ve made.

Some stones offer universal appeal. A gemstone that reminds people of ocean waves crashing up on a sandy beach is hard to ignore. Larimar the beautiful sea-blue stone from the Dominican Republic never fails to attract sighs of delight from shoppers. Our handcrafted Larimar jewelry always tugs on the eyes for attention!

Great quality but a lighter blue than most.

My best one I found in Tucson this year.

At the Tucson gem shows I seek a small selection of stellar Larimar pieces each year for our jewelry because it is so eye-catching. Customers who appreciate a special quality pendant for their jewelry collections enjoy shopping for these fine stone necklaces. Larimar comes in many qualities. Less choice pieces have washed-out light blue/gray/black patterns containing brownish inclusions or have little or no pattern. It seems every dealer claims to have AAA Larimar in Tucson, but the fact is that less than 3/10 of 1% of all Larimar is the top of the mark. The very best Larimar shines with pastel blue alligator-type patterns across the face. Nice pieces shimmer back at you from cut stone selections and call for your attention!

The good stuff; one with copper inclusions. Pictured is not the top of the line Larimar, but nice stuff none the less.

Larimar is only found in the Dominican Republic. It is a form of Pectolite, but the mineral Pectolite is generally soft, not solid for gemstone jewelry making. Larimar is a form of Pectolite with interlocking crystal structure similar to chalcedony making it tougher than other Pectolites. Larimar can range from a hardness of 5 to 7 on Moh’s Scale. The harder the better for making jewelry. Larimar was originally discovered around World War I, and rediscovered by a Peace Corps worker (Norman Rilling) and Miguel Mendez, in the mid 1970’s. Rilling named the stone after his daughter, Larissa, and the French word for the sea, “mer”.

Since then, many holes or mines were dug in the area. I have actually talked to the former owner of the largest Larimar Mine in the DR. She was forced to give up the mine due to the many government regulations for mining it. The work is very intensive as dynamite cannot be used lest the gemstone may be damaged or to avoid mine collapse. . Wet weather makes digging impossible and the mines may be closed 5 months out of the year; the tunnels are prone to collapse.

Fair quality, but there may be one good piece in there.

The best Larimar may be deep within a mine, perhaps a hundred feet or more. Much of the Larimar is not fit for jewelry. As you can imagine, top quality demands premium price both at the wholesale and retail level.

Like Turquoise and Chrysocolla, Larimar gets the blue and green colors from the presence of copper. This year Bonnie grabbed a cabochon that has a visible copper inclusion. Because we sell so many pieces in Michigan’s Copper Country we thought this would be popular there and I look forward to making this unique cabochon into a wire-wrapped pendant. Normally, Larimar with Copper inclusions is considered substandard, but I admire some pieces that have this inclusion.

You could be fooled by blue Victoria Stone.

The closest Gemstones I’ve seen to Larimar is the man-made Victoria Stone and Hemimorphite from China.

The top piece of Larimar this year I purchased on the last day of a show. After looking for two weeks, I finally found just the right treasure, a big bold round beautiful Larimar cabochon. This Larimar gemstone was wire wrapped in pink and yellow gold creating a lush handcrafted pendant, big, bold and beautiful.

Let our Larimar pendants evoke Caribbean beach images for you!

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.

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.

Superior Amethyst

Amethyst Garden

I’ve been holding close this little story from the Tucson Shows until I had the time to make jewelry from one special cabochon I found in the recesses of the show. I spend every day searching the crevices of the shows for the unusual, rare, and remarkable, and I saw something at DiWolf’s booth that I had to have. Diana and Wolfgang Wolf really had some great Cabochons.

Amethyst; Yes, I know Amethyst at the Tucson Shows is as common as chicken at KFC. No matter where you are, just look around and there it is. In this case my eyes were focused on one of the most beautiful Amethyst Cabochons I’ve seen this year. It was like a garden of crystals growing proudly in one stone. Something about the color and composition made me salivate.

Wolfgang was a very knowledgeable and obviously a skilled Lapidary artist. This particular cabochon was masterfully cut from one special rock he said he found in Superior. When he told me he found it in Superior, I was not surprised. I’ve seen some great Lake Superior Amethyst from Thunder Bay. Even the Keweenaw has Amethyst that sometimes rolls up on the shoreline, and my diver friends say there are some wonderful pockets off shore. He said he wished he had found more, and actually searched for more, but failed to find any,

I bought the cabochon, and already pictured it as a finished pendant for one special Amethyst lover. Here’s the kicker. It sat in my RV patiently awaiting its’ turn to be jewelry, this wonderful piece of Superior Amethyst. I often have dreams of a particular stone, and this was the case with this stone. I got up at 3am one morning (hey, you do this when you are retired), put the coffee on, and began working on this pendant.

Imagine my surprise when I unwrapped this lovely cabochon from its envelope, examined it closely, and noticed a sticker on the back of the gemstone, that said: ” Amethyst, Gila County, Superior, ARIZONA“! I had to laugh out loud. He was talking about Superior Amethyst from Arizona, and I was taking about Lake Superior Amethyst. I am not distressed in the least about this location change, but it’s comical sometimes, based on where you are from, and where you hunt rocks, how you perceive something as the truth, and not even be on the same close!

I told Bonnie when she awoke at the smell of fresh coffee. She got a good chuckle about this also. There is no laughing about the beauty of this piece of jewelry. It came out better than I dreamed it might.

I know also that most of my friends would have assumed the same thing I did. I got a laugh, made a nice piece of jewelry, and had fun telling you this story; a story about things not quite evolving as they are initially expected.

I’m sure you will agree that it matters not whether this Amethyst is from the Big Lake or some other locale called Superior. It is still a very stunning finished pendant, Garden of Amethyst Crystals.

Looking back at 2014 Jewelry (and one 2015 Baby)

snob-appeal-jewelrytuxedo My New Years Pendant this year was inspired by both a dream I had and something that matches our company colors of Red, Black, and White. I pictured this exact ending in my dream. Tuxedo Agate is a dyed Brazilian Agate. The dyeing procedure is the same as is used in the manufacture of Black Onyx. I’m betting you did not know that most Black Onyx was dyed. I combined a piece of Onyx with a great piece of Tuxedo Agate and enhanced the pendant with Rhodolite Garnets. The wire is Argentium Sterling. A few hours of careful work produced a pendant I’m quite proud of. I expect this pendant, as well as the rest of the new pendants in this blog will be for sale in the near future.

As the end of 2014 comes to an end, we want to thank all our faithful customers for a record setting year. The Holiday rush is over and thankfully all orders have been delivered. Many Snob Appeal Jewelry patrons will be happy when Christmas morning comes.

Greenstones are our best sellers. these special ones are from old stock from Isle Royale.

I think back to the wonderful family I met at a Hotel in Munising this summer. We were returning from a trip to the Keweenaw and I had some extra copper, and other rocks I collected. The kids were delighted when I gave them some for their collections. Dad got a business card, and months later I got a call from their mother before Christmas. She wanted Greenstones to add to her children’s collections. I provided some nice stones at a modest price and filled a flat rate box with many more rocks that should make these young rockhounds very happy on Christmas morning. Sometimes rocks in the socks can be a good thing (but no coal!). Things like this just give me a good dose of feeling “Festive”.

Datolite in matrix from the Isle Royale #6 in Houghton County.

Snob Appeal Jewelry is known for our Isle Royale Greenstone (chlorastrolite), Lake Superior Agates, Pink Petoskey Stones, and all Michigan gemstones including Thomsonite, Mohawkite, and Prehnite. Fordite and Firebrick are two man-made substances with unique connections to Michigan history, that were industry left-overs and now are usable for interesting jewelry.

Mosaic Turquoise is a composite material that is very striking in its' coloration.

Although Greenstones are becoming more and more scarce, we continue to seek out old collections and collect in secret locations in the Keweenaw in order to keep our stock supplied. Over the past year a few small stashes have wrenched themselves free, and found their way into our collection. Look for a limited supply of new gemstones from up north to appear in new jewelry pieces.

We also invite you to explore our natural stone pendants of Crazy Lace Agate, Malachite, Ocean Jasper, and my favorite shimmery Pietersite. Another jewelry stone with lots of glamour is the very gorgeous and special man-created Victoria Stone. These are some of my favorite stones to work with.

We are not attending any of the western shows this winter. Over the years this has allowed us to create jewelry from so many beautiful gemstones from across the world. Some of our most colorful favorites are Rhodochrosite, Charoite, and Queensland Agates. We love going to Tucson and Quartzite, but I need time this winter to cut rocks and make jewelry in preparation for the Agate Expo in 2016.

Variscite from Fairfield, Utah with facetted Rose Quartz

Recent purchases of major rock collections have also added to our stock, and these also have to be dealt with. Look forward for some jaw-dropping jewelry in 2015.

Bonnie has been hinting how she'd like a pendant made from some Sonoran Sunset. She finally got this one for Christmas.

I’m pleased to announce that a complete re-vamp of our website is underway to make our website more compatible with mobile devices. There will be new interfaces and amazing technological advances, making Snobappealjewelry.com one of the premiere places for jewelry shopping on the web. We hope you will shop with us again in the New Year!

Wirecrafting New Stone Pendants

Montana Moss Agate chock full of Dendrites. This one is called "Snow Swirl".

Montana Moss Agate Pendant I called Foggy Marsh.

Montana Moss Agate Pendant I called "Foggy Bog".

I have been very busy this last month. Internet business has been brisk, and I have been posting up many new pendants. If you haven’t checked recently, you should have a look. Christmas is coming up fast. Every year someone (guys in general) will call three days before Christmas wanting something immediately. We prefer not to rush the USPS! I can send things out overnight service, but cannot guarantee the USPS, especially during the holiday rush. Overnight here often means 2 days.

I made a couple of new Montana Moss Agate Pendants within the past week. I love Moss Agate, and as you may know there are many different varieties. The “Moss” in these agates is not actually some sort of petrified moss, but is inclusions of Manganese, Iron, or other minerals that formed moss or fern-like structures within the Quartz agate. These inclusions are called Dendrites.

Careful, and often thin, cutting can really enhance these organic looking inclusions. I’ve ruined more than a few of these moss agates learning proper cutting. It’s worth learning when you see a virtual garden of “Moss” in what looks like a fantastic picture of what you might see in a real-life landscape, or underwater vista.

I called this Fire Agate "Fire Nebula"

Sometimes I come across a very beautiful Fire Agate with deep botroidal pattern and a rainbow of colors. These are again very tricky to cut, as the “fire” forms in a micro-thin layer on the bubbly looking inclusions in brown quartz. If you cut too deep, there goes the fire; if you cut too shallow the brown quartz will disguise the true colors under it. There is really a fine line between taking off too much or too little. There are Lapidarists who specialize in Fire Agate only.

Poppy Jasper

Poppy Jasper is increasingly rare orbicular jasper. It is a brecciated jasper, meaning it probably came from sun-dried and oxidized iron-rich clay. The cracks were filled in by other substances, in the case with these; Agate. I cut two pendants from a fine piece that Bonnie found when cleaning (or rather rooting) around in our barn.

I added a pair of garnets to the top of this one.

Isle Royale Greenstone is our best seller, so I thought a couple new creations would be in order.

Greenstone lillypads afloat in Natrolite.

You may think you’ve seen this Natrolite and Greenstone before. You almost have! I posted the opposite half in my November blog.

Just a really fine Greenstone. I called this one "Day to Dinner"

The other new Keweenaw beauty is simply a very nicely patterned Greenstone Pendant.

Bonnie says I must make Christmas Jewelry, so I guess I have to get to it. I’ll show you later.

Some of these pendants in this blog are for sale and linked to the shopping cart. Just click on the picture and have a look. If nothing happens, the pendant is spoken for, but get ahold of me and I’ll make a similar one for you.

Shadow Agates, Greenstone, and Thomsonite Jewelry

As winter blasts keep us close to the fireplace, I have been busy creating new pendants with favorite gemstones and wire. Enjoy these two new Great Lakes Jewelry Treasures and two new Shadow Agates.

A beautiful and rare North Shore Thomsonite.

Unique to the Lake Superior region, I acquired a quantity of old stock North Shore Thomsonites over the summer and have started cutting and wrapping them into jewelry. These dark-eyed beauties are very rare and highly coveted. Since these Great Lakes gemstones came out of a site near Thomsonite Beach near Grand Marais, Minnesota that is now buried under a park, no others are found at that location.

Greenstone Lily Pads in Natrolite

The second Great Lakes Jewelry Treasure I recently made was a remarkable stone with Greenstone Lily Pads floating in a pink sea of Natrolite instead of floating in a sea of green Chlorastrolite. I made a pendant from the opposite side of this stone and it sold immediately. Never have I seen another Greenstone like this.

Shadow Wave Laguna Agate

I also made a pair of agates with shadow effect. In certain agates with opaque bands, the bands cast shadows on the adjacent bands as the agate is rotated back and forth. This crates what is referred to as “Shadow effect”. The bands casting shadows also have to be spaced correctly in order to “shadow”. the easiest was to explain shadow effect is if you lined up dominos and shined a light on the top of them. When you move the light back and forth over the dominos you see the shadow that are cast on the adjoining domino change. It’s the same with the lines in the Shadow Agate. This purpley-pink and white Laguna has a great Shadow effect. Laguna Agates from Mexico are famous for “Shadow”, but most banded agates, including my favorite, the Lake Superior Agate, can sport Shadow at times.

Blue Lace with shadow

In this old stock Blue Lace Agate I found wonderful shadow. Two Mercury Mist Topaz added at the top give elegance and sparkle to the glorious pale blue/white agate. What a great piece for a special holiday occasion or wedding!

All these are available at www.snobappealjewelry,com, Click on “View all our products”. With over 375 pendants, chains, and earrings on our site, we hope you will start your Christmas shopping with us now!

Petoskey Stone Treasure

snob-appeal-jewelry

Many times in our hunts for Petoskey Stones, we stumble across other fossils from the Devonian often mixed together in a sort of “soup”; Fossils that lived in the same neighborhood calcified in the same stone.

This fossil was special; a small piece of a Thamnopora right in the middle of a Petoskey Stone. The stone was smallish, but it went into my pocket and not into the bucket with the rest of the fossils. I did not want to see this cutie smashed when I threw another stone into my bucket.

I knew I was being called to make something wonderful.

I cut and polished the Petoskey and wrapped it in pink gold and silver. I love this piece! It will be up on the website tomorrow, so act quickly.

Keweenaw Point Datolite Pendant

yellowdatosaj

A cute little unit, this pendant is exactly Quarter sized. I used both pulled wires and prongs to secure the gemstone. This is a rare opportunity for you to own this rare little gemstone beauty.

Out of all the endless colorations of Datolite in the Keweenaw Peninsula, arguably the most rare and coveted are the almost canary yellow ones. These are found at the northern point in the Keweenaw (and the northernmost point in Michigan).

The two in the middle are not dateline, but the ones on both sides are.

The best ones were harvested by divers that knew where they were in the basalt. This area had been silted over for quite a few years now, making finding these yellow beauties almost impossible. There are some exposed in outcrops in the area, but very few of any size.

Rare is an understatement with regards to yellow Keweenaw Point Datolite. What makes these unusual is that most Datolite in the Keweenaw is colored by copper, but these yellows derive their colors from Manganese.

The unusual story of this particular Datolite is that I found it in Tucson, in a small tray of Datolites at Gary Wilson’s booth at one of the wholesale shows. (Just look for the hub of eager buyers–it is the busiest sales booth at the show.) He sells cabochons that are coveted by the wire wrappers. (This is what makes me different than most wire wrappers; I actually cut most of my own stones). The Datolite tray was picked over, but others did not recognize the sweet yellow one.

This Datolite is NOT from Lower Michigan, but it acts that way.

Lake Superior Agates, Datolite, and Greenstones on my Workbench.

I just can’t stop cutting Lake Superior Agates; Making
jewelry from them, or digging through my buckets, looking for that perfect jewelry stone.

Big brown eyes islandlakersajlogo

Recently I’ve cut some unusual pieces. One was a very rare Lake Superior Moss Agate. It resembled a Montana Moss Agate, but had banded eyes. I had to play with my photo studio lighting so you can see this detail. Another couple featured red Islands floating in seas of clear Quartz. roundislandlaker2

Lake Superior Agate Pendants are my passion. Enjoy these few additional pieces of eye candy.

Mesnard Datolite with Isle Royale Greenstone.

A few cabochons of Datolite from the Mesnard Mine in Hancock have been sitting on my workbench for a few weeks. I look at gemstones for a while sometimes, and eventually they speak to me and tell me what they want me to do with them! This was the case with the Mesnard Datolite. Sometimes I put off wrapping these because my idea was a bit complicated and I need to be in the right frame of mind to work on them. I’m sure you will love the results, especially with the pair of Greenstone Beads I added to this free-swinging creation. The Mesnard is known for its’ bright pastel colors, but as with most of the old mines, material is scarce and getting harder to find each year.

This is a busy time at Snob Appeal Jewelry. We have taken some time off to make jewelry. In August, we have shows in Eagle Harbor, Copper Harbor, and doing demos at Copper World in Calumet (AKA the best gift store anywhere around Lake Superior). See you there.

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Radial Sagenite Laker.

Made you smile!

A rare Lake Superior Moss Agate (both sides)