It's Personal - My Second Montreal Gem Fair Visit

I almost COMPLETELY forgot about the Gem Fair this year and I managed to get there this afternoon. I'm so happy I did! I found some beautiful stuff and I reconnected with a lot of awesome people...:)

I didn't get to take photographs this year inside, but I did sneak one of my buddy Mike, a super sweet rockhound...:) There was a such a crush of people that even if I would have been allowed, I doubt I would have gotten anything else BUT people in the photographs! LOTS more people than last year, though it seemed like there were less vendors. I honestly wouldn't mind trying my luck at selling my pieces there as there were jewelry enthusiasts as well as stone and mineral lovers...:)

So, on to what I nabbed! These are awful pictures...I'm probably gonna retake them in daylight.

This is my buddy Mike, I got the following three pieces from him
A really pretty piece of amethyst that Mike handed over, I will probably make a pendant out of it...:)
This little beauty was hiding amongst some of Mike's slabs he had behind the counter...I had to have it and I'll probably keep it as is as a mineral specimen. I have a special place in my heart for Eudyalite.
This stunner was just sitting there looking pretty and I fell in love. It's a Picture Jasper the size of my palm. I bought this one for myself...;)
Mike always has fascinating stuff and he's a great hugger! You should have seen the MASSIVE 200lbs rock he had at the back and he had some beautiful petrified logs. I shoulda taken a pic of that rock...it was HUGE!

And now for beads...:D

I've been looking for small rondelles of moonstone for a while and I got these at a very good price. They are not the flashiest, but they still have good color and clarity. They are not faceted and are considered pillows.
Also known as Rainforest Jasper, this is Ryolite. I just loved the shape and color of these. They'd look great with copper although I have a marquis-shaped chain in sterling that would also be fab with these.
Are these not just gorgeous? They are Dendrite Agates. They are the size of my thumb! I saw them and fell in love....weirdly enough, they haven't spoken to me yet beyond telling me I think they're gorgeous...*lol* But a design...or two or three...will come!
Last but not least, my first mineral purchase...:D

This is Amazonite taken from Lac St-Jean in Quebec, Canada. Amazonite is my favorite stone and I saw TONS of specimens at the fair. So many were beautiful, but none tempted me from my promise not to buy minerals...until this little guy. Why was it so irresistible? Well, Canadian Amazonite is the quiet variety. It's similar in look to Russian Amazonite with white striations, but it's MUCH, MUCH paler. Most have just a blush of aqua color. Very soft and quite lovely in it's own way though the brighter varieties are far more popular these days. This particular specimen is quite rich in color...there are even some areas that are almost as bright as the Colorado variety of Amazonite. On top of that, this piece has gorgeous golden Pyrite crystals on it. I didn't see any other specimens with nearly so many...the few I saw that did have some only had tiny spots. And so this beauty came home with me and will get a nice display box along with the Eudyalite as soon as I have a shelf to put them on...:D
I left so much stuff behind that I just drooled over. Gorgeous raspberry-colored Garnet beads in hexagon shape and some small, lovely, flashy Labradorite smooth freeforms. If I would have been more confident in my faceted gem knowledge, I'd probably have taken home some of those too! There was an Indian dealer who was super nice selling some of the most gorgeous beads I've ever seen. He had this 16" strand of enormous Rose Quartz that was out of this world. Not a single inclusion to be seen with the naked eye, and so clear you could see right through them...1500$ for the strand...O_o OUCH! But I was convinced they were worth that price! He had some beautiful sapphire brios and other just beautiful things, Kunzite and stunning Smokey Quartz and colored Moonstones and Labradorite and the list goes on an on and I'd be surprised if he had anything less than 50$ a strand...:D

And that was my trip this year...I can't wait for next year!
♥