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Acres of gems, minerals, beads, fossils, jewelry, tools, and equipment are exhibited in Tucson every winter. Some of the goodies that intrigued the rise in supply were precious supply from Honduras, diffusion-treated star sapphires, manmade jewelry, and blue goldsmith beads.

New kinds of beautiful, economically priced beads on the gem market are increasing at an astonishing rate. Explanations intended to aid newcomers to the gem world in understanding a few basics related to some quartz and quartz like beads on the market are discussed.

The news of the 2003 Tucson shows of jewelry was good, where most of the dealers reported better sales than they'd anticipated. The talk of the gem shows was a continuation of the controversy over certain treated sapphires that were the cause of much speculation in 2002 shows.

The material filled with little, solid, lustrous specks that reflect light are called aventurine and when a piece of aventurine was moved, all those little reflections produce a glittering effect that is known as 'aventurescence' in the gem trade. The aventurine glass was first made in a glass making concern in Italy and the green aventurine from India is a metamorphic rock called quartzite formed by heat & pressure from a fairly pure sand stone.

A dendrite is something that forms in a treelike pattern. 16 queries regarding the stones having dendritic patterns in chalcedony and other related ones are presented.

Rose quartz makes a beautiful carving material and a lovely cabochon gem. Rose quartz forms in complex pegmatities, either near the core zone or as massive hydrothermal veins.

There were no major trends apparent at the 2001 gem and mineral shows in Tucson, AZ. Important smaller trends included continuing availability of orbicular jasper from Madagascar, artistic use of Montana agate and new Japan-Law twin quartz crystals.

Munsteiner is a world-famous pioneering gem artist inspires students who try to apply his advice that artists should 'recognize chance and eliminate the arbitrary.'

Lace agates, which have intricately curved, lacy-looking patterns, are found primarily in Namibia and Mexico. Information is presented on the formation of crazy lace and blue lace agate and on dyeing agates.

Questions and answers about the shiny volcanic glass called obsidian are presented. Topics covered include snowflakes, crystallization, sources and use in jewelry making.

Bloodstone is a red-speckled green jasper that is called heliotrope in Britain. Information on buying the gem, hunting for it in North America and using it in jewelry is presented.

Ten unusual gemstones found at a trade show in Tucson, AZ, included orbicular jasper, hauyne, gem beads, yellow Nevada opal and a large red diamond found in Australia. Other stones are described.

A visit to the 1999 Intergem jewelry show in Idar-Oberstein, Germany is described. The town is actually two villages, one specializing in gem cutting, the other in jewelry making.

Superb blue, greenish blue and green all-natural turquoise is found in the Bad Boys mine at Cripple Creek, Colorado, high up in the Rockies.

Answers to 12 frequently asked questions about citrine are presented. The answers cover the difference between citrine and topaz, citrine's natural color, its affordability and fake citrines.

The German town of Idar-Oberstein has a tradition of gemstone cutting that produces some of the most uniform and well-made beads available. A history of the Idar bead industry and its involvement in the African bead trade is presented.

Questions-and-aswers about the hollow rocks called geodes are presented. The questions cover amethyst cathedrals, Brazilian geodes, coco, coconuts and determining whether an uopened geode will be hollow.

Amethyst provides jewelers numerous combinations of sizes, shapes, shades and depths of color to choose from. Its low price affords jewelers a variety of cuts. There is also more freedom when choosing an amethyst as compared to diamonds.

Common questions about amethyst are answered. It is explained that amethyst came from the Greek word amethustos and refers to violet or purple crystalline quartz. It is believed that amethyst has its origins from the classical mythology involving Bacchus, Diana and the nymph, Amethyst.

Gem, mineral, bead, jewelry and fossil trade shows in the first two months of 1999 introduced a range of unique precious stones and improved craftsmanship. These include the pink tourmalie, the Luminaire cut golden beryl and the glass and sterling silver inlaid beads.

Chalcedony with a fine amount of chhrsocolla produces a beautiful quartz gem of bluish hue. Because of its appearance, it is likened to blue jade. Because chalcedony with chrysocolla is rare, demand for it is high, especially in Asia. This explains the high price of the gem.

Brian Cook is known for his work on precious gems such as the Amphoragems which contain miniature stones inside crystal quartz that are intended for use as pendants or earrings. Cook is also responsible for bringing the distinctive blue-green tourmaline from Paraiba, Brazil, to market.

Smoky quartz remains shrouded in confusion, with the many other names by which it is called and other stones with which it has been mistakenly identified. Experts consider smoky quartz as cairngorm, especially those sourced from the Cairngorm Mountains in Scotland. Some of the brownish quartz, which ranges from very light to very dark, also shows a yellowish tone.

Rutilated quartz is a fascinating gem because of its distinct patterns of thin crystals that range from gold to reddish colors. The most beautiful type of rutile is the starburst, which is an oriented spray of golden, needle-like rutile crystals.

Collector, artist and researcher Jamey Allen has been working with beads for more than 25 years, investigating on imitation amber beads and making his own beads. One of Allen's creations is a finely patterned oblate beads in Fimo, an example of ancient glass beads recovered from the Viking period.

The term crystal is a commonly used word in the gem-cutting profession, sometimes confusing people with its varied definitions. For a gem artist, crystal refers to quartz, but for a mineral collector, it means a mineral showing different natural faces.

Gem and mineral clubs can provide wonderful educational programs, given the clubs' knowledgeable instructors, state-of-the art equipment and facilities, expert instruction, and peer advice. Among these clubs, the San Francisco Gem and Mineral Society is the most popular and respected across the US.

Hildegard von Bingen is considered an ideal candidate for the outstanding woman of the 12th century. Hildegard, a poet, scientist, painter, composer, and a lot more, also expressed a profound interest about gemstones and their healing powers.

The 1998 Tucson, AZ, gem-plus shows featured more than 23 mineral and lapidary materials on sale. Among the gemstones featured were an extraordinary piece of Oregon opal with rainbow colors and a beautiful container and base set carved by Harold and Erica Van Pelt.

Manfred Wild's creation of a fabulous case for a ship's chronometer reveals how much he values the shipboard's navigational clock. The case was carved in quartz and trimmed with aquamarine, diamond and gold. The lid is engraved with an image and a mirror image of the Cutty Sark.

Kendra Cook's aromajewels are designed to give off a delicate natural fragrance that is gradually released to the wearer. Aromajewels, which come in the form of pendants, earrings, and rings, reveal complex design and skilled engineering.

Petersen Peak, straddling the California-Nevada boundary, is one of the best places to go quartz hunting, since the site has yielded several lodes of smoky quartz, amethyst and scepter-shaped quarts crystals, all of magnificent quality.

Scepter crystals are formed out of the varying crystal formation tendencies of quartz crystals that are depended on formation conditions and impurities. Scepter crystals can be found in about 300 places worldwide, but some of the better specimens can be found in Petersen Peak, Nevada.

Green mining, a modern mining method that adopts global environmental protection laws, is gaining ground in the mining industry. One example of green mining is the responsible recovery of the gem myrickite by the Homestake Mining Company in northern California.

The Revere Academy of Jewelry Arts in northern California has already helped several jewelry artists develop their creativity and skills in jewelry making. The academy is headed by Alan Revere, a highly regarded jewelry designer and instructor.

Peter Carl Faberge's Imperial Eggs are known for their high quality and high price. The popularity Imperial Eggs date back to eras of Russian Czars where they were used as gifts and symbolized the aristocracy and extravagance of the Russian monarch.

Mine collectors Richard and Robert Hauck converted the Sterling Hill zinc mine in 1989 into a spectacular living museum that displays one of the best collections of mining memorabilia in America. The museum, located in Ogdesburg, NJ, has become a popular destination for mineral lovers from all over the world.

A foreign writer and gem collector remembers his experience in the field of gem and mineral explorations. He emphasized the role of Lapidary Journal, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary, in promoting global interest towards gems and minerals.

Fiber optic lighting is used to illuminate the crystals and gems on display at S. R. Perren Gem and Gold Room, in the Royal Ontario Museum. Dr. Robert Gait, curator of the collection, also used fibers to provide the ambient light for the rooms.

The Princess Mine at Bancroft, Ontario, Canada is a good exploration ground for crystal collectors and lapidaries. The mine, which was renovated and managed by Andy Christie, is known for its blue-colored sodalite crystals.

Pink petalite and tourmalines from Africa will still be part of the next Tucson gem and jewelry exhibitions. Likewise, the Russian quartz and the Chinese tigereye will make good jewelry materials for large lapidary projects.

Gem dealer Jurgen Henn climbed the Himalayan mountains twice, in 1995 and 1996, to inspect a peridot deposit in the area. His treks were sparked by news of the discovery of an unusually large sample of the gemstone that was found in Peshawar, Pakistan.

The rare iris agate contains an extremely fine banding that allows it to diffract light and produce a spectrum of colors similar to a rainbow. The gemstone, difficult to identify because its banding is colorless, requires cutting perpendicular to the bands to allow it to separate white light into its components.

The gems exhibited during the 1996 International Trade Fair for Gems and Jewellery are featured. Some of these include dalmatian stones, black faceted diamonds, chrome epidote and kashmirine.

The 'condor' agate is as durable and lustrous as other agates but offers more color and personality. It was discovered by Luis De Los Santos in the southern part of Argentina called Patagonia.

American Gem Corp. in Helena, MT, has developed heat-treating technology that improves the color of the inferior sapphires found in the state. This treatment can turn sapphires with 'yuck' colors, such as puce or Coke-bottle green, into fine gem stones with dazzling colors.