This list went out with the newsletter but I’m providing it here for anyone to run across on the website. These are the materials that we currently have on hand here in the studio for the production of custom orders. They range in size and the amount we have on hand – from one piece that may weigh a few ounces to 40+lbs of some.
- Rhodonite (pink & black)
- Mahogany Obsidian (brown & black)
- Silver Sheen Obsidian (silver banding & sheen in black)
- Snowflake Obsidian (white “snowflakes” on black)
- Rainbow Obsidian (purples, greens, blues, tans in banding show under ideal lighting conditions)
- Jet (Lignite – It’s where the term “jet black” comes from)
- Dumorturite (sort of a denim blue)
- Sodalite (very blue with white & black veins)
- Quartz (clear)
- Rutilated Quartz (clear with rutile needles)
- Smoky Rutilated Quartz (brown hued quartz with golden rutile needles)
- Smoky Quartz (near black when no light’s shining through, many interesting “bubbles” and inclusions but very clean)
- Gold Tiger’s Eye (Gold with hematite banding and chatoyant flash)
- Blue Tiger’s Eye (Blue with hematite banding and chatoyant flash)
- Rose Quartz (light pink to lavender hued)
- Amazonite (vivid blue-green, some of the best we’ve ever seen)
- Labradorite (A Grade is way flashy in golds, reds, blues, teals / B Grade is dark gray to black with small specks of flash to no flash.. basically cutoffs from the good stuff)
- Larimar (beautiful light blue & white, Caribbean origin, rather rare)
- Petrified Wood (all sorts of colors, lots of mixed neutrals)
- Banded Agate (cremes, grays, light blues)
- Dendritic Agate (some small black organic looking inclusions, mostly interesting banding and high translucency, gray/blue with some reds)
- Ivoryite (pure white stone, no inclusions – great white & vegan option)
- Morado Agate (orbicular reds and purples)
- Red Breciated Jasper (deep brick red with white and clear inclusion)
- Royal Imperial Jasper (small plugs, labrets – pastel cremes in orb pattern)
- Mexican Crazy Lace Agate (reds, grays and whites in bent banded pattern)
- Gemmy Green Jades (fairly translucent solid bright green color)
- Jadeite & Tourmaline (darker olive-drab green with tiny black tourmaline crystals)
- Rare Blue Jades (way pricey, way rare, way worth it)
- Black Jadeite (very heavy, very dark)
- Chiapas Ambers (mostly green hue and clear or with inclusions)
This list does not include things that we can very easily order from our rough stone suppliers, so if you are ever interested in something specific, let us know and we will find it. That list includes other obsidians (like spiderweb obsidian), fluorites of all colors, charoite, pietersite, lapis (old stock), etc. Basically any stone from just about anywhere that is legal and/or ethical.
Items we can make from stone with reasonably fast turnaround:
- Double Flared Plugs
- Single Flared Plugs
- Non-Flared Plugs
- Teardrop Plugs
- Concaves (subject to stone’s characteristics)
- Mayan Flared Plugs (subject to stone’s characteristics)
- Mayan Flared Tunnels (subject to stone’s characteristics)
- Pinchers/Crescents
- Stone Weights (simple shapes, 2D planes)
- Stone in stone inlays (yeah, we can do that)
Items we can make from stone that take us a really long time
- Spirals (subject to stone’s characteristics)
- Rings (subject to stone’s characteristics)
- Carved Items (carved hanging styles, etc)
- Stone Weights (3d items like coils and complex shapes like pear weights)
If you have any ideas for any of these materials, please don’t hesitate to get in touch. We keep a running custom order queue and materials wait list that ranges in length, depending on the complexity of the item and rarity of the material, from a couple of days to a couple of months. Quality custom made jewelry created to your specifications isn’t something that happens overnight, but it is definitely something special worth waiting for.
And just to put it out there.. anyone that comes to the studio in person to discuss a custom order is welcome to ask to see any of this material in person. I’ll cut it for you if I don’t already have a reasonably polished viewing specimen, show you multiple colors and patterns when necessary and we’ll work to select a piece of material specifically for your jewelry
Would you be able to make single flared stone plugs with a Mayan flare in a smaller size, say 6g? I love the look, but can’t currently do double flares (unless very gentle) and am not big enough to get the regular Mayan flares. If this is possible, what sorts of limitations would that put on the choice of stone? Thanks so much!
I could do a single flared piece in 6ga with a larger face. That would rule out the more fragile materials – I wouldn’t want to do it from a fluorite, amber, or amazonite, for example. Anything that fractures easily or has intersecting planes/seams within the stone is generally not a good candidate for “unsupported areas” like flares considerably larger than the wearable area, deep concaves and such. Most of the others shouldn’t be a problem.
Seriously, you guys just keep adding more and more new and awesome things.
I’m curious about what sort of stone is unethical. I imagine it would have something to do with how it was obtained rather than some intrinsic ethical flaw.
You’re absolutely right – it has to do with the way the stone is sourced. There are several areas of the world currently engaged in civil unrest or conflict. The two that come to mind right offhand are Burma, where some of the most valuable jades in the world come from, and Afghanistan, which is the source for most of the world’s lapis lazuli. We try to buy old stock materials instead of increasing demand for new material and helping cause more crime and smuggling for profit.
Whenever possible we try and source stone from reputable wholesalers and mine owners that are conscious of their environmental impact and that, if non-domestic, pay fair living wages and/or compensate their workers in a reasonable manner. Mining is not, under any circumstances, great for the earth, but it’s not going to go away anytime soon, so we should all do our part to be conscious of lower impact methods and the possibilities for reconstituting and reforesting formerly mined land.
The only source for Ammolites currently known, in Canada, is run by a company that makes an attempt to backfill their mines with material in the order it was removed and re-seed the areas with indigenous plant life.
Amber mining in Mexico can be a very risky business, with miners working in small tunnels, sometimes by candlelight and a real risk of cave-ins. We work with a team outside of Chiapas that engages the miners directly as opposed to a large outfit that just cares about the material pulled from the ground.
As I said, mining currently is not, and I don’t foresee it to ever be, something healthy for people or the planet, but while it’s going on we can do our best to minimize current impact and push for more stewardship of life and less “strip and run.”
Is it possible I could get the petal mayan flower design in size 3/4 in that rare blue jade stone?
is there any way i can get a grade a Labradorite stone plugs.. size 5/8″.. I would want some that look like the other labradorite plugs you have posted on this blog.
i’ve been looking everywhere for a pair of labradorite plugs in 7/8″ with a lot of flash and big flares. could i get a price estimate for a custom pair?
i am on the lookout for some nice, but not too expensive Pietersite double flared plugs in size 9/16. if you have this stone, please send me an email with estimated price.
also on the lookout for some high flash Labradorite plugs in 9/16
I’ve seen white Dendritic Agate with green swirls. Is that something you could possible get and make a 3 pairs and at what price? (4,2,00)