I spent last week in Tucson, AZ doing a mix of rock hunting, professional networking and exploring the desert landscape. I met many people that I source diamonds and rough gemstones from, strengthening relationships and further ensuring that our gemstone sourcing is done thoughtfully and ethically. People from all over the world come to Tucson with their gems - Columbians with emeralds, Australians with opals, Africans with Sapphires, Mexicans with fire agate, Americans with turquoise, sapphires and peridot. The gem I fell most in love with on this trip was the Oregon Sunstone, a feldspar found in Oregon which has yellow to orange hues. I bought a few cut gems and some nice rough sunstone material to facet into jewels.

The Saguaro National Park (pictured above) and beautiful Mount Lemmon provided calm respite and stunning beauty before the very packed social days. It was inspiring to meet people absolutely obsessed with their facet of the jewelry industry, whether that was a couple that mines together in Montana, or a faceter that has all the refractive index angles memorized, or Australians that spend months in remote backcountry searching for new veins of opal. The specialization and passion of the individuals is captivating. 

.              

Sourcing the Montana Sapphires and ethically sourced diamonds is so important to the custom jewelry and engagement rings we create. My experience in Tucson was a lovely reminder of how much I enjoy being a jewelry artist making unique fine jewelry that tells a story both via the materials it is made of and the purpose it serves as talismans you wear.