Idle Talons

Fantastic Beast

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Continuing the water theme-- this time inspired during a trip to the coast to visit grandparents! This is a blue aventurine cabochon Larkin shaped and polished, wrapped in a serpentine mermaid's tail. Blue aventurine is said to keep personal thoughts and communication healthy and vibrant.

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Oh, For The Love Of Rocks!

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On the way to the coast, we stopped at a spot where we hoped to find some Applegate jade. The river was about 200 feet below the road, much of which was a *very* steep bank. The first picture really doesn't do justice to the distance or steepness of the bank. These two found a giant hunk of rock that looked like it was largely Applegate jade and flung/shoved/hurled/dragged it all the way up to the car with minimal bloodshed. Back in civilization, it turns out it weighs about 50 pounds! It cleans up beautifully (the humans looked better after a good scrub, too)... we can't wait to see slabs (of the stone, not the humans)!

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Brecciated Humboldt Chert

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This wrap is around a cabochon Larkin cut and polished from a chert stone our family found in Humboldt on the northern California coast. The veining in the stone was created when fractures in the matrix healed with agate. Wrapped in waves of copper wire which has been oxidized and polished. Pictured with the stone from which it was cut.

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Roses and Lace

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Another first! This is the first wrap sourced entirely from the ground up, so to speak. Our family found this opalized agate stone near our home in southern Oregon. The combination of translucent agate and opaque common opal (common because it lacks the flash that the precious gem is known for) gives a lacy effect that is complemented by the delicate wire roses. Larkin ground and polished the cabochon and wrapped it in copper. Pictured with the stone it was cut from as well as a remaining slab.

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Vendor Announcement

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Idle Talons will be a vendor at Roxy Ann Winery's Brews, Bluegrass & BBQ again this year! Last year this event was Larkin's first official market, so it also marks a momentous business-iversary! The event is open 12-8 pm June 1, 2019. If you are on Facebook, you can find more information at: https://www.facebook.com/events/361140808015912/

Lapidary Punster

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Our family has been on-again-off-again members at a local rock climbing gym, so the phrase "rock gym" rolls off the tongue very easily. After Jenny (Larkin’s mum) had called the rock shop the rock gym approximately 1,539 times, she thought she could save it at the last minute: "Larkin is at the rock gym... you know, where rocks go to get in shape."

Kelp Fronds On Plume Agate

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It is interesting how many stones seem to inspire water imagery! Larkin cut and polished this stone from a purchased slab of plume agate. The red dendrites of the moss agate surround a druzy pocket of glistening crystal. The stone evokes an underwater ocean scene, matched by the wire fronds of kelp climbing the frame.

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Finishing touches

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Did you know how much of the detail and character of a tree of life appear at the very end of the shaping process? The first photo is before final pliers-work and the second is after all the crimping and kinking give the tree its final shape.

This dark green, almost black, stone is Applegate jade, a particular kind of serpentine found near our home in southern Oregon. This is another piece Larkin created from the slab up, so to speak.

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Tea Rose Quartz

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Another cabochon from the Idle Talons team! This one was shaped and polished by Emile (Larkin's dad) during the cabochon class. This rose quartz cabochon is embellished with exquisitely detailed wire roses— the perfect accompaniment for a stone said to restore trust and harmony in relationships and encourage unconditional love! Need we remind you that mother's day is coming up? Because this pendant definitely belongs around some mother's neck. ;)

Rose quartz is semi-translucent so the wires on the back of the piece show faintly through and were designed with this in mind. Wrapped in copper which has been oxidized and polished. 4.9 cm long, 3.5 cm at the widest point.

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A Milestone! (see what I did there?)

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Check it out! This is the very first Idle Talons piece that began as a raw chunk of rock! Larkin cut, shaped and polished the aventurine then wrapped the cabochon in copper wire. The copper has been oxidized and polished. Blue aventurine is said to keep personal thoughts and communication healthy and vibrant. We called this one "Ocean Currents."

Finished piece with the raw rock from which the cabochon was cut.

Finished piece with the raw rock from which the cabochon was cut.

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Dragon Eyes Backstory

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Dragon eyes start with a plain glass cabochon. Backgrounds are cut from nature magazines and pupils drawn on with a paint pen, then glued to the back of the cabochon. The back is painted black then coated in a waterproof glue. Choosing colors and beading the lid and spines gives each eye its final, distinctive look. Every dragon eye is unique, so if you see one you love, snap it up!

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Rock Hounding!

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Took a brief break from market prep yesterday to join in on a field trip with the Roxy Ann Gem and Mineral Society. Found lots of agate and petrified wood and can’t wait to see how it polishes up! (Foreground of second picture has a colander just out of the rock tumbler.)

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