Fall for Greenville Brings Extra Crowds to New Local Shop's First Anniversary Celebration

The annual Fall for Greenville in downtown Greenville, South Carolina was a crowd-inducing success. Local businesses benefited from all the people who came out to the festival, for the food, drink and music. Even shops that were out of the vicinity of the blockade saw business and new visitors Saturday and Sunday. One such shop was the Greenville Gemstone Mine on North Main Street, in front of the Hyatt Hotel, who was also celebrating their first anniversary being a part of the downtown community.

Originally from Chimney Rock, North Carolina, where two stores are already established, the owners of the Chimney Rock Gemstone Mine decided to invest in our business community of Greenville. If a person has been to a "rock shop" before, he or she might know what to expect, but expect to find a few surprises at this little shop. Of course, there are rocks and minerals galore, from amethyst cathedrals nearly 4 feet tall to smaller samples of native Michigan copper and more exotic samples of ocean jasper and beautiful blue celestite geodes; however, there are also fossils: ammonites and trilobites and even corprolite-otherwise known as fossilized dinosaur dung.

But rocks aren't the only thing catching eyes at the Gemstone Mine, they have jewelry too. Birthstone jewelry is present for every month, though the semiprecious stones are in a higher supply and April's diamond has been substituted with cubic zirconia or white topaz. The knowledgeable staff can help make the decision process easier when customers are a bit overwhelmed by the selection of sparkling adornments. Some lesser-seen minerals are even set in silver, such as the ocean jasper mentioned earlier, ruby-zozite, lapis lazuli, and even geodes and druzy crystals. Also, the Gemstone Mine is one of the few sellers of larimar, a blue form of the mineral pectolite that is found only in the Dominican Republic in a small 2.2 square mile radius. This year the mine in the Dominican was mined out. Currently the value of larimar has remained the same, but has become a great investment as the value will only increase with age in coming years. The Gemstone Mine has rings, earrings, bracelets, and pendants made from larimar in both 14ct gold and sterling silver, and sales can include up to 30% off both silver and gold like they are this month for their anniversary sale.

If silver and gold are not your thing, there is also a whole wall of lesser items: necklaces, bracelets and earrings, most only 8 dollars and under, and many for only 6 dollars and under. You can find some unique stone necklaces there for a great price. And the abalone jewelry is so beautiful that it's amazing it's also so inexpensive!

However, they don't call it a "mine" for nothing. The Greenville Gemstone Mine has a live dry mine in the rear of the shop, set with troughs and sifting pans. Different sized buckets line the shelves, and customers simply pick the bucket that is the right size and price for them, and with a little help from a staff member, the mining experience can begin. Each bucket is filled with a mixture of semiprecious stones. True, it isn't direct-from-the-hillside mining, but you are guaranteed to find stones this way. Overall, it is probably much more fun this way than taking a gamble on a hillside bucket that might not have anything notable at all in it, especially for children.

The Greenville Gemstone Mine seems to be a "gem" of an addition to our downtown area, a regular treasure trove of geological, wearable, and just plain fun items. With one year already completed, hopefully the Gemstone Mine will be a part of our community for many more.