Category Archives: Wire wrapped jewelry

Mushroom Rhyolite/Mushroom Jasper

Several years ago I purchased an amazing Mushroom Jasper/Rhyolite slab at the Tucson Gem Shows. I was attracted by the bright orange of the matrix , and the amazing gray, Perlite “Mushrooms” floating like gardens in the Silica matrix. Much of Mushroom Jasper, if it has a matrix color, it is redish hues, and not bright orange.

Mushroom Jasper’s source is NW of Phoenix on BLM land. My sources testify that it is very difficult to cut through all the bureaucracy to even get a permit to mine for it. In general, it is a money losing proposition, digging for this Ryolite.

Mushroom Ryolite/Mushroom Jasper looks like Mushroom Gardens floating in the matrix.

As is my norm at the Tucson Shows, I shipped large flat rate boxes back to Michigan, full of goodies purchased at the shows. Try as I will I just can’t seem to organize all my rocks as I should. This Mushroom Jasper/Ryolite slab was relegated to a drawer in my slab cabinet. The Steel cabinet has about 50 or more drawers containing assorted slabs, ready to cut, shape, and polish. Long story short, this beautiful Rhyolite was covered by other slabs, and forgotten.

Rhyolite is an extrusive igneous rock formed when the magma rapidly erupted from a volcano, and is cooled rapidly on the surface, rather then cooling slowly underground. There are many forms of Rhyolite including Rain Forest Jasper, Butterfly Jasper, and Obsidian. Those mentioned are attractive, but Pumice is also a Rhyolite, and not a jewelry stone.

Ten years later, while rooting through the drawers I reconnected with the Mushroom Jasper, and immediately took it to my shop for cutting. This cutting produced one of the most amazing cabochons I’ve ever produced.

Last year I loaded some trays filled with cabs that I thought I might work on while “suffering” as a snowbird in Florida. Subsequently, I chose the Rhyolite one day, repolished it, and wrapped it in Argentium Silver.

impressive in every way with triple pulls of wire around the edges. Anyone that wears this can expect loads of complements,

Since the cab was 2 3/4″ X 1 1/2″ is a good sized cabochon, for an eye catching Pendant. After a few hours of careful wrapping, a gorgeous pendant, meticulously wrapped in Argentium Sterling was produced.

I used three times the precious metal wire I normally use for a pendant. This stone demanded the extra attention. Rhyolite is not an uncommon stone, but what I was working on, was an uncommonly attractive Mushroom Rhyolite Cabochon.

Here’s a link to the Orange Mushroom Pendant, if you’re interested.

Wire Wrapped Pendants- All New for 2021

Favosite Pendant Snob Appeal Jewelry — What should I do with this remarkable Favosites? I’ve saved this fossil for the better part of a year, awaiting inspiration. I don’t see many Favosites specimens so clear, and showing every single Polyp. I had to add some color using Swarovski bi-cone Beads. Bonnie made the matching earrings. Favosites (common name Charlevoix Stone) and Hexagonaria (common name Petoskey Stone) were both colonial Corals and were important reef builders in the Silurian and Devonian Periods (400 million years +/- ago) Favosites is an extinct Genus of Coral. The Favosites corals’ corallites had perforated walls, and shared nutrients between Polyps. I make no political statement with this piece, but it does suggest a “sharing” vibe.

In many ways we’re glad 2020 is over. In other ways 2020 has been great. Our business has been surviving despite the Pandemic. Our Loyal customers have continued to support our small business, but being semi isolated has allowed me to expand my jewelry line, produce some great pendants, rings, and many custom pieces of jewelry for a lot of people.

I made many very special pendants for the New Year of 2021. Beginning January 1st, I’ve been remarkably productive and creative. I keep cabochons in jewelry trays and pull them out as they inspire me, or are “Begging” to be wrapped. My goal for 2021 is to improve my wire wrapping and creativity. I hope you enjoy all my new things.

From a deposit 20 miles south of the Agua Nueva Ranch, in Northern Mexico, Agua Nueva Agate became very popular in the 1970’s. The Agua Nueva deposit is about 40 miles from the famous depostit of Laguna Agate. Agua Nueva Agate is famous for its’ variety of colors, eyes, and moss. This one had everything and is an impressive 2″ round. The Apple Red in this stone is pretty impressive.

Several years ago, while “rooting” through a bin of scrap slabs at Quartzsite, Arizona, I found a less than stellar looking slab. What attracted me was the red coloration. I decided to adopt the slab, and took it back home with many other homeless slabs from that “by the pound” bin.

One day I’m looking through the stuff I bought that day, and again was attracted by the unusual red in that same, large slab. I cut, ground, and polished that particular slab; working around several cracks and issues. The more I worked on it, the better it became. This was a three hour, three coffee, cabochon. That ugly duckling was transformed into a gorgeous, big, round, Agua Nueva Agate cabochon, featuring bands, tubes, moss, eyes, and still retaining the unusual red coloration. This cab had amazing character!

I took it to Florida, where it was made into my first pendant of 2021. A big, bold, beauty, wrapped in lots of shiny Argentium Sterling. The cabochon was so fantastic by itself, I felt it best to keep the wrapping precise, neat, and simple. This pendant can be worn by a man or a woman. The large 3/8″ bail can accommodate a cord or a chain. Find more agate jewelry on our Agate Treasures pages.

Another New Year’s pendant was made from a very unusual Datolite slab from the old Clark Mine near Copper Harbor. “Unusual” is an understatement. The stone features a picture of chaos. I named this pendant “Datolite Explosion” for it’s resemblance of a landscape “EXPLODING”. The Datolite has a hint of pink. This Datolite reminded me of how 2020 seemed at times. You will find our Datolite pendants are each very different.

Another 2021 Pendant is one of my now famous “Yooper Special” pendants featuring a Firebrick Upper Peninsula, and an Isle Royale Greenstone, floating on an angry Lake Superior made of Blue Lace Agate. This one is in silver with 14kt gold fill wraps. I change the metals on each piece, and the Greenstones offer up different characteristics, so each one is a little different. I’ve actually made three new Yooper Special Pendants. You can see current offerings on our Greenstone pages.

Here are several other pendants made this year.

The Pantone colors for 2021 are gray and yellow, so I made this really crazy, Crazy Lake Agate to adhere to the 2021 colors.

Just a very fine Laker was transparent, with beautiful banding .

Chevron Amethyst is always beautiful; especially when cut into a designer shape.

From the Wheeler Shale of Delta,Utah, comes Elrathia Kingii Trilobites (among many other fossils). The fossils in this Cambrian Shale are over 500 million Years old! During the Devonian Period most Trilobite Orders became extinct. I love how large and perfect some specimens are. Most have full cheeks that you do not often see in Trilobites from Morocco and other places. Trilobites actually lost their cheeks during their “Molting phase” On a whim, I wrapped this in Pink Gold and Silver. I think it turned our great!

Coprolite is petrifided feces of prehistoric animals. I’m not an expert as to if this piece of crap came from a Dinosaur, a prehistoric Tortoise, or something else, I did name this pendant “2020”; a year that was pretty crappy at times.

This Pendant is different under UV light. Sodalite-infused Granite from Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, in the top; Ruby in Fuschite from India in the bottom. The Sodalite and Ruby are Fluorescent under the UV light.

It’s difficult to take a good picture under UV light. I played around with camera settings and got some advice from my friend Johnny Gladstone. This gives you an idea what this Sodalite/Granite looks like under UV light.. Rubies are also Fluorescent, as you can see. Johnny calls these “Yooperstones”. I like to call them “Firefly Granite” Since I bartered with Johnny, I will call them Yooperstones. TRIVIA: **Rubies are actually red Sapphires!**

**Isle Royale Greenstone**; Michigan’s Official State Gem, This small pendant is very nice in both coloration and pattern.

Many have tried to duplicate the famous Victoria Stone from the early 1970’s; some of the copies are actually pretty good. No one has been able to match the colors and chatoyancy of the original. This particular color was called “Reddish Purple” and shows wonderful silky flash when moved in the light. Very rare and very coveted.

Our exclusive YOOPERLAND Pendant. Firebrick, Isle Royale Greenstone, and Mexican Blue Lace Agate. Lots of time and trouble to create, but one of our most popular original designs.

A Lake Superior Agate Pendant made from Many Striped Agates Bonnie gave me for Christmas. This one turned out great! I have lots more of similar banded beauties to work with. Lakers are my Favorite stones.

A Leland Blue Heart…Valentines day is just around the corner. Hint Hint!

Bonnie often has fun checking our multitude of buckets around the shop area. This is a Datolite she rooted our one day last summer. I immediately cut it. WOW! I’m not exactly sure what mine I discovered it at.

A close-up of the Previous Datolite, with more light on the Copper in it.

This Lake Superior Agate (also made from gifted Agates) is about dime size, and has wonderful coloration.

A small, but amazing dendritic Opalite I called “Lone Tree” for obvious reasons.

I do not believe I have ever made this many pendants, in one week, since my times at William Holland School of Lapidary Arts, many year ago. I have no idea why I have been so inspired recently, but it’s been a boon to our jewelry inventory.

Bonnie said, “Isn’t that about enough Blog Pictures?” This Blog was many hours of work, and I need sleep and/or coffee. I think 17 Pendants, so far, this month is a good start for the New Year. Only a few of these have been posted up so far. Some are going into show inventory, but if you are interested in any, let us know.

Bonnie and I sincerely wish everyone has a happy 2021. Keep us in mind if you wish to stimulate the economy by supporting our small business.

Remember; I can cut, polish, and wire-wrap your own treasured stones. Visit our Custom Work page.

Wire-wrapped Pendant–Best of 2020

Some meticulous wire artistry enhanced beautiful Keweenaw treasures.

2020 brought many challenges to all of us. For me, self-isolation brought the opportunity to focus on my craft; with more time to create some special pendants. Jewelry making takes my mind off these trying times. I always try to improve my work, even though, people say, I’m a fairly skillful and competent wire artist.

Recently a “major” pendant was created from a combination of inspiration, a dream, and the need for a challenge. If a piece of jewelry takes me several hours of total focus (with coffee breaks), over three days, that’s a “Major” pendant.

Can I pull this off? Until a multi-piece pendant is created, the answer is “Maybe”. When the project turns out as you envision it, or better in this case, I feel satisfied and worthy. I know all the mind-challenging work was worth the effort. Bonnie knows when I am in “the zone” I am so totally focused, everything except the piece of art is blacked out. The Zone was active on this work of art, for sure. She does not come near me when I’m in “the Zone”, but she knows something good will result.

Deciding on Color and Shape

Let us talk about the procedure end result, shall we? Four totally different Keweenaw rocks and Minerals were chosen for their coloration. PINK was my choice; so every piece was associated with the color pink. In my mind was projected a three-piece pendant with amazing colors, textures, and shapes; eligant in detail.

The top stone selected was a banded Lake Superior Agate, with beautiful pink waves of banding, some shadow effect. In some Lakers the banding is very fine and the bands are close together. When you move these agates in the sun or in bright light, the shadow of one band is cast on the adjacent band. Since there are many bands casting their shadows on their adjacent bands, you get a shadow effect. The agate in the pendant has some “Shadow” for sure. Lake Superior Agates, as many of you know, are my favorite Gemstones. I cut a lot of “Lakers”, but not often one with so much rich class. It just screamed for attention, and made the top tier.

The middle of the pendant is Firebrick. Firebrick formed from the Copper smelting operations in the Keweenaw. The smelters were made from brick when they were built. Over the years Copper vapors and molten copper permiated into the brick walls of the smelter and replaced all the material in the bricks except the Quartz/Silica. That is why you see small white specks in the Firebrick; the Quart resisted permeation.

The bottom stone is a stunning pink-hued Datolite from the Mesnard mine on the Quincy Hill in Handcock. The small Mesnard Datolite needed to step up in order to fight the bigger cabochons in the top. I added a pair of Isle Royale Greenstons with pink Thomsonite inclusions, making the Datolite more than equal to the other two cabochons up above it. My personal opinion (shared by others) is that there are only two true precious gemstones in Michigan, Isle Royale Greenston (Michigan’s Official State Gemstone), and Datolite.

The Michigan Quarter allows you to see the finisned size. I was very happy with my work.

The stones being selected instigated the shapes required. Datolite, Greenstone, and Lake Superior Agates can all be polished to a glass finish, but the Firebrick required a proprietary industrial Epoxy coating. This coating protcts the Firebrick from tarnishing, and adds a glass finish like the other two stones in the pendant.

Engineering the Pendant

Each of the three major parts of the pendant “swing” individually from the others. If all three were wrapped as one piece, they become very stiff and just don’t have that pizzazz required. The pendant will move with the wearer.

The top and the bottom stones are elegantly wrapped in double 14kt gold fill, while the Firebrick is enhanced by a double gold fill Pink Gold. The pink gold brings out the Copper in the Firebrick. Who says a piece of jewelry has to be one single type of precious metal?

Happy Results

Now, several hours later, the results made me smile; Bonnie approved, and this Major art work was complete. I named this pendant KEWEENAW SPLENDOR

I’m hopeful some lucky person will find this one in their stocking.

Floral Fireworks Rhodochrosite and Turquoise Pendant Jewelry Set

I sometimes actually require a challenge when making my jewelry. The opportunity of a challenge presented itself when I cut a very special translucent Rhodochrosite. I found it some years back, at the Tucson Gem Shows.

Rhodochrosite most often presents itself in a banded gemstone of widely varied color and quality resembling agate. It can have brown or white inclusions. You can find Rhodochrosite lurking all over the Tucson shows, but not many dealers have the highest grade stuff.

I seek out wonderful clear pastel pink translucent Rhodochrosite, from Argentina, without the common banding. If you do find a stash, it’s very pricey.

Over the past three days I used the cabochon I made from some of my Grade “A” Rhodochrosite as the base for a new pendant. Pendant ideas often pop into my head, many times, in the middle of the night. If pendant ideas come in a dream, I know I should get to it ASAP. Two A.M. is a wonderful quiet time to be creative.

This image shows the skilled bead work (earrings) by Bonnie. A perfect match for the pendant.

I wanted to make a three-piece pendant, but what other stones and colors look great with Rhodochrosite? Green is a go-to color when you have pink. I chose a piece of Nevada Turquoise, cut it into a more-less oval shape, and placed the two cabs on a table. What a perfect fit! Next I needed figure out the bottom section. I tried several cabochons, settled on a Mystic Topaz for the bottom. It was nice, but after a while it didn’t seem just right.

I have made thousands of pendants, and was confident something would come to me on what to do for the bottom.

Inspired in the Bead Room

Some of you know that Bonnie is a professionally trained bead artist (attended my Alma mater, The William Holland School of Lapidary Arts). She has thousands of beads in her bead room. I went there for inspiration. She had perfectly matched beads to both the Rhodochrosite and the Turquoise. She also is my strongest critic, and I generally take her criticism and suggestions seriously. She is also a fantastic gardener, and suggested I somehow incorporate these perfectly matched beads into, sort of a, garden/fireworks, floral design. She suggested a pink and green flower garden. I recall those fireworks that explode and “spray down in an umbrella shape”, sparkling as they drop.

Another few hours, and another wake up in the middle of the night, produced, what I think, was the perfect “fireworks garden”. Random bead placement insured an informal look. The pendant was finally talking to me. It told me what it wanted. The question is always; “But can I pull this off”/

The pendant is made of double gold filled wire, and twisted Argentium Sterling. The second pendant is hinged to the top so it can swing. The bottom bead strands are also hinged, and hang from the second (Turquoise) pendant and each set can also swing freely. Over the straight, swinging, bead sections, I’ve hinged in a 6-bead round circle, that also is hinged, and swings freely from all other areas. This pendant has maximum animation!

My number one critic says it’s one of my prettiest pendants ever. I like it myself; so two out of two “yes” votes.

Top: Rhodochrosite with Pyrite inclusions from Argentina. Bottom: Oppu Rhodochrosite is a rare Raspberry Rhodochrosite from Japan.

The top pendant is Actinolite, from Canada, and raspberry Oppu Rhodochrosite, from Japan. Green and pink are great complementary colors. The bottom Image is the more typical, banded, Rhodochrosite mix from Argentina.

Lone Mountain Nevada (same Turquoise as the Flora Fireworks Pendant has).

Pendants, like this, take much thought, careful planning, and many hours of careful and skillful work, but the results? FANTASTICAL!! YES, I did pull this off.

The name of my new creation “Floral Fireworks“.

Many people consider crystals found at the Sweet Home mine in Colorado many years ago to be the finest Rhodochrosite ever found. This Rhodochrosite is clear red, in crystal formation, the most valuable ever found; some specimens worth many millions of dollars. An entire 6′ pocket, from the Sweet Home was purchased by Coors and donated to the Denver Museun of Nature & Science. This is a bucket list, must see. I’ve been there, and was awestruck.

For more information see Variety in Rhodochrosite Jewelry in our Snob Blog.

Watch for more about Turquoise in an upcoming Snob Blog.

Making Socially Independant Jewelry

I’ve been ahead of the curve as it relates to this isolation. In January, I opted for an Ankle Fusion (not as much fun as it sounds). I was in three different casts in 6 weeks, than a boot for another 6 weeks, now a walking boot. During that time I could not get out and about.

This isolation allowed me to be pretty much home bound in an RV in Florida. You cannot imagine how much jewelry a person can manufacture with so much time. I took the opportunity to up my jewelry game by making not only more jewelry, but more complicated and innovative jewelry.

This blog will be things I’ve made just the past month. All are for sale, but may not be on line or in our show inventory yet. If you are interested in any of these, call or message me.

I love reaching into a vug at one of the Amethyst Mines near Thunder Bay, Ontario, and feeling the sharp points of mud-encrusted Amethyst. Careful prodding and pulling will often dislodge an excellent specimen. this one had set around for a decade in my shop, finally attracting my attention.

Condor Agates, from remote mountain areas in Argentina, are some of the most colorful agates on Earth. You have to wade through a lot of Condors to find exceptional ones. This designer cut beauty came out very nice, and sports some remarkable colors and patterns.

A couple custom rings were recently made for a couple awesome ladies. The top is a Pink Topaz, while the bottom one is Isle Royale Greenstone with assorted Copper and Silver Beads.

Yellow Cat Petrified wood is a rare limb cast wood from Grand County, Utah. Back in the day all of this material was bought up by Tiffany and made into jewelry. Parts of this wood glow green under the UV light. Small amounts at large prices are sometimes found at the major Gemshows in Tucson or Quartzsite.

I found this piece of Dinosaur Bone at the Tucson Gen Shows a few years back. I was attracted to it because of the scenic picture, and unusual Agate/D-Bone mix.

The top is an Actinolite mix from Canada, and the bottom is extremely rare Oppu Rhodochrosite from Japan. Oppu is easily recognized by its Raspberry color.

A Centennial (Mine), blue Datolite and a Silver-Copper Nugget. Centennial Datolite is very rare, and is one of the most coveted varieties of Datolite. This one has so much Copper in it that it has a beautiful pink sheen.

I found a large (2 1/2″h x 1 1/2″w) Fordite that had a wavy, gray surface. I thought to just his the high spots of the surface. WOW! How amazing is this? The rear (shown below) is also very fine.

The rear of the above Fordite. Hey; I wrapped this one so you can wear either side to the front, as your mood suggests!

Ruby in Fuchsite is a beautiful stone primarily from India. The striking combination of red Ruby and pastel green Fuchsite makes this stone very sought after.

Under a UV light, the Rubies just glow like fiery embers. Ooooh!

I love these little Silver-Copper and Silver Nuggets from Michigan’s Copper Country. They are not so easy to find since many of the waste piles at the Copper mines have been hauled away for road fill. A fun reminder of the Copper Country.

A blue, pink, and orange Petoskey Stone. It’s got a lot going on.

Chrysocolla, Azurite, and other things combine to make a stunning gemstone.

Just a really nice Pink Petoskey with a simple Unisex wrap.

Drusy (Druzy) Quartz’s are natural Quartz pockets that are sometimes dyed, sometimes treated with Titanium Vapor Depositions; sometimes both. They’s always popular and attention getting.

Chrysoprase is the most expensive member of the Quartz family. Most of the “Prase” is scarfed up by the Asian markets and is known as Australian Jade. It rivals jade in beauty, if you find a fine pure piece, like this one.

Big and bold, these Elrathia Kingii Trilobites from Utah, are in my opinion, one of the finest types of Trilobites. Most still have their “cheeks”, and make great jewelry.

Lastly a large custom pendant, I made for a special lady. The large Silver-Copper was hers, and I added a large Greenstone and a smaller nugget of silver and copper. This one was over three inches and is a real stunner.

A Snob Appeal Christmas

Happy New Year everyone.

Are you wondering what Snob Appeal Jewelry Christmas gifts were delivered by Santa this year?

In this blog I wanted to show you what some special people got for Christmas. At our house all the girls received special Abalone Shell Pendants accompanied by the singing of “It’s an Abalone Christmas” to the tune of “It’s a Holly Jolly Christmas”.

It’s an Abalone Christmas, and a great time of the year. Everybody have an Abalone Christmas; this year.

This was great fun!

New Zealand’s famous Paua Shells are arguably the most beautiful and colorful mother of pearl available. You have to wear a mask when cutting these, as the fumes they emit are very toxic. I learned the hard way a few years ago.. I discover this shell shard in the bottom of a bucket of rocks that I had no idea where they came from. A nice surprise I saved for Bonnie.

My favorite girl (aka Bonnie) did not receive an Abalone, but did get a Paua Shell pendant. I consider these beautiful shells, the Cadillac of shells becaue of their fantastic pastel colors and amazing pearlescents. I read recently that the Maori people believe they see the symbolic eyes of ancestors gazing down from the night sky.

Bonnie also got a special pendant from Santa. I have saved the stones for a few years, waiting for the right time to make it and the inspiration. Both of these stones are super special. First comes a three gram Michigan Greenstone from the Phoenix Mine with a fantastic pattern, and second, probably the most fantastically colored yellow Keweenaw Point Datolite, I’ve ever seen. When you say “Canary Yellow”, this one exceeds that description. The best “Points” are found by diving off the tip of the Keweenaw.

WOW! The jewelry makers’s wife owns this beauty.

The pendant is a two-piece unit where the bottom swings from the top. The wrapping was a challenge, but the results were worth it. My jewelry model loved it, and it was one of the first Christmas gift jewelry pieces that was a real surprise for her.

Since we offer the best Michigan Chlorastrolite Greenstones on the web, we sell many of them. Here are some pictures of a few pendants that are being worn by customers wives and girlfriends.

It seems that the Gemstone pendants chosen were very diverse this year. Here are a few of those. We have heard from several happy gifters and giftees.

First, here’s a new 2020 pendant for sale, Remarkable Couple, just off the workbench. A Blue Datolite from the Isle Royale Mine. The Isle Royale cosisted of 14 shafts located in Houghton County (top of the hill past the present day Walmart). Most people associate blue Datolite with the Centennial Mine, but there were other mines that also had blue. This Datolite made friends with a nice North Shore Thomsonite.

This was a wierd Fordite that I was inspired to do some creating cutting and wrapping on. A Century Boat Paint from Manistee, I refered to this one as “The Alien”. A whimsical favorite around here, it became a Christmas gift to a lucky lady.

A pair representing many Greenstones sold this year as Christmas gifts. The left one is one I found at the Central mine years ago, and the right one is boitrioidal and filled with copper. I’m not sure where I found this one; but both have happy new homes. WOW!

Teepee Canyon Agates are close relatives of Fairburn Agates. Arguably they are Fairbun Agates that are still in their matrix. Some old ones I’ve had sported Amethyst, but the nice ones look like this. Someone is now wearing this gift that Santa delivered.

I hope you enjoyed this review of some of the Snob Appeal Jewelry Christmas gifts that went out this year. Didn’t get your favorite? Start shopping now!

Turkish Stick Agate: One Stone-Different Looks

My next cab is ready to be cut.

Turkish Stick Agate is an interesting pseudomorph agate, from Turkey with a variety of intriguing patterns and colors. The Turkish Stick Agates come in different types. A distinguishing characteristic of Turkish Stick Agates is needle-like tubes, forming what looks like pointy, sharp sticks within the stone, so it can be referred to as Needle Agate.

Experienced rock collectors will have in their mind what a certain agate looks like or what represents a body of agates with that name. When I say Lake Superior Agate for most people a red and white banded agate might appear in their mind, but we know that there are many types of Lakers.

When we say Stick Agate you might expect needlelike structures in a clear quartz agate, but there are many types of Turkish Stick Agate even from the same mines. I thought you would enjoy seeing these samples which are quite different. You can see another very nice piece at mindat.org.

Just a little aside folks.This brings up an important question; Can you poke your eye out with a Stick Agate? My mother had four boys and unlike kids today, we played OUTSIDE a lot. It was not uncommon for her to yell at us for doing dumb things. ” Don’t run with that stick; you could poke your eye out”. As I have grown up (maybe) I came to realize it was impossible to “poke your eye out” while running with a stick. You can only poke your eye IN. The only way you can poke your eye OUT is to stick the stick up your nose and then you could theoretically “poke your eye out”. Now back to our regular program…

The most characteristic form of Turkish Stick Agate shows needle-like patterns.

Turkish Stick Agate with banding and shadow effect

This one sports fortification banding showing some Parallax (shadow effect) and tubes.

Turkish Stick Agate with tubes and banding

Tubes and banding as well as beautiful colors make this a Turkish Stick Agate with no sticks!

High quality Turkish Stick Agate is quite expensive in the rough, and every time I’ve tried to get a break on it, Turkish miners, at the Tucson shows, decline to give much, claiming how difficult it is to find and mine. Much of this material comes from mines near Ankara, Turkey. Actually the good stuff comes from Cubuk, Turkey; but who knows where Cubuk is? (Central Turkey: I looked on a map)

Quality depends on how solid a particular Stick Agate is. Most Turkish Stick Agate has geodes with gaps, or vugs, and also can vary in hardness within a stone.

I find it intriguing that such variety can come from the one source. I am not an expert on Turkish Stick Agate, but I do know it is very beautiful. I guess that’s why I make jewelry from it.

I lied; When I did a search on Turkish Stick Agate, I came up as one of the experts. This has often happen. Bonnie (wife) says it’s because I’ve written so many blogs over the past 10 years. I guess I could say I’m a pseudomorph of knowledge on many subjects.

This agate has only become known in the United States within the last 20 years, and is not commonly available. Usually there is a Youtube video on everything, but there seems to be no video of actual mining Turkish Stick Agate.

In this blog I show three pieces of jewelry I made from expensive rough I bought a couple years ago in Tucson from the Non-negotiable (price) dealer.

Can you poke your eye out with a Turkish Stick Agate? Like a stick, the answer is probably “NO”, unless you take a small, sharp shard and shove it way up your nose. If you ever try this experiment, make sure your camera is recording it. I’m betting you could go viral; until Youtube pulls it off.

*pseudomorph

1: a mineral having the characteristic outward form of another species:

Good examples in the mineral world happen quite often in replacement fossils, where minerals replace, for example, wood; they often look like wood, with patterns, bark, and even knot holes. Another good example is petrified dinosaur bone where you can see every cell (each cell is actually an individual agate).

2: a deceptive or irregular form

In. The “sticks” in Turkish Stick Agates were originally Aragonite Crystals but they were replaced by Silica. The sticks still look like Aragonite, but they are not. Pseudomorphs are common in many Agates, but that is a whole other subject.

3: Don Reed

Don Reed, according to the Internet (and we should always believe the Internet), is one of THE experts on Turkish Stick Agates. Don Reed appears to be something he is really not. This may not be true, or perhaps it is…..Like the Internet; Don Reed would never intentionally deceive you.

Pseudomorph of Don Reed in Crystal Quartz from Brazil.

If this craziness is of interest to you, you should also read our embarrassing story about a missing chunk of this Turkish Stick Agate.

Visit our Turkish Stick Agate jewelry page for currently available pieces.

New Wire-Wrapped Pendants

Winter has been very productive at Snob Appeal Jewelry. Many beautiful stones that have been patiently waiting for their turn to become wire-wrapped pendants called out to me, and have finally turned up on the workbench.

I’m like a dog that sees a squirrel; I pick out a stone that grabs me, then I might decide not to chase it, and grab something else. All my stones beg, plea, and whine; they tease me, and all of them want to be elevated to the pendant level. The ones that whine the loudest are the “Chosen”. The pendants in this blog were all whiners; can you hear them. Let me know which ones are whining loudest for you.

There will be no rhyme or reason for the pictures in this blog, except they are all new. Many Michigan gemstones are mixed in with assorted worldwide stones. Most have not been listed for sale on the website. Contact us it you have an inquiry. Many will go to our show inventory or are scheduled for shipment to a retail outlet.

I have also been playing around with new ways to wrap gemstones, but still keeping with my policy of never distracting from a fine gemstone by using a lot of fancy doodah and froohaw, what I call it when people run wires all over the place. I do classical wire wrapping that enhances the stones. I spend too much time cutting rare and unusual stones to cover them up with a bunch of wire. Most customers appreciate my clean, neat, style.

So, without further rants, here is some of my recent favorites (AKA the sucessful whiners).

Sometimes it pays to look through old buckets. I recall digging this Chrysocolla with Copper from the Old mine dump at the Bumbletown Mine, maybe 15 years ago. Digging is not as good as it once was, but there are still a few pockets of nice Chrysocolla in the Keweenaw, The brown matrix gives this away as Bumbletown material.

Shattukite set. These from Bisbee, Arizona.

If a Lake Superior Agate Island appears in a Laker, it’s refer to as a “Floater”. Here’s a fine Floater I cut and wrapped.

A happy Trilobite couple..I really enjoy the challenge of wrapping these odd shapes. Elrathia Kingii from Utah. Most trilobites you see are missing their cheeks; these beauties are perfect specimens.

Drusy are natural Quartz Pockets that are treated in different ways. The customers like ’em so I make ’em!

Rainbow Obsidian Starfish has been sitting for a few years. It needed to be done.

A carved Ametrine, about nickel size turned out pretty nice.

Thomsonite; one of my favorites.

A composite Turquoise with Copper inclusions.

A very special piece of Gembone. Red is one of the most popular colors. Each cell is an individual agate. Dinosaur Bone; I love it!

Greenstone pendant with greenstone beads

An atypical Greenstone with Greenstone beads on top. I just wanted to be whimsical.

Some people call Owyhee Picture Jasper the king of Picture Jasper. A really good piece (like this one), is so realistic. Found a slab in my shop; Where did this come from? Doesn’t matter if I smiled. From the Owthee Mountains on the Idaho/Oregon border.

Thomsonite form Superior’s North Shore. Big perfect pieces like this are very scarce.

Perfect Morenci Turquoise.

New Bestselling Stone Pendants

Blue Lace Agate is popular because it can be worn with almost anything, and has unusual pastel coloring. I felt compelled to fancy the bail up a bit.

After the frenzy of Christmas comes the chance to start on new pieces and replenish our bestselling stone pendants. I don’t know what happened in January, but I made a lot of jewelry! This blog will be fairly simple. I will just show you some of the newest pendants and earrings.

The Great Lake stones are always most popular, so you will see Lake Superior Agate, Isle Royale Greenstone, Copper Agate, Datolite, and Firebrick. Opal, Rhodochrosite, Blue Lace Agate, Charoite, and Petrified Wood are also eye-catching and beloved. Two of these you will find offered in our newest category, Jewelry Sets. A surprise pair of stones I found in Tucson last year caught my eye again, Rainbow Obsidian hearts, so I did one in silver and the other in gold. And of course, people love Druzy!

Picture Petrified Wood from Holbrook, Arizona. I am fascinated by this stuff. Unless you knew it was Petrified Wood, you would probably not guess it is.

I made this gorgeous Rhodochrosite set to replace a set purchased as a Christmas gift. Beautiful color and gem quality came together nicely. They look like pink candy.

The back side of the Copper Included Agate found in the Kearsarge Lode in Michigan’s Copper Country. Many Copper Agates are ugly on the back (which is actually the outside of the nodule, as found by the miner.)

The front side of a Copper Agate. You can see the bands of Copper that replaced some of the agate banding. This one has Copper Eyes. I focused a light on the front face. The copper popped and the cleat Quartz reflected the green back wall of the nodule. Without the light reflecting the face is mostly white.

Like the old song about Friends, “one is silver and the other gold”.

I made a pair of Rainbow Obsidian Hearts thinking someone would like one for Valentine’s Day. If you could see them in the sun you would see the pendants “pop”.

Kingman Turquoise is from one of the oldest Arizona Turquoise Mines. Native Americans historically mined Turquoise from this location long before the white man appeared.

My favorite Gemstones are Lake Superior Agates; a flawless Lake Superior Agate with perfect, varied, pastel color banding.

Kentucky Agate with coveted red, black, and yellow bands

Firebrick happened when vapors and molten Copper replaced much of the brick in the walls of the Copper Smelter. The Silica was impervious to the hot Copper and remains as small white grains in the Firebrick. This pendant was challenging to make in many ways.

A tiny Greenstone from Isle Royale (this is about as small as I can wire wrap.) This is a perfect choice for the person who wants to put it on and wear it 24/7.

The sizzle of Fire Agate amazes me.

I’ve wrapped many new Greenstone Pendants in preparation for summer sales, and Bonnie has had me working on earrings. Earrings are not my favorite projects for a couple reasons. First; they take as much time to make as two pendants and second; They are small and require that they be exactly like each other, but a butterfly image of each other. Buyers also think that earrings should be less expensive because they are smaller than pendants. This should not be the case at all, as they are smaller, and require more detailed work both in cutting and wrapping. Hear me grumble?

When making pendant/earring sets, they more often require making the cabochons and earrings from the same stone. You can never, for example, match a set of Lake Superior Agate earrings to a Lake Superior Agate Pendant, unless they are from the same stone. No two Lake Superior Agates are alike.

We have hundreds of pendants and earrings, both on line, and in our Show Inventory. So if, for example, you prefer a silver wire pendant, and you only see a gold pendant on line, give us a call. We might have something in our off-line inventory. Remember we can custom wrap something for you in a stone of your choice. We have many thousands of stones and cabochons; we specialize in Great Lakes Rocks and Minerals.

Drusy Quartz is a natural Quartz pocket. In some cases these pockets are dyed or treated using Titanium Vapors.

A very fine Dinosaur Bone. Red is always a popular color for jewelry.

From the Keweenaw Peninsula, Datolite with copper and other inclusions.

Charoite from Russia is always beautiful, but you will seldom see this stone with a landscaped picture, such as this has.

A Neon Blue Cooper Peby Opal doublet. A picture does not do this justice, but I did the best I could. Bling!

Gorgeous South African Pietersite. A beautiful landscape that the picture nowhere near does justice to.

Transparent Coyamito Agate from Mexico make charming earrings.

Wear Stone Jewelry Sets!

Our very first regular customer always wanted me to make wire-wrapped earrings to go with her pendants. She was a good friend, so of course I had to do stone jewelry sets for her, but I hate making earrings. You might not know it, but a small stone is MUCH harder to wire wrap than a larger stone, so the very nature of earrings is troublesome right from the beginning, and I avoid it unless someone pesters me into making stone jewelry sets for them. But I am a married man, and do have someone to tell me what to make, and sometimes I even listen.

You may have noticed the many recently added products at www.snobappealjewelry.com, and Bonnie has pestered me into offering you matched wire-wrapped pendant and earring sets, and she added a new category in our Pendant section entitled Stone Jewelry Sets so you can see them all in one spot instead of scattered under different stone names.

To make a matching stone jewelry set you have to start with a big enough stone that has good pattern to it, so lots of stone are unsuitable. Part of the fun in the lapidary shop is trying to see what you can get out of a piece of rock.

We’ve had many customers ask about Pendant and Earring sets, we decided to give you an easier way to locate them. So check out our new button. Which set do you like best?