This stone is truly magical - it makes me feel hopeful and optimistic.  There is something about the sparkling “fairy dust” that glimmers from the crystaline structure of tanzanite. 

I can’t seem to get enough of the violet blue that it radiates- and the more you look at it, the more you are warmed by the elusive purple that is subtly but definitely present in tanzanite. 

Tanzanite is known to elevate mood.  It is a great stone for relaxation, especially great for type A people to help slow them down.  Some believe it can help free one from negative habits to lead a less stressful, more productive and healthier life.  Sounds like a lifestyle stone, perhaps there is a reason I am drawn to it!  The stones have a funny way of speaking to you.

We’re still working on the rough pieces we featured last. 

But in the mean time, we’ve produced these beauties. 

Part three: we’re cutting the rough!

There’s more to come!

As you know, I am all about the stones.  Having just returned from a major buying trip- we have some really great finds I can’t wait to use!  I have increasingly grown more intrigued with natural specimens.  Jeremy and I can’t get enough of the rough and raw textures on stones pulled right out of the ground.  I love how they capture a moment of time in the Earth’s natural history.  They are like little time capsules that tell a fantastic story about our planet.

 With that said here is The Story of Tanzanite: Part One 

These specimens may not look like much, but have recently been brought into the jewelry lime light.  Tiffany & Co. introduced Tanzanite to the world at large in 1969 by giving it a name and creating a phenomenon for this rare and exotic stone.  They named Tanzanite in honor of the only place this stone is found.  It was discovered in 1967 in the Merlani hills near Arusha in Northern Tanzania by indigenous Massai tribesmen out on a bush walk who noticed the sparkle in a group of grayish – reddish brown rocks. 

It is said that this rock was not discovered until lightening struck the ground causing a bush fire to naturally heat the Zoisite in the ground turning it the amazing violet blue of Tanzanite.  Since, it has been found that heat treating the grayish- reddish brown Zoisite brings forth the prized intense violet-blue and red trichroic nature of Tanzanite.  Heat treatment of this stone is universal from the first generation of Tanzanite miners that put stones into charcoal fires to the modern heating treatments of now. 

Jeremy and I acquired these specimens from some very nice young German dealers who journey to Tanzania each year to mine the stones themselves.  They had a few grades- of course we got the best.  It is said that 90% of all tanzanite merchants are official members of the International Colored Gemstone Association (ICA) to which our guys belong, and thus bound by the highest ethical standards.  Of course this is music to our ears.

This stone has been inspirational to me and I am excited to see what we create.  

Next step- cutting these stones and design….stay tuned!

To be continued….