The Beauty Of Nature

Rock hounds polish their passion

A friend once asked Dave Leininger to make a cross, and he cut open a rock only to find a cross inside.

Leininger, president of the Northwest Arkansas Gem & Mineral Society, says people should come to this weekend's spring show to see "the beauty of nature."

FAQ

Northwest Arkansas Gem & Mineral Society’s

Spring Show

WHEN — 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday

WHERE — Siloam Springs Community Center, 110 N. Mount Olive in Siloam Springs

COST — $3; free for children younger than age 12

INFO — nwarockhounds.org

FYI

Gem Society

The Northwest Arkansas Gem & Mineral Society is open to new members. The annual cost is $15 for individuals and $25 for a family, and meetings are at 7 p.m. on the fourth Tuesday of each month at an old schoolhouse one mile north of Siloam Springs on Arkansas 43. Members can go on field trips to look for rocks, make jewelry and use the slab saws and grinding and polishing equipment at the clubhouse.

The show will take place Saturday and Sunday at the Siloam Springs Community Center. Leininger says there will be nine vendors from Arkansas, Texas, Colorado and Kansas -- offering everything from jewelry, beads, geodes and polished rocks called cabochons to petrified wood and dinosaur bones -- plus demonstrations including wire wrapping, arrowhead making and how to cut and polish spheres.

Leininger joined the Northwest Arkansas Gem & Mineral Society with his wife and son in 2007, and this is his second year as president. His wife likes making jewelry, but he first became interested in gems and minerals when he was growing up in Denver. He found petrified wood and a bison tooth in the alleyway next to his house, he recalls. He enjoys seeing "the beauty in the different rocks."

Now primarily interested in rocks he can use to make jewelry, such as jasper, agates, turquoise, geodes and variscite, Leininger will be demonstrating cabochon making this weekend. He says the process involves taking a slab of rock and choosing a design shape, such as teardrop, oval or free form. He will then take a trim saw and trim the rock away from the area he wants to work on. He will grind it down and then continue working until it gets to a polish, he says. He says a quarter-size piece can be done in about 10 minutes, but he has spent two hours on something bigger or more difficult.

There are also two new demonstrations this year.

Leininger says Dean Shafer of Gentry will bring fluorescent rocks that glow different colors when placed in the dark with a black light on them. There will be a black box for viewing these. Another demonstration is looking at mineral specimens enlarged through a USB-ported microscope, which will also be done by Shafer.

The spring show will also feature hourly door prizes, food and a silent auction, and children's activities include a gem wash, grab bags and a treasure chest, according to a press release. Leininger's favorite part of the event is talking about rocks and seeing all of the society club members, vendors and visitors.

NAN What's Up on 04/11/2014

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