Sunday, October 2, 2011

Wheel....Of......Cabochons!!!!!


I got some time to spin the wheels today, finishing up a bunch of half-finished cabochons
so that I can move forward with materials I've been
wanting to use for some time:
I have a difficult time starting new projects if something's waiting, partially-done

SO

I worked the stones,
finishing with a good polish on the felt.

Chrysoprase, small rectangle of wonder: it glows.

Laguna or Moctezuma Agate, healed internal fracture
amazing bands

Laguna agate in shades of ka-pow

mystery agate, plume and moss

Unstabilized turquoise: when this gets wet, the color darkens.
I think it's pretty rare to find unstabilized material, and it ground down really fast, even on the highest grit wheel I've got: I mostly worked it on the felt flat lap.

A really nice day for a rockhound, I've got to say.
When I work on cabs, I feel like a previously unidentified alter-ego:

Sam, the sinewy, handsome 63-year-old ex-marine
with a heart of gold and a pack of Lucky Strikes rolled in his sleeve.
Married to his wife for better'n thirty years
.

xoxox,
Sam - er, Sunny

4 comments:

Amy Nicole said...

Good Lord those are some fine stones. It's funny that doing lapidary work makes you feel like a cool old guy. It seems like my favorite lapdarists are rock hounds with hearts of gold!

lynn bowes said...

Ah . . . you just brought back the memories of the old fellow who taught me lapidary, Roger Pabian.

He was a Professor of Paleontology at the Univerisity of Nebraska - delightful old bachelor - and we called him Captain Agate as he was one of the world's authorities on the stuff.

Miss him much and his sly chuckle and twinkling star eyes. Thank you for the beautiful reminder :: lynn

MrsLittleJeans said...

Beautiful stones...I bet it is satisfying to run your hands over the smooth surfaces...xoxo

Anonymous said...

Those are so pretty. I really need to learn how to do that. We have a beautiful lapidary machine my hubby built and it's just sitting...it really needs to be cuttin' and a polishin'.