Category: Life

With most gemstones, the cut is an optical decision. Facet angles are calculated to return light, and the outline that results is almost a byproduct. Moss agate does not work that way. It is translucent rather than transparent, so it is usually finished as a cabochon or a flat-faceted slice, and light does not bounce around inside it the way it does in a faceted sapphire. What the cutter is really deciding is composition. A moss agate kite cut engagement ring and an oval version of the same rough can look like two entirely different stones, because the outline is the frame and the dendritic pattern is the picture hanging inside it.

The outline is a frame, not a light engine

Moss agate is a chalcedony, a microcrystalline quartz that carries branching mineral inclusions of iron or manganese oxide. Those dendrites look like ferns or forest canopy, but nothing organic is trapped inside. They grew as mineral formations while the chalcedony was forming, which is why the patterns are irregular, directional, and completely unrepeatable from one stone to the next.

Continue reading “Cut Shapes for Moss Agate: How the Outline Frames the Stone” →

Spending a day out in London comes with the opportunity to capture some of the most beautiful holiday photos. But family photos aren’t the easiest to take because not everyone wants to cooperate. You know the scene: someone is holding the camera, while someone is refusing to smile, someone suddenly needs a snack, and someone is mysteriously missing from the scene. 

We understand that you want to capture memories, but a family day out isn’t about photos only. Don’t turn the day into a professional photoshoot. We have discovered that the best photographs happen when nobody pays attention or puts great effort into taking them. One of the kids is racing towards the river, and you just snap a photo. Your partner has a funny expression on the Tube. You’re watching your children together as they discover something for the first time and know they cannot wait to tell the story to their friends. These scenes will make better memories than a perfectly arranged family portrait.

Continue reading “How to Plan a Family Day Out That You Will Want to Remember in Photos” →