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	<title>TaoGem Gemstones</title>
	<link>http://taogem.com</link>
	<description>inexpensive wholesale interesting unique unusual loose cut gemstone cabochons supplies for designing custom jewelry</description>
	<lastBuildDate>Tue, 19 Oct 2010 18:00:10 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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	<item>
		<title>Matching Gemstone Cabochon Earring Pairs &#8211; Ferro Actinolite &#8211; Jewelry Design</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Every now and then I come across something a bit more unusual and interesting. This Ferro Actinolite is one of those !
This Ferro Actinolite is a beautiful translucent, opaqe green, with nickel webbing. At least I believe the webbing is nickel.
I am still unsure about the origin. One reference suggests Astor, Shigar Valley Pakistan. A [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://taogem.com/archives/261</link>
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		<title>Wonderstone Rhyolite Holy Cow Polish Verses Oxide Gemstone Cabochon Jewelry Design</title>
		<description><![CDATA[I had only cabbed some Wonderstone Rhyolite one time back when first learning to cab. Took me a while to learn that the polishing difficulties I was having were not me, but the lack of silica content in the Wonderstone. As a result did not think would purchase again until I met Linna of Stone [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://taogem.com/archives/250</link>
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		<title>Avila Brecciated Rhyolite Agate for Gemstone Cabochon Jewelry Design</title>
		<description><![CDATA[A member from my Lapidary / Gemstone Community forum sent me this most unusual material.
This is Avila Brecciated Rhyolite. Also called &#8220;DeeDeeite&#8221; by the rock club nearest the deposit about three miles from California&#8217;s Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant.
Most of this type has larger rhyolite pieces floating in the agate&#8230;but these pieces have the smaller [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://taogem.com/archives/241</link>
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		<title>Heat Treating Lapidary Cabochon Minerals For Silver Solder Jewelry Design</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Heat Treating Minerals
There are a great many minerals
that can be heat treated as shown in
the forum post. Heat treating these
different minerals can result in some
outstanding color enhancements !
Here is a picture of some showing
a Brazilian Agate before, intermediate,
and a fully heat treated cabs.
Slow increments of raising the heat
and lowering the heat makes a
difference between highly [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://taogem.com/archives/237</link>
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		<title>Intarsia Gemstone Cabochon For Silver Solder Jewelry Design</title>
		<description><![CDATA[This is my first attempt at making an intarsia !
A bit of a disaster..
It should have been more obvious to me while grinding down the flat edges of the Obsidian that it was not nearly good enough. As can be seen at the joints.
I knew the top edges were a bit chipped, but thought that [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://taogem.com/archives/232</link>
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		<title>Annealing &#8211; jewelry design &#8211; silversmithing</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Is annealing really just a simple matter of heating the metal and letting it cool? 
I think this is the first question that comes to mind for someone brand new to working silver and other metals for jewelry design. I know it was for myself.
One important benefit to annealing is that the process makes the [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://taogem.com/archives/228</link>
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		<title>Ten Reasons Using Hard Silver Solder For Gemstone Cabochon Jewelry Design</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Ten Good Reasons
1. Hard solder actually becomes easier and quicker to use  than the &#8220;step&#8221; method. No hat trick, just controlling your torch, all my students can do that easily with in the first 30 minutes of learning to light a torch. This includes junior high age students. By using only hard solder there [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://taogem.com/archives/221</link>
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		<title>Gemstone Cabochon Silver Bezel Setting Type Jewelry Design Projects</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Something to blog about !
Have been burning, melting, and generally wasting a lot of silver trying to learn how to silversmith, the past few pendants have turned out a-ok though.
Thought might blog about and share a few of the most recent, successful, and favorite pendants.
This first one has a Nipomo and Marcisite gemstone cabochon. Unlike [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://taogem.com/archives/217</link>
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		<title>Flat Lap For Intarsia &amp; Diamond Mesh Abrasives &#8211; Gemstone Cabochon Jewelry Design</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Gosh&#8230;. Been a while since have added a blog post&#8230; Been a bit of a blogging slacker !
Thought might share a bit about a flat lap set up I picked up.. Purchased this with the intent of starting to try my luck with intarsia type cabbing. That and wanted to give some 8&#8243; padded diamond [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://taogem.com/archives/209</link>
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		<title>Mexican Crazy Lace Agate Gemstone Cabochon Pendant Jewelry Design Process</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Just for fun want to show off this recent Mexican Crazy Lace Agate pendant. Sorta patting myself on the back just a little as it is my best silver solder project yet !
We decided to have a jewelry design contest for existing forum members.  Actually, it is still ongoing as of this blog entry..
Not being [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://taogem.com/archives/201</link>
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		<title>Dendritic Moss Opal / Opalite / Opalized</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Recently received several slabs of what I believe to be a dendritic Moss opal.  Not entirely sure if it is an opal, opalized, or a opalite. I have read that opalite is an opalized volcanic ash than can occur with common opal and agate. It can be dendritic.
Opalite is very hard and can have a [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://taogem.com/archives/196</link>
			</item>
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		<title>Spokane Area Social Network Crafts, Lapidary, Jewelry, Misc Art / Artists</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Brand new Spokane area Social Networking Community for crafts, lapidary, jewelry, and all other related artists.
This community was started as a means to simply bring a variety of local niche artists from the Spokane area together in hopes of creating interesting and unique opportunities for all members.
Members are not limited to the few arts categories [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://taogem.com/archives/194</link>
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		<title>Spokane Sandpoint Newport Area Jewelry, Crafts, Gemstones, and Antique Show / Event / Festival</title>
		<description><![CDATA[It will be held on the grounds of a Victorian Tea House, and a lovely home just across the lane.
Admission is free, and there are 70+ vendors.  Vendors will cover everything from antiques, collectibles, vintage goods, primitives and arts and crafts, jewelry and of course my gemstones.  Both homes will have vendors set [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://taogem.com/archives/193</link>
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		<title>Networking &#8211; Local Arts And Crafts Events Combined With Online Social Communities</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Recently I did a little poll on my forum asking other lapidaries how their online sales have been doing. There were a couple of comments that stood out. First, although the number of folks utilizing the poll were few, online gemstone and jewelry sales seem to be in decline past few months. The month of [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://taogem.com/archives/192</link>
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		<title>Shaping Forming Low Dome Cabochon For Gemstone Jewelry Desing</title>
		<description><![CDATA[After uploading the videos, realized that the audio on most did not pick up my voice. So will type out as best I can a description of what is going on in each video. I can hear them much better using my headphones.
As always, what works best for me can be different for someone else. [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://taogem.com/archives/191</link>
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		<title>Chrysocolla Mineral Varieties Rough Slabs and Gemstone Cabochons for Jewely Design !</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Chrysocolla is right up there among my most favorite minerals for cutting cabs from. Most all Chrysocolla makes for some stunning jewelry. Then there are some that are truly a bit more unique than others.
We have been sharing a whole lot of different Chrysocolla varieties on my forum.
I especially like a Chrysocolla with Hematite, Tenorite, [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://taogem.com/archives/189</link>
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		<title>Advantages of working with reputable gemstone jewelry designer / silversmith / metalsmith</title>
		<description><![CDATA[I have blogged before about &#8220;Advantages for Gemstone Jewelry Designer who Develop Relationship with Lapidary Shop&#8221;. Much of the same really does apply when considering a reputable gemstone jewelry designer/silversmith. Your extremely lucky to find not only a reputable and qualified designer, but a designer who&#8217;s unique ability to work with precious metals place them [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://taogem.com/archives/188</link>
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		<title>Ocean Wave Jasper Slabs to Gemstone Cabochons</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Just received this really pretty Ocean Wave Jasper. Have cut a lot of orb Ocean Jasper, but only ever had a couple of Ocean Wave Jasper.
One thing about buying the expensive Orb type Ocean Jasper is that it is hard to find at an affordable price without pitting or vugs. The Ocean Wave Jasper seems [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://taogem.com/archives/187</link>
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		<title>My Lesson in Purchasing Silver Ring Blank with Bezel / Prong Gemstone Setting</title>
		<description><![CDATA[This was the first time I had purchased a ring blank to set a stone in. When I saw it in the magazine it appeared to have a bezel type setting with four prongs. I thought was simply going to be able and push the floral looking bezel and prongs up against the gemstone.
After it [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://taogem.com/archives/186</link>
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		<title>Pictorial Gemstone Mineral Guide / Book for Agate and Jasper</title>
		<description><![CDATA[
I just received this pictorial guide to over 150 types of agates and jasper.
&#8220;There are many excellent books currently on the market describing banded agates, but there are few with an emphasis on the other structural varieties. There are virtually no current books with images and descriptions of the wide array of fine jaspers presently [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://taogem.com/archives/185</link>
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