Just Saying Hello ;)

Hi, I’m new to the group and am delighted to have found Turquoise People. I grew up in the horse industry and inherited a few NA pieces, but have been building my own collection the last few years. I live in Tucson now and am so intrigued by the variety of turquoise from Arizona.

Do any of you recommend the gem show as a good place to find pieces? I’ve never been but am debating going this year. Thanks!

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Welcome to turquoise people! I’ve never been to the gem show so I’m no help there. Lucky you to live in Arizona :grin:

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I think it would be a great event to attend just for the education. Whether or not you pick up a piece doesn’t matter. You are going to see some incredible turquoise and jewelry.

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Beware of the gem show. There are plenty of respected dealers and native markets in AZ to purchase from.

@AZBoots noted. Thank you!

Welcome…glad you are enjoying this forum…lots of knowledge and opinions here, and great folks!
Lucky you…lots of wonderful galleries in Tucson! I’ve not been to the Gen and Mineral show, but hope to get there st some point. My friends who have gone typically buy “gem and minerals” :smile:.
I’m sure there are plenty of business selling a wide variety of jewelry, but I’d consider going to a show where you can purchase directly from the artist. You may or may not be aware of the Heard Museum Guild Indian Market, but it’s a good one. In my opinion, purchasing fro the artist adds alot to the experience!

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@Bmpdvm thanks for the info and the welcome!

There are some good things at the gem show. There will be some designers there. LV native designs will be there, and they recently had a few pieces with the Naomi glasses Ralph Lauren collaboration. They will be at Jogs.

Definitely stay away from the Al Zuni vendor, they have been know to sell fakes.

In terms of just turquoise cabs, the Ottesons will be there and they have good stuff. I also like red mountain outpost - got some really nice natural Patagonia from them.

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@Emily thanks so much!

Today, I dropped in at the Kino area of the gem show with some friends. Lots to see, not much worth purchasing imho. Did see one booth with lots of various stabilized turquoise cabs (#8, Kingman, blackjack, Egyptian, etc., which is all that I can remember but there was so many more).

Reached out to Otteson’s IG page about Blackjack turquoise (they’re at a different location from Kino), and they said they don’t sell blackjack. I’m so confused, since I thought they owned that mine. Oh well, maybe I’ll go look next year.

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Ottesonbrothersturquoise on Instagram sells it. I thought the booth at Jogs was better. Top grade turquoise at Jogs also had a small but nice selection. Red mountain outpost at Jogs was also good. They have some nice natural Patagonia

@Emily thank you for the info. I didn’t try to go back to more of the gem show. And while buying cabs seems like a great idea, I don’t have the contacts to have anything made. So I might as well just wait. Thank you for the correct IG page info!

You’re welcome :slightly_smiling_face: I have started buying cabs, and then I just hold on to them until I find an artist I like. I just find people on Instagram and follow them, and then just DM them to see if they are willing to do custom stuff. I haven’t had anything done yet though. I am often able to find unique and or higher quality stones that way. I feel like then the piece might be worth more in the long term.

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