By Llyn L. Strelau
Let me set the scene”¦ Twelve men and women sit in a circle in a dimly lit room of a church hall. One man stands and says: “Hello. My name is Llyn”¦ and I am a gemstone addict!”
The rest of the circle responds: “Hello Llyn”“welcome! Would you like to share this evening?”
“Thank you,” I say. “It started innocently when I was just a kid. I loved sparkly things and had a collection of rhinestones and other simulated gemstones discarded from broken jewellery that belonged to my mother and sisters. Even then, I just liked to play with them and admire the colours and lustre. I just didn’t know where this obsession would lead!”
When I grew up and started designing jewellery, my habit for collecting also grew. At first, I didn’t discriminate between gems or have a great deal of knowledge about them. I purchased only inexpensive stones—it seemed that was all I could afford to buy. As years went on, my business grew and so did my gemstone collection. I had more money to spend and the gemstones were increasingly valuable, as my eye grew more discerning and I learned about quality.
