A big welcome to both new subscribers and those who have been with me for a while!

I am sorry I missed October; I was so busy getting ready for the Open Studios Tour that somehow the newsletter didn't get written. I hope you enjoy this month's newsletter. If you would like to read past issues, you can do that in my Newsletter Archive.​

Barbara Kay Jewelry News

I had such a good time at the Clark County Open Studios tour in early November. Thank you to all who came to visit me! I really enjoyed talking to you about my jewelry, craft and processes. As usual, I forgot to get pictures while people were in the studio (too busy talking), but for those who weren't able to visit, here are a few showing the studio all set up - and clean for a change!

Here is the jewelry I put into the Studio Tour preview show at the Art in the Cave Gallery (Vancouver, WA.).

This set will stay in the gallery during the month of November, along with pieces from every artist on the tour. It is an exhibit well worth checking out if you live in the area. The pendant features a beautiful Golden Sky (also called Golden Eclipse) Malachite, cut and polished by my friend Laurie Gates Engelhardt. I'll be talking more about stones that have metallic inclusions like this in the featured stone section below. The chain is handmade Viking Knit. I gave this one a name: Proud Mama under Copper Leaves. Since I didn't have small stones for matching earrings, I made a pair of earrings that focus on the copper leaves.

If this set does not sell in the gallery the pendant and earrings will be listed separately in my shop online.

New Projects

I will have one more show before Christmas: The Laurelhurst Winter Bazaar on December 8 at 840 NE 41st Ave., Portland, OR. This bazaar has been going on for decades, I believe, and is a great one offering over 100 vetted vendors selling a wide variety of handcrafted items. Perfect for Christmas gifts (or for a special something for yourself)! For the next couple of weeks I'll be focusing my creating time on items for that sale.

But after that - most likely after Christmas - I will start a few new projects that will feature choices made by visitors to my studio. I asked people to choose their favorite stones out of a number of different shapes, colors and sizes:

The four with the most votes are the ones I'll work with next after finishing the projects I'm currently working on. The ones that received three votes will be in the group after that. Here are the first ones:

Top left: This is a doublet, with a plume agate on top and metallic glass beneath it.

Top right: Moss agate with a nice drusy pocket.

Bottom left: Moroccan seam agate.

Bottom right: Fossilized palm root.

I also asked for ideas of what wildlife I should feature. I got quite a list! Some of them were ones I've used before - and may use again at some point but not right away. The first ones will be: mouse, hawk, seahorse, snake, and maybe bat. Some may be connected to the stones shown above: Stay tuned in 2025 to see what happens!

Stone of the Month: Stones with Metallic Inclusions

One of the things I love about the stone in my cougar pendant above is the shiny gold metal that runs across the green. I thought it would be fun this month to look at a few of the metallic minerals that may show up as inclusions in other stones.

Many gemstones that we use in jewelry have metallic minerals mixed up in the stone. Usually those minerals contribute to the color of the stone but don't show up in any other way. Sometimes, however, there are actual little bits of metal or metallic minerals inside the stone that are visible, and that polish up with a fun and sometimes dramatic metallic sheen. Metals, by the way, are elements. For example, copper, silver, gold and iron are all elements. Metallic minerals are compounds of different elements. The inclusions I'll be writing about below are all considered minerals except for copper.

Chalcopyrite: This is the metal seen in the cougar pendant as well as these two Golden Sky Malachite stones. Its chemical name is Copper Iron Sulfide. Although both chalcopyrite and iron pyrite (known simply as Pyrite) are often called Fool's Gold due to their brassy gold color, chalcopyrite is copper based while pyrite is iron based. There are other differences, such as weight and hardness, but they look very similar.

Chalcopyrite is a primary source of copper. While it doesn't hold as much copper as some other ores such as cuprite, it is extremely abundant throughout the world. Interestingly enough, it can also contain small amounts of gold! Chalcopyrite can be found mixed up into rocks that occur around copper, such as malachite, azurite, turquoise and chrysocolla. That gives us gorgeous stones like these.

Pyrite: I can't really tell from looking whether an inclusion is chalcopyrite or pyrite. There are tests that will differentiate between them, but I'm not sure it's all that important when it comes to stones used in jewelry. They both have a brassy-gold look, both are sometimes called Fool's Gold, and both add drama and elegance to the stones in which they appear. Pyrite is a very common mineral; it can be found all over the world.

Here are a few examples of pyrite: pyrite beads on the top left, flecks of pyrite in Lapis Lazuli on the top right, and bits of either pyrite or chalcopyrite in little Morenci turquoise cabochons and in the lovely Josephine's Crown quartz. Josephine's Crown quartz is found in southern Oregon, and can include both chalcopyrite and pyrite.

Marcasite: Marcasite is an iron sulfide, as is pyrite. The two minerals are often confused; in fact, the word Marcasite was used for all iron sulfides, including pyrite, until 1845 when marcasite was defined as a specific mineral.

During the 1700s into the early 1800s, marcasite was a popular stone used in jewelry. Popularity increased even further during the Victorian era since Queen Victoria wore quite a bit of it. Many of the stones used in this antique and vintage jewelry was cut and faceted - and most of it was actually pyrite. Even today, gemstones that are cut and faceted, even if they're called marcasite, are actually pyrite.

However, there are stones, often agates, that include bits of true marcasite. While pyrite has a brassy gold appearance, marcasite is a paler yellow or silver when polished. It also appears in different shapes than pyrite - often in round or plume shapes such as you can see here.

Marcasite, as it appears in this agate, is quite dramatic when the light shines and it is moved. It can look dark in shadow like the inclusions in the top part and then show a wonderful silvery luster when the light shines on it, as you can see in the lower section.

Marcasite is somewhat unstable, and if it is exposed to too much moisture, can decay, so it should be stored in a dry place. You should avoid wearing it where it might get wet. I believe the polishing that occurs on cabochons do protect it somewhat. You can clean it very carefully with either a dry or barely damp soft cloth. Dry immediately.

Native Copper and Cuprite: There are many other metallic elements I could write about, but I'll save those for another issue. I'll end this article with copper and cuprite, which is a copper ore.

Copper is one of the few metallic elements that can be found in a native form - in other words, it can be found in the ground as copper without having to be smelted. Silver and gold are similar in that respect. Not enough native copper can be found to make it worthwhile to mine; most copper is extracted from ores such as chalcopyrite and cuprite. Native copper is usually found within and around other stone, such as malachite, azurite, chrysocolla and others. This can create some very colorful combinations!

Copper was one of the first metals to be smelted from ores, and has been used to create tools implements for at least 10,000 years. A copper pendant, dating to about 8700 BC, was found in what is now northern Iraq. Copper is found in many places of the world; the USA has some major copper deposits.

Here are a couple of examples of polished native copper. It was difficult getting the picture to show the gleaming luster of polished copper - as usual, that luster shows best when the stone is moved in the light. You can see the other minerals that surround the copper: quartz, agate, chrysocolla and others. The splashes of red are bits of cuprite, which is a copper containing ore. Which leads me to my final metallic element: cuprite.

I wanted to include cuprite in this list, even though it does not polish up with a metallic luster. But it is such a gorgeous red which really dresses up any stone in which it appears. Isn't this beautiful?

I find it especially fun to have a copper containing stone in jewelry - especially when copper metal is also used. What do you think?

I hope you enjoyed looking at a few different types of metallic inclusions. I will revisit this in the future and look at a few different metallic minerals.

I would love to hear from you. I'm looking ahead to 2025: What would you like to see me discuss about my jewelry, materials, processes, or anything else? What specific stones would you like me to feature? I would LOVE your input!! Send me an email to barbara@barbarakayjewelry.com or hit respond right now!