Hobbies-Craft
Rock&Gem Magazine
ROWLEY MINE CHRYSOCOLLA
This mix of copper minerals is reminiscent of the Inspiration Mine chrysocolla. Much of what has been dug out has a beautiful color array of blues, greens, reds and yellow, plus a really nice strata pattern.\"
2 min |
October 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
OPAQUE GEMSTONES
The faceting of an opaque gemstone presents a much more elegant look than a cabochon. The shape of the design is reminiscent of a cabochon, but it is faceted. It provides distinctive flashes from the facet faces.
2 min |
October 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
ANT HILL GARNETS
Tiny Miners Find Big Treasures
3 min |
October 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
The Formation of Quake Lake
When the Earth Shakes and the Mountain Falls
7 min |
October 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
PIRATE GLASS: Castaways WORTH SAVING
Beach and lake glass, sometimes called \"mermaid's tears,\" make wonderful souvenirs not only for the naturally tumbled beauty of such pieces but also for the stories they can tell.
3 min |
October 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
The Mystery & the History Jet of The Black, Black Stone
Jet is one unusual stone. Used as lapidary material for millennia, it gets no respect in mineralogical circles. Among ten common rock and mineral guidebooks, seven don't even list jet in the index. The others? One has a picture with a one-sentence caption. Another offers only a brief paragraph.
7 min |
October 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
The Hope Diamond Cursed... OR NOT?
Diamonds are known traditionally as symbols of wealth, beauty and love, with one notable exception-a large, unusually colored stone that is widely believed to be cursed. Many of those who have owned or simply touched this stone have met tragedy by going insane, suffering serious illnesses, committing suicide, or losing their fortunes-even being executed by guillotine.
7 min |
October 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
Diamonds
What has always surprised me is the emphasis and value we put on diamonds. Though relatively abundant, they are vigorously mined and have been promoted in a tightly controlled market to keep their value high.
4 min |
September 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
ARIZONA'S METEOR CRATER
Some 50,000 years ago, an asteroid sped through space at 30,000 miles per hour, headed straight for planet Earth.
4 min |
September 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
Citizen Scientists UNCOVER Thousands of Microfossils
A Portal to Earth's Past Emerges in a Remote Corner of the World
6 min |
September 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
ROCK THE CAFÉ Oklahoma Sandstone Created this Route 66 Pop Culture Icon
Oklahoma is the birthplace of Route 66, and Cyrus Avery, of Tulsa, is known as the \"Father various of Route 66.\" Avery served on road-associated commissions. And in 1925, he nabbed a seat on the committee of highway officials who were creating a proposed national highway system, as well as a numbering scheme to go with the map.
6 min |
September 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
PLACODERMS Armor-Plated Fish of the Devonian
As a young boy growing up in fossil-rich western New York, I would spend untold hours walking the rocky outcrops of the Niagara Escarpment, the shore of an ancient Silurian Sea, collecting hundreds of marine fossils including Brachiopods and Crinoids.
3 min |
September 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
SHIELD OF THE HEART DESIGN
Learning to facet gemstones can be rewarding and fascinating. The best way to get started is by taking faceting lessons, using current reference materials, having a mentor and dedicating the time necessary to practice the skills needed to master the art.
2 min |
September 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
ANOTHER LOOK AT GLASS BUTTE OBSIDIAN
Many people who make cabochons avoid working with obsidian because it is soft and fractures easily. It is a struggle to get the scratches out in the sanding steps and it can be difficult to polish. It took me a while to find the solutions to these problems.
2 min |
September 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
RUBBED RIGHT: Moissanite & Silicon Carbide
When a popular artisan who has worked in lapidary since the 1950s suggests taking a closer look at their \"grit of W choice, it's at least worth checking out.
6 min |
September 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
Caring for CRYSTAL PARK: Preserving this One-of-a-kind Experience for Future Generations
Sometimes after a hard rain, the glint of crystals sparkles as they emerge to the soil surface after spending millions of years deep in the earth. Visitors to Crystal Park in the Beaverhead-Deerlodge National Forest in Montana stand upon a treasure that amazes rock enthusiasts from around the world.
7 min |
September 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
Labradorite The Northern Lights in a Gemstone
The northern lights, those glowing curtains of cyan, green, gold and magenta that brighten the night skies in the northern latitudes, are among nature's most stunning displays of color.
6 min |
September 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
ALL ABOARD!
Colorado's Tourist Trains for the Geologist
5 min |
September 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
BEACHES: NOT JUST SUN AND SURF
For many of us, the word \"beach\" evokes pleasant images of summers spent enjoying sun, sand and surf. But for geologists this word has a more specific meaning, referring to waterborne accumulations of sand that sometimes host economic concentrations of gemstones and other valuable minerals.
3 min |
July 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
8 Fun MICHIGAN BEACH Finds
Plus Tips for the Great Lakes State Rockhounding
6 min |
July 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
WHEN A NEW DESIGN MATERIAL FAILS
I love working with milky chalcedony because it is an uncommon lapidary material that has a wonderful internal glow when the project is finished.
2 min |
July 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
SUPER STAR GEMSTONE DESIGN
The Super Star gemstone design by Andrew Brown is a little misleading upon initial review.
1 min |
July 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
MEXICAN LATTICE AGATE
Mexican lattice agate, a stone that has no color hues, can quickly remind you of a snow-covered pine tree, or the feathers of a swan.
2 min |
July 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
GHOST CRABS OF BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA
Rare Fossil Finds Follow Florida Storms
2 min |
July 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
Pink Sand BEACHES & BEYOND
Naturally Blushing Beauty
6 min |
July 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
POTOMAC RIVER BEACH Fossils
Finding Fossil Shark Teeth & Turritella at Purse Beach
7 min |
July 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
Carpinteria STATE BEACH
Visitors Love it Tar and All!
6 min |
July 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
OF CAPTAINS AND KINGS: The Rich History Behind Cape May Diamonds
Trip Advisor has rated America’s oldest seaside resort, Cape May, New Jersey, among the top 25 beaches in the country, and for generations, it has not only charmed visitors with its hospitality and Victorian architecture but drawn beachcombers and rock hunters to the sparkle of the quartz pebbles and beloved keepsakes known as Cape May diamonds.
6 min |
July 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
Abel Buell
Abel Buell (1742-1822) was a Connecticut Yankee from the town of Killingsworth, now Clinton
4 min |
June 2023
Rock&Gem Magazine
THE REAL STORY OF TURQUOISE-IN-SILVER JEWELRY
First-time travelers visiting the American Southwest are often awed by the availability and sheer abundance of beautiful turquoise-in-silver jewelry
3 min |