My fiend, Jerry, who owns the store where I purchase a lot of my gemstone beads, gave me a chunk of kyanite with pyrite mixed in it that came from Buckingham County in my area.  Jerry knows my fondness for using Pyrite in my jewelry.

So I decided to do a little online research to try to find out where I might be able to hike and come across some more.  Kyanite Mining Corp operates a mine near me, so I emailed them asking for any info on trails in their area where I could do a little digging.  Okay, I really don’t want to dig, I just want to take a pretty hike and trip over a giant slab of kyanite or pyrite, but that’s besides the point.

Kyanite Mining emailed me back right away, and graciously offered to let me join a mine tour on October 23rd.  I’m hoping to get lots of pictures so I can write about it again. And of course, I’m hoping to get lots of pretty little stones that I can make into pendants.

I’ve attached a picture of the rock Jerry gave me, next to some finished kyanite beads that I work with.   If you click on the picture, you should be able to see the flecks of pyrite in the stone too.  Great stuff!  Then again, I’m a girl, so anything sparkly and pretty is a welcome addition to my life.

For Jerry’s store, visit:  http://www.blueridgebeads-glass.com/

For Kyanite Mining Corp, visit: http://www.kyanite.com/