so do I, but I think one can build up a good collection for reasonable amount of money, even though that will require more time and personal investment than if you had the big money. The point is to buy small-sized specimens, but choosing these wisely (which means you must first see many many so you will be buying the one that has something more). To choose wisely is not that easy.
Actually, I've seen many big gemmy and amazingly colorful crystal clusters of very high quality that didn't have that 'something more', despite their formal perfection and size.
The idea is to choose specimens that have some "prestance", so you won't disregard them when it's time to confront them to museum pieces. I believe that a modest specimen that has great charm (along with some real qualities in the mineralogical point of view, of course) will do well facing the thousand dollar ones. Also, IMHO good specimens should be free of any damage (no cracks or scratches)
Personally, I got sick with spending too much money on minerals that I could grow tired of a few years later. Therefore I decided to stick to the ones I do collect myself in the wild. These are not spectacular, but they have a better place in my heart. However I encountered a frustration even bigger than the money issue: the lack of time for prospecting...pfff life is a bitch
...this beeing said I'd still love to buy this basalt geode back
Last edited by cascaillou on Sat Aug 30, 2014 9:59 am, edited 7 times in total.
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