Due to Covid, all Lapidary workshops have been cancelled until further notice
Are you interested in looking for rocks and gems?
Are you interested in learning how to prepare a stone for polishing?
We welcome visitors and new members!
Have fun, share experiences and learn from the experts in our midst!
Membership fees are now due for 2021/22
Our workshop activities are held each Thursday , from 10am to 2pm and alternate between the grounds of Batemans Bay Heritage Museum and the President’s home.
Please refer to the News page or the Calendar for further details:
(Home page/News page, the Upcoming Events column is on top right if using a computer or at the bottom of the page if using a mobile device).
We had previously established a workshop at The Original Gold Rush Colony at Mogo which was devastated by bushfires in January. It is very exciting to announce a new partnership with Batemans Bay Heritage Museum providing us with a place from which to operate.
Join us for a meeting where we discuss club matters and correspondence from affiliated lapidary clubs, report on excursions held, plan new trips and activities and examine “show and tell” specimens of fossils, gems, minerals and items of interest brought along by members.
We conduct fossicking trips and visits to sites of geological interest in our local area. Weekend excursions are held regionally and at times, extended interstate fossicking trips.
We welcome members to undertake courses, in cutting, polishing and cabochon making.
Lapidary is the art of cutting and polishing stone. There are four basic lapidary arts: tumbling, cabbing, faceting, and carving.
Tumbling
Rough gem material is placed into a tumbler, a revolving barrel with abrasives. Progressively finer grits or abrasives are used until the gem is polished. This process closely resembles what happens to rocks in a stream or on the beach.
Cabbing
Cabbing or cabochon cutting is probably the most common form of lapidary arts. Cabochons or “cabs” are gems cut with a flat bottom and a curved or domed top.
Faceting
Through a mechanical process of cutting surfaces on a piece of crystal, beautiful gems are created. At present, as we don’t have access to a faceting machine, no faceting activities are being undertaken.
The workshop at the president’s home will be closed for a couple of months as Max will be away fossicking. Our workshop at the museum can be available on Thursdays from 10am to 2pm, provided a supervisor is available. To confirm contact Bob on 0427 667 670. There also will be no club meetings held in May or June.
Upcoming event: The 58th National Gem & Mineral Show will be held over Friday 15 April to Monday 18 April 2022 at Mudgee NSW.
More details on our News page
Many thanks to Myf Thomson the curator of the Museum for getting this event on the go!
Click here to view photos of Seniors Week at the Museum
Link to News including 2021 Committee.
View photos of Cabochon Course Participants
View photos of March 2021 Trip
Please add your emergency contact details and serious health issues to the back of your name badge.
Please remember Covid restrictions apply to all activities.
Due to COVID 19, all Lapidary workshops have been cancelled until further notice.
