thinkslikesrocks

[thinkslikesrocks]

Ok the bread is hilarious but might not be that far off. May be this was *inside* a cavity or vein, that first developed the "webbing" of mineral growth, (minerals can grow with highly organic habits and resemble moss, mold etc super close) then incompletely filled with chalcedony. The host rock weathered off and this went down a river for a while. It looks a lot like the incompetent moss agate out here, where you just have the moss mineral tendrils in a cavity without the secondary chalcedony. That'd be my guess.

Someday I would really love to get this rock identified as to what the fuck it is. Found on the Eel River in California. I've never seen anything like it

It looks like some sort of cursed webbing or bone (I know it is neither). Love my creepy rock.

[thinkslikesrocks]

I got a good UV flashlight!!!

[thinkslikesrocks]

Cut a few rocks on a warm afternoon! In the 30s now, but maybe this weekend it'll be warm enough to cut some more

[thinkslikesrocks]

Rocks! Tuff with iron and manganese and a funky unknown white mineral. I'm playing at a local excavation site and finding all kinds of things! I have project Manager's permission to collect, and he too is a massive rock nerd.

[thinkslikesrocks]

Had an idea above my skill level today lol but I was off and needed a project. I ... Will be recutting those front legs! Less trex horse here soon. I didn't make a pattern and that might have been a mistake. Oh well, I just got to cut more rock I guess!

[thinkslikesrocks]

More trent, because this stuff is stunning even if it is poisonous. 

[thinkslikesrocks]

On the subject of 100% natural things that can absolutely harm you, this is Trent agate. It's from one tiny deposit in eastern Oregon and is allegedly no longer able to be found and collected but still circulates in quantity in the lapidary hobby world. That stunning vibrant red firework pattern is likely Realgar, a very beautiful arsenic sulfide. It'll decay with time to bright yellow Orpiment, a historical pigment whose toxicity is well-documented! While I'm not going to make myself sick cutting this one slab, my saw oil now has trace arsenic and orpiment in it and will transfer tiny amounts to everything else I cut. Opse. At tiny amounts on not-food-objects it's a negligible concern but it'd absolutely harm my long term health to be repeatedly breathing in the dust and dust-laden oil off the saw. I'm going to let the oil settle, then pour it off and discard the sludge. Not worth scrubbing it off everything else I cut!

[thinkslikesrocks]

My coworkers adventure dog :) he's a mouthy shepherd mutt pound pup with two braincells and he comes on most of our rock and shed hunting trips! He can find neither rocks nor sheds.

[thinkslikesrocks]

Dragging all my coworkers backwards into rock collecting by cutting their rocks for them :)

[thinkslikesrocks]

If you are seeing what I’m doing and wondering about supplies, this place--> https://www.anythinginstainedglass.com/ has a website that should be framed in an antique shop but it has both reasonable prices and reasonable shipping costs. I have ordered from them a couple times now and have been quite happy with their service in comparison to Delphi and some of the other big-name supply websites! They are consistently cheaper on both product and shipping, and though it may take them a good ten days to get something in the mail, it will get to you. 

[thinkslikesrocks]

Start to finish, round 3 of learning to foil and solder! I’m still better at finding and cutting rocks than I am at soldering :P we’re getting there! 

[thinkslikesrocks]

mothsplaining

I don’t know what any of this means, but your rocks are v pretty and I’m glad biznizz is booming!!

Thanks :) it mostly means I have to carry that much rock around in a  backpack over the next few weekends and I’m going to moan and groan about it a little. I have learned the hard way to cap my waitlist at a reasonable volume for next year!  

[thinkslikesrocks]

i just totaled up what I still have to fulfil on my flat-rate waitlist. 

780 lbs. Before July 1st. 

HAHAHA nevermind people, stop cutting rock. 

[thinkslikesrocks]

@ people when they ask why I'm cutting rock: why aren't you?

Excuse me while I go discover tiny worlds inside the pebbles underfoot...

[thinkslikesrocks]

Made one!

We are leaning hard into this whole "adults learning new hobbies" thing. It's different but a bit more forgiving than the metalwork I did in college. We'll see where this goes!

[thinkslikesrocks]

And as for what folks are doing with agate, they are doing some pretty neat things, just none to my personal taste or style or within the vision I have for my work. But check out: 

https://www.jancikglass.com/product-category/agate-lamps/ 

https://www.etsy.com/shop/FleetingStillness

https://saturnstainedglass.com/portfolio.php?show=Geode+Candle+Holder

https://www.terrazastainedglass.com/product/w-154-geodes-agates-stained-glass-windows/

https://www.delphiglass.com/gallery/store_viewItem?gid=4454 

And also this hilarious décor trend article: 

https://designconnectioninc.com/design-inspiration/home-decor-trends-how-agate-geode-can-rock-your-homes-interior/

And while sure it might be on trend to bedeck one’s stuff in dyed Brazilian agate rounds, if you want to buy something made out of rocks go get it on Etsy from a home studio somewhere! 

[thinkslikesrocks]

So, because it’d be silly to just try one thing at a time, we’re also learning foiling and soldering. 

This has been a goal for a while, as my designs move past store-bought decorative lanterns. I picked up a really good iron half-off (returned; still hoping it works) and got some basic supplies. My mom does stained glass, full-size windows, lamp shades, ornaments, that kind of thing, but she never had a workshop space active when my brother and I were kids because of the lead and flux fumes. So, I have seen her work but I have never seen her at work with it, until after I moved out. But she gave me some pointers and basically said figure it out, it ain’t that hard, and here we are. 

Step one is foiling. We’re working on it! A lot of people use agate successfully in stained glass work but I have not seen anything like what I’d like to do, which is cut and shape from slabs I have cut instead of incorporating whole (usually Brazilian) agate slabs alongside glass. 

The tools used to shape agate and to shape glass are very different and not interchangeable; even though they’re basically the same element, agate is far harder, more brittle and has its own internal ‘grain.’ Which is why it requires the expensive fancy grinding blades :P oddly enough, it’s my old-model drop saw and my aftermarket cooling system that I think makes it possible to slab thin without losing slabs to blade chatter. 

We’re starting very, very simple. We’ll see how it goes!