Lake Superior gemstones were kind of my first foray into lapidary jewelry.
Did you know that Lake Superior is known for agates? Tectonic activity a billion years ago led to the separation of the North American continent. Hot magma formed lava flows through modern-day northern Minnesota, which forms Lake Superior’s shoreline. As the lava flows solidified, steam and CO2 trapped to form small bubbles. Over time, ground water carried iron, silica, and other minerals through these bubbles. Groundwater also contained a lot of quartz, leading to the deposition of chalcedony, a very fine quartz. The reddish color of Lake Superior agates is caused by iron. The layered deposition of chalcedony leads to the distinctive banding effect.
I found this one while working outside of Moose Lake, Minnesota. Check out that banding!
I worked on an AmeriCorps crew after college, doing forest restoration work. We took our lunch breaks outside in pretty places, and often times, we’d poke around gravel pits for agates. There is an art to finding Lake Superior agates! Look for shiny stones, and they usually are more translucent than chert (another iron-containing rock). Lake Superior agates usually range from pea-sized to quarter sized, but once in a while you’ll find one bigger than a ping-pong ball.
When I was in grad school, my husband gifted me a rock tumbler. I’d had one as a kid, and holy wah, that thing was loud- I had to run it in the garage. This newer one was about on par with a freezer, so I could run it in our tiny apartment with minimal disruption. Wow! After polishing, the agates were amazing! We drilled a few with a Dremel. It was then that I made my first Burnished Collar necklace. I got the double ladder design right, but the agate often didn’t sit right.I came to prefer center beads with a flatter profile, and for the gemstones to be featured at the base of the collar.
The Lake Superior agate is the top stone at the center of this necklace. The current version of the burnished collar usually features gemstones at the base, rather than at the center.
After I took my PhD qualifying exams, I took a solo road trip around Lake Superior. It was absolutely beautiful! I drove across the UP of Michigan, and spent a night in Batchawana Bay, on the Canadian side. I hiked in amazing Pukaskwa National Park. Here I am overlooking Lake Superior, wearing a lattice choker.
Apparently, there is a deposit of amethyst on the west side of Lake Superior, near Thunder Bay, Ontario. I didn’t learn this until I was planning my trip, and amethyst picking came up as a suggested activity on Trip Advisor. There are several amethyst mines on the outskirts of Thunder Bay, where you can go and pick a couple pounds of amethyst to take home. They also have some show-stopping amethyst crystals.
I picked up several, and ran them through the tumbler. They looked fantastic! I dabbled in some wire-wrapped gemstone jewelry, like this bib necklace.
While I admire wire-wrapped gemstone jewelry, wire-wrapping work didn’t spark joy for me. Over time, I have found myself gravitating away from metal-based jewelry. In the last couple years, I’ve come to love working with gemstones. Some of my earlier gemstone work includes the Honeycomb Helix Bracelet.
I also really like top-drilled gemstone beads for Burnished Collar necklaces to add a “wow” factor to an Egyptian-inspired collar necklace.
Last fall, I thought I found the holy grail- double-drilled gemstone beads! My two favorite bead types- gemstones and double-drilled- together! Those have been a game-changer and given rise to a lot of my favorite designs. This design, the Bohemian Dreamweave bracelet, has been a top seller. A couple times, I have posted a photo on my Facebook page and someone claims it before I have a chance to list it in my shop!
The double-drilled gemstone beads have also featured prominently in my necklace designs. I love the detail that these add. What’s cool about gemstones is that no two are alike, as you can see in this Botswana Agate piece.
I absolutely love how I can make a dramatic necklace where the beadwork can accentuate striking gemstones! Yet another way my jewelry is one of a kind! Going forward, I plan to continue to feature a wide variety of stones.
Stay tuned for more show stoppers!
All the best,
Grace