Tag Archives: Thomsonite

Great Lakes Gemstone Pendant on Steroids

It isn’t often that a write a blog about one pendant, but I had to do it with this one.

Extravagant Greenstone Pendant with ten Greenstones plus two Thomsonites — A challenging pendant yet to be named. My two suggestions are “Extravagant Wire Whimsy” or “Don’s Wrestling Match”. Since I’ve already sold it, I told the new owner, she could name it.

Sometimes when wire-wrapping, things happen that you wish had not happened, and you end up going in a totally new direction. This is how I made a Great Lakes Gemstone Pendant on Steroids, and it started by an accident.

It was a heartbreaking moment. While creating a really nice Blue Datolite Pendant a week ago, during the final setting, the top of this rare gem fractured. I am capable of reworking a stone, but I decided, as a challenge, to use the wire frame; adapt it, so to speak, to make another totally different pendant.

The decision to change tracks in the middle of the race, was spurred by thrift, I didn’t want to waste the wire frame I had just built! I looked through a couple trays of Great Lakes Cabochons, and plucked out an amazing dark-eyed Thomsonite that fit well in the bottom of the original wire bundle, but it wasn’t nearly as big as the Datolite I had started with. So I paired this with both a slender Isle Royale Greenstone, and a very unusual Green and dark pink Prehnite. Wow, now I had the challenge I was looking for. How do you securely fit three Great Lakes stones in a space designed for one?

Fortunately, Bonnie (my wife), was not around for all the expletives, as I wrestled to re-shape this wire frame to accommodate new stones. There was much bending, pushing and pulling involved . Most of you do not wire wrap, so I have to explain that it is a finesse skill. Precious metal wire will harden as you work with it, and eventually, if you work it too much, will get brittle and break. After a couple decades of wire wrapping, I generally get a feel for when the wire will break. I HATE when this happens–it means you have wasted wire and time. You have to start all over again. I have to admit, the wire (and myself), were right on the edge of breaking.

close up of Calcite with copper in Greenstone — Notice the Copper included Calcite in the bottom of the long Greenstone.

The pendant took large quantities of coffee over three days, to get it right. I finished the original cage for the stones, but the pendant lacked balance. This is an artistic term that means that it looked “not right”. Not quite that it looked like crap, but something else was needed.

How about some Greenstone beads? Now that would be decadent, wouldn’t it? I strung 8 tiny Greenstone beads along on edge. After this more messing around took place. How do I fit this stone in, how do I attach this all together, that doesn’t look just right, this needs to be fit in and so on. Finally I added a Thomsonite Bead on the top. NAILED IT!! I just know when things have melded.

Extravagant Greenstone Pendant by Snob Appeal Jewelry — Thomsonite, Prehnite, Greenstone

Bonnie liked it also. If it passes the “Bonnie inspection” all is good. She may say “it’s nice” and bring me a cup of coffee, I feel worthy when she does this.

back side of wire pendant — I REALLY liked the rear of this pendant. Doesn’t it look like an abstract art project?.

One of my favorite parts of this pendant, is the back. The wire design on the back, accidentally; No wait; purposely came out amazing. Usually when we sell a pendant, the buyer will examine the front AND the back. I can’t wait for someone to carefully look at the back of this pendant.

When I finish a new pendant, and it passes the Bonnie quality control inspection, I always say that I “Got Lucky Again”. I think I got lucky on this crazy Great Lakes Gemstone on Steroids!

Visit our jewelry pages to see current selections:

Great Lakes Pendants

Greenstones

Thomsonite Pendants

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.

Making Custom Great Lakes Stone Jewelry

Among our Great Lakes stone jewelry pieces, every year one or two pendants stand out as very special. One extraordinary stone pendant this year was a triple segmented pendant of three semiprecious gemstones from the Great Lakes area. A gorgeous Minnesota Thomsonite, a Keweenaw silver nugget, and a copper-filled Keweenaw Datolite show off the great influence of metals in stone through this fancy piece. The photo does not do it justice. In person, it shines in many directions and swings freely, and the pinks in the top and bottom complement each other.

This special piece was custom made for a most discriminating customer. Annually she searches through my inventory to find my best new pendants. Also she picks out stones that fit her bold and eclectic tastes, offering design challenges in the late summer and allowing me to create something very special over the winter months. She is an advocate of Michigan artists as well as loving Michigan stones and the great jewelry that can come from Great Lakes stones.

Great Lakes Stone Jewelry

You can see that the size of this pendant is big and bold; this one is around five inches in length. The silver nugget was most likely picked from a mine ore crusher many years ago somewhere in the Keweenaw Peninsula. The Thomsonite was an inch tall and even wider, and dug in Grand Marais Minnesota years ago before the famous Thomsonite site was filled and and a park was created. The Datolite with loads of copper inclusions, was located on the Delaware Mine waste piles, making the entire pendant from places no longer existing. Most of these stones I’ve had for many, many years.

In order to make these large, multi-stone pendants, I think freedom or movement in the pendant is vitally important for comfortable wearing. When sitting, the pendant conforms to the different body positions.

Next year’s Extraordinary Pendant is being designed and, to be honest, I do not yet have the perfect stones. I’ve been feverishly searching my stash. I am not satisfied yet.

Recently I have created several custom pieces for other customers, and I can create one for you. I’ll work with your stones or mine. Christmas is approaching fast. Please think of us for your gifting needs.

Here are a couple custom pieces I’ve recently done from customer stones.

From one jasper a customer found on a romantic getaway. I love these nostalgic pieces.

A beautifully, customer cut CZ. It was a big faceted stone. The wire wrap challenge was matching the carefully calibrated stone with the wraps. The flowing design in the top directed the eye down into the stone. Michael’s wife will wear this on a romantic cruise in the near future.

You can see earlier examples of our Custom Work.

See a recent bridal set at Custom Rock Cutting,Lapidary and Wire Jewelry, Created Just for You!

Why is Don so busy?

The first day of the month came and went and I failed to post a new blog! I apologize for my tardiness, but it’s been unbelievably busy around the shop.

One of my projects was this new Secret Gem-Extracting Set-up, shared with you here for the very first time. Many Michigan Greenstone matrix rocks were hammered here in the last month. Some other folks even tested this slick set-up.

This is my Redneck Gem Extracting Device. Comprised of an old, bent Cadillac Wheel, a Granite Table Top, a Cheap Chair, a leveling “system” for the chair, and some broken patio blocks so the cheap chair doesn’t sink into the porous ground.

A Greenstone-Infested Rock to break.

Here’s one I got!

Another project involves getting ready for our move to the Southwest for the winter–getting lapidary equipment and stones aboard the RV. Bonnie says I have to “limit” what I take to make jewelry from, but it’s hard to chose. The new bead drilling machine requires tumble polished rocks to drill, and I loaded up 50# of beautiful Lake Superior Agates, 25# of Isle Royale Greenstone (Chlorastrolite), 5# of gorgeous, old stock, polished Thomsonite pebbles, and of course, some small polished Petoskey Stones. The Petoskeys will be easy to drill, and the others all have different challenges. I’ve never used the new bead driller, so there will be a learning curve.

I have a rock tumbling system that runs three 12# barrels of stone at one time, but still it has taken me three months to get these little beauties ready for drilling.

Finished, ready to drill.

Are these Thomsonite great, or what?

Screen and rinse before polish. The secret here is to take your time and make sure ALL the grit is off the stones before they are polished.

Finished polish on these Greenstone, sort out the non-Greenstone stuff and I’m good to go.

The custom Christmas orders are appearing in the mailbox, as well as customers purchasing Greenstone cabochons for their jewelers to make jewelry for them. The very old stock Greenstones actually from Isle Royale see popular lately..Bonnie is working on posting several more shortly.

I’ve created several fine Greenstone jewelry pieces for customers, but it is my policy not to post pictures of these until after they are gifted.

This month I’ll just show you my work of the past few months in preparation for winter bead drilling. Some of the Greenstone cabs I’m showing will be on the website soon, or you can call or E-Mail, and I’ll flag the stone for you.

It’s great to keep busy, but there are days when I’m just too busy. I think right now my head is still above water, and I hope it continues. Wish me luck.

Owyhee Picture Jasper and other Great Lakes Gemstones

Can you guess why I called this pendant “Sleeping Bear”

North Shore Thomsonite

Now that the Tucson shows are done, the jewelry creation process is moving forward. Over the past week I’ve made several pieces of jewelry, especially Michigan stones, from Lake Superior Agates, Datolites, Dark-eyed Thomsonite, and a really special and amazing Laker pendant.

Yellow Snow-don’t eat it. I did not enhance the color in this at all.

Sugar and stripes.

This is why Lake Superior Agates are my favorite gemstones. This one is “Stripes in Stripes”

I love these. I called this “The Red Continent”.

I have had this particular Laker slab that shows the classic Laker reds, but also Citrine. When you find the reds and the yellows together it is surprising and fantastic!

Even I was amazed. This one is called “Lady Luck”, a unisex piece of jewelry. I test wore it and won a fifty-fifty drawing. Do you need some luck?

A really odd Waterlevel Laker with a lot going on. It is not named yet.

Other Lakers I made into pendants are so very unusual with the banded Laker floating in Sugar Quartz or with the more common sugar Quartz surrounded by the colorful laker.

Peachy-pink Mesnard Datolite.

A Yellow Quincy-Outstanding!

Colorful Datolite is always a winner, and a gorgeous Peach from Mesnard, and a Quincy Yellow are new pieces. Really nice colored Datolite is getting very hard to find. The old piles are held by private interests (not allowing hunting for liability reasons), or crushed and hauled for road fill. Any colorful Datolite demands premium prices. I’ve been advising people to buy Datolite Jewelry now, if they like it. Old stocks of Datolite are being used up.

Greenstone-Central Ex pile (when there was a pile)

Just for variety I did a North Shore Thomsonite, which is another beautiful stone from the Lake Superior Region, especially Minnesota and the Keweenaw Peninsula.

Amongst all these Michigan gemstones, why did I feature a western Owyhee Picture Jasper? Well, when we saw it at a show, it looked so much like a picture of a Michigan lakeshore. If you have ever visited Sleeping Bear National Lakeshore, you will recognize the resemblance to this beautiful Owyhee Picture Jasper. Welcome to my creative world!

Thomsonite Smiles

Apologies for the logo over the picture, but this is the type of picture that if I did not do this, it would be stolen and posted in unauthorized web locations.

I have been putting some time in recent weeks wading through a stash of Thomsonite from the North Shore. I purchased a collection from an estate that was collected back in the mid-60’s in the old diggings near Grand Marais, Minnesota. This was all gem grade material, much of it the most coveted dark eyed variety, as well as lovely pieces of Pastel Thomsonite.

Thomsonite belongs to a group of minerals called Zeolites. This group of Minerals contains the popular gemstone, Tanzanite. The biggest use for Zeolites is in laundry detergents, but these Alumino-Silicates have 40 natural occurring frameworks and many more synthetic frameworks. These varied frameworks allow Zeolites to have many uses and applications. The Thomsonite Framework is of interest to Lapidary types and jewelry makers, for it includes the beautiful chatoyant Gemstone everyone seems to love.

This dark Thomsonite indicates a mixture of Zeolites and possibly other things.

This dark Thomsonite is so unusual. It resembles an agate, but the material is not Silica. Indicating a mixture of Zeolites, and possibly other things.

Thomsonites (and other Zeolites) often mix together, forming striking and unusual patterns and colors. The Thomsonites from the North Shore of Lake Superior and the Thomsonites from the Keweenaw Peninsula of Michigan, seem to often co-mingle with other Thomsonites and minerals. It is possible to see Copper, Natrolite, Mesolite, Calcite, and many other mixes in Thomsonite.

Sometimes Prehnite resembles Thomsonite or Ocean Jasper. This is why you have to know where you found it.

A form of Zeolite known as Mesolite, and closely related to natrolite (another Zeolite) often has a “feathery” appearance; hence, I call this “feathery Thomsonite”. Because I am not that picky on exact material a Zeolite has in it, I still, in my jewelry, say these are Thomsonites, even though they may be another Zeolite (or mixture thereof). Most of my jewelry buyers could care less about the exact make-up of a Thomsonite-like Zeolite. Some people prefer feathers over eyes in their Zeolites! Sort of like some prefer dark Turkey over White Meat.

I do not find fault in my friends that say something may be more Mesolite than Thomsonite, but I just call any eyed or feathery Zeolite, Thomsonite. If customers are interested in the details, or what exactly I think is in a Thomsonite, I can expound on that for them.

This could really fool someone into believing this is Thomsonite, when it is actually Prehnite (AKA U.P. Thomsonite)

Proof that beauty comes in a small package. What a great Thomsonite.

The pattern, variety, coloration, and inclusions are vast in Thomsonite. It’s common to hear people comment on the unusual nature of the Thomsonites we set into our pendants. Often, customers are surprised at the prices quality Thomsonite demands. The reality with Thomsonite is the same with many other gemstones. The highest quality demands higher prices. Thomsonite lovers understand this reality.

If Thomsonite “pollutes’ Isle Royale Greenstone, it increases the value of the Greenstone. Everyone seems to want one of these amazing mixes that often look like pink flowers among green foliage.

Some minerals and rocks resemble, and are therefore sometimes mistaken for Thomsonites. One common “fooler” mineral is Prehnite. Prehnite is sometimes found in the same vicinity as Thomsonite making identification more confusing. Just because a stone has “eyes” is no guarantee you have a Thomsonite.

Feathery, variegated, eyed Prehnite was originally thought to be Thomsonite until it was tested by Michigan Tech and found to be Prehnite. Locals often refer to Prehnite as “U.P. Thomsonite“.

Copper sometimes appears in Thomsonite. This is a beautiful pastel Thomsonite with Copper Inclusions

Thomsonite is not closely associated with Copper, but Prehnite is. Much of the Prehnite found in the Keweenaw has Copper inclusions in it, and indeed pink Prehnite’s coloration is caused by microscopic copper particles. Prehnite saturated with micro copper is commonly referred to as Patricianite.

To finish this blog I’m going to tell you a recent Thomsonite Story. Many of you know my retail outlet for Snob Appeal Jewelry, in the Upper Peninsula, is Copper World in Calumet. I am proud to have CW represent my jewelry. Tony and Tim Bausano are experts in the rocks, minerals, and gemstones of the Great Lakes, and represent and present my jewelry very well. Plus, they are fun!

Many Copper World customers, and in particular, one lovely, bubbly, lady from Lima, Peru, love my jewelry. She came into Copper World on her weekly visit and spotted a beautiful dark-eyed Thomsonite, but had to check with her husband (who teaches at Michigan Tech) before investing in this nice piece. Unfortunately, when she returned a couple days later, her choice selection had been sold. She was so disappointed, but heard that I would be up doing in-store demos the next weekend. This gave her great hope of finding a suitable replacement.

I was doing in-store demonstrations on a Saturday and Sunday, and had already been alerted by Tim of the Thomsonite tale. She entered the store Saturday on a refreshing breeze; so happy and full of life. After careful consideration, a gorgeous, new dark-eyed Thomsonite cabochon was chosen.

We talked about her vision for the piece, and metal choices were made. She seemed surprised and delighted when I told her I knew exactly what she was looking for. I guaranteed she would like her new pendant, or I would make her another one. I just felt I needed to match her bubbly outlook, but also design an elegant, yet simple piece of jewelry that matched her joyful personality and obviously discriminating tastes.

Here’s the Pendant that got me some hugs.

I got to work on her pendant, and had it done by closing on Saturday. Sunday she bubbled in, and when I showed her the pendant, she was so delighted, I got a big hug. She danced around the store in a state of pure ecstasy. She gave me another me another hug; gave Tim a hug, gave me a hug, and I really expected her to run outside and start hugging random people on the sidewalk. I can’t say I’ve ever seen anyone so eternally blissful.

She spoke with a fairly pronounced accent, and I could not understand everything she was saying while in this state of glee, but it was obvious she was in another plane of enjoyment. Customers generally appreciate my Pendants, but this was at another level entirely. She really made my day, and many other people in the store were also smiling. I ask Tim if she was always like this, and he replied that, yes, this was her normal state. “Sometimes she’s even worse”, he said, smiling. I can’t even imagine her being more hyped.

When she left on the same, fresh breeze she came in on, I walked across the street to a coffee shop. I needed coffee after this encounter; even though any amount of caffeine would not put me in a mood even approaching what I had just witnessed. Guess what? She was in the coffee shop showing everyone her new pendant and just gushing about how delighted she was. “Oh”, she said, smiling “here’s the artist”, as she saw me smiling and standing in line behind her. The owner came over later and bought a Turquoise pendant. Someone, like this vivacious lady will sell more of my jewelry than any amount of advertising I could ever buy.

She already possesses a few pieces of my jewelry, and this piece augmented her collection nicely. I’m sure I Copper World, and I, have long time habitué.

My days of making jewelry are not always as eventful and delightful as this one Saturday was in Calumet, but it’s days like this that convince me I just may be doing something worthwhile in my life!

Thanks for reading my blog. If you like my story, please share with your friends!

A Combined Effort Produces a Fantastic Thomsonite Pendant

Sue, A longtime patron of our jewelry, brought me a Thomsonite brooch that had been in her collection for many years. She wondered if I could convert it to a pendant.

This was, arguably, the finest North Shore Thomsonite I’d ever seen. I thought I could just cut off the clip, wrap it with a prong set, and be done with it. The more I looked at the vintage brooch, the more I thought it demanded a rework by a goldsmith rather than a wire wrap by me. Sure, I could have wrapped it; took her money and ran; but I felt the character of the historic piece deserved a stately simple solution.

Fate showed itself at our next Rock Club meeting, when I won the door prize; a custom made pendant by one of the club’s master silversmith’s Ken Schug. I told Ken that I probably did not need one of his pendants (we laughed together over my win), but told him I had a project for him. He agreed to a pin removal from the brooch. I no longer have the delicate tools needed for this removal. Although I am a trained Silversmith myself, I gave it up for wire wrapping and sold my Silversmith tools years ago.

Let me talk about what I found out about the brooch. First it was 18kt gold and custom made. Unbelievably meticulous effort was used by the master Goldsmith that produced it (probably in the 60’s), used small grey seed pearls, that were prong set and glued surrounding the oval Thomsonite cabochon. Because of the pearls, we could not use a torch for soldering the piece. A Laser for soldering was required, as lasers produce little or no heat.

Rear view.

After Ken removed the pin and associated brackets from the brooch, I went to Korner Gem in Traverse City. Korner Gem is owned by my pal Kevin Gauthier. We refer customers to each other regularly. I traded the gold left over, for a new bail; soldered to the former Brooch Mike (one of the Goldsmiths’ at Korner Gem), soldered a bail on, using his laser. I payed for the time taken, and some laser time, but the price was much less than if I had not had a this trade of gold.

I took the pendant with me the next time I went to the Upper Peninsula, and Sue came and picked it up when I was doing jewelry demonstrations at Copper World in Calumet. She was very pleased.

The pendant turned out fantastic, and you could not tell that this was a conversion. I enjoy the camaraderie of jewelry making networks, rock club buddies, and appreciate skillful work from others. My customer was delighted, and even though I was only the director of this work, I too was very pleased. Because of good fortune, and having skillful friends, I was able to provide Sue with something new from her something old.

You can see Thomsonites that I have wire wrapped by clicking here.

We Love Rock Shows

Don’t you just love a good rock show? It is a whole lot easier just to visit a rock show than to actually participate in one, but we love doing them.

Whether it be a major show like Tucson or Quartzsite, or just a small local rock club show; we love them all.

Our local club is the Grand Traverse Area Rock and Mineral Club (GTARMC) and serves a really large area. Recently we participated in our club’s rock show. We always enjoy the camaraderie of fellow rockhounds, but this year it was a bit different. In the past we have had our shows at the Traverse City History Center where we had been meeting. Recent events challenged our club when the History Center was taken over by the Crooked Tree Arts Council and we were pretty much restricted to one small space in the building’s basement where our Club’s shop is located. Meetings are now at the Traverse City District Library.

We were also excluded from having our annual club show at that venue and moved it to the Travserse City Civic Center. Though this caused some anxiety for various club members (my wife for example) it turned out to be one of the best moves we ever made. The History Center is substantially off the beaten path, while the Civic Center is right on a main thoroughfare. People driving by saw the signs and just dropped in. Consequently we saw uncounted newcomers as well as the normal rock geeks. It was a great opportunity to talk up our hobby and love.

I can only assume that attendance doubled or tripled. There was no slack all weekend as the crowds packed in. The vendor sales, including ours, were all up, the children’s area was busy, and the people were excited. Sometimes changes are good, and sometimes, like this move, the changes were great.

Our neighbor, and fellow club member, Jeff Anderson kept busy “cracking eggs” for kids and adults alike. It’s always a mystery what might be lurking inside those geodes. We got the chance to watch the excitement. Whenever a good one would “pop” open, six more people wanted to try their own geode. Fun, fun, fun!

We are used to what we call “slobbering” over our jewelry. I make a joke of saying I wipe the drool off the top of the cases all day. I do have to keep the fingerprints off them, and little fingerprints and nose prints off the fronts of the cases from small excited kids. They love the shiny jewelry, and I see future customers as their parents shop and gush over our stuff.

I looked down on one occasion and saw a young girl and her brother with their lips and fingers all over the cases. This is one of the reasons, besides security and lighting, we have our stuff under glass! I snatched up my camera and took a couple of pictures of these kids as they did actually did drool on the cases. I did not realize just what great and funny shots I had until I got home and downloaded them. I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves. The nearly 200 views, likes, and comments were priceless when I posted the pictures up on the Rockhound Group I belong to.

Comments like “Snot Funny”, “Nosy Kids”, “he’s digging something petrified”, and something about “easier to pick one out” made me, and others, crack up. Someone accused me of staging this picture–until I proved it was no set-up by posting the second picture.

Fortunately you cannot tell who these kids are. I can only imagine how much fun it would be later in life it would be when they got married, and showed this picture in one of those wedding slide shows.

As soon as they left, believe me folks, I was on cleaning detail.

There was no rhyme or reason, and no theme for what we sold at this show. Everything from Greenstones to Druzy‘s were making people happy. As a special thanks for my Snob Blog readers, I am posting up a few new show pieces that did not sell. If you are interested, you can call right away. These pieces are not on line and are shown not only at Art Shows, and when I do Jewelry making demos. Remember, Christmas is coming. Get your gifts early for best selections.

Here are a couple Thomsonite’s and a new Greenstone for your viewing pleasure.

Just because you don’t see something on out Website, does not mean we do not have it. The depth and variety of our products is amazing. Please call and ask. If I have the time I can custom make the jewelry dream you have.

Thomsonite Dreams

Even though you may see what appears to be a large Thomsonite in its’ Matrix, you can never tell how big it actually is.

Many times people will chat with me at an art show mentioning that Grandpa used to collect and work on rocks and minerals. My response is always; “Where ARE grandpas old rocks?” This leads to the next question; “Have you ever thought of selling them?”. Some of my best stuff, the really rare stuff, has come from grandpas old collections. On the flip side, many heirs think grandpa’s collection is exceedingly valuable, but it is not. They also put additional value on it because it has sentimental value. As a cabochon and jewelry maker, I cannot factor in sentimental value–I can only pay what is fair. Sometimes as part of the deal, sellers are happy to receive a piece of jewelry from something in the collection, giving them a memento from grandpa’s treasures.

Tumbled Thomsontes are carefully sliced to prepare for forming into cabochons.

Back in the 50’s and 60’s rock collecting and the Lapidary Hobby were very popular. This hobby waned in the 70’s, but came back in the early 2000’s with the Treasure-Hunting Programs that became popular on TV. It’s human nature to imagine that you can get rich with very little effort, by finding that rare gemstone treasure that may be worth thousands of dollars. We know this seldom happens, but it sometimes does.

These wonderful North Shore Thomsonites’ are ready for jewelry.

Recently I was contacted by a couple from Minnesota that had inherited Grandpa’s collection. What peaked my interest was the mention of North Shore Thomsonite. I love Thomsonite, especially old stock Thomsonite from a now buried, famous, location near Grand Marais. Without a doubt, the most beautiful gem quality Thomsonite ever discovered came from that site. This Thomsonite Grandpa had came from that location back in the 60’s. They called to see what their Thompsonite might be worth, as they were considering selling it.

One of the most amazing Thomsonites’ I’ve ever seen, and the largest I own. I have not decided whether to cut it or sell it as a specimen. 3″X 2″X 3/4″

After a picture exchange my interest grew, and eventually we met half way in Escanaba. Bonnie and I instantly loved these folks, and I especially loved Grandpa’s Thomsonite. Much of it was beautiful, dark eyed, classic Thomsonite, that is the most coveted type for jewelry. Those that have good Thomsonite know it is special. It was worth the trip and I’ve been thinking about those pieces every minute since I got them!

All the Lake Superior area Thomsonite is subject to being mixed with other Zeolites or other minerals. It is not uncommon to find Thomsonite mixed with Mesolite or Natrolite. Thomsonite often shows up in Isle Royale Greenstone, and is very sought after for jewelry and by collectors. North Shore Thomsonite is famous for having dark eyes caused by Chlorite.

Variegated Prehnite, especially “eyed” Prehnite is many times mistaken for Thomsonite, especially in the Keweenaw. For many years eyed Prehnite was considered Thomsonite, until tests by Michigan Tech proved otherwise.

Colorful and dark-eyed Thomsonites make amazing and valuable jewelry.

Good Thomsonite is still found in the Grand Marais, Minnesota area. Persistency in extracting the Thomsonite from it’s hard basalt matrix is required. You cannot just beat Thomsonite out of a rock. This Zeolite is very brittle, and the lightest tap from a rock hammer can shatter a thousand dollar piece. Thomsonite is sometimes sensitive to the harmonics of a grinding wheel, and will just break apart. Years of cutting this material serves as valuable training to prevent damage while making cabochons, but still there are some pieces that just crumble no matter how careful you are.

Classic pieces of Thomsonite from Grand Marais often contain micro-Copper. Copper is also seen in much of the Thomsonite from the Keweenaw Peninsula also. (it is the Copper District)

I have started to cut this material and have found it exceptionally nice. Snob Appeal Jewelry specializes in jewelry made from rocks and minerals of the Lake Superior area, and Thomsonite is one of those premiere gemstones from that area. You can expect some really wonderful Thomsonite jewelry to start rolling off the workbench in the near future.

Just out or curiosity I was checking the metaphysical properties of Thomsonite. What I read was Thomsonite: “lifts the fog–of the brain and of the situations you are trying to solve. This allows your brain to work at a maximum level and for you to see what is truly going on and how to solve it. Thomsonite helps dissolve laziness”. Why are Bonnie and I not wearing Thomsonite every day? It would obviously solve a lot of problems.

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!