I feel like this has been an ongoing saga I kept to myself all summer long. In the beginning of the summer I bought another tumbler and more grit/polish to tumble the stones. I have been caught in the constant battle trying to get a high shine on the stones and no matter what I tried, every time I opened the barrel to look to see if the stones where shined, they were still matte and just that much smaller. I soaked the stones in hot water and used ivory soap. I scrubbed out the barrels and even removed any stone that had a crack or crevice in it that could have trapped the previous stages grit. No matter what I did, these stones just would not polish and I was going out of my mind as I tried two different bags of polish that I had purchased earlier this summer. I emailed the person I bought the polish from and was told that I must have been doing something wrong and he gave me some steps to try which I did, to no avail. I decided to stop trying to polish two barrels of stones as I did not want them to grind away to nothing and kept trying different tactics with one batch. I finally decided that maybe it was the polish I was using that was giving me the trouble. I ordered Lusterite polish which I could only find on EBay and used it on one barrel of stones. Today I was pleasantly surprised to see that it actually worked and the stones are beautifully polished.

Although I am a little upset because many of the Cape May diamonds are now way too small for me to do anything with, they at least polished up and maybe I can figure out what to do with some of them. I am waiting for the next batch of stones to be completed to see if I can find any stones that match for a nice pair of earrings. I also have a bunch of nice flat stones that will be perfect for bezel setting and I got one great looking Cape May Diamond that will look beautiful in a nice wire wrapped pendant.

Hoping to get more stones next week and I can finally start making the jewelry out of them that I have been envisioning all summer, but haven’t been able to do because the stones wouldn’t polish!

By the way, if anyone is interested in the polish I initially bought, it seemed to be aluminum oxide or some type of mix of that and it did NOT work on these beach stones. I bought it off of EBay, so lesson learned was to know where and who you are buying from and getting a good “deal” doesn’t necessarily mean you are getting what you pay for. I know that that Lusterite works because that is what I was using all along (also off of EBay) but saw another packaged deal cheap we, but it certainly was not better!

After having my daughter two years ago, I never was able to wear my engagement ring and wedding band again on my left hand. However I was able to immediately wear all my usual rings on my right hand which lead me to believe that the blot clot I had in my left hand and the swelling from when the IV was in and missed was the cause of my left hand being unable to wear the rings. I kept putting off getting the rings sized because I didn’t want them altered in any way. I kept hoping that one day I would put them on and they would fit…but no luck there. So after two years and change of not being able to wear them, I broke down and brought them to the jeweler to repair. I almost wanted to do it myself but did not trust my skills at hammering and polishing the ring shafts and I would never be able to forgive myself if I damaged the rings or lost or cracked a diamond…so I leave the “heavy lifting” for the experts.

I was absolutely stunned as we were able to watch the jeweler enlarge the rings. It was only a half of a size that they needed to be enlarged from a 4 1/4 to a 4 3/4s so he did not have to cut and solder. He effortlessly put them on the ring mandrel and started to hammer the back of the ring shanks, each movement was so percise it was amazing. He had an army of rotary tools, some of which I had no idea what they did except to grind and sand the gold down. He was so quick with each step, I was nervous about getting them back because it almost seemed like he was not paying close attention. But the result was the EXACT OPPOSITE and not only did they now fit, but they were well polished and looked absolutely brand spanking new without a knick or scratch on them!

After getting my “new” rings sized and back on the correct finger, I wanted to trade in my temporary ring we had gotten right after having my daughter as I no longer had a need for it. I was lucky enough to be able to trade it up for a gorgeous pair of diamond earrings that I fell in love with. AN early christmas present from my husband as now not only do I have my rings back, but a great pair of earrings to match!

I only wish that one day I can be as good at metalworking as the jeweler who fixed my rings, but for now, I will stick with the small stuff!

This weekend we did a local craft fair to show off our jewelry. The day started out very foggy and misty and I thought it was going to rain on us and chase away the crowd. But after the sun came out, it became absolutely beautiful without a cloud in the sky, although by the end of the day, it was getting hot!

We were lucky as we were in a shady spot set off from the main walkway so we did not have direct sunlight hitting our tent like some other vendors. I have a few pictures here because I wanted to show off our table as we added a new display designed by my husband (can you guess which one?) for all the Rutgers Jewelry.

I was going to make a sign so everyone knew what the R stood for, but he wanted to just put a Rutgers R on the display (It is a magnet for his car!) and stated people would know what it was for. Needless to say, next time I will put up a sign as it was needed!

I set up a new display for my cancer awareness bracelets but I am thinking even with the display and the sign people still did not notice them and they really looked more like a bunch of colored bracelets than sticking out to people that they are cancer awareness bracelets. I am at a loss how to highlight these bracelets at my next show…any ideas? Here is what it looked like and I kept shuffling around the sign and the stand all day…

UPDATED 10/14: Pieces are finally on the site!

My sister has been a busy bee and is really getting quiet talented with her bezels and using unique ways to display gemstones. Within the next few days I will be posting some new creations that use agate druzys as a focal pendant as well as my favorite new pendant she did with a dendritic quartz and sterling silver setting that is just so spectacular you will have to see it for yourselves! They are not priced and pictured yet…so it may take me a few days. Will link back to here once they are up!

Many people already know that October is breast cancer awareness month and the color of the awareness ribbon is pink. But what does this really mean besides showing our support and prominently displaying our pink awareness ribbons?

Breast Cancer Awareness is more than just showing your support, its about taking some time to learn about breast cancer and the signs and symptoms that all women need to be aware of and look for on a regular basis, not just the one time of year we raise awareness. Early detection can save your life! Breast self-examinations should be a regular part of your routine to ensure you have no lumps or changes within your breasts. To find our more on how to perform a breast self-examination, please follow the link here.

Also starting at the age of 40, all women should get a yearly mammogram to screen for any areas that may not be detected by a physical exam. From a personal standpoint, this screening test saved my mother’s life when a mammogram detected a small dark area which lead to a biopsy that showed she had breast cancer. Because of early detection, she was able catch the cancer at the very early stage and she successfully won her battle and is now a breast cancer survivor.

Breast Cancer Awareness Bracelet

Join me in spreading the word about the importance of breast cancer awareness and early detection/screening. Wear your breast cancer awareness bracelets with pride and share with a friend what breast cancer awareness means…it could save their lives.