Inlay Shell - Continued

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PINK MUSSEL; Mostly soft matt pink “flesh tones” with occasional subtle colours and “rippling”. Small pieces only.



RED ABALONE; Predominantly reddish/pink background with irregular subtle green iridescent swirls. Large size blanks are often available in Red Abalone although bigger pieces will often show some evidence of “bark” material at the edges.



RED ABALONE SELECT; As above but with intense colouring & strong “contour lines” usually in a “Bull’s Eye” type pattern. Only a small percentage of the shell qualifies for this category.



RED ABALONE “HEART”; Typically reddish background with intense green/black mottling. Superb & dramatic, only a small percentage of the shell qualifies as “Heart” and accordingly it commands a premium price.



GREEN ABALONE; Predominantly pale green background with intense swirls of colour and irregular line patterns. A much smaller and more curved shell than Red Abalone, blanks are accordingly much smaller.



GREEN ABALONE “HEART”; Pale green background with intense green/black mottling. Often even more dramatic than Red Abalone “Heart”.



RIPPLED GREEN ABALONE; Uniformly pale but with a strong, wavy grain like rippled or “Fiddle Back” Maple.



NEW ZEALAND PAUA; Considered by many to be the most beautiful of the Abalone shells with especially intense blues & greens. Shells are usually small & thin & prone to boring parasites. For this reason Paua is most often converted into Shell Laminate sheet & strip. Solid shell is however available in all its natural glory in the form of dot markers.



JAPANESE AWABI; A beautiful “creamy” coloured shell, often with a strong ripple, & subtle pastel colourings. Small sizes only.



PLEASE NOTE; Each of our shell blanks has 90% or more usable surface area. Occasionally bark or parasite boring holes are evident in the reverse side but the “face” side will be 90%+ usable material.

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