New shell and stone
No sawing this past weekend after all, but my shell and stone from Rob’s Bits (on eBay). I decided to try the carnelian because it was inexpensive, interesting, and already of proper thickness for inlay. Now we’ll see if my saw will cut it. But the real surprise of the day was the paua.
It wasn’t cheap, I admit, but it wasn’t terrible for the size and thickness (which is totally as advertised and consistent), and the appearance is just absolutely gorgeous. This is the "bad" side. Ha!
And here’s the flip side of those same pieces:
It was so gorgeous that I decided I needed all he had, so I went to eBay and bought him out, at least for the moment. Fortunately, he does "buy it now" on almost all his stuff, which I like. I had bid on one of his auctions and lost, so the next time I just bought them outright. I will keep an eye on his store; paua isn’t going to last forever, and these pieces are incredibly beautiful, as well as sizeable. I told Athena I wasn’t going to hoard shell, but I have a weakness for paua, despite all its holey, sandy, sawblade-busting frustration. It’s just so delicious.
