Lapidary and Silversmithing Section

Welcome to the Lapidary and Silversmithing Section Home Page!

Who we are
The Lapidary and Silversmithing Section of the Houston Gem and Mineral Society meets the third Monday of every month–except December–at 7:30 p.m. Members of the Section are interested in the working of stone and metal into finished works of art, craft, and jewelry. This Section includes beginners, experts, and every level in between. The Shop in the clubhouse has all the tools you might need to get started, and expert advice is never in short supply. Don’t have a rock to get started? No problem, we have starter rocks too. Most students begin with making cabochons, shaped stones with flat backs usually composed of opaque semiprecious stones. The rules for cabochon making are provided as part of the Recognition of Lapidary Excellence Program or ROLE. The Lapidary and Silversmithing Section offers Lapidary Templates for sale, that were designed by Section members.

What we do
Members can share their skills and gain insight into all areas of lapidary and silversmithing. Members suggest desired projects, skills wanted, tool use, demonstrations, etc. Members can learn by doing in well-equipped classrooms. All the resources of the clubhouse are at the command of the Section during the monthly meeting. Visitors are welcome to observe. Some past projects or activities include metal work such as fabrication with silver, stone setting, riveting, tool making, metal texturing, and use of the rolling mill and torches. Future programs are posted as they become known.

Field Trips
Field trips are planned far in advance. Destinations are usually of interest to rockhounds who wish to collect in the field. Petrified wood, agates, jaspers, and crystals have been collected in past trips.

Ribbon Agate Cabochon
Made by HGMS member
Jade Boulder from Big Sur, California

Lapidary Templates for sale - Pay Online!

Click here to see available templates and prices.

Templates are used to create stones of calibrated size, and of many different shapes.

Calibrated stones may be necessary to fit into purchased settings.

Template #6

More Entertaining Links

If a link does not work, try copying the link and paste it into your browser.

The difference between a good and a great cab: https://youtu.be/iGEjspudDPQ

Rio Grande Jewelry https://www.riogrande.com/ is a major supplier of a broad range of tools, equipment and materials for jewelers and lapidary artists. Their catalog is an excellent reference.

The Rio Grande YouTube playlist is https://www.youtube.com/c/RioGrande1944/playlists. It includes many videos on a range of skills.

This is good one for cabbing: How To Make A High Quality Cabochon

Here’s one with a person who is fairly new making cabochons https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kcgrrZQc9xA&feature=emb_err_woyt

All of Leslie Kail Villareal’s jewelry videos are good Free Video’s — Leslie Kail Villarreal

Sandra McEwen has many really good videos on enameling along with some on silver fusing: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=sandra+mcewen+enamel

Franceska Watson Jewelry Instructor https://www.facebook.com/jewelryinstructor/ videos https://www.facebook.com/pg/jewelryinstructor/videos/?ref=page_internal

Metalsmithing – Soham Harrison https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0Rsihbu0Kk&list=PL1ukff2L6OFoR7d_RsSais2njGScBA7yu

The Basics of Soldering | Jewelry 101 https://youtu.be/Q_gejiVEClE

Rice Glasscock School of Continuing Studies https://glasscockcatalog.rice.edu/search/publicCourseSearchDetails.do?method=load&courseId=21304403

Lapidary Tips & Tricks https://www.facebook.com/groups/774419732663040/

Lapidary – https://www.facebook.com/groups/LapidaryGroup/

Free Rock and Gem issue on opals –  It is basically an ad for opal vendors but fun to read none the less.
https://www.rockngem.com/IllustriousOpals_series.pdf

Pietersite – This web site which has fantastic examples. Prices could give you a heart attack!
https://www.bestpietersite.com/

Jewelry Artist Podcast: The Zen of Wax Carving with Kate Wolf https://www.interweave.com/jewelry-artist-podcast/wax-carving-kate-wolf/?utm_campaign=Interweave%20Jewelry20Newsletters&utm_medium=email&_hsmi=96072854&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_AhcEigyDP2tdyB10oQveeQeJVdSnpgHS2QY6KLcXv_W2l16fSyKYwGnHmPpQaCuLngwv4YezyToPUFatU1bCEeU5hlA&utm_content=96072854&utm_source=hs_email

Ocean Jasper cab by Ron Talhelm
Lost wax casting
Crazy Lace Agate pendant