New Gemstones

Gem Shows

When I lived in Florida I was lucky enough to live where the local Gem & Mineral Society had a huge gem show each year. I could go there and find amazing stones, and buy enough to tide me over (well almost) until the next year. Moving to a new state, I've had to relearn a lot of things I already had figured out. One of those is whether or not there is a local gem show where I can interact with vendors to get great prices on quality stones. I try really hard to keep my jewelry affordable to regular folks & getting the gemstones sourced from reliable dealers is a big part of that. Besides it is great fun & a bit of an addiction.
This past weekend there was a small show across the bridge & while there was only one vendor with loose gemstones that were not just beads, I did score some lovelies.

Sometimes it pays off to be the only one buying loose stones at a show too.

One of the best scores of the day is a beautiful 4.5 ct Ruby Cabochon. I'll have to save that one for something really special. Also a matched pair of very flashy labradorite cabs & a couple sets of dark dark gemmy amethyst oval matched pairs.


I also bought a selection of Portuguese cut rounds & ovals in light pink & green amethyst & citrine. Portuguese cut stones have more facetes than a regular round cut & sparkle much more.
It's my favorite cut. The last picture shows some flashy moonstone cabs & some rose quartz checkerboard cut stones that I can set either way as they are cut on both the top & bottom. Lovely & soft.

If you fall in love with any of these & would like me to create something special with them for you, just drop me a note. In the mean time I'm getting out the sketch pad.

Comments

Unknown said…
These are beautiful!
March 24, 2011 at 4:52 PM
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