The Gems and Mineral Diva

 This is a Carnelian Agate wrapped in copper with Hematite binding and also with Moonstone and Garnet gem accents. It's a belated Christmas gift for an aquaintaince/relative I don't know that well but the agate and moonstone both called out to her--one of my gifts is that when someone really needs a gemstone/crystal, I can actually feel the energy of that stone/crystal calling to a particular person even if I've just met them only once.

A fellow wire artist was telling me about this type of wire called Hematite by Beadalon. You can pick it up at Michael's or Hobby Lobby. I thought, hmm interesting and then realized that though I am used to Hematite jewelry--magnetized or non magnetized, Hematite, the mineral form of iron, is, indeed, a metal. Hematite in its  raw form is a beautiful silvery grey. When polished it gets darker almost black. When it's been ground into powder, it is red, hence the name Hematite. The wire I picked up yesterday has a brass core with a Hematite finishing or plating.  Hematite gets around. It's spectral signature was found on Mars  by the infrared  spectrometer  on the  NASA   Mars Global Surveyor and also    2001 Mars Odyssey  spacecraft in orbit around Mars. Click here to read the NASA archived Mars Global Surveyor TES Instrument ID of Hematite on Mars. According to Josuha L. Bandfield 2002 report , Hematite was abundant at ...

I found this awesome and soothing mineral mix and just fell in love. The first thing that drew my eye to the stone was the copper that was embedded in the minerals. And an image came to my head--the very ones you see in the photos now. The other two minerals are Chrysocolla and Cuprite. I added .925 Sterling Silver wire at the base and to the sides near the top.  Click here to buy the pendant. Properties of Copper: Occupying the same family of the periodic table as silver and gold; each having one s-orbital eletron on top of a filled electon shell, copper has a very high thermal and electrical conductivity and is malleable.  Since copper has a wonderful physical conductor of electricity and heat, many consider it the conductor of the spiritualist's belief system; having the ability to conduct spiritual energy back and forth between individuals, crystals, auras, the mind and the spirit world. Some believe that copper has the power to amplify thoughts when sen...

I would like to share with you what got me into working with crystals and minerals and let me to the path of making jewelry from them. I was in Denise and Daryl's shop one day and still kinda new to the whole crystal thing. I'd already started a mini collection but was still kinda skeptical of gems and energy.  I was technically blocked from any and all energy. Anyway, Daryl told me about an accident he had while wire wrapping and during this time he was wearing a Moldavite pendant.  The story he told me seemed really unbelievable but, as I later found out, Moldavite has its own power. Here's what happened to him: Daryl had cut his hand badly so he and his wife rushed to the drug store to get bandages and stuff. Daryl told me that he just sat in the car and the sun shone onto the Moldavite, which somehow found itself in his injured hand.  He went into a trance and all he could hear was this sizzling and frying sound that didn't stop until the pain in his ...

Since moving to Arlington, TX, a DFW suburb, I stumbled upon this gem of a store. The owner, Trey, is super friendly and knows his stuff when it comes to gems and minerals. Trey does it all: he wire wraps, solders, cuts gems and minerals shaping them into cabs (cabachons for those of you who are not nerds like me) facets gems like emerald and diamonds. I'm so glad I found Trey and his shop which is right across the street from my apartment.  Today I went over to Power of The Rainbow to pick out a moonstone for a commission. And maybe a couple of extras to wrap and sell. Trey and I got to talking about Phenakite and, yes, I'm gonna make some earrings, but he pulled out this little, tiny, almost microscopic piece that had a name so huge. This piece, he told me, would sell for about $300ish on the market. He was selling it for $50. Why? Because Trey is the type of person who, when he gets  good deal, he makes sure he passes that on to his customers.  Anyway, Trey w...