grace grits and gardening

ramblings from an arkansas farm girl

  • Home
  • Biography
  • Media
  • Privacy Policy
  • My Thoughts on Publishing
  • SHOP!
  • Garden
  • Food
  • Crafts
  • Farm
  • Reading & Books
  • Sunday Letter

I stopped at an Arkansas Rock Shop

September 3, 2015 By Talya Tate Boerner 19 Comments

I stopped at a Rock Shop

There are lots of quirky things about Arkansas and the rock shops near Hot Springs rank right up there. As a kid, I remember our family stopping at rock shops while on vacationย in the Ouachita Mountains. Last week while drivingย on Scenic Highway 7 to Hot Springs, I began seeing signs for Coleman’s Rock Shop.ย 

I couldn’t resist stopping. ย 

Deja vu for sure. I’m certain my younger self walked through Coleman’s in 1970-something.

I don’t know why, but I’ve always had an affinity forย rocks. I’ve been known to drag rocksย home in my suitcase from vacation destinations to use in the garden. I imagine that even our videobsessed* kids of today would enjoy stopping at a rock shop to explore. Boy oh boy, Coleman’s has every imaginable and unimaginable crystal, glass, rock, geode, and stone available, not only in a natural state, but also blown into vases, formed into eggs and paperweights, and shaped into earrings and pendant necklaces.ย 

Whew.

Coleman's Rock Shop on Hwy 7

You know how typically when you return (as an adult) to a childhood place, everything seems minuscule and swallowed by time? This was NOT my experienceย atย Coleman’s Rock Shop. Not only was theย retail store crammed with shelves and displays, but out back, the rock yard was just thatโ€”yards and yards of rocks organized by category and color.

And bonus!โ€”for a mere ten bucks, customersย can mineย crystals atย the Coleman quartz mine (15 miles away) keeping every treasureย found.ย I seriously intend to do this soon. Anyone want to join me?

I stopped at a rock shop

Let me take you back for a moment…

For years and years, a small, glass jar of rocks (bought possibly at Coleman’s) sat on the window ledge in theย bedroom I shared with my sister. Although my jar of rocksย somehow disappeared over the years, I remember it clearly.ย Theย jar had originally been a baby food jar, and the rocks were assorted and sparkly and magical. How I managed to lose something so special, I have no idea.ย 

I wondered if Coleman’s still sold those jars? I began searching, certainย I hadย fallen into a time warp. I metย my younger self around every rock display and heard my own words trapped alongย theย paneled walls.ย Momma, can I get this jar of rocks? Pleeeeeease?

Justย before giving upย and returning to my car, I spotted an entire bottom shelf packed tightlyย withย baby food jars of rocks.ย The same rocks? I’m gonna say YESย because theyย were exactly as I remembered. The lids may as well have been covered in 1971 pixie dust.

My heart did a flip flop.

jar of rocks

I searched for the perfect jar, the one most like my original with a black lid andย containing a lumpย of fool’s gold inside.

And I found it.

For the bargain price of a jar of rocks, I took a trip back in time. My new jar of rocks sits on the windowsill of our bedroom, just as it should.

jar of rocks

Grace Grits and Gardening
Farm. Food. Garden. Life.

*made up word

[tweetthis]Coleman’s Rock Shop – a trip back in time. #OuachitaMountains #HotSprings #MicroVenture @VisitHotSprings [/tweetthis]

Check out these other area rock shops.

Musical Pairing:

The Who, Bargain (1971)

Coleman's Rock Shop
Amethyst

Arkansas Quartz

Glass

Coleman’s Rock Shop & Crystal Mines

 

 

Filed Under: Arkansas, Simple Pleasures, Travel Tagged With: Coleman's Rock Shop, Hot Springs, Ouachita Mountains, rock shop, Scenic Highway 7

Wanna receive posts via email? Sign up here!

Comments

  1. fay guinn says

    September 3, 2015 at 12:29 pm

    Sweet, Talya. There is an asterisk at end of post indicating a made-up word. Couldn’t find one. Did I miss it?

    Reply
    • Talya Tate Boerner says

      September 3, 2015 at 2:40 pm

      Yes, videobsessed (the word before the asterisk) is made up. At least I think I made it up. LOL.

      Reply
  2. Colene says

    September 3, 2015 at 6:08 pm

    This is so special. Seriously!

    Reply
    • Talya Tate Boerner says

      September 4, 2015 at 7:20 am

      Thank you, Colene!

      Reply
  3. Jenny Marrs says

    September 3, 2015 at 10:47 pm

    We stopped at a rock shop on the way home from AWBU too! We couldn’t resist! I had never been to south AR and I was sort of mesmerized by the shear number of shops selling ROCKS. ๐Ÿ™‚ it was fascinating and fun! I love how special and nostalgic your stop-in was!

    Reply
    • Talya Tate Boerner says

      September 4, 2015 at 7:21 am

      Thank you, Jenny! Glad to hear I’m not the only person with a rock fascination- LOL. So great to meet you at AWBU!

      Reply
  4. Geezer on the Go says

    September 4, 2015 at 4:49 pm

    I love rocks! I’ll go with you!

    I qualify because I spent hours and hours finding nothing at
    http://www.rugglesmine.com/

    and I baked my brains out, all for naught, at
    http://www.craterofdiamondsstatepark.com/

    Reply
    • Talya Tate Boerner says

      September 5, 2015 at 7:45 am

      Hmmmm, maybe I should take someone who has better rock finding luck? ๐Ÿ™‚

      Reply
  5. Mel @ Adventures of Mel says

    September 8, 2015 at 4:11 pm

    Talya, that is a beautiful memory… My breath caught when you said the new jar now sits on the windowsill of your bedroom. This is yet another place my boys would love to explore. Thank you for sharing at Inspire Me Wednesday. Featuring you in this week’s issue and on Instagram tomorrow.

    Reply
    • Talya Tate Boerner says

      September 8, 2015 at 6:04 pm

      Aww, thank you so much Mel!

      Reply
  6. Jenn says

    September 9, 2015 at 8:11 am

    It’s always fun to find another rock enthusiast. I like to find mine on the banks of the Buffalo River. My kids and I always buy the geodes to crack yourself from the rock shop. Wondering what your going to get is so much fun! I have them on my mantle and multiple window sills around my house. I sometimes wonder what non-rock people think when they come over.

    Reply
  7. Sarah Shotts says

    September 30, 2015 at 9:32 pm

    Apparently I never commented, but I love this post! Thanks for linking it up. ๐Ÿ™‚

    Reply
    • Talya Tate Boerner says

      October 1, 2015 at 7:33 am

      Thanks Sarah! I think you tweeted it:)

      Reply
  8. Kristen says

    April 20, 2021 at 11:29 am

    Hi all , I have a rock that was given to me as โ€œrock glassโ€ can anyone on here tell me if it is or not definitely โ€œRock glassโ€. Thank you

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. #feedthehippy Most Inspiring Posts of Week One says:
    September 6, 2015 at 9:07 pm

    […] makes her blogging home at Grace, Grits, and Gardeningย and you can find a direct link to her post here.ย Be sure to check out her blog for the latest gardening tips and delicious […]

    Reply
  2. #VentureLinkUp | October 2015 - A Love Letter to Adventure says:
    October 2, 2015 at 10:08 am

    […] takes us down memory lane to an Arkansas Rock Shop. (Who else collected rocks as a kid? I know I […]

    Reply
  3. Federal Blog says:
    May 21, 2017 at 2:12 am

    Coleman Women 039 S Black

    […] ce of a jar of rocks, I took a trip back in time. My new jar of rocks sits on th […]

    Reply
  4. #feedthehippy Most Inspiring Posts of Week One – KSDeanAuthor says:
    June 16, 2017 at 5:31 pm

    […] makes her blogging home at Grace, Grits, and Gardeningย and you can find a direct link to her post here.ย Be sure to check out her blog for the latest gardening tips and delicious […]

    Reply
  5. Rock Your World at These Arkansas Rock Shops | Only In Arkansas says:
    January 7, 2021 at 10:00 am

    […] Photo courtesy of Talya Tate Boerner of Grace Grits and Gardening. […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating





Hi! I'm Talya Tate Boerner. Writer, Reader, Arkansas Master Naturalist / Master Gardener, Author of

THE ACCIDENTAL SALVATION OF GRACIE LEE (2016)

GENE, EVERYWHERE: a life-changing visit from my father-in-law (2020)

BERNICE RUNS AWAY (Now Available!)

Never miss a blog post! Subscribe via email:

Prior Posts

Tags

A to Z April Blog Challenge Autumn BAT Book Reviews childhood Christmas creative writing prompt Dallas Desserts Eureka Springs Fall Fayetteville Food Gracie Lee Halloween Hemingway-Pfeiffer home humor Johnson Family Keiser Lake Norfork Lucy and Annabelle Mississippi County Mississippi Delta Monarch butterflies Munger Place Nana nature Northeast Arkansas Northwest Arkansas Osceola poem Reading Schnauzer simple living simple things spring spring gardening Summer sunday letter Talya Tate Boerner novel The Accidental Salvation of Gracie Lee Thomas Tate Winter Wordless Wednesday

Books by Talya Boerner / Purchase in Grace Grits SHOP

Talya Tate Boerner books
Gene, Everywhere

What’s Trending?

  • Sunday Letter: 06.04.23
  • Sunday Letter: 05.28.23
  • Sunday Letter: 05.07.23
  • Sunday Letter: 04.23.23
  • Sunday Letter: 04.16.23

Food. Farm. Garden. Life.

THANKS FOR READING!

All content and photos Copyright Grace, Grits and Gardening © 2023 ยท Web Hosting By StrataByte