The Fall Kansas City Gem Show by Shows of Integrity will be November 4-6, 2016. The Association booth will be there as usual, staffed by Kansas City rockhounds who would love to see you!
Click here for a flyer in PDF format that you can print or send to all your friends.
The Association always has an auction at the Gem Show which raises money for scholarships for college students studying earth science-related fields. Find out more about the scholarship and apply here: http://kcgemshow.org/2015_Scholatship%20App.html
Everyone is welcome at the auction, but it is especially popular with club members because there are snacks. It took place at 7 pm on Saturday, March 12. Here are some of the things you missed.
A sculpture by the late David Wright, award-winning silversmith and jeweler. Made with Pitcher jasper. Photo by Stephanie Reed
A Pelagic crinoid from Morocco. Photo by David Reed
An Estwing rock hammer and a polished opal (sold separately, but they were close together on the table). Photo by David Reed
Vintage maps of Colorado from 1918. Photo by David Reed
Bonus: here are some more photos of club members at the show.
Club members Bob, Bruce, Martin, Molly, and Stephanie at the Association Booth. There were many more members present but this was as close as we could get to a group photo. Photo by David Reed
Bob, Bruce, and Martin at the booth looking at what there is for sale. Photo by David Reed
Molly and Bruce, members of IGAMS. Photo by David Reed
I took way too many photos at the show and most of them were interesting, making it difficult to write this post. Without further ado, here are the highlights from the Spring 2016 Gem and Mineral Show.
The Association Booth was staffed by club members from Show-Me Rockhounds, IGAMS, and more. Photo by Stephanie Reed
The popular prize wheel returned again. It’s only 50 cents to spin and receive one of 8 different prizes. Everyone’s a winner! Photo by David Reed
The Geode Gallery (Davenport, IA) cracked a lot of geodes. You can have a geode opened whether you buy it from them or bring your own. Photo by Stephanie Reed
Look behind you, it’s a dinosaur attack! No, it’s Mr. Bones! From Louisville, CO, Mr. Bones has returned for more dinosaur fun. Photo by Stephanie Reed
A representative from the Dino Lab in Science City at Union Station. She is cleaning a specimen to be mounted. Photo by Stephanie Reed
Mark Sherwood is helping these people identify something. It’s a free service from the Friends of Mineralogy, The Association, and IGAMS. Photo by Stephanie Reed
Science kits for kids (of all ages). Photo by Stephanie Reed
Ever wanted to try flume mining? Get a Nugget Bucket from McDe’s River Gems (Topeka, KS). Photo by Stephanie Reed
Each club in the Association can submit cases to show off things they have done, created, collected, etc. This case is from the Sterling Guild, a club for crafting with silver. Photo by Stephanie Reed
Bruce Stinemetz’s fluorite octahedron collection. Photo by Stephanie Reed
A stunning assortment of gem trees from Accessory Minerals (DeSoto, KS). Photo by Stephanie Reed
Jeanne’s Rock and Jewelry (Bellaire, TX) was selling stands and cases for your specimens. Displaying is an important part of collecting, which is often overlooked. Photo by Stephanie Reed
Mark your calendar for the Spring 2016 Gem and Mineral Show, sponsored by the Association. Here is a flyer in PDF format you can print or send to all your friends.
We had fun selling and buying specimens at the gem show. If you missed it, here are some of the things you can expect to find at a show.
An overview of the whole show. Photo by Stephanie Reed
This year we sold books about rocks and where to find them, including the highly desired Gemstones of North America by John Sinkankas.
Mark selling minerals.
President Martin and Webmistress Stephanie looking at an aquamarine. Photo by David Reed
This jar of tumbled chips of Lake Superior agates was part of a kit for making a gem tree, sold by the Show-Me Rockhounds. Photo by Stephanie Reed
Polished spheres made of minerals from Dave’s Rocks and Carvings (Hamburg, MI). I see rose quartz, tiger’s eye, sodalite, and snowflake obsidian. Can you name all the minerals?
Mineral specimens for sale from Dave’s Rocks and Carvings (Hamburg, MI) Photo by David Reed
Gem shows always have lots of jewelry for sale, usually organized by mineral. This is an entire box full of rings made with blue larimar sold by Manichia LLC (Kansas City, MO). Blue larimar is a type of volcanic pectolite found in the Dominican Republic.
Glass beads for sale at Park Design (St. Joseph, MO). You can even watch the beads being made. They can also be found at the Three Trails Trading Post in Independence, MO.
It’s almost that time again. The weather is getting cooler, the leaves are falling off the trees, and the fall gem show is next week. It will be at the Kansas City Expo Center November 6-8. The fall show is not as big as the spring show (in March) but is still well worth attending, as it’s only $6. IGAMS will be there and if you signed up to help, hopefully you know who you are because I don’t. Also, feel free to print out this flyer and share it with your friends, co-workers, and anyone else who might be interested.
Every year, the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (MO DNR) has an Earth Science Week full of fun activities for kids and adults. From their website: Earth Science Week aims to help the public gain a better understanding and appreciation for the Earth Sciences and to encourage stewardship of the Earth. This year’s activities will be held Oct. 11-17 and will celebrate the theme “Visualizing Earth’s Systems.” This year’s theme will engage young people and others in discovering the Earth sciences, remind people that Earth science is all around us, encourage Earth stewardship through understanding, and to motivate geoscientists to share their knowledge and enthusiasm about the Earth.
Go ahead – be a citizen scientist!
Enter the photography, visual arts and essay contests! All eligible submissions must be submitted to the American Geosciences Institute and received electronically by 4 p.m. CST, Friday, Oct. 16, 2015.
Participate in events during Earth Science Week. Plan a visit to the Missouri Geological Survey during Earth Science Week. The Missouri Geological Survey will be open during Earth Science Week from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday-Friday, Oct. 12-16.
Read our Governor’s Proclamation!
New T-shirt celebrating the show and featuring a calcite crystal.
Shirts are only $10 and we have plenty left if you want one.
Show-Me Rockhounds members discussing pottery.
Show-Me Rockhounds members loading supplies into the storage container.
Rockhounds hard at work.
Unpacking boxes.
Bob selling minerals to some happy customers. Bob is a great salesman.
Making glass beads (lampwork) at the Three Trails Trading Post.
I took a lampwork class at the Three Trails Trading Post once and it was really fun. I highly recommend it.
Huge pieces of petrified wood from Lincoln Curios.
Arrowheads made by the Flint Knappers.
The Flint Knappers were next to our booth and they were making arrowheads and going tap, tap, tap the whole time.
The Geode Gallery lets you pick out a geode and have it opened onsite.
Pearls from Hartman Enterprises. There are miles of beads for sale at shows like this.
A rainbow crystal pendant for your chakras.
Painted agate slabs from Aerie Artwork
A display of metalworking tools made by the Sterling Guild.
A display made by Bruce from IGAMS showing his new acquisitions from 2014. Bruce made several displays and made the rest of us look like slackers.
Somebody decided that tiger’s eye looks like bacon slices when cut into slabs.
We had a great turnout at the gem show and made over $3000! Thank you to everyone who volunteered. Pictures will be up next week. Also, don’t forget IGAMS is meeting this Thursday the 19th and we are meeting this Saturday the 21st.
A schedule of special events happening during the show. If you can only come on one or two days, use this to help plan.
Friday, March 13, 2015
All day- Minerals and jewelry for sale, flint knapping demonstration, walk-through story book, free rock/mineral identification.
3:00 p.m. “Missouri’s One and Only Dinosaur and the End of the Dinosaurus”, Carl Campbell, St. Louis Community College-Meramec, St. Louis, Missouri
Saturday, March 14, 2015
All day- Minerals and jewelry for sale, flint knapping demonstration, walk-through story book, free rock/mineral identification.
1:00 p.m. “Crinoids, Lillies of the Sea”, Rick Poropat, Eastern Missouri Society for Paleontology, St. Louis, Missouri
2:00 p.m. “CSI -Cretaceous Skeletal Investigations and the Life and Hard Times of T. rex ”, Dr. David Burnham, Research Associate, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas
3:00 p.m. “Chasing Jumbo’s cousin: Reconstruction of the history of one of KU’s oldest and largest fossils”, Josh Schmerge, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas
4:00 p.m. “Flat-skulled beavers of the Miocene: The most unusual mammals of all time?”, Josh Schmerge, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas
7:00 p.m. Lecture Room- Public auction in the Lecture Room with complimentary snacks and soft drinks. Proceeds will benefit the Scholarship Fund.
Sunday, March 15, 2015
All day- Minerals and jewelry for sale, silent auctions, flint knapping demonstration, walk-through story book, free rock/mineral identification.
2:00 p.m. “Nannotyrannus – teenage tyrant or tiny theropod?”, Josh Schmerge, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas
Show-Me Rockhounds Kansas City 