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Paisley Agate?

By /June 28, 2023 /1 comment /Cut Rocks

The winter storms tree damage is all cleaned up, processed to saw logs and split firewood. Three large fires that I lit burned up all the brush. So, I had a bit of time to cut and polish more of The Carver agates. Rock #5171 : Paisley AgateI found it, cut it, and named it The paisley agate was named by me. It is a bit dark for inclusion in jewelry, but I liked it because the pattern reminded me of the paisley so popular in my childhood. Rock #5161 Photo 5161 is a heel grind of a small agate nodule which yielded ‘sunflowers’ in a pretty blue-appearing stone. The blue color of the stone was enhanced greatly from a pale white to the blue that you see due to my photographing the stone on a very foggy Maine day. When photographed in my shop on a sunny day, the […]

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“Bluest” Agate Bracelet

“Bluest” Agate Bracelet

By /March 31, 2023 /2 comments /Bracelets

This is the first bracelet I made in 2023. It is the “bluest blue” agate so far from The Carver. The stone is 100% natural and is not treated in any way. I was so taken by the deep blue banded coloration that I decided I just had to put it in a new bracelet. The stone’s rectangular shape “drove” my design—sleek, simple and angular. As I have often said, the setting design is only for one purpose: to highlight the shape, beauty and uniqueness of the cut stone. This bracelet is now available for purchase in the Shop! “Bluest” Agate Bracelet More views Click on each image to see an enlarged version

A first! Texas Amethyst Agate Signature Jewelry Release

A first! Texas Amethyst Agate Signature Jewelry Release

By /March 4, 2023 /1 comment /Jewelry

I have been asked by many about my company’s name, Texas Amethyst Agate. So what is Texas Amethyst Agate? Amethyst Agate from The Carver Agate Field Amethyst agate is a blended stone, being part agate in combination with amethyst, which is a purple semiprecious stone and the February gemstone. Amethyst, although not geologically rare worldwide, is quite rare as a Texas stone. Combining agate with amethyst is an even more rare Texas stone. Amethyst is not only rare in Texas, but is found only occasionally on The Carver Agate Field in West Texas. In fact, many of my long time West Texas rocker friends who have collected in West Texas for many years have never personally found amethyst in Texas. Among those friends, amethyst agate in Texas is virtually unheard of. That is why I named my company after this rare and beautiful purple, banded stone. I have not previously […]

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Powerful and Violent Forces Create Brecciated Material

Powerful and Violent Forces Create Brecciated Material

By /February 12, 2023 /6 comments /Geology

My last posting, “Cryptic Message Leads to Brecciated Pierced Earrings!,” featured brecciated material from The Carver Agate Field. The posting promised more geological information. And, here it is. Brecciated agates or other materials are ‘pieces held together with quartz,’ citing Gemstones of The World, by Walter Schumann, page 134. Sometimes the quartz that holds together the shards of broken rock can form agate between the shards. Rock #4867 In this photo of Rock # 4867, there is a small fortification agate which can be seen between the shards. There is also a lava shard at the top of the photo. Rock #4868 Rock #4868 displays jasper (dark brown horizontal strip near top) and agate shards (lower bottom right) as well as a brown lava shard (lower middle) Rock #4833 Photo 4833 shows yellow/orange jasper shards cemented together by quartz which is mostly not visible except as a bluish material (lower […]

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Cryptic Message Leads to Brecciated Agate Pierced Earrings!

Cryptic Message Leads to Brecciated Agate Pierced Earrings!

By /February 9, 2023 /6 comments /Jewelry

I recently opened another box of rocks I had packed in Alpine, Texas, and brought with me back to Islesboro, Maine. I had put a slip of paper in the box which said: “Rt. 67/90 dog pound N of water tank on right before a deep draw on ranch road” The small box contained the material you see in this posting. While cutting one of the ugly looking pieces, I hit something I really liked! The oval cab photo (#4992) and freeform cab photo (#4995) were cut from the same piece. The pierced earrings came from a fracture in the rough stone being cut. As I cut #4992 and #4995, two small shards broke off during the cutting in the saw. Rock # 4992 Rock #4995 So! It appeared that I had two cut-able stones and two worthless broken shards–but not so fast! I liked the coloration and pattern of […]

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7 Totally Different Agate Specimens

7 Totally Different Agate Specimens

By /January 24, 2023 /0 comments /Cut Rocks

My last blog posting highlighted cabs I cut in January, 2023. The purpose of these postings is to highlight the incredible variability of material from The Carver. This posting shows actual specimens rather than cabs. Enjoy! Rock #4963: Agate Geode Rock #4958 : Carnelian Fortification Agate Rock #4975 : Agate Geode Rock #4948 : Geode with Fortification Agate Rock #4960 : Geode with Crystalline Center Rock #4949 : Fortification Agate Rock #4961 : Fortification Agate, with yellow-orange dots creating the color

New Bracelet: The First in Several Years

New Bracelet: The First in Several Years

By /January 22, 2023 /0 comments /Bracelets

A volcanic breccia agate cuff bracelet, the first new bracelet made in several years, is now offered for sale in The Shop! This sterling silver cuff is one of only 36 bracelets crafted by me. The coloration of the stone was so unusual for The Carver that I just had to put it into a bracelet; so I cut, polished, and handmade the cuff. Check it out now in the Shop. I hope you like it!

Carver Agate Field Variety, January 2023

Carver Agate Field Variety, January 2023

By /January 21, 2023 /4 comments /Cabochons

January in Maine is about keeping the wood stove full, dealing with ice and snow, and best of all, some time to cut and polish remarkably varied colors and types of agates, geodes, and jaspers that continue to come from The Carver Agate Field in Alpine, TX. As a group, these 11 cabochons (cabs), as well as the 7 rock specimens which will appear in the next blog posting, again tell the tale. Individually there are several quite unique and interesting stones for the rock enthusiast. I would recommend you view these specimens as large as possible. You can open each image and enlarge it by clicking on it. Rock # 4972 : Slab from a geode! Notice a portion of the crystal lined geode pocket at lower left side of stone. Rock #4951 : Carnelian (red quartz) fortification agate cab Rock #4937 : I suggest you enlarge this photo […]

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Crystal Oddity Encapsulated in a Blue Fortification Agate

Crystal Oddity Encapsulated in a Blue Fortification Agate

By /October 7, 2022 /1 comment /Cut Rocks

This is a cross section of a blue agate nodule from The Carver Agate Field. Rock #4914 The small nodule, approximately 2 inches across, was initially cut and lightly shaped to capture the fortification agate in the center of the stone, as well as the ‘white eye’ on the left-hand side of the stone. And for even more interest, there was a contrasting brown spot on the upper right-hand part of the stone. That explains why I was cutting this stone in the way it was cut. Rock #4914 magnified Well, once cut and polished and subjected to modest magnification, the brown spot suddenly and unexpectedly became the highlight of the stone and the subject of this blog. Magnification, as shown above, produced a highly angular brown crystalline structure and not shards of broken or fragmented stone encased later in the agate. When this agate nodule formed inside of a […]

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A Ghost and Four Other Carver Agates Cut This Week

A Ghost and Four Other Carver Agates Cut This Week

By /October 2, 2022 /2 comments /Cut Rocks

The most interesting of the five stones is the “ghost,” shown below in two different angles. Click each image to see an enlarged version. Rock #4910 Rock #4909 Next we have a yellow fortification agate in an “octopus garden beneath the sea.” Rock #4894       Photo 4906 below is the slab from another nodule creating a cut and polished agate which looked blue before being cut and more red to orange after being fully polished.      Rock #4906 Rock #4906 close-up Photo 4896 is a jasper/agate free form designer cab. I just liked the colors.     Rock #4896 For the lapidists out there, photo 4899 below, which I call the flower garden agate. is the most interesting cut that I have done in a while. Usually I take a nodule, cut a thin slab from a crosscut of the nodule, and then grind and polish, as is the case in all […]

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