New Collections

We've just bought a huge collection of stones and specimens and we're currently working on sorting boxes and getting everything labeled! Stop by to check out all of our new specimens in the weeks to come. Some of the items we've come across while unpacking include an entire flat of beautiful green apatite crystals, selenite wands, tourmaline, quartz, mixed minerals, rough sodalite and chrysocolla, and more!

Crazy Daze Sale!

We've done a belated "spring cleaning" here at the rock shop, in order to make room for new specimens and products. So, now it's time for you to take advantage of some discounts!

This year we will be participating in Viroqua's Crazy Daze Sale on Saturday, July 11th, 7am - 5pm. We'll have some great bargains outside on the sidewalk sale, as well as new items inside the shop! Plan to come early for the best selection!

Followup on Rock & Gem Show 2009

If you didn't make it to the Rock & Gem Show this year, you missed out on a fun time and some bargains, so mark your calendar for the first weekend in June next year! One of my favorite finds at the show this year was a unique specimen of two nicely preserved dinosaur eggs which was priced out of my meager budget. However, I did walk away with a few nice rough gems and specimens for my personal collection at a fraction of what I would have paid anywhere else. We also hand picked some new product for the rock shop while we were there, so we'll have new products including rough moldavite, carved animals, and more on display soon!

Viroqua Rock & Gem Show

Viroqua's Annual Rock & Gem Show is Coming Soon! You won't want to miss it, so mark your calendars for Saturday, June 6 (10 - 5pm) and Sunday, June 7 (10 - 4pm). Many dealers from throughout the region, specializing in jewelry, minerals, fossils, specimens, gemstones, crystals, polished stones, displays and much more, will be joining us again this year. Be sure to stop by our booth and check out the Narmadashvara Shiva Lingam display, Native Jewelry and Doll display, and other minerals, fossils and books we will be showcasing at this event. This year you will even see some local artists and jewelers demonstrating and selling and their stone and gem creations. The 2009 Rock & Gem Show will be held at the Viroqua Junior High School Gymnasium. For more information or to get on the mailing list for next years event, contact us at rockshop@mwt.net.

PH.D. Level Answers

Here's the answers to last weeks quiz questions:
1. Amber
2. Igneous, Sedimentary, Metamorphic
3. Pumice
4. The Smithsonian Institution
5. Blue

Are you a rock & gem PH.D.?

Here's the final questions to our quiz by Ken Fisher of the North American Syndicate.

1. This "gem" is a hard, translucent, fossilized resin.

2. Name the three basic types of rocks.

3. This stone is used as an abrasive and can float.

4. Where would you go to see the Hope Diamond?

5. Lapis Lazuli is a rock, not a mineral. What color is it?

Check back to our blog next week for the answers to these PH.D. Level questions. Don't know the answers? May I suggest a part-time job at your local rockshop or a membership to your local rockhounding club. After a year or so, you'll know all of this and so much more...plus you'll realize there is much more to learn and be hooked into wanting to learn it!

Quiz Answers: Graduate Level

1. Quartz
2. Cultured
3. Stalactite
4. Stalagmite
5. Fool's Gold

Watch for PH.D. Level Questions later this week.