fun finds at the Gem Show in Chantilly, VA

[vip0802]

BF and i had so much fun there today! it was my mom''s b-day and since she couldn''t go because of work, i decided to pick out several things for her. here they are!

my mom loves gem beads so i got her a strand of rubies:

 

[vip0802]

a strand of emeralds:

 

[vip0802]

several strands of citrine:

 

[vip0802]

a strand of tsavorites:

 

[vip0802]

a pair of lapis earrings:

 

[vip0802]

and a cabochon amethyst pendant in sterling silver:

 

[cellentani]

Aww, you went today, vip? I went yesterday (and maybe will go again tomorrow). Glad you had a good time, and I love the things you picked out for your mom - very sweet of you! Your BF is definitely a keeper if he went with you - I saw many bored men trailing behind their SOs, lol. Did you guys get a chance to look at any settings?

 

[Fly Girl]

Gem shows are so fun. Enjoy your new pretties. I like that amethyst pendant a lot.

cellentani - I don't bring my guy along. He hits the local bookstore and spends his $$$ there.

 

[vip0802]

not a colored stone, but i also bought BF an 8mm black tungsten carbide band with a beveled edge. he LOVES it!

by the time i was looking for things for myself, i had already spent my budget.

i really didn''t want BF to spend anything on me since he''s been saving up for my engagement ring. i still had a great time picking out things for them though! then on the way home, i realized a stone had fallen out of my diamond eternity band.

luckily, BF found it on my car seat (he has great vision...the stone is just a 5 pointer) and we dropped it off at my mom''s jeweler to get fixed.

in the end, my mom and BF have some nice goodies and i''m ringless.

 

[cellentani]

Date: 8/15/2009 10:21:19 PM
Author: Fly Girl
Gem shows are so fun. Enjoy your new pretties. I like that amethyst pendant a lot.

cellentani - I don''t bring my guy along. He hits the local bookstore and spends his $$$ there.

Fly Girl, I immediately thought of you as soon as I saw that pendant! And yeah, I imagine many couples have a system worked out like you - DH enjoys books exponentially more than gems, but he''s a good sport to go along with me anyway.

 

[vip0802]

Date: 8/15/2009 10:17:46 PM
Author: cellentani
Aww, you went today, vip? I went yesterday (and maybe will go again tomorrow). Glad you had a good time, and I love the things you picked out for your mom - very sweet of you! Your BF is definitely a keeper if he went with you - I saw many bored men trailing behind their SOs, lol. Did you guys get a chance to look at any settings?

i posted a thread in Hangout for you, but i think it got bumped down since it's a heavy traffic forum. BF was a total sport! he actually enjoyed himself a lot since he's been studying up on jewelry.

yeah, i saw a lot of bored SOs there too! hahaha! i actually saw a lot of couples and guys by themselves looking at engagement rings too...it was so sweet! oh we saw TONS and TONS of settings that i fell in love with. after a while they all started looking the same, and we kept on forgetting which booths had the one we wanted to compare one with another. the vendors' booths also starting looking alike as well...

the next time i go though, i will NOT go on a Saturday. ugh! i had forgotten how crowded it gets, and we were literally fighting for a place to stand and look at certain booths. not only that, but some people can be so pushy and rude!

i might be going back tomorrow too! i need to exchange a few strands of kyanite beads that my mom asked for, but i accidentally got the wrong sized stones. maybe i'll run into you!

ETA: did you get anything yesterday?

 

[Barrett]

love the tungsten ring..LOL..thats a mans man ring..goes with my tungsten carbide bits for the drill press..looks like you got some decent finds...that strand of tsavo''s looks pretty nice..cool

 

[vip0802]

Date: 8/15/2009 10:48:53 PM
Author: amethystguy
love the tungsten ring..LOL..thats a mans man ring..goes with my tungsten carbide bits for the drill press..looks like you got some decent finds...that strand of tsavo's looks pretty nice..cool

hahahaha! that's exactly what he said too! he kept on saying, "yeah that looks good on me!" and admiring his hand. i couldn't help but gawk at him when he said, "hey are you going to take some pics to post on PS?".

the tsavorites are my personal fave as well.

 

[cellentani]

Date: 8/15/2009 10:39:07 PM
Author: vip0802

i posted a thread in Hangout for you, but i think it got bumped down since it''s a heavy traffic forum. BF was a total sport! he actually enjoyed himself a lot since he''s been studying up on jewelry.

yeah, i saw a lot of bored SOs there too! hahaha! i actually saw a lot of couples and guys by themselves looking at engagement rings too...it was so sweet! oh we saw TONS and TONS of settings that i fell in love with. after a while they all started looking the same, and we kept on forgetting which booths had the one we wanted to compare one with another. the vendors'' booths also starting looking alike as well...

the next time i go though, i will NOT go on a Saturday. ugh! i had forgotten how crowded it gets, and we were literally fighting for a place to stand and look at certain booths. not only that, but some people can be so pushy and rude!

i might be going back tomorrow too! i need to exchange a few strands of kyanite beads that my mom asked for, but i accidentally got the wrong sized stones. maybe i''ll run into you!

ETA: did you get anything yesterday?

Oh shoot, sorry I didn''t see your thread for me

, but I did think of you several times. Yeah, I made the mental note about avoiding Saturday last time - it''s insane! Tomorrow will probably be bad too, but I''m hoping to be able to pinpoint my shopping. I know what you mean about everything looking the same after awhile, and I always bring some ibuprofen for afterwards. Between the crowds, the blazing lights, and the sensory overload, I''m bound to need it!

I didn''t purchase anything other than gem jars and polishing cloths (boring, I know!), but I was very tempted by a 4-strand pearl bracelet. The lady had one already made up, but you could also pick out your own strands and she''d knot them while you wait. I also was kicking myself for not bringing my loose pink tourmaline; I found a setting that''s almost exactly like an Adwar I''d seen, but couldn''t be sure it would fit. That''s on my list if I go tomorrow too.

What will your mom do with the beads you got her? Some of them look interesting to me, but I never know what to do with them. And hey, did you get passes to the next Intergem show? Apparently there will be one at National Harbor in October!

 

[Fly Girl]

Date: 8/15/2009 10:30:33 PM
Author: cellentani

Date: 8/15/2009 10:21:19 PM
Author: Fly Girl
Gem shows are so fun. Enjoy your new pretties. I like that amethyst pendant a lot.

cellentani - I don''t bring my guy along. He hits the local bookstore and spends his $$$ there.

Fly Girl, I immediately thought of you as soon as I saw that pendant! And yeah, I imagine many couples have a system worked out like you - DH enjoys books exponentially more than gems, but he''s a good sport to go along with me anyway.

You have my taste pegged.

Enjoy the show tomorrow if you guys go again.

Glad to hear that they are popular.

 

[marcy]

What beauties you picked up.

 

[vip0802]

Date: 8/15/2009 10:59:32 PM
Author: cellentani

Oh shoot, sorry I didn''t see your thread for me

, but I did think of you several times. Yeah, I made the mental note about avoiding Saturday last time - it''s insane! Tomorrow will probably be bad too, but I''m hoping to be able to pinpoint my shopping. I know what you mean about everything looking the same after awhile, and I always bring some ibuprofen for afterwards. Between the crowds, the blazing lights, and the sensory overload, I''m bound to need it!


I didn''t purchase anything other than gem jars and polishing cloths (boring, I know!), but I was very tempted by a 4-strand pearl bracelet. The lady had one already made up, but you could also pick out your own strands and she''d knot them while you wait. I also was kicking myself for not bringing my loose pink tourmaline; I found a setting that''s almost exactly like an Adwar I''d seen, but couldn''t be sure it would fit. That''s on my list if I go tomorrow too.


What will your mom do with the beads you got her? Some of them look interesting to me, but I never know what to do with them. And hey, did you get passes to the next Intergem show? Apparently there will be one at National Harbor in October!

aww, i thought about you today too! even BF was like, "do you think your PS buddy is here? do you even know what she looks like?". i said, "i''m pretty sure she went yesterday, and i''ve never seen her but i''ll recognize her when i see a Korean girl with a fabulous ring!".

you know, i DID get something today. while i was looking at beads, BF snuck off and got me a loupe! so, there''s nothing boring about getting supplies for jewelry...they''re necessities.

ooo...that pearl bracelet sounds lovely! i was gazing at a one strand bracelet myself...it was gorgeous! i also REALLY wanted a set of thin micro-pave bands in 14k rose, yellow and white gold. less than 2mm each and they were so pretty. there were 3 vendors that had them in similar styles and one quoted me $525 for all three, but i just couldn''t spend that amount.

my mom has had a few of her gem beads re-strung into necklaces, but other than that, i don''t know what else she uses them for. i just remembered that anytime we went to a show, she''d always get a stand or two of something. i''m just going to exchange them for the size my mom wanted...apparently, the vendor guy remembers my mom from the past shows so he gives her some good deals. i think that''s all i have on my list to do tomorrow, but i''m thinking i should take a look at those bands again. either that or i should will myself to just save up and get them at the next show.

i haven''t gotten passes yet since i''m still debating on which show to go to. there''s one in Germantown a week or so after the National Harbor one, and that''s so much closer to me. although, i never knew they had shows there, so i''m thinking the National Harbor one might have more vendors there? for either one, i''m making sure i go on a Friday though!

 

[Indylady]

Love the strand of tsavs and the lapis earrings!

All really beautiful finds though. I have a couple strands of gem beads and I love wearing them. I think beaded necklaces feel classic in a way.

 

[Nomsdeplume]

Your mom is really lucky!

 

[oddoneout]

I love the earrings and the pendant...they''re something I would''ve bought for myself. You''re a great daughter treating your mom.

 

[cellentani]

Hey vip - did you go again today? I did but didn''t see you...

I managed to get my pearl bracelet and another gemstone flower charm for my gems-by-the-yard necklace. Did you find any more goodies?

 

[D&T]

looks like you had fun, and you got some good looking pieces

 

[vip0802]

Date: 8/16/2009 6:04:22 PM
Author: cellentani
Hey vip - did you go again today? I did but didn't see you...

I managed to get my pearl bracelet and another gemstone flower charm for my gems-by-the-yard necklace. Did you find any more goodies?

i did, but i didn't see you either.

what time did you go? BF and i went a little late to see if we could get any last minute deals. maybe that's why we didn't see each other? we also got to go into the wholesale section, but i was really disappointed in the selection there. i ended up returning that strand of kyanite for my mom since the larger size she wanted was a lot more expensive than i had thought. no biggie though, she really likes the stuff i got her anyway.

you did buy that bracelet! good for you! i stopped by a few pearl vendors and thought of you...i kept on wondering, "is this the place cellentani was talking about?".

did you post pics in the pearl forum? i'd love to see that flower charm too!

did you bring your tourmaline with you for that setting?

i did get a few goodies! i got two finger/ring displays for my rings because i remembered a thread you posted a while back when you got some as your jewelry holders. that was such a great idea!

BF also got me two adorable necklaces! nothing fancy, but really pretty. one has a teardrop-ish shaped quartz pendant (not sure what kind though...chalcedony perhaps?) with little gold flowers on a 14k yellow gold plated chain. the other is also 14k yellow gold plated, and the chain is about 28-30" long with little gem beads. it's funny that you mentioned a gems-by-the-yard necklace...i kept on looking around for one too! i think the reason BF chose the 2nd necklace, was because it kind of resembles one. the only difference is that the gems aren't bezel set. i don't usually wear yellow gold either, but his mom had gotten me yellow gold earrings for my b-day and he thought it'd be nice if i had something to go with it. he's so thoughtful.

here's a pic of the first necklace:

 

[vip0802]

here a pic of the pendant with the 2nd necklace:

 

[cellentani]

Hi vip!! You got 2 great necklaces! That pendant does look like chalcedony, and it''s beautiful - I like the beaded chain it''s on too. I''d love to see neck shots of both of them, I''ll bet they''re both very elegant on you!

I went around 1pm and probably left by 3:30pm. I did remember to bring my tourmaline, but all the settings I tried were either too big or too small.

A lot of the settings had really murky diamonds, so I wasn''t really anticipating purchasing anyway. How great that you got to go into the wholesale section - I''ve always wanted to go in there. I love the bouncers they have at the entrance, lol! Did you get the 2-finger, or the 1-finger display (does that sound weird)?

I know there are at least 2 vendors who sell the GBTY necklaces in both yellow and white gold. I saw an all-topaz one that had a lariat-type dangle, but I didn''t get it. If I''m still thinking about when the next show rolls around, I may have to see if it''s still there...

I''ll try to post some pics tomorrow.

 

[chrono]

Vip,
You’ve found so many lovely items. The flower pendant is so feminine and sweet; your BF is so thoughtful to add a loupe to your gift bag too. My favourites are the amethyst cabochon and the tungsten ring. Simple, classy and they speak volumes in their non flashy way.