Light Spring Designs in Calcite

Almost entirely consisting of pure calcium, calcite is one of the most common and widely distributed minerals; it is the major constituent of limestone, marble and chalk. The name is comes from the Latin word, Calx, meaning “Lime”. Calcite is normally found in veins within rock. It is quarried most often as limestone to make cement, building blocks, ornamental stones, and fertilizers. Pure metamorphosed limestone forms white granular marble and the presence of other minerals results in colored, figured marble use for building, decorations and carvings.

Calcite crystals are more varied than any other mineral, with the best formed in rock cavities. They are large, transparent and colorless preismatic crystals inter-grown with other minerals. More than 200 forms are known, and they combine into a thousand different variations. In limestone caves, it produces stalacites and stalagmites, and it also forms seashells of living organisms which, on death, form limestone. Calcite is found in various colors including orange, blue, green, and citrine (yellow).

Calcite is said to symbolize clarification, mental growth and inner enlightenment. Legend says that Native Americans consider calcite a holy stone of the land of their fathers that was given to them by the gods. Green calcite is linked to the star sign of Capricorns.

These two designs are feature Calcite ready for the spring and summer seasons!

In this design, calcite is used as an accent stone to highlight the fused glass pendant to bring out more of the golden yellow tones; it’s a pretty mix between light airy Baltic amber chips and cultured freshwater pearls.

The second design is all calcite and features three large stones at the center, graduating the stones along with cultured freshwater pearls finishes the necklace.

 

Browse our online shop for some new spring and summer designs, available to purchase and add to your jewelry collection!

*Research from various websites and mineral/gem books.

Rockhounds & Rock Enthusiasts

Looking for something to do this weekend and get out of the cold? Take a drive up to Fredericksburg for a rockhound experience at the Hill Country Gem & Mineral Show!!

Drop by the Panther Creek Minerals booth; they have brand new shipments of museum quality minerals, fossils, amethyst, citrine, and much more!!

42nd Annual Hill Country Gem & Mineral Show

January 15th – 16th / Sat: 9:00am – 6:00pm & Sun: 10:00am – 5:00pm

At the Pioneer Pavilion – Lady Bird Johnson Park

(off Highway 16 three miles south of Fredericksburg, Texas)

Put on by the Fredricksburg Rockhouds

 

The show is free and so is the parking, with raffle drawings and hourly door prizes!! You can find minerals, fossils, meteorites, gems, jewelry, exhibits, demonstrations, rock experts, panning for gold, and much more!

Interesting Rocks of Conglomerate Jasper

Conglomerates are basically round stones set in a matrix of finer sand and clay. The stones can be gravel, pebbles, cobbles, or chips of boulders. These stones have been tumbles along beaches, rivers or streams for countless years to round off all the sharp edges. That makes these stones very touch to survive all the battering and elements of Mother Nature; so conglomerates are usually a base stone of quartz, flint, chert and hard igneous rocks. Conglomerates in a way, mark an interruption in the slow, steady process of deposition of rocks and minerals.

The great majority of conglomerates are described as petromict or polymict. This means they contain a wide mix of different stones from a variety of sources, such as basalts, slates and limestones. The matrix can be silicates, calcites or iron oxides. They are mainly river deposits washed down from areas of high relief and dumped in alluvial fans. The colors of conglomerates are as varies as the rocks and minerals their stones come from. The stones are often marked by different colors from the matrix.

In this design I’ve used a red conglomerate jasper pendant that is found and mined in New Mexico; the strands of the necklace are of red star jasper and rare Arizona ivoryite with a splash of blue crystals to bring out the blue matrix in the pendant.

  

  

Browse our jewelry collections of unusual and uniquely artisan crafted pieces online….at our Timeless Designs Ruby Lane Shop!