Going to Tucson for the annual Tucson Gem Show in February is my hands down favorite business trip of the year! I use this time to hunt for gemstones to use in my collections and specific gemstones for private clients. The gem shows spread across the entire city and draws exhibitors, gemstones, and gem lovers from around the globe.
You never know what wonders you will find in Tucson during the Gem Show! From fossilized dinosaur poop to the rarest and finest emeralds from the mountains in Colombia, the treasure hunt is mesmerizing, exciting, and completely unpredictable.
I am excited to share some of the treasures that will be making their way into the Original Eve Collection from this years treasure hunt!
If something catches your eye, be sure to email hello@originaleve.com to claim your gems!
Faceted Cushions Galore!
After the overwhelmingly positive feedback I received after sharing the earrings I made for myself to celebrate my baby boy's birth (See HERE for more on those earrings!), I decided to search for some cushion cut gems that I can use to make variations of my earrings for the collection.
Check out three of my favorites of what I found! Square cushion cut Aquamarine in the most luscious blue, Rectangular cushions of Aquamarine that will make for stunning drops, and vivid blue Tanzanite cushions that truly sing...
I'm excited!!
(These are the original earrings:)
Tourmaline
The deep gemmy hues of tourmaline get ME every time and, this year in Tucson, I got THEM every time. Well, maybe my wallet didn't come out EVERY time I saw tourmaline... but it sure did feel like it!
What can I say? I know what I love and I really love the olive greens, peacock blues, and raspberry reds that are so special to this gem family.
Pearl Pairs
I can't go to Tucson without loading up on pretty pearls. This year, I found two of the most stunning pairs of pearls I have every added to the collection.
These baroque pearl pairs have such beautiful forms and golden hues--I just love them!
They are going into my new pearl earring finding with a simplified ear wire that will hold the pearl drops close to the ear.
Stay tuned!! (You can pre-order by emailing hello@originaleve.com!)
Earring Pairs
If you haven't figured out by now, I am a BIG earring person. I am thrilled by how many stunning drops will be joining the collection over the coming months.
Malachite, Chalcedony, Agate, Rainbow Moonstone, and Labradorite... This is going to be a great year for earrings!
And this is just a small sampling of what I found in Tucson (and it doesn't even include the gems that are already on the bench to be made into earrings first!).
Email hello@originaleve.com to preorder any of these earring pairs!
Variety of Heshi Cut Gemstone Beads
Spinel, Flourite, and Labradorite--oh my! Tucson can truly be a beader's heaven with thousands upon thousands of strands of beads populating a single 10x10 booth (and remember, we are talking about thousands of booths covering the entire city of Tucson!), but what is most exciting about diving into a booth covered in strands of beads is uncovering rare and beautiful gemstones that really POP amongst the noise.
Here we have gemstone strands that are Heshi Cut, meaning there are facets along the edge of the disc shaped beads. From left to right: Fluourite, Black Spinel, Chalcedony, and Labradorite.
An Exciting New Cut
I am not the only one who is making new things between shows! My gemstone vendors are constantly finding new inventory and reinventing themselves by creating new cuts for their stones.
One of my favorite vendors has an exciting new cut that I am really looking forward to working with in the coming months. These step cut gems are pretty flat, giving them the appearance of being much larger stones without the weight that would make them super uncomfortable to wear as earrings.
I scooped up Chalcedony, Aquamarine, Malachite, and Moonstone. And my brain is filling with ideas about how to use them in the collections!!
Stay tuned to see how these beautiful gems become incorporated into the Original Eve Collections! And remember to reach out if something speaks to you and you want to work with me to customize a piece using the stones I found!
Email: hello@originaleve.com