What about White Buffalo stone?

This is another one of those hard to come by stones that has been used by the Native American jewelry artists for many years, but the supply is so limited, it's rarely cut into beads for stringing. This year at the 2020 Tucson Gem Shows, one of my main suppliers of American turquoise has cut a small batch into beads. I convinced them to let me shop their booth the day before the show opened and was able to get these 4 strands of graduated large heishi beads, the only ones they cut. I also selected the three nicest pairs of earring slabs (out of 6 pairs) in the White Buffalo. The material is hard to get and often has a lot of agate rock in it, that is not white but discolored, so there is a lot of waste in the cutting process making the stone fairly pricey. The big graduating circle nugget bead strands are also something you won't find anywhere else, again only a few of these available. I have a different supplier that I was also able to get a few calibrated cabochons and wheel beads from. So that's it in White Buffalo for 2020, while supplies last.

About the stone ... a lot of sellers call it White Buffalo Turquoise, but it is NOT turquoise in makeup though it was discovered in a turquoise mine in Tonapah, Nevada. The white stone is surrounded by black and brown chert which creates beautiful patterns and matrixing. Beware that howlite is is often represented as White Buffalo, but it is more of a cream with white grey erratic veining and not black. Howlite is very common and White Buffalo comes from only one mine in Nevada.

To learn about the myth of White Turquoise ... read this article by the Native American Jewelry tips web site