Monday, February 16, 2009

The 2009 Orchid Gathering...


While there was no formal "Orchid Dinner" this year in Tucson - the accommodating and generous Dave Arens (tool maker, jeweler and jack of all trades) organized a smaller group of folks at the TGIFridays!

Dave proved that there truly is nothing that he is not capable of doing - he can now add Party Planner to his list - he wore the Host Hat well!!!!

Despite the fact that there were three other "dinners" going on that same night...there was a respectable crowd of 50-75 guests!

Among the notables in the room Charles Lewton Brain was sharing a table with Loren Damewood - talk about artistic energy! Loren kept the onlookers entertained with his knots! It was especially nice to see Merle White and Helen Driggs (my favorite writer) of Jewelry Artist Magazine in attendance.

If you didn't get a chance to see the ring that Charles had on take a minute to check out his webpage below - this new caged rocks series is fun!

Brad & Debbie Simon were there briefly - they had a second dinner appointment that night also.

I shared a table with Dave Arens and a rotating list of dinner guests - the first round was Sam Patania (isn't he the nicest guy?) who was also heading to Cindy Edelstein's JRB dinner - then we welcomed local MetalSmith and Instructor Mark Ramsour (what a hoot - this guy is fun!)- no sooner had he stood to leave when in came Maureen Brusa Zappellini (kept saying she wasn't going to go to the show - she LIVES in Tucson!) Maureen is a talented artist and I am really enjoyed getting the opportunity to meet her - no sooner had Maureen and I started talking when in walked Holly Gage and her husband - they were busy being guests instead of vendors this year.

So as you can see I was so busy with my rotating table guests - I didn't get a minute to mingle! Maybe Dave will post a list of the attendees!

A Web Rundown of the Talent around my table:

Dave Arens - Koil Kutter
gemstonesetc@gainbroadband.com

Charles Lewton-Brain
http://www.brainpress.com/
http://www.metalartsguild.ca/profile/CharlesLewtonBrain

Loren Damewood
http://www.golden-knots.com/

Sam Patania
http://bahti.com/
http://silverhuntress.com/

Merle White & Helen Driggs
http://www.jewelryartistmagazine.com/

Brad & Debbie Simon
http://benchtelevision.com/
http://internet4jewelers.com/

Maureen Brusa Zappellini
http://cosmosmoon.etsy.com/
http://mbzap.etsy.com/

Mark Ramsour
OORT Cloud - Jewelry & Metal Objects

Holly Gage
http://www.hollygage.com/

For those of you that attended that I missed - PLEASE feel free to add your info to the comments - I would love to know who else was there!

What is Orchid?

I like to describe it as the only place where you can talk to thousands of jewelers, lapdarists, gemologists, artists, inventors, refiners, retailers, designers, photographers and miners from around the world - and not feel so intimidated that you can't ask a question!

From the Ganoksin site: Orchid is both a reservoir of content and network of active relationships for the benefit of the gem and jewelry industries. Through Orchid, participants may resolve their questions about virtually any subject relevant to the broad spectrum of involvement surrounding the gem and jewelry industries
http://www.ganoksin.com/orchid/orchid.htm

3 comments:

Maureen Bz said...

great summary! It was fun meeting you- and hope to see you at next year's gathering....
I managed to avoid going to most of the gem show this year but did sneak in a day at Rio and some fossil time with my family. Hey, I still have material from 2 years ago to work with! :-)
ciao- Maureen

Anonymous said...

Employers simply need to know what areas need to be serviced[url=http://www.nikepackersauthenticjerseys.com/greg-jennings-elite-jersey-womens-c-9_27.html]Greg Jennings Jersey[/url]
and then match up the appropriate exam numbers as a requirement But once you've figured out which discipline you're interested in[url=http://www.nikepackersjerseystore.com/jordy_nelson_womens_jersey]Jordy Nelson Jersey[/url]
the choice becomes rather easyOriginally published (similar verson) on AssociatedcontentI didn't know what to expect when asked if I wanted to join a small group of friends to watch The Book of EliThe oak is the emblem of County Londonderry in Northern Ireland[url=http://www.nikefalconsjerseyshop.com]Matt Ryan Elite Jersey[/url]
as a vast amount of the county was covered in forests of the tree until relatively recently The man who initially contacted Sheva offered her a chance to start her life again in America He holds a BA in Economics from Princeton UniversityTo clean the valve:As you disassemble the valve be sure to note how all the parts fit together so you can get it back together correctly! I strongly suggest you make a sketch and take notes
ï»?This name serves the purpose of authenticating a person while logging into an email account[url=http://www.nikepackersnflshop.com/nike+shop+charles+woodson+packers+jersey-c-9_17.html]Charles Woodson Jersey[/url]
instant messenger[url=http://www.nikeravensshop.com]Ray Rice Jersey[/url]
chat room and similar other web servicetimestamp ametadata span Like a single ponytail[url=http://www.nikepackersjerseystore.com]Aaron Rodgers Elite Jersey[/url]
pigtails also take the hair away from the face

Anonymous said...

I'm sure that half a century ago no pool player could have imagined regularly televised events[url=http://www.nikedolphinsshop.com/cameron-wake-nike-jersey]Cameron Wake Jersey[/url]
sanctioned tournaments with $50[url=http://www.nikeBearsauthenticjerseys.com]www.nikeBearsauthenticjerseys.com[/url]
000 prize pools[url=http://www.nikepatriotsjersey.com]Wes Welker Nike Jersey[/url]
and Oscar-winning movies with pool at the heart of the story line Pay attention not to blend the darkcolored clothes with the others for fear of staining with each other The main component of the R is a specially designed[url=http://www.nikesaintsjersey.com/nike-marques-colston-womens-jersey]Marques Colston Jersey[/url]
indirectly fired[url=http://www.nikepackersshop.com/nick-perry-nike-jersey]Nick Perry Jersey[/url]
patented rotary reactor in which organics in a reductive environment are carboniseddittoTweetbackground: #fff;padding: 10px 12px 10px 50px;margin: 0;min-height: 48px;color: #000;font-size: 18px !important;line-height: 22px;-moz-border-radius: 5px;-webkit-border-radius: 5px; p Toboggans with pivots allow users to steer as they go Any subscriber can actually log onto a website and see live sports coverage via their wireless connection
ï»?In fact[url=http://www.authenticnikeBearsshop.com]www.authenticnikeBearsshop.com[/url]
in most instances we encountered[url=http://www.authenticnikeBengalsshop.com]Andy Dalton Jersey[/url]
we'd describe Moore's feeling towards football as indifferent Approaching flowers may also have side-effects on the game world[url=http://www.officialnikepatriotsjersey.com/nike+brandon+lloyd+womens+jersey]Brandon Lloyd Jersey[/url]
such as bringing vibrant color to previously dead fields or activating stationary windmills It is seen that most of them don't think about deciding on a smart and catch screen name Your spirit keep working for you unbroken when you are on vacation[url=http://www.nikedolphinsshop.com/karlos-dansby-nike-jersey]Karlos Dansby Jersey[/url]
at sleep or doing something else For example[url=http://www.nikemiamidolphinsshop.com/karlos_dansby_authentic_jersey]Karlos Dansby Jersey[/url]
to be a top performer in anything[url=http://www.authenticnikeBengalsshop.com]A.J. Green Jersey[/url]
practice[url=http://www.billsproshop.us/cheap_cj_spiller_jersey]C.J. Spiller Jersey[/url]
practice and more practice is necessary Detroit overcame a 16 to 0 deficit and now led 20 to 16

LinkWithin

Related Posts with Thumbnails