Category Archives: Wire and Gemstone Jewelry

Green Stone and Greenstone Jewelry

Drusy Quartz.

For St. Patricks, my gift to you is some of my favorite green pendants from past to present. Many of these I am very proud of as some of my best work. Join me as I look at favorite green gemstone jewelry.

Easy picking of Turquoise at the Tucson Gem Shows.

Catseye Jade is set off by Sunstone and Faceted Topaz

Jade is one of the automatic gemstones that you think of as being green. I found a rare Catseye Jade from Russia a couple years back and teamed it with Moonstone to create a striking multi-phenominal pendant.

Meta Jade.

Malachite makes an amazing designer pendant.

Malachite is another green gemstone with striking patterns.

Turquoise and its relative Variscite are a couple other great green stones that cover many shades on the color wheel.

Azurite/Malachite enhanced with London Blue Topaz, Apatite, Tourmaline.

Apple green Chrysoprase.

Chrysoprase is the most valuable Quartz and is famous for its luscious apple green coloration.

Something that resembles Jade is Meta-Jade, the rare pre-runner to Victoria Stone. You really cannot tell it from Imperial Jade.

Green Victoria Stone, Peridot, Pink Topaz, and Morganite

Greenstone/Thomsonite

Dark green Victoria Stone is one of the most sought after colors from this long gone gemstone.

Azurite/Malachite would look good for a St. Patrick’s Day Pendant.

Greenstone with Cuprite Inclusions-The only greenstone with this combination I've ever seen.

A closeup for you viewing pleasure.

Sometimes wonderful greens are present in Royal Imperial Jasper.

My favorite green stone is Michigan’s State Gem, the Isle Royal Greenstone. As you can see, you don’t have to be Irish to love green stones or greenstone jewelry.

Royal Imperial Jasper.

Variscite enhanced with Pink Topaz

Simply a great Variscite

Snoopy and the Red Agate

I haven’t written an “On the Workbench” blog in some time, but I thought I would let you see what I’ve done with some of the stuff I brought back from the shows in Arizona. Check the back blogs to review.

Bumblebee Jasper is not really a Jasper. Finding bright orange Bumblebee is uncommon.

One of the things that seemed all over Tucson this year was Bumblebee Jasper. This orange and black (but usually yellow and black) rock comes from Volcanic vents on the island of Bali in Indonesia. It is a mis-nomer to refer to Bumblebee as Jasper. It is neither Jasper, nor is it an Agate. The rock is in reality an Anhydrite/Sulfur/Hematite with welded volcanic tuft (ash). This stuff varies widely in hardness and contains many hole and flaws, so it is tricky to make a decent gemstone. It is also hard to find bright orange. The pendant I made looks like an evil mask. The stone was so flashy it did not need a fancy wrap.

Keswick Agate

I cut a Keswick Agate from Keswick, Iowa, leaving quite a bit of ordinary Quartz on the side. This was intentional. I envisioned using some of my wire over the Quartz to really enhance the eye-like pattern of the Agate. A plain wrap, like I did on the Bumblebee, would not work with the Keswick. Keswick Agate is difficult to obtain and good Keswick is hard to find.

Picture Petrified Wood from near Holbrook, Arizona

Picture Petrified Wood comes from near Holbrook, Arizona. One of our oldest and dearest friends sells Petoskey Stones in Tucson. She wanted a pendant and swapped me some of her Dendritic Picture Wood for making this pendant for her.

Faceted Aquamarine and Amethyst; simply wrapped;simply beautiful.

I wrapped a really fine faceted Aquamarine as well as another of Amethyst. I wrapped these so they can flip over while being worn.

Thomsonite of this quality is always popular.

The Keweenaw Peninsula and Grand Marais, Minnesota both supply the beautiful Ziolite, Thomsonite. Dark eyed Thomsonite from the north shore is the most coveted. I was just mindlessly looking around the AGTA (American Gem Trade Association) show and happened to glance down a side isle and spot a couple trays in the bottom of a display case. My eye immediately focused in on a Thompsonite. I could not believe such a gemstone would exist in a show full of common Diamonds, Rubies, and Sapphires. This one even has copper inclusions.

I asked the lady at the booth if I could look at the two trays. In a humorous manner she said, “Oh, you want to look in my junk box?” I for sure wanted to get at that “junkbox”, and found several other treasures as well as this Thomsonite.

When the dealer dropped and broke one of my Malachite slices, I immediately thought of earrings to go with the bullseye pendant.

I could not help but purchase a perfect slice of Bullseye Malachite. I dislike cutting this stuff, but put my mask and gloves on, and went to it. What a great Pendant I made from the cab. The earrings came from the second slice off the same rock, but the owner of the business dropped it on the floor at checkout, and the slab broke in half. He gave me the two pieces, so I used them. I hate wasting good material.

Snoopy?

Speaking of Malachite, I saw Snoopy in a piece. Cool stuff.

Watermelon Tourmaline

Not much bigger than a dime, two other fantastic little pendants of Watermelon Tourmaline and Montana Agate called me. I have seldom seen a small agate with such a fantastic natural picture. Watermelon Tourmaline is the most coveted breed of this gemstone. Good Tourmaline, like this one, are always popular, no matter the price.

A small Montana Agate with a "big sky" picture.

Yellow Cat

Cardinal Candy: Another rare red Yellow Cat.

Yellow Cat Petrified wood is from remote regions of Utah, and was used by Tiffany back in the day. Yellow Cat is the brightest red of any petrified wood. It is really an amazing and scarce agate. I was very excited to see some at one of the Tucson Shows. The dealer told me people walked by his supply all day; not recognizing it for what it was. I am happy my mind is full of knowledge on many rare rocks.

You hardly ever see Blue Lace Agate Drusy.

Bonnie is especially fond of Blue Lace Agate. Imagine her thrill when I found some Blue Lace Drusy. Drusy means it contains pockets full of millions of tiny Quartz Crystals. This one I made into a designer cut beauty.

The workbench and the shop are still busy. I am so pleased with all the jewelry grade rocks I obtained out west, and am still exceedingly busy and thrilled about making a new crop of jewelry. I also enjoy sharing with you guys.

Amethyst Glitz

“Can you make me a pendant that will match this”? Of course I can, but why would Bonnie want another piece of jewelry when she has hundreds of pendants to choose from?

It all started on Black Friday (that was actually Thanksgiving Thursday this year). She had a coupon for a local Department Store. I’ll man up and admit that I saw a dressy coat that I thought would look nice on my bride. It had a great design and Amethyst colors. We both like Amethyst. Paired with a glimmering silver blouse, this jacket looked really great.

Unbeknown to me, the jewelry maker”s wife had NOTHING to wear with these garments, and this is where I come in. After I realized the wife has NO suitable jewelry, and asked me in a nice way to help out, I actually thought about making something like I’ve never done before. Here’s the dumb part: I announced on The Facebook I was going to make this pendant so my jewelry-less wife would have something to actually wear to our Rock club Christmas Party IN THREE DAYS!

Bonnie thought a white gemstone with some Amethyst beads that she rooted out of her beadroom stash, would look nice. We thought at first white druzy would work, but she settled on the wonderfully rare shiny white Victoria Stone. Argentium Sterling was the metal of choice. You can read the intriguing story about Victoria Stone in my blog at http://www.snobappealjewelry.com .

It took me a while to figure out what I wanted to make and more time figuring out HOW I was going to do it. After a good nap, I arose with my mind clear and a picture in my mind of what the pendant would look like. I usually do not use colored Aluminum wire, but Bonnie does with her beads. Alas, she did not have any purple (I thought she had every beading item available), so we made a not-so-quick-trip to craft stores (notice I said stores with an S) to locate this wire so I could continue.

After a few hours of watching various “Redneck” shows and wire wrapping, the pendant emerged from the workbench. A good hint is if you are using your mind creating jewelry, you can still watch mindless TV, but not anything deep like “Polar Bears Discuss How to Properly Prepare Seal Sushi”. 1. Wait for seal head to pop up in the hole. 2. Snatch seal from the hole and eat, no seasoning necessary.

OK, so I got off my point; deal with it. Maybe the reason that this piece of jewelry looks unlike anything I’ve done before is because of watching Redneck Duck Calls, or some such show while making it.

Since I was clearly focused on my task, Bonnie took this opportunity to vacuum, do laundry, make cookies, and in general stay clear of my area, and not interrupt my concentration. I do tend to get grumpy when interrupted at key points, and sometimes she can tell what’s key, and what isn’t.

I awoke this morning with ideas that came to me in dreams on how to finish this project. I got right on it even before coffee! The jewelry is actually finished ladies and gentlemen. I could go into a lot of details on how I pulled this one off, but it’s Christmas and the stores are open, and I have to set up for our Open House tomorrow. Remember, shop small or shop on this website (trust me, we’re small). Now enjoy, what Bonnie calls, “The glitziest pendant you’ve ever made”.

Here is my bride Bonnie, happily wearing the pendant that "matched" her new duds.

Close-up of Bonnie's Pendant. Those Swarovski Crystals really add glitz to this Party Pendant. White Victoria Stone & Amethyst Beads.

Victoria Stone and Imperial Topaz-The Retirement Pendant

Sometimes making handcrafted jewelry requires a lot of thinking before any action is taken. I’ve been thinking about how technically to create this pendant for several weeks, and for various reasons all the pieces of the puzzle did not come together until now. What I see in my mind’s eye sometimes does not easily translate into a finished piece of jewelry. On rare occasions the process of how to make a pendant has to simmer inside of my head for a while.

I could not figure an easy way to create this piece of jewelry. I am showing you one of most complicated wire-wrap jobs I’ve ever accomplished. Alert: I would recommend you not attempt this at home!

This has been in holding since June 15th. I’ve got the stones, now what should I do?

I started with an impossibly rare bottom end piece from a Victoria Stone Boule. I previously mentioned in another blog about the unusual, chatoyant, flower pattern that appears on only the bottom of the Victoria Stone boule. (http://www.snobappealjewelry.com/blog/?p=159) Among Victoria Stones, this is the most unusual of patterns. I have been saving this particular Cabochon for several years, until I figured out something to do with it that was worthy of its’ beauty.

I had one of my “jewelry dreams” one night and thought that Imperial Topaz might work with this green Victoria Stone Cabochon.

Imperial Topaz is considered by most to be the Cadillac of Topaz, and quite expensive (so is the Victoria Stone). An opportunity to buy a large faceted Imperial Topaz presented itself last year, so I jumped at it. I liked this natural 28.9 ct Imperial Topaz from Pakistan because it has a large platelet inside. The platelet produces a rainbow within the stone. Unfortunately under the photo lights I use, you cannot see the phenomenon. You’d have to see this in person to really appreciate it.

What do you think of this one? BLING! BLING!

Putting the Topaz and the Victoria Stone together was a match made in heaven, but not quite enough bling for old Don. I added two faceted Pink Topaz and a pair of lovely green Peridots. NOW there was something unbelievably nice!

Several hours of work over several days produced this amazing piece of jewelry.

I refer this piece of jewelry The Retirement Pendant because it is the pendant I have been planning ever since retiring from my day job a couple weeks ago! Bonnie wants me to give it a more fitting name when I post it on this site for sale in the next couple days. It’ll take me this long to figure out the perfect name, but if you have any suggestions I will consider them.

Enjoy this special piece.

Read more about Victoria Stone manufacture and colors at https://www.snobappealjewelry.com/blog/victoria-stone-the-new-research-and-victoria-stone-color-chart/

Lake Superior Agate Jewelry

lsa-on-bench

Attendees at the Celebration of Agates Show in Hopkins Minnesota will be happy to see my Lake Superior Agate Jewelry.

Since 1969 the Lake Superior Agate has been the Minnesota State Stone. Glaciers deposited Lake Superior Agates throughout Minnesota, as well as south as far as Kansas.
Many of you know that Laker’s are my favorite gemstone. I am amazed at the variety of colors, types, and patterns. No two are ever alike.

The multi-pattern was amazing on this Laker.

Moons and stripes. I liked this one.

The trick is finding those extremely rare flawless, or nearly flawless Lake Superior Agates to use in my jewelry. Remember Laker’s moved vast distances from bedrock in the Keweenaw area. Most of them were ripped from bedrock. Lake Superior Agates are also tumbled on the Lake Superior shoreline. It is really amazing that any Laker’s can be found that are not cracked.

Three Lake Superior Agates were selected from my stash of slices, cut into cabochons, and hurried to my workbench. These were all distinctively different, as you can see.

An unusual ledge agate.

Each agate talked to me, and I was able to make some exceedingly fine pendants, don’t you think? Let me know which one you like best. I sell many Lake Superior Agate Pendants to Minnesotans. I expect when they see these agates, and well over 100 more Lake Superior Agate Pendants, this jewelry will make them ecstatic!

Greenstone from the Junkpile

I promised you something special on May Day, and here it is.

I have a BVD (Better View Desired) pile in my shop. Rocks that I’m just not sure of, as well as gemstones that need further time-consuming work go into that pile. Stones that are without promise go in the trash bucket, but when they don’t look real promising, I’ll give them a toss in the BVD pile. When I’m feeling patient, I pick through that pile for something to work on.

I placed several possible Greenstones in that pile a few months ago, and today I re-discovered my BVD pile under some other material. I decided to have a little fun and see what I could make out of the BVD pile.

I immediately discovered a large Greenstone that had a small patch of pattern. The rim of the Greenstone showed mostly Calcite. Experience told me that Calcite could be a good sign, or then again maybe not. Calcite often means copper in it. Some of the finest copper crystals are found embedded in Calcite.

When you have Calcite you have to be extra careful. Calcite can sometimes be fragile, and at other times it is very solid.

As I carefully proceeded into the stone, I noticed that fine Greenstone appeared just on the outer layer of the Calcite gradually appearing under the stone’s dark green crust. A beautiful unusual stone began to emerge from an ugly duckling. Greenstone is very striking on pure white Calcite, and this one has fabulous contrast. As a bonus, I noticed that the Calcite was accented with fine copper particles. I love how my close-up photo shows the copper.

Close-up detail reveals fine copper within the calcite.

This is what makes rock collecting and lapidary so satisfying–every stone has it’s own look. This one is WOW!!!

Another amazing Greenstone-I'm So lucky!

The finished Greenstone ended up being a 5.4 gram beauty, one inch tall and about 3/4 inches wide; the largest Greenstone I’ve cut in a while. I was so thrilled about this Greenstone, I wire-wrapped it right away. Gold with a bit of twisted silver was the perfect choice. The regal looking wire top is an ideal enhancement to this beautiful and scarce gemstone. The first person that saw it now owns this dream, so if you want your own greenstone, browse our pendants or cabuchons.

Celebration of Agates Jewelry

I have been working on several cabochons for the upcoming Celebration of Agates Show at Hopkins, Minnesota in July. There is a lot of buzz about this show already, and it is building up to be a well-attended and exciting event. I will be exhibiting at this special rock show, and

Amazing Royal Imperial Jasper enhanced with a Mystic Topaz.

Sea Scene Jasper. I think this is quite tranquil.

Ocean Scene Agate is quite tranquil to look at. This wonderful rock is from British Columbia.

am striving to bring some unusual agates to this show as well as many unique Lake Superior Agates and other rare stones.

Lets just have some fun and see some of the stone jewelry I have made thus far. Which is your favorite?

Chevron Amethyst

Great colors in this Kentucky Agate!

My favorite-The Lake Superior Agate in classic "Candy Stripe".

Agate/Drusy with Calcite. WOW!

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!