HAPPY NEW YEAR !!

TOP GEM  ...

This is color of love & happiness.

Using opal colors and patterns to create 

a millionaire's ART !!

This piece of art can never be re-created as each 

individual opal can never be repeated.

Lots of opals here is SOLD ...

Started as taking photos of our beautiful, 

rainbow collection from Australia 

(black opal & boulder opal), 

... enlarge each opal images and select the best part.    

Line them up in color scheme then.

100 pieces of colorful opal becomes this 

incredible ART PIECE !!  

Cut in opal shape and here it is ... 

TOP GEM  from Australia.   

www.gemstory.com.au

Love Australian black opal & boulder opal 

for their brightness, uniqueness, 

rareness and preciousness.

If this art was to be created with other kind of opals 

(such as white opal, welo opal, mexico opal, etc ...) 

the whole outcome will be completely different 

and it may not be as bright as this.

Anyway, life is beautiful & should be colorful just like Australian top opals.

A Happy New Year !!!!!!

Hope our associates, family, friends, opal lovers 

and clients will have lots of "happy colors" 

like this in year 2016.

And thanks for your continuous support, 

heaps of appreciation to my friends who's working 

so hard out in the bush  just to find one, 

new opals in the heat  ...  

Without our miners, we won't be here today, 

doing what we love!

Thanks & Love you all ♪

  

www.opal-direct.com

And my new year's resolution ?!?

"More opal for more happiness"  

(^^)

xxxx       Malayvone    

OPAL MINING ...

Mining Boulder Opal in Queensland, Australia - 

is not an easy job. It's hot out there, it's a remote area,

can be a lonely place ... and most of all it costs you 

"fortune" to become an OPAL MINER ...

yet not many people understands it.

 

I drove up to a place called "WINTON" from Gold Coast, approximately 1,600km far North from where I live last week.

It was a long drive in max heat but was worth visiting ...

 

 

On my way up, all I could see was lots of

"road works" and "heaps of dead kangaroos" !!!

That was all I could remember anyway  (^^;)

 

 

 

 

Two days later, I finally arrived & met a

BIG BOULDER OPAL MINER in WINTON (Happy Valley)

called Vlado with his lovely wife June,

also Vlado's son (handsome ) Paul.

 

 

What Vlado & Paul do all day is just moving

an excavigator to remove sand rocks,

dig, dig and more digging, non stop !!!!

They spend so much money on fuels just to

keep moving this monster machine.

 

And only rarely ... very rarely indeed, you'll be able to

see a piece of  "rainbow" like an image here,

if you're lucky. Unfortunately not many miners are

as lucky as Vlado though ... sad ...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The buyers often ask me "why is Australian Opal so expensive"

or "why can't you supply more high quality black opal 

& boulder opal from Australia regularly" ...

 

And my answers to this is "because it costs a lot to

set up even before start mining opals,

too much costs & too much efforts to find too little opals

and quality Australian black opal & boulder opal

is extremely rare, much more rare & precious

than many other gemstones" !!!!!

 

 

I think you've got to be crazy or unique to stay

in OPAL BUSINESS,

but once you get involved ...

It's in your blood for the rest of your life.

 

Fortunate or ufortunate ??!!?

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was really a pleasure to get to know Vlado,

beautiful June & Paul at their camp.

They are such hard working miners,

lovely personels, have experiences & histories

in opal industry. Without passionate people like them,

the world won't be able to see or touch an amazing

"Australian Boulder Opal" from Queensland, Australia.

 

www.gemstory.com.au

 

 

 

 

 

Oh, not to forget to mention that June is a wonderful COOK too!! She made us home grown salads, vegie pies,

pasta salads and yummy

BARRAMUNDI FRITTER   (^^) !!

 

A hard work can not end without a great meal, right?!?

I guess Vlado loves June so much because she's beautiful inside out, she's patient, she's smart and

above all, she's a great cook.

 

Thanks for their hospitality!!!

 

 

 

xxxx    Malayvone

 

What to do on a HOT DAY !!??!

Hello from Gold Coast !!!

 

 



Wow, it was really hot and humid yesterday, wasn't it? Well, since it was 'hot' yesterday, all my family could think of was to jump into the swimming pool and save yourselves!

 

But just don't forget some important rules ... which is to 'Splash sun oils' all over your face & body ... And 'Wear your UV sunglasses' to protect your eyes!!  





But, really, in the end ... This is what happens!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It's just like "Don't worry, be happy and just hang on to your Daddy" (hahahaha ...)

 



 

 

 

In the city life like this, we can jump into the pool and cool yourselves ... but in the opal mine, there is no such facility so we only can run to the PUB to avoid the heat and just drink non stop!!! That's AUSTRALIAN WAY to get through the day during summer time ...

 

Gold Coast is nice and sunny, come and walk along the beach ... You will enjoy your day for sure   (^^)  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

xxxx       Malayvone



Lightning Ridge, here we go again!!

 

Well, well, well ...

 

Here we are again, at Lightning Ridge with our experienced opal miner "MR. KEN WESTBROOK" !!! Look at his smiling face, must be happy to see us (MAYU next to him) at his PUB - The Sheepyard Pub.

 

 

 

Well, opal miners love to drink day & night, but also love to find opal all day long... When they are not at the pub or on the ground, they're always UNDERGROUND, digging non-stop!!!

   KEN & ROGER

 

 

 

And ofcourse, our Lightning Ridge visit won't be completed without a great "Driver Guide - Larry" !!!

 

 

 

 

 

Visiting our friends at Black Opal field always made us feel welcoming, busy running around and creating more business for future ... Thank you Ken, Roger and Larry ... Now it's time to fly bacl to Gold Coast by a "Charter Flight" ... Thank you Glen & Andrew for a comfortable flight!! We will see you again ...  (^^)

 

 

xxxx    Malayvone

 

 

Lightning Ridge ... here I come !!!

 

 

 

Went to "LIGHTNING RIDGE" !!

 

And this is how wetook a small group from Japan to there ... by a CHARTER FLIGHT, nice hey?

 

 

 

 

 

As always, Lightning Ridge was sunny & dry ... A friendly (??!) place with all sorts of wildlife awaits for our arrivals.

 

 

Our good friend, who's been mining opals for about 30 years, was so inviting, he even took us underground to experience the actual mining process!!! What a great friend we have ...

 

 

  

 

So ... where is a quality opal?

Can you see something's hiding here??

 

 

 

 

 

 

Understanding how rare it becames to find any 'QUALITY PIECE' today, we just had to cut & polish some of the 'POTCH' - Non Colored Opals ...

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well, well, well, are we lucky on not??!!?? May be not this time ... they're too grey, not very bright and too sandy. This won't become a 'GEM QUALITY' unfortunately.

 

There's always next time & we are heading to L/R again next month!!! See you all soon.

 

 

 

xxxx      Malayvone

 

 

 

 

 

VISITING "LIGHTNING RIDGE" - Black Opal Town

Remembering my last trip to an amazing isolated town - LIGHTNING RIDGE !!

It took us about 10 hours driving from GOLD COAST CITY and the road was quite smooth ....

Our friend, a black opal miner at the 'sheepyard' demonstrated his skills in mining and his hard-work.
We wish he'll find some good pieces from all the dirt he's dugged...

Hummmm.... 'good try' but sadly there's hardly any QUALITY BLACK OPAL from the whole bucket.

Well, let's see what is available this time and we will have to continue contacting each other, my friend... It's hot, sometimes flooded and there's not much luck this time.

We shall return again soon !!!!

xxxx     Malayvone