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Colorado Prospector - Gem and mineral prospecting and mining forums _ Gem and Mineral Specimen Finds or Processes _ Your Lapidary creations

Posted by: Mrs.CP Jan 14 2007, 07:09 AM

We thought it would be fun to start a thread for everyone to post pictures of their lapidary work.

If you made it...We want to see it!
biggrin.gif

Here is a picture of some stone accent tiles Dan and I have been working on. happy.gif

 

Posted by: russau Jan 14 2007, 08:43 AM

WOW! mini stone stop signs!

Posted by: Mrs.CP Jan 16 2007, 05:28 PM

biggrin.gif
The smallest one is 1/2 inch. The big one is 2 inches.

Arizona petrified wood. wink.gif

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Jan 17 2007, 09:32 PM

Here is an awesome amazonite cab Denise did last night on the rockcam!

Sweet one honey! KACHOW! cool.gif
biggrin.gif

 

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Jan 17 2007, 09:35 PM

Up and coming projects soon! After some very very careful cutting!
I'm scared to start! ohmy.gif

happy.gif
CP

 

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Jan 19 2007, 05:53 PM

Okay .....anyone ever wonder what botryoidal agate looks like inside? huh.gif
Here is a large tear drop free form made from botryoidal agate. (Del Norte Co.)

 

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Jan 19 2007, 11:07 PM

This one is a very gemmy dino bone from the piece above.
smile.gif

 

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Jan 19 2007, 11:11 PM

One more of the nicest from this weeks lappin'!
Petrified wood-Locality Unknown

Very gemmy too! happy.gif

Who's next?! cool.gif

 

Posted by: jmann Jan 21 2007, 07:47 AM

Very nice looking stuff. Joe

Posted by: luckynugget Jan 27 2007, 05:31 PM

WOW those are really nice. Good job you guys. cool.gif cool.gif

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Feb 4 2007, 01:45 PM

Thanks guys. smile.gif

Here are a few more pieces from this week's lapidary workshop projects.

These pieces are made from........
Amazonite
Obsidian
Agates
Petrified Wood

Can you tell which is which? huh.gif happy.gif

CP

 

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Feb 12 2007, 09:33 AM

A few of the nice ones from this weekends work. happy.gif
Started cutting some turritella fossils last week too......WOW........neat stuff! cool.gif
The 3 blue ones on the right are some of the new african pietersite found several years ago.......Denise spotted one little slab at the rock shop last week.
Sweet find honey! biggrin.gif

Enjoy
CP

 

Posted by: El Dorado Feb 26 2007, 08:12 PM

OK, I will post this here too. The cab was made from a 16-1 speciman piece I Bought right here from the Miners Market. Stone was void of gold in many areas, but wher the gold was it was definatly "A" grade

 

Posted by: El Dorado Feb 26 2007, 08:14 PM

here is another I cut form a speciman found a few miles from my hose, by a friend with a beeper. It is very interesting because the stone has brecciated quartz and must be from a secondary enrichment.

 

Posted by: Mrs.CP Feb 27 2007, 09:38 AM

Fantastic pieces guys!!

oooo the brecciated quartz and gold one is awesome! happy.gif
Any plans for what your going to make from it?

Posted by: El Dorado Feb 27 2007, 10:07 AM

I just cut it for the owner, it is his pocket rock, Here is what I made from the end cut he gave to me:
The front

 

Posted by: El Dorado Feb 27 2007, 10:08 AM

The Back:

 

Posted by: thegeno Feb 27 2007, 12:02 PM

Beautiful work Steve...as always..
geno

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Mar 2 2007, 02:09 PM

Nice work! Very pretty!

Here is a pic of some of our recent work from the CP lap shop.

We also just started a cabin fever bustin' contest you all maybe interested in! wink.gif
Check this thread and have some fun.
http://www.coloradoprospector.com/forums/index.php?act=ST&f=1&t=1744&st=0#entry11522

CP

 

Posted by: El Dorado Mar 7 2007, 03:27 PM

Well, here is another piece I just finished. It is a money clip for me. The stone was cabbed from an Arizona Speciman piece That was detected a year ago. Tom the gentleman that found it gave me the end slice for cuttting and cabbing his pieces. I also made them new wedding rings out of 2 other stones I cut.

 

Posted by: El Dorado Mar 7 2007, 03:28 PM

Tom and Julie's rings

 

Posted by: jmann Mar 7 2007, 09:03 PM

Nice real nice. Joe

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Mar 11 2007, 04:03 PM

Here are a few fire agate cabs we did last week from material we collected at the Opal Hill Mine in California last year.

Enjoy smile.gif
CP

 

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Apr 12 2007, 05:14 PM

Gold in quartz..... cool.gif Nice stuff!

We are starting to try out some wire wrapping here.
This one is a Turritella fossil round cab I did, then wrapped in a nice sterling silver wire.
My first try at this and it's not perfect mellow.gif huh.gif but I ain't throwing it in the trash neither...... happy.gif

CP

 

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Apr 28 2007, 06:14 PM

Well we finally got gutsy and cut a slice offin the dino bone....... ohmy.gif happy.gif

Here's what popped out in the CP lapidary shop. biggrin.gif

Enjoy

 

Posted by: Tonyjoe-IL Jun 27 2007, 08:54 PM

Hi all! Just want to say Hi and thanks for a great site.And to show off some of my rocks from here in the mid- west.

Tonyjoe-IL

 

Posted by: toddarice Jul 1 2007, 12:26 PM

The first picture is Abalone and agate. My daughter likes the heart shape, so I have to make them. biggrin.gif

The second picture is not really our own creation, as we had Dave at Village Goldsmiths make it. But the topaz came from Joe Dorris' Topaz Mountain Gem Mine that we found a couple months ago when we were there. They are 1.5 carat vvs1-vvs2 set in 14k gold. biggrin.gif



Posted by: ColoradoProspector Jul 2 2007, 07:08 AM

Hi Tonyjoe, Thank you. Welcome to the website/forum and thanks for sharing some of your finds. Very nice! Are those blue ones sodalite?
We all look forward to seeing some more of your finds from the mid west.

Nice ones Todd, Topaz's are beautiful, where is the agate from?

Cool pics folks.....thank you.

CP

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Jul 4 2007, 10:50 AM

Here is a pic of some recent work from a hunk of rutilated that Jim sent out.
Awesome stuff Jim, thanks for sending us some.......some of the choice slabs & hunks will be headed your way to see how you like working it too. happy.gif

Jim also wanted one of the cabs I did from the rutilated and I had a hard time deciding which one...... biggrin.gif
So I'm just gonna' send ya' several of em' happy.gif
Was a very neat stone to work and if anyone gets the chance they should cab some......fun to work!

This batch turned out pretty good I think. smile.gif

CP

 

Posted by: jim Jul 5 2007, 07:05 AM

Dan, blush.gif
Whoa those are some beauties. I was afraid to even clamp that piece into my slab saw.Now that I see what you have done with it I am glad that I did'nt.As I thought you have done a great job of getting the best out of a piece. I hope that there is plenty enough for you to make a few for yourself. Also you need to let denise pick out some that she can make a pick or two from.
Thanks Dan and Denise for all the pieces that you have made for me.They all have a place in my personel stash of keepers.

Posted by: Tonyjoe-IL Jul 23 2007, 09:29 AM

Hi Cp not sure exactly what those blue stones are I found those at a local fish shop,they had several pounds of it for sale as aquarium decorations.I bought all they had tongue.gif I have been out hunting in the last couple of days and found some nice agates. will post pics when I get them polished.

Later Tonyjoe

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Jul 26 2007, 12:28 PM

Awesome Tonyjoe what ever they are....sure looks like it could be sodalite tho.
We would all love to see the new finds. smile.gif

Thanks Jim......agates can be such a blast!!! happy.gif

Posted by: toddarice Jul 27 2007, 10:58 AM

Sorry. The agate is from the stoneham area. You would not believe all the stuff we find off hwy 72 or whatever it is. Banded agate, all other kinds of agate (i'm still learning this stuff huh.gif ), barite (multiple variations), opal (common white), jasper, the list goes on and on. Oh, and a few rattlers. Julie doesn't like them too much, but they don't bother me! biggrin.gif

The blue ones sure do look like sodalite to me! I'm not very good at this stuff yet (rock identification), but I searched on the net. I didn't find any sodalite with the red in it, though. But Lapis has red in it sometimes. I don't know. CP knows his stuff, so I'll agree with him biggrin.gif .
Either way, buying them at the aquarium place was sure a great thing! Very pretty. They sure would look awesome in a wire wrap! Tonyjoe, what is the one at the head of the vial? It is cool.

Those rutilated sure are cool, CP. You and the better half sure are getting good at this stuff!

oh, and El Dorado sure does make the coolest stuff. I wanna be like him when I grow up! (a ways off......)

Posted by: Tonyjoe-IL Aug 16 2007, 06:41 PM

Hi all sorry for not getting back on here in a while. Thanks for the Complements on my stones. Todd I am not sure what kind of rock the greenish one is it was one that I found here while prospecting In Illinois.I do know that it is very hard with small fractures through it. Unfortunatly I broke two of the three pieces that I had slabed While Hand sanding them.They together would have made a beautiful ear ring& necklace set. But that is the way things go sometimes.

Have a goodone
Tonyjoe-IL

Posted by: redrum Aug 16 2007, 07:39 PM

Tell you what, I wear no jewelry. Just not something that I've ever gotten into. But there are some pieces here that I find stunning! Some of the cut stones make me drool. And El D's ring
I'd wear with pride, for sure. Gets me thinking about gifts... cool.gif

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Aug 22 2007, 06:58 PM

Thank you all for the compliments and the fine work posted here in this thread........it's turning out to be one of the forums best reads cool.gif

Here some recent work from our lapidary and wire wrapping.

This one is a Dinobone pendant wrapped in sterling silver.

 

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Aug 22 2007, 07:01 PM

This one is turritella fossil and again wrapped in sterling silver for a pendant.

 

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Aug 22 2007, 07:03 PM

One more pendant wrapped....this one being a piece of green jade. happy.gif

 

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Aug 22 2007, 07:09 PM

Another lapidary project from our shop have been stone guitar picks. biggrin.gif
Which have been getting some rave reviews by players. happy.gif
This one is Rutilated quartz.

I'll save the other guitar pick pics tongue.gif for the guitar pick thread. biggrin.gif

Thanks again everyone and keep your pics comin' too!! biggrin.gif

CP

 

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Aug 31 2007, 08:24 AM

Had to share this one.........A very pretty petrified wood set.
Pendant and ring maybe?

Enjoy.
CP

 

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Feb 3 2008, 06:41 PM

Thought I would pop in some Colorado Rutilated Quartz crystal cabs done recently.
The threads are very fine with a green tint.
The crystal pieces they were cut from had the green growth almost encrusting the pieces when these were raw.

smile.gif

 

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Mar 16 2008, 06:52 PM

Thought I would post a few pieces from some of our recent work. happy.gif
First a group of dino bone cabs wrapped into sterling silver necklaces which are soon headed to STMS school in SC as part of this years online science lab classes.


and the sencond group of three pendants (2-sterling silver, 1 center-14k gold filled) and these are some new things I'm trying in the wraps.........which seemed to work out well? laugh.gif Dino bone - Fire Agate - Opalized Wood
Rocks sure can be cleaned up nicely. biggrin.gif

 

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Mar 16 2008, 06:59 PM

And one more........
This is a custom piece we recently made for Faaus. Working closely with him to design this piece personally as you can see for his daughter. Whom he said absolutely loves it.
We sure had fun working on it.
Sodalite center stone with gold Faaus and his daughter prospected cool.gif ......accent beads of amethyst and opal with 14 k gold filled solid mounts.

In person while the sun glistens off this piece the gold looks like nuggets! biggrin.gif

 

Posted by: jim Mar 17 2008, 07:33 AM

WOW.......you two are definately craftsmen of a higher grade.Good ideas and great work. Keep up the good work.

Posted by: faaus Mar 18 2008, 08:11 PM

I can say that I've wanted that type piece made for the last 10 years. The CP's GREATLY exceeded my wildest hopes by creating a piece that had meaning, as well as beauty!

Trust them for ALL your needs!

faaus

Posted by: Mrs.CP Apr 25 2008, 10:46 AM

Here is a 11x9 Turquoise cabochon I made from a small piece that NM-Jack
sent to see how beautiful we could make it.
Sure is a nice deep blue piece, and turned out pretty nice I think.

 

Posted by: nm jack Apr 25 2008, 10:53 AM

biggrin.gif Your work is beautiful. It's hard to imagine that came from an
old chunk of rock.

Posted by: Mrs.CP May 1 2008, 06:06 AM

blush.gif Thanks Jack! Very kind of you to say.

I try my best to bring out their true beauty. smile.gif

Posted by: ColoradoProspector May 1 2008, 11:24 AM

Here's a picture of all the rough Jack sent to try out.........

Top pieces are turquoise (2 smaller) and malachite
then left is the emerald matrix material
right is fluorite pieces but too many fractures for working darn it.
and lower piece is petrified wood

The turquoise cab Denise did is the smallest turquoise piece in the rough pic.
Good job honey! cool.gif

 

Posted by: ColoradoProspector May 1 2008, 11:46 AM

This is the first 3 cabs from the emerald matrix material which turned out nicely even though the stones structure is still evident in the surface it polishes well and has a neat sheen too. happy.gif

sizes on these pieces are about
hexagon 16.5mm x 7.5mm thick
oval 21mm x 16mm x 5.5mm thick
round 19.5mm x 6.5mm thick

 

Posted by: ColoradoProspector May 6 2008, 07:06 PM

Jack said in chat he thought his better half may like the hexagons so here are a few more from the same rough batch......maybe a pendant, ear rings and a ring? smile.gif

The 3 small ones are 1/4" flat side to flat side.
Larger one is 3/4" from flat side to flat side.
All have nice colors.....almost looks like candy. biggrin.gif

 

Posted by: nm jack May 7 2008, 06:37 PM

biggrin.gif Those are really nice. They will make a great mothers day gift.

Posted by: Mrs.CP Jul 14 2008, 01:55 PM

Here is an amazing moss agate teardrop Dan made!
Tip looks like it has a hole, but thats just clear agate.
Sure turned out great. wub.gif Good job CP!

 

Posted by: Gat-Wa. Sep 20 2008, 09:48 AM

Here is a repair job I did for my mom the ring post was broke and the green stone was lost I was wantting to get a emeral for it but since thay are thousands of dollars I bot this Mount St Helens obsidon and put it in it. rolleyes.gif


 

Posted by: Gat-Wa. Sep 20 2008, 10:00 AM

Here is a ring I put this mandarin ice garnet in that my aunt gave me lol she said see what you can do with this when she gave the stone to me along with a few other stones smile.gif


 

Posted by: Gat-Wa. Sep 24 2008, 11:44 AM

biggrin.gif Here are a few of the cab,s ive done from stuff i got on from the spring fling thx jim and others smile.gif




 

Posted by: russau Sep 25 2008, 04:54 AM

Gat you poise your finger soooooooo eloquently to display those rings! haha........ really nice ! thanks for posting them!

Posted by: Gat-Wa. Sep 28 2008, 08:44 AM

biggrin.gif Red dino bone i finly got flat for knife handle
Gat.


 

Posted by: Gat-Wa. Oct 12 2008, 11:53 AM

Here is a 1/2 and 1/2 Azurite & Pyroz Mangite and a gold welded setting i just finished




 

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Oct 18 2008, 03:23 PM

Nice Gat, thanks for sharing pics of your work.
Keep em' coming! smile.gif

Here is another piece recently completed in the CP shop.
A little smokey quartz crystal with a 14k gold filled twisted loop and Colorado gold flakes dressing the top.

Keep your eyes open on the CP Miners Market for this piece to be added soon.

Posted by: Gat-Wa. Dec 24 2008, 08:36 AM

biggrin.gif Hi all well im finely finished with my Uncle Arts ring this is all gold that came from the Ca. claims and yes im keeping it for a while just to test it out excited.gif haha ok aint every day you get to wear a 14.0g or.49 oz biggrin.gif






 

Posted by: Bennie Dec 24 2008, 09:56 AM

Thats some ring !!!

did you make the ring too aswell as find the Gold

Looking good there Gat

Posted by: Gat-Wa. Dec 25 2008, 08:59 AM

yes and no lol i made the cab and welded the ring setting but i have to say i had to get help to weld the nuggets on it yes all the gold was found at the ca claims rolleyes.gif
Gat.

Posted by: jim Dec 25 2008, 12:06 PM

Wow Gat thats a beatiful ring. It'd be hard for me to let it go. happy088.gif

Posted by: acehigh7 Jan 3 2009, 12:24 PM

Heres a piece of bloody basin agate. stirthepot.gif


Posted by: Mrs.CP Jan 3 2009, 03:58 PM

Good job ace, looks very nice! Bloody Basin sure has some great agates.
Dogfly was nice enough to share some of his Bloody Basin agates with us at the spring fling outing.
Here is a cabochon he gave me while he was there......."Can you see the little redheaded girl with glasses, in the dress holding the huge apple" he asked me. happy.gif Right away I saw her. Being the funny one I am, I added "yes and shes about to be eaten by the Graboid below her"...hehe
Can you see her?








Here is a 1mm thin guitar pick I made (slabbed by Dan) from some of the Bloody Basin agates he gave us. We could even see some has gold specks in it after slicing some. Yep, I said "gold". He shared some of the red agate also and told me he would love to see me make a guitar pick from some of that. The piece is really small so Im scared to try. Hopefully it wont have any fractures......We will see. smile.gif



Thanks for sharing your creations everyone! Keep them coming.
happy088.gif

Posted by: acehigh7 Jan 3 2009, 05:49 PM

Very Nice happy088.gif

Posted by: acehigh7 Jan 4 2009, 08:33 PM

Nice Green Turquoise

Posted by: acehigh7 Jan 4 2009, 08:40 PM

Golden Plume agate




Nice lace agate




Copper stained quartz, wire wrap done by my wife.


Posted by: Gat-Wa. Jan 20 2009, 08:45 AM

Ok here is some pic,s of my new kitchen remodled the granite is called tan brown ive made the nobs and handles out of the scrap from the counter tops also the tile murals i used my new ring saw to cut out the plug in holes and dubble sticky taped them so that can be removed in case they need worked on. Cherie and I are very happy the way its turned out !!!!
Gat.














 

Posted by: Mrs.CP May 8 2009, 06:28 AM

Fantastic creations guys!! happy088.gif Keep up the good work.

Here is a tree limb slice of a piece of Wyoming petrified wood.
Fantastic cross in the patterns. We got as far as slicing it, and it sold....hehe
I dont blame them for wanting this one, its a fantastic piece. Its going to be wrapped with
a necklace to hang right over his heart.
smile.gif


Posted by: Mrs.CP May 8 2009, 10:25 PM

Here is a Priday Moss Agate Thunderegg heart I made today.
It even has a little druzy center. cloud9.gif


Posted by: Mrs.CP May 9 2009, 06:10 AM

Here is another heart I recently finished.





Amazing how different some stones look held up to the light. happy.gif

Posted by: ColoradoProspector May 9 2009, 12:26 PM

very cool work everyone, SWEEEEET!! drool.gif Keep em' coming, we all love to see the beauties polished and finished.

Here's a 5/8" hexagon I recently completed cabbing that I thought was worth sharing........ya'll know how I love blue in the rocks! excited.gif happy088.gif This one is a chrysocolla chalcedony from our old stash....probably Arizona origin and wowser, what a stone it is too. atomic.gif What do you think?
If we get lucky we may get a guitar pick or two out of the small piece left to slice up. chores017.gif biggrin.gif


Posted by: Mrs.CP May 10 2009, 04:20 PM

Fantastic job Dan! Here is what I did with the piece you gave me to work. chores041.gif




Posted by: ColoradoProspector Jun 21 2009, 01:08 PM

Very nice work on the hearts Denise, especially the last one.......WOW! smiley-shocked003.gif

Since you posted the round cross necklace stone, here is the wrapped finished version.




Posted by: ColoradoProspector Aug 17 2009, 03:36 PM

Thought I'd post one of this weeks wire wraps that we really like. A very blue Oregon thunderegg cabochon Denise made and I wrapped. Man blue's in stone are so cool! signs021.gif
Stone is double sided and the wrap and necklace are sterling silver. This necklace was also just listed in the http://coloradoprospector.com/MinersMarket/minersmarket.html this week too. biggrin.gif Nice work honey.



and the reverse side......two necklaces in one! happy088.gif Denise says this was suppose to be the front, but what do I know. tongue.gif


Posted by: jim Oct 1 2009, 10:36 AM

This is a little treasure chest that I started awhile back. I have my rings, an opal, a piece of fire agate and about 60 faceted stones of different size and cuts. The box I found at a show in North Carolina. It's made of bone and brass.




 

Posted by: Gat-Wa. Nov 27 2009, 09:24 AM

Hello everyone here it a dino bone knife handle I made from the slabs Jim sent me happy088.gif




 

Posted by: russau Nov 28 2009, 05:59 AM

wow Gat that looks nice!

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Nov 29 2009, 02:01 PM

Nice work Gat, that is definately a one of a kind knife for sure. happy088.gif

Keep em' coming everyone, what lapidary stuff has been across your bench lately?
anyone.gif Post up some pictures of your creations.

Posted by: Mrs.CP Dec 5 2009, 07:44 AM

Great lapidary creations everyone! happy088.gif Love seeing the creativity!

Here is one I recently did, and Dan wrapped the heart. All 3 pieces came from the same ThunderEgg. Love those ThunderEggs!
This one was just added to the Miners Market. smile.gif


Posted by: jim Dec 22 2009, 07:41 AM

It has been a while since I posted any of my wirewrapping. Here is a pendent that I did last night. I did this one for my eldest daughter Gennifer. It's dino with gold and silver wire.


 

Posted by: jim Dec 22 2009, 07:48 AM

QUOTE (Gat-Wa. @ Nov 27 2009, 09:24 AM) *
Hello everyone here it a dino bone knife handle I made from the slabs Jim sent me happy088.gif


Wow Gat, you really did a good job on the knife. But I think that I'd like to have that dino back. It's ok that it has been used some. Just send it like it is. poke.gif Notice that the pendant I posted above is out of the same material.

Posted by: Hawkewind Jan 13 2010, 05:54 PM

This one isn't something I made but one I had made for me in a small village on the South Island of New Zealand by this Maori chap...waited two days until it was done. It is "greenstone" or nephrite jade......I saw artifacts, like war clubs, made of solid jade in musuems there.

Has flecks of lighter green throughout. This cut symbolizes "new beginnings" in Maori tradition from that local area;


Posted by: Mrs.CP Jan 15 2010, 09:23 AM

Great piece Hawkewind, love the design! happy.gif I would really like to know how he worked it. Nephrite Jade is a bit harder than Jadeite, so it had to have been a task. Did you get to see how he worked stones? Inquiring minds want to know. biggrin.gif


Posted by: Hawkewind Jan 15 2010, 03:17 PM

I never saw him make mine but I did go back and see the machines they used......they were HUGE and lots of them....big work space for many people. They had sooooo much raw material and slabs at this place. In fact they told me a story that they rent a helicopter after heavy storms and go up known (public land) jade stream beds to the source near the tops of glaciers and search for huge jade boulders that get dislodged (they also do it a few times with the spring melt). They found one a few weeks before I was there and had to helicopter it back to the village, it was massive and their biggest find ever.

Here is the village http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hokitika,_New_Zealand and some more info http://www.jadecountry.co.nz/

My piece was on the more expensive side due to the reason you stated and the quality of jade I chose. I can;t find a match to the design online when I search....but in general this is what my design is;

Spiral - Koru
The Koru is inspired by the uncurling fern fond which is commonly found in New Zealand. It represents peace, tranquility, personal growth, positive change and awakening. It has been traditionally used to signify New life, new beginnings and harmony.

Here is a good overview of the carving process;

http://www.theroadforks.com/worldtrip/newzealand/jaded_hokitika

Posted by: Mrs.CP Jan 16 2010, 06:21 AM

Thanks for the info Hawhewind. Very cool learning about the Hokitika village, and how they are working their Jade. signs021.gif
Im not surprised that piece cost you a pretty penny, sculpting and carving takes true talent and patience.
The stone working process is very interesting. I may give that carving style a try. wink.gif Thanks again!



Posted by: jim Jan 19 2010, 07:59 AM

This is a cab of botswana agate that I cut Saturday. Its not visible in the pic but the bands produce a shadow effect. If you turn the cab in your hand you can see all the way through between the white bands. Enjoy!


 

Posted by: Mrs.CP Feb 15 2010, 06:52 AM

Since my wrist isnt letting me rock sculpt right now, I thought I would try something different. I dont know how you guys wire wrap! wacko.gif
Talk about having patience, and all I was doing was making little loops to hook the pieces together. I was joking around telling Dan to just call me the wire mangler. smiley-laughing021.gif

I figured I would start simple and work up from there. Here is the first I did. Its a Smokey Quartz and Turquoise set.




This set I made from Sodalite.



Side view of the necklace.




I sure have gained alot of respect for you wire wrappers after trying my hand at it. I was all thumbs! I dont know how you all do it.

For example.......Here is a huge Garnet Dan wrapped. First pic is of it being worked. Second pic is of it done.
Fantastic wire wrapping Dan!!





Check it out......His wire isnt even mangled. biggrin.gif

greensmilies-012.gif

Posted by: swizz Feb 15 2010, 09:40 AM

All three of those pieces (sets) are incredible works. worthy.gif worthy.gif
That garnet is a monster (Colorado?). It had to be massive before you worked it. I've found significant amounts of Pyrope Garnet in some of the areas that I prospected last summer but nothing much over 10mm trapped in the sluice.
Is it faceted?
I've never tried to wrap wire settings but it must take incredible attention to detail, patience, and a great set of eyes. I tie very small flies using various diameters of wire at times so I have an appreciation although fly tying is biscuits & gravy compared to what Dan's doing there.
Awesome work yous guys! chores041.gif

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Feb 15 2010, 12:04 PM

Thanks Swizz. happy.gif

Actually no that garnet isn't from Colorado. It's from a place called the Pine Hill Garnet mine in NC. The guy that found it on a dig sent it out to us for a polishing and wrap in silver wire. That's the natural faces as formed just polished......no faceting done. I think the monster weighed in at 355 grams if I remember right. And yes that was a mind boggler at times while in the works for wrapping. bash.gif sadno.gif chin.gif slaphead.gif smiley-laughing021.gif Pick it up....turn it......stare blankly at it.....turn it some more..........put it back down and have a cup of java and stare some more.
mellow.gif
In the end though I thought the piece looked good for as large as it was. It also set flat on the table when not being worn, as I don't imagine it could be worn the whole day long. laught16.gif No jogging with it that's for sure. crutches.gif


Posted by: Mrs.CP Feb 15 2010, 04:50 PM

Thanks for the compliments Swizz! happy.gif They did turn out pretty good. Sure didnt help much for relaxing my wrist or forearm though.

OOOOOO fly tying is cool, Dan was doing that several years back also. Definately takes talents.
happy088.gif He would even use feathers from our chickens. biggrin.gif

Posted by: Mrs.CP Feb 22 2010, 07:17 AM

Here is a really cool piece of Mohogony Obsidian. Flat on a surface it looks brown and black....




But hole it up to the light and it looks like this.... happy112.gif



Not sure what Im going to do with it yet, but it sure turned out nice.



Posted by: ColoradoProspector Feb 23 2010, 04:21 PM

Not bad for a hunk o' natural glass honey! tongue.gif It looks much better back lit I agree. happy088.gif

This piece of petrified wood turned out pretty neat I thought. Just one of a few odd balls we had laying around and I cabbed out this week.
Wathca' think? chin.gif



Posted by: Mrs.CP Feb 25 2010, 07:09 AM

Nice work Dan! Great druzy going through it. I love working with petrified wood, its fun stuff.

Here are a few fossil cabs. The first is a Turritella set I did for Timmy. The cab is translucent when held up to the light. Stuff smells funny when your working it! wacko.gif



This second one is a piece of Petoskey stone. Michigans state stone. Very cool stuff to work. Almost like butter on the diamond wheels.






Posted by: Gat-Wa. Apr 24 2010, 10:47 AM

Hi everyone here is my 100% Poker Flat,Poke claim gold ring !!!!
I did the wax for the setting and had it cast with my gold from the (Poke)
And the cab. I had the nuggets welded on it (yes i was chicken to try my self)
anyway came out to 1.13 oz
thumbsupsmileyanim.gif






 

Posted by: Gat-Wa. Apr 24 2010, 10:59 AM

Well i had to redo my uncle Arts ring all so.I learned the hard way not to go cheep when your making something you want to be really nice so I made a wax and had it cast wn to the gith my gold from the poke and removed the nuggets I had welded to the Gold filled setting I welded the first try. then I had then welded onto the new setting and here it is again in the new setting 14 k poke gold






 

Posted by: Gat-Wa. May 12 2010, 08:32 AM

Is a kitchen ever really done ? smiley-shocked003.gif
Not if you ask my wife it aint !!! smiley-laughing021.gif
Ok here is the latest knobs for the cook stove.


 

Posted by: Gat-Wa. May 12 2010, 08:35 AM

thumbsupsmileyanim.gif


 

Posted by: ColoradoProspector May 12 2010, 12:18 PM

Looks like you've been busy with a couple projects Gat, nice work. I bet the stove's new knobs might out live the stove itself. happy088.gif


Posted by: jim Sep 23 2010, 10:13 AM

Here's a pic of a wrap that I did for a friend in AZ that sends me alot of rough. He wanted an opal pendant for his wife for thier anniversary. I had aquired some ethiaopian welo a while back so I made this. The opal is of coarse not showing well at all but you can see the wrap. The stone is near clear white base.It has broadflash red, gold, green, and a touch of blue. It is 3 carats.


 

Posted by: dickb Sep 23 2010, 07:12 PM

Hi Jim:

Really turned out great. The gold wrap really sets off the cab! thumbsupsmileyanim.gif

dickb

Posted by: jim Sep 24 2010, 06:22 AM

Thanks. The pic is not very good. One day I'll figure out how to photo opals. That stone is a real beauty.

Posted by: ColoradoProspector Sep 24 2010, 10:25 AM

Always fun to see everyones lapidary creations. signs021.gif
This is a set of green banded fluorites we recently completed for a custom order that turned out well we thought. Nice green shade variation from top to bottom in the bands. They almost match perfectly from one ear ring to the other and the necklace is just a little bigger stone size. All 3 are free forms and polished entirely, tops, bottoms and all the way around the sides of each. Set with sterling silver settings and chain.


Here is a pic of the ear rings a bit closer.


Who else has some nifty recent lapidary creations to share? anyone.gif chores041.gif



Posted by: Voltaire Oct 5 2010, 01:09 PM

Heres some of my work:

Crystal opal from Lightning Ridge, Australia. (Notice, background helps to bring out the colours! ;)


Aventurine from Norway, dubble cabb. Notice its not perfectly symmetrical. Fuchsite played a trick on me.




Welo opal, ribbon pattern. Using a high dome they can be confused with a roling flash..



Welo Opal, electric colours.. Problems with camera to catch those colours to!! thumbsupsmileyanim.gif





 

Posted by: GuitarC Oct 5 2010, 02:59 PM

Nice work Voltaire signs021.gif

Posted by: Voltaire Oct 6 2010, 12:04 PM

Todays project; Serpentine Drop.




Posted by: dickb Oct 6 2010, 01:10 PM

Here are two sites that might be if interest to gem hunters and laps. Lots of good ideas and information there.

Matt Mattson's web site:

http://www.treasuresites.com

Matt Mattson thread

http://golddredger.com/forum/

and on YouTube "flagold"
**********************************************************

Lapidary and Gemstone Community Forum:

http://gemstone.smfforfree4.com/index.php?action=forum

Hope you find these interesting! thumbsupsmileyanim.gif

Dickb

Posted by: swizz Oct 6 2010, 02:15 PM

Voltaire,
Welcome to CP and thanks for sharing those great pics! Your work looks awesome. happy088.gif

Posted by: Voltaire Oct 7 2010, 10:46 AM

Thanks Swizz. :)

Posted by: Ryan Oct 15 2010, 10:43 PM

I tumbled rockes for a month and a half, found some wire and came up with this. What do you guys think for my first try?








 

Posted by: Mrs.CP Oct 17 2010, 06:44 AM

Nice work! I really like the Aventurine from Norway Voltaire! happy088.gif You did a fantastic job on it!!
Ryan, those turned out great! Looks like your a natural born wire wrapper. I really like the designs you made with the wire. They compliment the stones nicely. smiley-clapping.gif

Keep up the good work guys, your creating some really nice pieces!

signs021.gif

Posted by: Voltaire Oct 19 2010, 09:44 AM

Mrs CP, thanks! biggrin.gif

Posted by: Mrs.CP Oct 20 2010, 10:09 AM

Your welcome Voltaire.
Id love to see that piece after its set for jewelry. The stone has a classy look I think. chores041.gif

Here is a custom order we did from a cabochon purchased through the Miners Market.
The Petrified wood cabochon was made by me, double sided of course happy112.gif .......I like to show the stones beauty on both sides, giving it 2 sides for wearing/showing. Dan did the beautiful wire work on the loop seeting. She saw a similar setting we had in the Market and wanted that exact look for the cabochon. Turned out pretty nice I think, and she is very happy with the end results. Was just what she pictured. happy088.gif

The darker parts of the wood are also translucent when held up to the light...Almost giving it a stairway look.


Posted by: Voltaire Oct 20 2010, 02:26 PM

Oh.. smiley-shocked003.gif I don't know...I have a natural love-to-hate relationship with silversmithing...

Posted by: dickb Oct 20 2010, 02:49 PM

Hi again MR & MRS CP:

I think it turned out really well, also. I'm sure sombody will be really happy to get it and wear it proudly! thumbsupsmileyanim.gif

Keep pushing the bar higher!!!!!

DickB

Posted by: Voltaire Oct 26 2010, 02:20 PM

Here's one I test cut for a friend. unfortunately it was quite unstable and I couldn't finish shaping, however managed to give it a polish..
Quartz and probable epidote inclusions.






Posted by: GuitarC Nov 26 2010, 09:10 PM

This is my first completed cabochon. It's picture jasper and I really like how it turned out so I put it in a setting for a Christmas gift.

Chris








Posted by: swizz Nov 27 2010, 07:37 AM

QUOTE (GuitarC @ Nov 26 2010, 08:10 PM) *
This is my first completed cabochon. It's picture jasper and I really like how it turned out so I put it in a setting for a Christmas gift.

Chris



Wow! Very nice. happy088.gif happy088.gif

Posted by: GuitarC Nov 27 2010, 10:26 AM

Thanks SWIZZ!

Posted by: dickb Nov 27 2010, 10:41 AM

Hi GuitarC:

Looks real nice! thumbsupsmileyanim.gif

I think you did a very professional job fitting the cab to the finding. I also think that the cab orientation works really well. I'm sure someone in going to be very proud to wear it!

Dickb

Posted by: GuitarC Nov 27 2010, 11:18 AM

Thanks Dickb!


Posted by: GuitarC Dec 26 2010, 11:37 AM

My Nan loved the cabochon and setting thumbsupsmileyanim.gif

I thought she would like it since when I first started working the slab it immediately reminded me of her tastes in jewelry. Seeing her face light up like it did yesterday when she first saw it made me really happy to see her joy.

Posted by: Mrs.CP Dec 26 2010, 11:49 AM

It turned out fantastic GuitarC, you did a fantastic job!! I bet knowing you made it yourself just added to her face lighting up. happy088.gif

Posted by: GuitarC Dec 27 2010, 07:49 AM

Thanks Mrs. CP

When she opened it she said "Ohh that is beautiful, did you make that?" Then I told her I did make it and explained to her and my grandfather the process from slab to how it ended up.

Posted by: i luv dirt Apr 17 2011, 10:11 PM

QUOTE (Gat-Wa. @ May 12 2010, 09:32 AM) *
Is a kitchen ever really done ? smiley-shocked003.gif
Not if you ask my wife it aint !!! smiley-laughing021.gif
Ok here is the latest knobs for the cook stove.



very nice and cool idea sell the knob for 500.00 and throw in the stove smiley-laughing021.gif
nice job



emoticon-object-018.gif i luv dirt

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