MONTAGUE — Turners Falls is a real gem.
That’s why after a lifetime of admiring the beauty of actual gemstones, residents Kara Mondino and Jae Roberge thought the town was a great fit for their new shop, Tangible Bliss, a place dedicated to gemstones, handmade art and leather goods.
“I think there is a niche in Turners for it,” said Roberge, who handpicks all of the nearly 200 different varieties of stones that have already come through the door.
The store, which opened at 38 3rd St. last week, is an about 300-square-foot nook across the street from the Five Eyed Fox. The inventory includes a basket of bargain-basement stones for $5 each that customers can make into their own jewelry. There are moonstones wrapped in silver wire for about $40 and handmade clothes.
The store specializes in every kind of stone, except for diamonds because those are too expensive and too difficult to work with, Roberge said. Customers can browse through baskets of sapphire, opal and ruby stones. Each can be transformed into a custom piece of jewelry. Using wires and pliers and patience, Roberge wraps the stones in silver.
“If you do it right you don’t need to do any soldering,” said Roberge, who was born in Worcester and raised in Turners Falls. “You can pick out your own stone and we can make it into anything.”
When looking for new stones, Roberge checks the quality by looking for how the rocks shine against the light. “They are the natural wealth of the world, like if you marry someone you give them a rock,” he said. “There are myths about rocks. There is everything about rocks. Even when we are gone the rocks will still be there.”
Roberge said that typically when a stone feels right or is attractive, there is a reason. People who suffer from anxiety might be attracted to the purple amethyst, which contains lithium, known as an antidepressant. “If you need that element, you will be drawn to that stone,” he said.
The store owners had a love for scavenging for rocks since childhood. Mondino, 27, remembers going rock hunting in caves when growing up in Connecticut. Roberge, 32, started creating handmade jewelry about 13 years ago and traveling the United States selling his products at festivals. He learned how to make jewelry through trial and error, collecting more and more pieces that are now on sale in the store.
“There are a lot of people who like rocks. I think everyone has a little soft spot for rocks,” Roberge said.
After meeting and starting to date about a year ago, the couple decided to open a store, the goal being to do what they love while making money and planting roots in their community, Roberge said. “We saw the place for rent and decided to go with it,” he said. The couple spent about two months getting the store ready.
Mondino, who enjoys creating handmade clothing and art, also works fulltime at Turners Falls Pizza to make ends meet.
The store also displays handmade leather wallets, paintings and gemstone key chains.
If customers are lucky, they can get the unexpected benefit hearing one of Roberge’s rock jokes.
The business owners are also open to helping local craftspeople and artists display their work at the store.
So far business at the store has been slow, but the duo expect that as the word spreads, business will pick up.
You can reach Lisa Spear at: lspear@recorder.com or 413-772-0261, ext. 280