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Showing posts with the label Tucson Gem and Mineral Show

Grinding and Polishing - Mojave Stone and Opals

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 This is my JoolTool.  I first saw it demonstrated at "Metal Clay by the Bay" and thought about buying it for a day.  I bought it with the metal clay kit and was delighted with both the time saving and the finished product.  Then several months later I bought the polymer clay package.  I was equally happy with the time saving and the end product. For those of you who are not familiar with this product, it has a variety of sanding and polishing discs that easily screw on the vertical spike.  The discs have slots evenly spaced and when they turn you can see what you are working on.  Less mistakes and less time spent sanding and polishing. Last February I went to the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show.  Since I had been to Australia I wanted to find some black opal from there.  The finished pieces proved too expensive for my budget.  Fortunately a friend and I found a booth with rough unfinished Black Opal.  I decided to buy some (having no idea how to select the better quality

My Fun at the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show 2015

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 http://theafghangemjewelry.com/ Last week I was able to go to the last day of the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show.  My two friends, Sandy and Jennifer, were patient as I walked through one hotel lobby.  My new knee is giving me problems in the bending/walking area and it will be quite a while before I am able to race through more than a few vendor's setups…..but next year watch out!   Eye Candy! One of the booths had spent some time color coordinating their beads. I spent quite a bit of time enjoying all that beautiful color.  At another booth, I found petrified bamboo.  I’d never even thought of what petrified bamboo would look like and it was lovely.  Sorry no photo.  http://www.manizone.co.uk/spiritual-exercises-understanding-spiritual-gifts-spiritual-p-1275.html The other excitement was finding Australian black opals.  My Dad always wanted to go the black opal mines and I thought it would be cool to have a stone since I've recently been to Australia.  S

Off to Tucson

Off to the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show!  Actually I'll be spending 3 days in an intensive workshop with Hadar Jacobson artinsilver.com  learning to use her clay and producing (I hope) some lovely pieces of jewelry.  I'll be sharing that experience when I return.  It is also an opportunity to see some friends, take care of having taxes done and seeing my old home town of Tucson.  I understand the downtown area is much improved!  And the temperature should be warmer than Prescott! Later!

Creating My Own Style by Combining Old and New Jewelry

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I have several pieces and parts of old jewelry and I’m always on the lookout for more.   The thrift shops, second hand stores and interesting boutiques are places I tend to seek out.   I also am very fortunate to have had a mother who loved jewelry and old things.   I’ve had a wonderful time going through her jewelry and remembering the best of times with her.   Going through the jewelry box, I found this beautifully painted porcelain cabochon of two lovers set in a brass triangle.   It had been a brooch at one time and the clasp was broken.   Of course, I used it in a necklace.   Vintage brass and pearl chain combine with pearls and crystals to make quite a charming necklace! Another day, I attended a trunk show at Bead-It in Prescott and purchased a vintage belt buckle with rhinestones.   I used half the buckle; wire wrapped a vintage rhinestone button on the bar and made a sparkling pendant with matching earrings for the holidays!   I found this piece of decorated square silver