Pat Koko, Opal Editor

This is to be done at any General Meeting. Applications will not be accepted via mail or at a WSLC function other than a meeting.

Visitors are welcome at all General Meetings. Members of the WSLC are expected to serve on various committee’s and volunteer their time where needed. Applica-tions may be found on

Membership in the WSLC is $17 per year, per household/family. Student memberships are available for $10. Stu-dents are identified as 22 years of age and younger and currently enrolled in an accredited school and have a valid school I.D. Dues are payable by Jan-uary 31st for that calen-dar year regardless of the date you joined. Please submit a completed ap-plication for Board Ap-proval to the WSLC Treasurer, Karen Davé.

the WSLC website (see pg 2)

Members of the WSLC receive in district rates with the Elmhurst Park District for classes taken at the Lapidary School, regardless of their resi-dence. Contact infor-mation for all Board Members are located on page 2 of The Opal

West Suburban Lapidary Club Membership Info

Next Board Meeting

January 4, 2013

Meeting starts at 7:00 pm

Wagner Center

615 Northwest Ave

Elmhurst, IL 60126

Next Club Meeting

Friday, November 30, 2012

8 pm, doors open at 7:00

The Abbey

407 W. St Charles Rd

Elmhurst, IL 60126

DECEMBER 2012 page 1 THE OPAL

Established in

1959

in our 53rd year and

still rockin’!

Official publication of the West Suburban Lapidary Club

First Class Dated Material

The Opal is published January thru May; September thru November

Volume LI, Number 8

Meetings are usually held the 4th Friday of the month, January thru May, Sept thru November. Please check The Opal for changes.

Holiday Luncheon Party —Sunday, December 9, 2012

Reservations are required @ $20 per person…

Call or E-Mail Karen and bring payment to next meeting. (See page 7)

THE OPAL page 2

WEST SUBURBAN LAPIDARY CLUB A NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION INCORPORATED IN THE STATE OF ILLINOIS

Mission Statement: To foster the development of the lapidary arts and the jewelry craftsman's and to increase public interest in

handcrafted gems, jewelry, and their materials ________________________________________________________________________________________

Regular meetings of the West Suburban Lapidary Club are held on the fourth Friday of the month at 8 p.m. with the ex-ception of June, July, August & December at The Abbey, 407 W. St. Charles Road, Elmhurst, Illinois. Parking in the East and West parking lots. Visitors are welcome. Board meetings are held as announced in The OPAL. Annual mem-bership dues are $17 per household/family. Dues are due January 1, delinquent January 31.

President Ed Gallagher

Vice- President Vikki Peterson

Treasurer Karen Dave’

Secretary Ellen Clough

OPAL Editor Pat Koko

MWF Liaison Lee Herrera

Board Member (3rd of 3 year term) Rich Dillon

Board Member (2nd of 3 year term) Jose Ponce’

Board Member (1st of 3 year term) OPEN Position to be filled

Past President Open

CGMA Delegate: Rich Dillon

CGMA Alternate: Mark Gordon & Debbie Ballot

Kitchen Supplies: Ed Gallagher

Gem of the Month: Sakina Bharani

Historian: Joanne Samuel

Publicity:

Webmaster: Don Shore

Hospitality: Ed Gallagher

The OPAL: Pat Koko

Librarian: Gwyn Roland

Activities Coordinator: Karen Dave’

MWF Liaison: Lee Herrera

Lizzadro Museum Liaison: Jack Maher

Silent Auction/Club Show: to be announced

Field Trip: position open

Lapidary School: Karen Dave’

Instructors:

Joanne Samuel

Mary Prosek Jose Ponce

Don Shore

Committee Chairpersons

The OPAL is the official publication of the West Suburban Lapidary Club and is issued September through May with the exception of December. It is mailed, one copy per household, without further charge to members of the WSLC who do not have e-mail. Otherwise the newsletter is sent as a pdf by e-mail. Articles may be cop-ied provided full credit is given to the author and this bulletin. The deadline for material to be published is the fourth Friday of the month prior. Visit the WSLC website at: www.westsuburbanlapidaryclub.com

DECEMBER 2012

THE OPAL page 3 DECEMBER 2012

Established in 1959

Rockin’ into our 53rd year

Stone of the month

Tiffany Stone (Bertrandite) aka Opal Fluorite. Sakina Bharani G. G.

The name Tiffany Stone presumably comes from the jewelry company of the same name that used this stone in some of their designs.

Tiffany Stone is a rare opaque gemstone found only in a small region of southwestern Utah within the world famous Thomas Range. For years, it was available only as a minor by-product in the Brush-Wellman Beryllium Mining Operation. When the mine was closed to collectors, this tiny supply of Tiffany Stones was cut off, seemingly forever.

However, in 2004, a private prospector filed claims and began small scale mining on newly discovered deposits of Tiffany Stone. The new material is of consistently high quality, and the Spor Montain Lavender Mines expect to continue producing it for years to come.

These stones occur as unique ‘Opalised Fluorite Nodules’ which are formed by various minerals circulating in underground rivers and are fused together when they penetrate the volcanic tuff layers. These Nodules consist mostly of various forms of SiO2 such as Quartz, Chalcedony, Agate, Opal and Dolomite. The Nodules vary considerably in Fluorite content. It is this variation in particular that makes these nodules so interesting, forming a wide variety of esthetic and colorful patterns within the Nodules.

A purple, lavender, white stone sometimes with patches of mauve, yellowish brown and even black can be found interspersed with Beryllium ore (Bertrandite). This stone is also known as ‘Opalite’, ‘Ice Cream Opal’, ‘Opalised Fluorite’ and ‘Opal Fluorite’. (cont’d on Page 8)

Tiffany stone is found in all kinds color patterns and compositions. Purple colored stones are most

NOVEMBER PROGRAM—“FIRST YOU FIND SOME STUFF’

an evening with Joe Eddy Brown –Thingmaker

Joe Eddy will be sharing more art objects, ideas and artifacts with us, including stories about tools, jewelry from the future, zen, Willard Smith, and his recent visit to Carbondale! Yes, he will have his slide show! Plus he will be giving away 2 of his framed, matted and signed paintings during a FREE raffle. Joe Eddie requests you to bring objects to be also raffled off, like cool crystals, odd art pieces, strange rocks old stacks of magazines, old toasters, etc. !!

Joe Eddy has been making things for nearly 60 years. Being raised on a farm in the 50’s, graduat-ing from SIU’s Department of Design (Buckminster Fuller) in the 60’s, working as a designer on the Egg McMuffin project in the early 70”s and then teaching middle school ART for 35 years has provided him with a colorful life.

Joe Eddy currently is a student supervisor for National Louis University, the University of Illinois and St Joseph’s university, teaches yoga and guitar and is a popular public speaker. He is a sculptor and a watercolor painter with the DuPage Art League, the Addison Artist Guild and the Naperville League.

Tiffany Stone - Purple Brown and Orbs

page 4 THE OPAL DECEMBER 2012

General Meeting Minutes—October 26, 2012

By Ellen Clough, Secretary

The meeting was called to order at 8:15 pm by Ed

Gallagher

Announcements were made concerning:

Mini Auction – bidding to end 10 minutes after

the presentation.

“Split the pot” also to end after the presenta-

tion.

The President asked for a vote to approve Sep-

tember General Meeting minutes published

in the Opal. Barb Petri motioned to ap-

prove, Mr. O’Connell seconded the motion,

there were no dissenters.

Four reports were on the agenda:

The library was reported to be in good shape

with some additions expected before the

holidays.

The Membership Report: 30 members and 3

visitors were in attendance.

Treasurer’s Report was presented.

Lapidary School Report: The 10 week fall ses-

sion are running. There were not enough

registrants to run the second 5 week session

of wire wrapping.

Midwest Federation Report: Upcoming events

include the yearly meeting in Lincoln, Nebraska on

April 6-7, 2013. Also, Mineral Exploration will be

held in Madison, Wisconsin on the 17th-18th of No-

vember.

There was no CGMA report.

Business and Reminders:

Dues are due for the upcoming year.

Karen Dave would like to know if anyone will

donate a grinding wheel 1 inch by 6 inches.,

any grit, for use in demo days. Anyone who

would like to volunteer to participate in a

demo day should contact Karen.

The next Board Meeting is January 4, 2013.

The next General meeting is November 30, 2012

(the fifth Friday, due to Thanksgiving) at the

Abbey. The stone is Bertrandite..

The Holiday party is set for December 9th, noon to

4pm.

Program:

The Stone of the Month was thunder egg and a dis-

cussion ensued about the difference between

thunder eggs, geodes and septarian nodules.

The program was a presentation video presentation

of jewelry by Terry Licko.

The meeting was adjourned at 9pm

SILENT AUCTION DONATIONS NEEDED

Do you have any items that you no longer need/want but are still valuable to donate to the club for our monthly silent auction. We will gladly accept books that aren’t too out of date, slabs of nice material, finished cabs, lapidary equipment or supplies. Let your imagination be your guide. If it has been sitting around your workshop collecting dust, perhaps your unused item is just what a fellow member needs/wants. Bring to a meeting and share with José or Karen.

DUES ARE DUE —- $17 PER FAMILY DUES ARE TO BE PAID TO THE TREASURER BEFORE THE END OF THE YEAR.

MID WEST FEDERATION REPORT — Lee Herrera

Page 5 THE OPAL DECEMBER 2012

MWF 2013 CONVENTION

2013 – Lincoln Gem & Mineral Club in Lincoln, Nebraska will host the 2013. April 6-7.

ROCK TUMBLING CONTEST RESULTS

by Sharon Marburger

Feather River Lapidary and Mineral Society’s Third

Annual Rock Tumbling Contest results are in. The top

three places were awarded to people living in the Midwest!

You will note that an Honorable Mention was bestowed

upon our very own (now Past-President), Cindy Root. I

saw Cindy at the MWF Fall Meeting; she was so proud of

her accomplishment, I thought she would burst!

Congratulate her when you get a chance.

1st Place: Douglas H. Spencer of Rodney, Michigan-$250

2nd Place: Bryan & Carol Alshouse of Chisago, Minnesota

$100

3rd Place: Wayne & Tamara Snider of Newark, Ohio-$50

Honorable mentions: Cynthia Root, Paul Musser and

Susan Oglebay.

CANCELED STAMPS

Still looking for cancelled stamps.

SAFETY IN OUR LIVES

By David Rich, MWF Safety/Field Trip Chairman

Personal Protective Equipment, or PPE, is worn to

minimize exposure to specific hazards in our hobby. Let’s

think about PPE for a minute. There are two types:

“mandatory” and “common sense”. Examples of PPE are

found throughout our daily lives. I like to think one of

man’s earliest use of PPE was the pot holder. It did not take

long to figure out that fire burns. The pot holder, still in use

today, is what I call “common sense PPE”.

Some PPE is mandatory and laws govern their strict

use. Seat belts have proven their effectiveness in a crash

and, therefore, their use is mandatory when driving in most

states.

I encourage organizations to formulate club rules on

the use of PPE, specifically on field trips and in the shop.

Remember, these rules should not only apply to everyone,

they should make sense to both new and old members.

Personal protective equipment for field trips should

include safety glasses, hard hats, safety shoes, and a

personal first aid kit to fit your individual needs.

Personal protective equipment around the club shop or

home shop should include work bench safety glasses, face

shields, aprons, and rubber gloves. Although not equipment

per se, reading the labels on products you use is a very

important safety measure.

I hope you will think about your daily use of PPE in

your home life and down at the club. Although not all PPE

is mandatory, most just make common sense.

Safety is an attitude; get it or get hurt.

SCHOOL !!

ELMHURST PARK DISTRICT IN

CONJUNCTION WITH

WEST SUBURBAN LAPIDARY CLUB

NEXT CLASS SESSIONS START MID-FEBRUARY.

*All members of West Suburban Lapi-dary Club are eligible for “in-district” tuition. Please see the Elmhurst Park District website for full details. You do need a membership card available from the treasurer at any meet-ing. EPD- https://secure.epd.org/registration/brochidxregfs.asp

DON’T WAIT UNTIL LAST MINUTE TO SIGN UP.

page 6 THE OPAL DECEMBER 2012

BOARD MEETING DATES—2013

JANUARY 4TH

FEBRUARY 1ST

MARCH 1ST

APRIL 5TH

MAY 3RD

SUMMER VACATION

SEPTEMBER 6TH

OCTOBER 4TH

NOVEMBER 1ST

GENERAL MEETING DATES—2013

JANUARY 25TH

FEBRUARY 22ND

MARCH 22ND

APRIL 26TH

MAY 17TH **

SUMMER VACATION

SEPTEMBER 27TH

OCTOBER 25TH

NOVEMBER 29TH ##

General Meeting Dates are generally the 4th Friday. EXCEPTIONS ARE: ** May 17th is the 3rd Friday and

## November is the 29th to avoid conflict with Thanksgiving.

THE ANNUAL HOLIDAY PARTY IS TENTATIVELY SCHEDULED FOR DECEMBER 8TH, 2013

BOARD MEETING MINUTES—NOVEMBER 2, 2012

By Ellen Clough—Secretary

The meeting was called to order at 7:25pm. Board members present were: Ellen Clough, Karen Davé, Ed Gal-lagher, Lee Herrera, Pat Koko, Jose Poncé, and Vikki Peterson.

1. Votes were taken to approve the September Board and General Meeting minutes as published in the Opal. K. Davé motioned to approve and J. Poncé seconded. There were no dissents.

2. Karen Davé presented the Treasurer’s report with an up-date on the finances for the club, including renewed member-ships, money from split the pot and the auction, and sign-up numbers for the holiday party.

3. There were three new applications for membership: Ella Budynsky, Carolyn Scanlan, and Jack Williams. P. Koko moved to accept all members, V. Peterson seconded. There were no dissents.

4. L. Herrera presented the Midwest Federation report, in-cluding an announcement of the upcoming show in Madison Wisconsin on Nov. 17-18th. He clarified the “Rock hound of the Year Award.” Each Club can make one award each year for this honor.

5. P. Koko presented The Opal editor’s report and stated that the Opal will be distributed earlier than usual in November to make sure everyone knows that 1) the November meeting will be on the 5th Friday, 2) the Holiday party will be December 9 and 3) payment for the holiday party is due at the general meet-ing on November 28th. The club calendar for the remainder of 2012-2013 was published in the Opal.

6. There was no Webmaster report.

Previous Business

The October general meeting was very well received. Both the mini-auction and Split the Pot were held. The Stones of the Months were selected for the remainder 2012-2013.

Next general meeting

To be held on November 28, 2012. There will be a mini-auction and Split the pot

New Business

▪ Potential candidates for the open Board positions were se-

lected. They will be contacted to see if they would like to be nominated.

▪ November 17th, 10-4 is Lapidary Day at the Lizzadro Muse-

um

▪ The holiday luncheon will be December 9th. As was done

last year, members of the Park District Board will be invited to be guests of the Club.

▪ The Club will have a booth on the Lizzadro Museum

grounds during Art in the Park in May, 2013.

School status

The 10 week silver and stone classes are running. The sec-ond five week wire wrapping class did not have enough regis-trants.

The next Board meeting is scheduled for November 30. The next general meeting is Nov. 29th.

The meeting was adjourned at 8:40 pm.

page 7 THE OPAL

DECEMBER 2012

WEST SUBURBAN LAPIDARY CLUB

TEAM LIST - 2012

Team Duties: Our programs are a team effort. We depend on and need each other’s help to make them work. Each month’s team, as listed below, is responsible for the meeting set-up, program, refreshments, and take-down. Out-of-state and honorary members are requested to contribute to any team.

Meeting Set-Up/Take-Down: The team members should arrive early on their program day to help set-up the chairs and tables. They also need to remain after the meeting to clean up and put everything away.

Program: Each team should meet during the two club meetings prior to their program date and plan a pro-gram. A team leader will be elected to chair the team meetings during which everyone on the team will con-tribute ideas for a program. The team leader is not expected to do the program; only coordinate it. The Vice-President will meet each team to confirm and approve the program. If the team is unable to formulate a pro-gram, the Vice-President should be consulted as soon as possible. A member from each team is asked to as-sist Past President, TBD, our Hospitality chair, at the entrance to greet members & guests.

Refreshments: The refreshments will be discussed at the team meeting and each team member will contrib-ute an item. Any team member who cannot attend the team’s program should arrange to send a refreshment or donation of money (that will be used to purchase an item). All team members should lend a hand in the kitchen. Serving dishes and utensils will be provided by the team members.

JANUARY -- FEBRUARY -- MARCH--Aquamarine

Abrell, Lorel & Gary Bryant, Fred Blake, Jim & Jimmie

Herrera, Lee & Jeanette Devane Cronauer, Donald Howerton, Julie

Houseman, Carl& Gloria Dalesandro, Jim Koko, Patricia

Kaplan, James Fishman, Constance Peterson, Vikki

Spande, Erik Ponce, Jose’ & Lydia Samuel, Joanne

Shore, Don Wojtowicz, Peggy

Sunday, December 9 2012, Our Annual Holiday Meeting Luncheon.

It will be held again at Angelo's Ristorante, located at 247 N. York Rd, Elmhurst, Illinois

from noon to 4 pm.

The banquet will be served buffet style with a cash bar downstairs. Coffee, tea and soft drinks are

included in the cost of the meal which is $20.00 per person. The buffet will consist of: mixed

green salad, bread salad, pasta salad, antipasto tray, minestrone soup, chicken noodle soup, bow-

tie & rigatoni pastas, meat & tomato vodka cream sauces, Italian roast beef, chicken oreganato,

fresh fruit, unlimited pitchers of pop, coffee and tea. Something for everyone!

If you would care to bring some cookies or other easily served dessert bars, you are welcome

to do so. NOTHING THAT MUST BE CUT.

Doors will open at noon with the luncheon being served at 1 pm. After the meal, a raffle of

door prizes will take place. We may have a few special goodies this year, so don't miss it!

RESERVATIONS DUE NO LATER THAN NOVEMBER 30TH.

Members of: American Federation of Mineralogical Societies,

Midwest Federation of Mineralogical and Geological Societies, Chicagoland Gem and Mineral Association,

and Scribe

page 8 THE OPAL OCTOBER 2012

easily found and are also most popular with people who make and sell jewelry and outsell all other colors. This beautiful stone takes high polish when cut en cabochon.

The stone can be very hard and ‘Agatety’ or it can be very powdery/chalky (which is useless). Some times it has dendrites and sometimes it is ‘Brecciated’ (consisting of sharp fragments embedded in the stone). It is also available as drusy with small amount of calcite growing out of the drusy. There are some specimens of Tiffany Stone Drusy where quartz crystals growing out of the drusy give the appearance of a ‘barbed-wire pattern’. This pattern is seen quite often.

From lapidary’s point of view Tiffany Stone can be frustrating and unpredictable. At one point you think that you have a beautiful cab and you turn it around and notice either an internal or an external fracture. So good luck to all of the Lapidary Artists.

Resources: The Zion Prospector, Wikipedia, Google

Tiffany Stone - Red Gel and Dendrites

Tiffany Stone - Gray Lavender Brown - Agate Fortification Nodule

Tiffany Stone - Brown Brecciated Blue Agate Tiffany Stone - Tan Nodule Barbed Wire

page 9 THE OPAL DECEMBER 2012

Make a sanding stick by Helen Driggs, Senior Editor of Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist magazine. A sanding stick is an easy tool to make and endlessly useful to have around. There are many ways to make them, and I'll show you how I do it below. The point is, if you've never used one, once you do, you'll wonder how you lived with-out one. Just get several grits of metal sandpaper, a few paint stirrer sticks from the hardware store, a flat-bladed screwdriver, and a roll of masking tape. This project will take you about 10 minutes and will save you many, many

hours. Ready?

1. Cut the sandpaper sheet in half. Lay a piece grit-side-down on a clean surface.

2. . Lay the stirrer so the top edge lines up with the top edge of the sandpaper.

3. Use the blade of the screwdriver to gently score the sandpaper along the bottom edge of the stirrer. This is an important step!

4. Roll the stirrer, folding the sandpaper at the line you scored with the screwdriver. Score along the bottom edge, and fold again. Repeat scoring and rolling for the entire sheet of sandpaper.

5. Check your edges, and keep your work neat as you roll the sheet around the stick layer by layer. Trim excess paper along an edge of the stick.

.5. Attach the paper to the stick with several wraps of masking tape at the top and the bottom.

7. Mark the grit of the sandpaper on the tape.

Use the stick like you would use a file. When the paper wears out, peel off a layer--which is why you scored the fold lines as you rolled the paper on--it will tear cleanly on the scored line you made. --Helen

These ideas are from the JEWELRY MAKING DAI-

LY Blog. Helen Driggs gives lots of great advice to

Jewelry makers. Ed.

UPCOMING EVENTS—-2013

JANUARY 2013

26: LINCOLN, NE. Lincoln Gem & Mineral Club,Inc.’s Annual Mid-winter Swap; Bethany ParkShelter House, Cotner Blvd. & Vine St.; Sat. 1-5; CONTACT: Richard Peterson, Lincoln Gem &, Mineral Club, P.O. Box 5342, Lincoln, NE 68505, 4 0 2 . 4 8 9 . 2 9 9 6 , p ad r 2 0 @ y a h o o . c om, www.lincolngemmineralclub.org.

FEBRUARY 2013

10: LINCOLN, NE. Lincoln Gem & Mineral Club,Inc.’s Geology Day; Pioneer Park, Prairie Life Center, Coddington & West A; Sun. 1-4; CONTACT: Karen Messenger, Lincoln Gem & Mineral Club, P.O. Box 5342, Lincoln, NE 68505, 402.946.2281, kamessenger@hotmail.com, www.lincolngemmineralclub.org.

23-24: ROSEVILLE, MN. Anoka County Gem & Mineral Club’s Winter Show; Har Mar Mall, 2100 Snelling; Sat. 10-6, Sun. Noon-5; CONTACT: Martha Miss, 651.459.0343, info@rock-biz.biz.

LIZZADRO MUSEUM OF LAPIDARY ART, 220 Cottage Hill Ave. Elmhurst, IL 60126

www.lizzadromuseum.org// 630/833-1616

“Florentine Mosiacs” October 2 , 2012 through January 6, 2013

Lizzadro Museum is celebrating its 50th Anniversary. This special exhibit features amazing pictures created from natural stone. This unique art form began in Florence, Italy centuries ago. Florentine Mosiacs are still being created today. This exhibit includes contemporary and traditional styles of figural, landscape and floral pieces. (Regular Museum Hours & Admission)

MUSEUM SHOP—Annual Holiday Sale — November 16 to December 9, 2012—-Museum members receive a 20% discount on all purchases.

DECEMBER 1, “Create a Gem Tree” with Lois and Bill Zima. From 1 to 3 pm this work-shop is $20 per person ($15 for Museum Members) Reservations required -(630) 833-1616.

ONGOING—Visiting Artist: Gwyn Kaitis (OUR OWN MEMBER!!)

“Contemporary Stone Mosaics“ September 25 through December 30,

Artist, Gwyn Kaitis, is known for incorporating natural materials into her mosa-ics. Kaitis is a founding faculty member of the Chicago Mosaic School and Vice President of the Society of American Mosaic Artists. The piece is a 3D sculpture

measuring 11”x 6”x 6”.

Page 10 DECEMBER 2012 THE OPAL

Lapidary Day at Lizzadro Museum—November 17th, 2012

We had a wonderful time at the museum. Those of you who couldn’t make it missed a great experience. The visitors were very enthusiastic about rocks and jewelry. Lots of questions were asked and answered. I’d like to give a big shout out to our members who came and participated: Sakina Bharani, Arlene Blaha, Ellen Clough , Dawn Johnson, Judee Peterson and Vikki Peterson for general all around help and our demonstrators’ - Karen Dave’, Tony Gass, Pat Koko, Jack Maher , Jose Ponce, and Don Shore.