Australian Boulder Opals
Boulder Opals are a natural treasure! Their vibrant and bright colours shine through each stone differently, glistening so uniquely. Boulder Opals are just one type of the beautiful opals that Australia has to offer. Here at Custom Jewellery Co, we love working with Queensland Boulder Opals and turning them into fine jewellery.
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Something that makes Boulder Opals so special to us is the fact that they are predominantly found and mined right here in Queensland! This means we are able to keep our whole jewellery making process local and ethical; from mining, to cutting and production, to jewellery making, it’s all able to be done locally.
Boulder Opals are unique from other opals because of the way they are formed. These opals are naturally formed in crevices and fractures in ironstone and sandstone boulders and, when mined, the opals are attached to these boulders or ‘host rocks’.
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Natural Boulder Opals are found in boulders of ironstone or sandstone that can be up to 3m long and the opals are found within these boulders in a range of sizes varying from less than a few centimetres to more than 20cm. These ironstone boulders are distributed throughout a belt of sedimentary rocks known as the Winston Formation that stretches from North-West of the New South Wales border right up to Kynuna in Northern Queensland (over 1000km). It is here where most of the world's Boulder Opals are mined. Many mining operations here are family based businesses meaning they are run and owned by local people. We work with some of these miners to select the best Queensland Boulder Opals to use in our handcrafted jewellery.
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In such a vast area where Boulder Opals are mined, different mining areas actually produce Opals with different variations and characteristics, making these already unique stones even more special.
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To mine Boulder Opals, the top layers of dirt are removed to expose the layers of sandstone and white clay-like material that hold the opal bearing boulders. Once that layer is exposed, the boulders are mined and cracked open to see if any opals are inside. Because of the way these opals are so uniquely, naturally formed and attached to the host rocks, these gemstones come in a wide variety of shapes and are usually cut with the backing of the host rock, however, if the opal is thick enough, it can be cut away from the rock. All these little details make each stone all the more unique!
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Boulder Opals truly are an Australian beauty that showcases the wonder and extraordinary detail of nature. Each Opal is a one-of-a-kind gem and we love how we can share this uniqueness with you through our jewellery and we hope you love it too.
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Opals are stunning on their own but the boulder that is often attached to the back of Boulder Opals adds more depth to the stone, showcasing its natural, unparalleled beauty.
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If you would like to browse through some of our handmade Opal jewellery, click here. We can also create custom opal jewellery just for you if you would like a piece of jewellery just as unique as the gemstones used in the design. If you would like a custom piece of jewellery, contact us today!
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