BUYING TIPS

Don’t be intimated by price. Jewelry prices fluctuate wildly, from $40 earrings to $40,000 squash blossom necklaces. If the price tags are making you want to faint, don’t give up on jewelry. Just ask to see another piece, or check out another booth.

Ask questions about each piece. It keeps you informed and it allows you to talk with the artist about each piece.

The turquoise mine is everything. Where a piece of turquoise came from, if it is a high-grade stone and the size all determine the value of a piece of turquoise. High-grade Lone Mountain or Lander is going to cost more than a piece of Kingman, Bisbee or Sleeping Beauty turquoise. So keep this in mind when choosing a piece with a larger turquoise stone.

But more expensive is not always best. Everyone wants a piece of Lander Blue turquoise, but stones from other mines are just as beautiful and just as treasured. So don’t let yourself get pushed into a corner by one particular kind of stone.

Turquoise is king, but the other stones bring vibrant color to a piece of jewelry. Find the color or colors you like best and gravitate toward them, whether they are jade, corral, opal, sugilite, lapis, ironwood and many others.

Don’t see something you like? Ask the artist about commissions.

Ask the artist to try it on. If you’re on the fence about a piece, usually trying it on will nudge you one way or the other.