Selling at Tucson

Thursday was very cold with gusty, icey winds but still we must set up the booth (me with my suede jacket, scarf and woolly gloves on) so that we can start selling as soon as possible. Sure enough, despite the cold, along came the buyers looking for first pickings. Also, along came other vendors doing their buying before they set up their own booths.
Fortunately, the weather changed and Friday was a beautiful day and even though the show didn't officially open until Saturday we made a lot of sales.
I love to see the tables loaded with the polished rocks - greens, blues, reds, yellows - all glorious in the sunshine. The large items are on show too like the Orbicular Granite and the huge slabs of Tiger Eye which always attract lots of attention.
So many people that walk around our booth say, "You have such beautiful rocks in Australia!"
Right next to our booth is a food kiosk (in the background of the last photo above). They sell hot and cold drinks, freshly roasted nuts, sandwiches, snacks and they make a hot meal for lunch each day. We have got to know Grace and John really well and they enjoy looking after the vendors at our show. But I'm sure they like us best! (Well, they said so.)

This is a sphere made from a block of Tiger Eye. It is absolutely stunning and will be displayed at the main show which is the last three days and held at the Convention Centre in Tucson.

The theme of the main show this year is Australian Minerals!

Gifts!

Many of the vendors, rockhounds, gem cutters etc wear something they deal in or made, eg. cabochons, beads, etc. I had often wished that I had something made of Glenn's rock to wear. When we were at Quartzsite a man came to buy Mookaite and Black Jade and had a tray of cabochons he had made from those materials. We were admiring them when he picked one out and gave it to me. Next day I took it to a goldsmith in Quartzsite and had it made into the pendant shown below in the right of the picture. Luckily, I had brought with me a gold chain that my sister gave me a couple of years ago so I am wearing it every day. Then, today, the owner of a business in Montana who buys material from Glenn each year came to see us today and do her usual buying. She holidays in Australia almost every year and as she was coming to Western Australia at the end of last year, Glenn gave her our number and said she must spend a few days with us. So she took us up on our offer.

The last time we saw her she drove off in a hire car to tour the south west so we were interested to hear how the rest of her hoiday in Western Australia had gone. Everything went well and she couldn't stop saying how much she enjoyed staying with us. In fact, one of her first questions was, how is Woody!! (Everyone loves our dog.) Anyway, to show her gratitude first of all she gave me a box of chocolates, then she gave Glenn a Montana Agate, one of his favourite rocks. Then she produced a little box - for me. (The other pendant in the photo.) This pendant is made from a Montana Agate, by her father. It is absolutely exquisite - a real treaure. I feel really honoured.