I love Tucson! My son was born there, so that makes it pretty special. Living there for 6 years was nice, too. But the absolute best thing about Tucson, aside from my family and friends who live there and my friend Nina's wonderful cooking, is the annual Tucson Gem and Mineral Show!
It's THE gem and mineral show of the year (seriously!) and it's such a behemoth that it's simply referred to by those in the industry as "Tucson". Yep, no need to say more!
I'm so exited to meet w/my suppliers and peruse the vast selections of lusterous pearls, lucsious gemstones and everything else that goes along with "Tucson", that I can hardly stand myself!! (and at this point, neither can anyone else!)
Along with all the wonderful gem/mineral and fossil shows there's almost as many bead shows in town. And if there's beads, then there's all sorts of wonderful things that go along with beads, like silver and gold findings, more beads, and of course classes and workshops!
Speaking of classes and workshops, not only will I be "Shopping Till I Drop" while I'm in Tucson, but I'll be teaching some wire work classes at the Manning House Bead Show that's being held at the beautiful and historic Manning House Mansion between February 3rd and 8th, 2009.
You'll want to take either my "Eye Catching Ear Candy" class that's super fun and packed with tons of techniques and designs, or, for those of you who want a bold, signature necklace, I'm teaching my "Hammered Chain and Wire Wrapped Circle Pendant Necklace" class complete with hammering, texturing, forming and wire wrapping. Follow the links above to read all the details and to sign up - I'd love to have you in one of my classes this year!
Be sure to sign up soon though because registration for my classes will be closing shortly so I can pack up and make the long drive south! Okay, so it's only a 2 hour drive from Phoenix to Tucson, but I'm spoiled because I don't travel much outside my littel 5 mile radius - thanks to the internet!
Here's a great article about the 2008 Tucson Gem and Mineral Show that was in Lapidary Journal/Jewelry Artist Magazine - it's packed with valuable information! And, for those attending the show this year, visit Colored Stone - The Tucson Show Guide to view all the show locations, complete with dates and times, vendor lists, shuttle schedules, and information on things around town like where to eat, stay and play.
Okay, so I could tell you that I'll be giving nightly updates here on my blog about all that's uniquely "Tucson", but honestly, I'll be ogling my 'daily stash', feasting on Nina's gourmet cooking and sipping wine w/her and the family. And then there's that thing called SLEEP,...if you want to keep up the pace again the next day! But I promise to do all I can to keep you in the loupe! (I mean loop!)
So, come join in the fun and feel the energy! After all - it's "Tucson"!!
Until then, have a good one!
Cheers,
~Shel~
P.S. - Okay, Just FYI - My posts will normally NOT be this long - Honest!! Really,.....
