Hello Gem lovers,
In this newsletter, I'm pleased to announce the arrival of a brand new gemstone to GC, the beautiful pinkish violet gemstone that is Kunzite...
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Kunzite has a hardness of 6.5 to 7 on the Mohs scale making it a relatively hard gemstone. Kunzite has two perfect cleavage directions, and it’s pleochroic, with the best colour visible when you look down the length of the crystal. Cutters keep these factors in mind when they orient gems for finishing.
It takes its name from George Frederick Kunz, the mineralogist who discovered it in 1902 in San Diego County, California. Since then, deposits have been found as far afield as Brazil, Afghanistan, Madagascar, Myanmar, and Pakistan.
This is one of my favourite gemstones at the moment, not least becau se the crystals are relatively free from inclusions, making some of the cut gemstones extremely clear, clean and bright. It’s also perfect for this season's Gem Packs.
I find the crystal journey from mine to cut gemstone truly fascinating, and this GIA video of a Kunzite mine will go some way towards explaining why - I hope.
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I AM LOVING GEM PACKS
AND IT WOULD APPEAR, YOU ARE TOO
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I am having so much fun researching the spring/summer fashion colour palettes for 2018 and then taking my time handling the stones and combining the packs. I love my job, and the response from you guys has been great, so as promised, here are some more packs for you, plus an article that I found really useful when identifying Pantone colours, and their names.
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Pantones
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GREAT MINDS
CIVILIZATIONS
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Before you scroll down to view all the great new gem packs, I ask you to cast your mind back to my newsletter of December 8th, 2017, when I featured this exquisitely detailed carving on a thumb-sized piece of Agate, unearthed in a 3500-year-old tomb in western Greece. The ''Pylos Combat Agate,'' as it is now called, was also featured in the first episode of the BBC series ''Civilisations'', first aired on 1st of March 2018, and still available on BBC iPlayer.
You saw it here first!
Have a nice weekend and happy smithing.
Ricky
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PYLOS COMBAT AGATE
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PYLOS COMBAT AGATE
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Gem Pack
Kunzite, Aquamarine, Pink Tourmaline
£27.50
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Kunzite
14x13mm Rectangular Cut Loose Gemstone Cabochon
£60.00
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Gem Pack
Kunzite, Aquamarine, Moonstone, Iolite
£45.00
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Kunzite
15x11mm Rectangular Cut Loose Gemstone Cabochon
£45.00
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Gem Pack
Rose Quartz, Aquamarine
£4.00
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Kunzite
17x16mm Rectangular Cut Loose Gemstone Cabochon
£70.00
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Gem Pack
Rose Quartz, Green Chalcedony, Moonstone
£6.50
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Kunzite
30x24mm Polygon Cut Loose Gemstone Cabochon
£99.00
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Gem Pack
Gem Pack: Rose Quartz, Moonstone, Green Chalcedony
£5.50
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Gem Pack
Rose Quartz, Moonstone, Iolite, Citrine
£5.50
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Gem Pack
Yellow Calcite, Green Chalcedony, Peach Moonstone
£6.50
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Gem Pack
Yellow Calcite, Moonstone
£7.00
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Gem Pack
Yellow Calcite, Peach Moonstone, Green Chalcedony
£4.00
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Gem Pack
Yellow Calcite, Peach Moonstone, Green Jasper
£6.00
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Gem Pack
Yellow Calcite, Rose Quartz, Iolite
£6.50
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Due to the popularity of the gem packs, certain shapes are running very low, so please order quickly to avoid disappointment
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