Natural Kingman Mega-Choker
In a word - breathtaking! This is truly intended for a turquoise collector - someone who can appreciate how difficult it is to gather natural stones this large and this clear - along with understanding how much turquoise is lost in the tumbling process to achieve these egg-shapes. Even seeing the photo of the stones in my hand, it's still hard to wrap one's brain around their size. I found these stones at the Tucson Gem Show a number of years ago. The turquoise dealers were an older couple (I can say that because I'm also "older") I'd been buying stones from for about 25 years. Over time, their natural stones became too expensive for my price range, but I always made a point to seek them out to say hello and touch base and see what fabulous stones they brought to the show even though I couldn't afford them. That particular year, I was struck speechless as I saw a strand of these incredible beauties. This couple was retiring and the wife was bringing out strands she'd held aside over the years (every serious bead lover does this-myself included) and was now willing to part with. These are 100% natural Kingman turquoise nuggets - no stabilizing, no added color, no nothing - period. Each stone was tumbled individually, so they wouldn't risk fracture when hitting against each other in the tumbler...and then drilled, with held breath I'm sure. Well, Tucson at the Gem Show is a lot like Vegas - what happens in Tucson stays in Tucson, if you get my drift. Rock people do crazy things for the love of beautiful stones. So, I took out my checkbook (they have never taken credit cards) and with a shaking hand, wrote the single largest check I'd ever written for gemstones. I might be willing to let the right person adopt them although I know I'd have major seller's remorse after the fact.* Well, a little more info about the necklace ... I re-drilled all the stones myself to assure there were no narrow places or sharp edges that could prematurely abrade the cords. I say cords because this necklace has three - two independent lines of stainless steel and one of leather. The leather cord knots between each stone to protect it from rubbing against its neighbor, as you can see in the detail, and then terminates with a small natural Kingman bead at the end of the short dangle. I created the extra large sterling silver toggle from square wire stock. It's clean, modern, straightforward. These stones didn't need any extra embellishment. It measures 17 3/4" long, but like many of my large stone necklaces, it fits more like a 15" choker. As you can see from the photo on the mannequin, the centerline of this necklace sits just above the high crew neck of the size 4 leather jacket. The care of these stones is much like pearls. Because they are natural and not stabilized, the stones are porous and will absorb body oil - along with make-up, lotion, sunscreen, perfume, hairspray - you name it. Absorbing these oils and chemicals will alter the color over time. And even though they are stone, like a wine glass or your Grandma's china, if they hit a hard surface like your bathroom floor, they will likely crack and break. All that being said, I know somewhere out there is a tiny neck that can rock REALLY BIG stones ... and one that adores breathtaking turquoise as much as I do. Rock on!
*I might ask for visiting privileges ...
This piece is one of a kind - please email regarding availability before adding to cart