Daytrip!! - Diamond Hill Mine

If you're interested in geology, rock hunting or gem digging then there's a great little daytrip just outside of Greenville for you to make!

Diamond Hill Mines
Location:  100 Diamond Hill Road
Antreville, SC 

About 40 miles outside of the city of Greenville in Antreville, SC is a working mine: the Diamond Hill Mine. This is the only open-to-the-public mine in SC that I know of so far, and nice pieces of smoky quartz, skeletal quartz, milky quartz, and amethyst can be found. There is also a chance of finding garnet and aquamarine here.

This is an actual mine and not one of those sluicing operations with 'salted' buckets (where they seed the dirt with stones), so what you find has been placed there by Mother Nature herself. This isn't a mine in the sense that you have to crawl in some tunnel, but is instead more like a rock quarry where there is a large pit and mounds of dirt around it called "tailings". (Tailings are areas where the dirt has been pulled directly from the pit with an excavator and dumped in areas around it without it being 'sifted' first. This allows for gems to be found in the mounds just as easily as in the pit itself.)

As you are working in red clay and dirt you are going to get dirty. And the ground is uneven and in some places hard to access for those with mobility issues. I have health issues myself and was able to do a lot, but wasn't able to climb down into the pit because of them. I would suggest that anyone who has weak ankles or has health problems to bring a walking stick and never go alone. I used my metal garden rake for a walking stick and it worked wonderfully.

There is a single portapotty on the grounds and this is all. So bring your own water, snacks (and I would suggest toilet paper just in case). There are picnic tables so a picnic lunch is a great idea as well. We greatly underestimated how much water we needed so make sure to pack enough!

Digging is $20 per adult and $10 for seniors over 65 years. Kids ages 13-17are also $10. Cash only as far as I know. Sign in is from 9am - 2pm and signed waivers must be on file before you can start digging. For more tips and rules please check out the website by clicking HERE.

Tools to bring:

• Buckets
• Shovel
• Metal rake
• Pick, chisel or pry bar
• Newspaper to wrap finds
• Box or bag to place finds

We were there for five hours and as it was our first trip we weren't quite sure what we were looking for, but we still managed to find some great pieces that we were tickled with. It was a lot of fun and I look forward to going back soon. If you're at all interested in quartz crystal hunting.... you must check this out!

Food Review - Grits & Groceries

Restaurant: Grits & Groceries

Location: 2440 Due West Highway
Belton, SC 29627
Lat / Long (for GPS) = 34.398913 Latitude / 82.507008 Longitude
Phone (864) 296-3316

Hours
Tuesday- 10a-2p
Wednesday- 10a-2p
Thursday- 10a-2p & 5p-9p
Friday- 9a-2p
Saturday- 9a-2p


My Review:

I made my first trip here just yesterday (February 12). I'd seen an article on this place in a magazine and on the "Making it Grow" show seen on PBS and had been wanting to check it out for quite some time, however due to it's limited hours it hadn't been possible. My lovely Mother had ventured to the upstate this week to bring me a shiny new stove that someone back in Sumter had gifted me (thanks!!) and I promised her that we'd make a trip to do some gem hunting. Well this quaint little stop was on the way so it was a bonus!

Can I just tell you that it was well worth the stop??!! We didn't want to eat a lot since we'd be someplace with no real bathroom all day (cough cough), so we split an order of stuffed french toast. It was scrumptious, with perfectly browned toast and a mixture of fresh strawberries and cream cheese. But what REALLY made our eyes roll back to their whites in sheer ecstasy was the appetizer we ordered..... praline bacon. Yep, you read that right. PRALINE BACON! Thick slices of high quality bacon covered in a mixture of brown sugar and chopped pecan bits and cooked to perfection. Oh my heavens it was superb. We ended up having to get an order to take with us on our rock hunting expedition.

Quality of Product:

• Superb. The food came out fast, at the correct temperature, tasted fabulous and even in the off-season the strawberries tasted fresh.

Prices:

• A little higher than your average restaurant. An order of stuffed french toast (2 pieces of toast) was $9.50 and an order of the praline bacon (4 pieces) was $5.00.  While I'm usually pretty squeamish about paying almost ten bucks for french toast (especially when it doesn't come with eggs or bacon already), I didn't regret it after biting into it. The taste and freshness was so good that it felt like a fair trade. Menu prices can be seen on their website if you want to be prepared.

Service:

• Very friendly and smiling faces. Even the waitresses that weren't waiting on us stopped by the table to ask if everything was ok. They took their time chatting with us about a few things and when I asked if the recipe for the french toast was in their cookbook they even brought one to our table to look over it before deciding to buy it. (By the way, it was. Even the praline bacon recipe was in it. I was rather shocked that they give up that trade secret.... and it's so simple to make too!)

This little restaurant is in the middle of nowhere, at a crossroads far away from anything really. It's rather small inside and has under a dozen tables. There's nothing fancy here; just country decor, super friendly staff and bang-up good food. The owners were both chefs in New Orleans and brought their expertise with them to the upstate and you can really tell that they've worked hard to maintain great quality in their food. They also sell items like sauces, jelly, cakes and cookbooks. (We purchased a cookbook and a lemon drop pound cake for the road.)

One tip: this place only takes cash and checks. So don't go in with just a credit or debit card!

Anyway, these are some awesome folks at the cutest little place where you wouldn't expect the caliber of food that they offer. So trust me, it's WELL worth the drive (about 30 miles outside of the city of Greenville), just remember to bring your paper monies! I'm looking forward to going back sometime and trying their famous shrimp n'grits and homemade buttermilk lemon icecream. Yum!

February 17th - Yamato Drummers

Yamato Drummers - Japanese Percussion

When: February 17, 2016

Where: Peace Center, Greenville SC

I am really looking forward to this show! The last live drumming concert I was at was the Blue Man group (who, btw, were fantastic!) and the videos really don't do justice to the live performances.

When you witness these types of shows live and feel the beat reverberate through the concert hall, the energy is just insane.

Tickets are pretty reasonable for the show and I'm sure there are some left to be had. Definitely looks like a fun night out and a great way to experience another culture.

Purely - Essential Oils Review

Purely Essential Oils

I know a few people who are in business and I'd like to highlight the ones that I feel have a worthwhile product. One such individual is a sweetheart of a lady named Lana who is an agent for this company called Purely. 

This company offers 100% pure essential oils, bath bombs, handmade soaps, a men's line of products (including shaving creams), beauty products, accessories, and jewelry.

I can tell you from first hand experience that the oils are fantastic. My favorites so far are "Wild Orange" and "Lavender". The orange is a bright citrus punch of sunshine that's perfect for multiple uses (this one can even be ingested). I often need a pick-me up and a few drops of this mixed with carrier oil and rubbed on the skin is lovely. I'm also going to mix some with water in a spray bottle to use around the house when feeling a bit low.

The lavender is one of the best smelling lavender scents I've run across. It's potent, but not to the point where it smells fake. I will definitely be making some small sleeping pillows and sachets to aid with sleep and relaxation.

Prices vary depending on what scent and size you purchase, but honestly for uncut essential oils the prices are pretty competitive. This company promises that all oils are 100% organic
and they also have a great program to give back to charitable organizations throughout the world.

All in all if you're into making your own sachets, herbal blends or potpourri then you may want to check these out. If you're new at oils and want to get started out just making massage oils or scented oils to aid in mood enhancements, etc then there are quite a few offered at a low price (such as the wild orange) to get you going. All you need is to pick up some almond oil or grapeseed oil from your supermarket to use as a cutting agent and you're off and running. Give it a shot!!