What it is

The Des Moines Lapidary Society (DMLS) is a first-party lapidary membership club in Des Moines, Iowa. Official About / Membership pages state the society was formed in 1955 to promote, enjoy, and develop the study and practices of the lapidary arts, and note that DMLS is one of the few U.S. clubs that owns the building where it holds meetings and runs a full lapidary workshop. The workshop includes trim saws, slab saws, grinders, cabbing machines, flat laps, Facetrons, and a silver workshop. It is not a commercial lapidary supply shop and not a public art school by itself.

Who it’s for

Cabochon cutters, faceters, silversmiths and rockhounds in the Des Moines / central Iowa area who want a dues-paying club with a member workshop, monthly meetings, classes, a newsletter and an annual gem show. Membership Info lists AFMS and Midwest Federation association among member benefits.

Why it’s listed

This is a first-party lapidary club with a printed clubhouse street address, published annual dues, a fixed meeting cadence, posted member workshop hours, and a dated 2026 annual show with printed admission. It is not a scraped directory card and not a rock-shop storefront.

Clubhouse (home / About Us–Contact Us, checked 2026-10-05): 2608 24th St., Des Moines, IA 50310. Mailing address P.O. Box 470, Des Moines, IA 50302.
Annual dues (Membership Info, checked today): Individuals $25/yr; Households $35/yr. Membership year January–December; joiners in Oct.–Dec. are current through Dec. 31 of the following year. Cash or check only — electronic payments are not taken at this time per that page.
Meetings (About Us / home, checked today): monthly at the clubhouse September through May on the first Saturday of the month (except holiday weekends); home-page 2026 calendar samples list 1:00 p.m. starts. July–August — no meetings. Swap/Social Saturdays appear on the home page for selected May–September dates.
Member workshop hours (About Us–Contact Us, checked today): Most Sat 10:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m.; Most Tue 3:30–7:30 p.m.; Most Thu 12:00–4:00 p.m. Members use equipment after safety training.
Annual show (Our Shows / home, checked today): 2026 Gem, Jewelry, Mineral & Fossil Show, Saturday Oct 17, 9 a.m.–6 p.m. and Sunday Oct 18, 9 a.m.–4 p.m., Iowa State Fairgrounds — Elwell Family Food Center. Admission $6; children 12 & under FREE; free parking.

These dues, hours and dates are what the official pages showed on the check date, and they can change. Confirm on the live Membership, About Us and Our Shows pages before treating any figure as fixed.

Official URL

Last checked: 2026-10-05

http://dmlapidary.org/

Membership Info: http://dmlapidary.org/Our-Club/Membership-Info

About Us / Contact Us (clubhouse & workshop hours): http://dmlapidary.org/Our-Club/About-Us-Contact-Us

Our Shows (2026 annual show): http://dmlapidary.org/Shows-Swaps/Our-Shows

Location

Clubhouse (About Us / home, checked 2026-10-05): DMLS Clubhouse, 2608 24th St., Des Moines, IA 50310. Monthly meetings are on the first Saturday September–May (except holiday weekends) unless the club posts otherwise. The 2026 annual show is listed at the Iowa State Fairgrounds Elwell Family Food Center.

This address is a member club clubhouse and workshop. It is not a walk-in lapidary supply store or a public art-school campus open without membership.

Notes

Category is Clubs. DMLS is a nonprofit lapidary membership society with meetings, a member workshop, classes and an annual show. It stays in Clubs rather than Workshops or Suppliers.
Individual $25 / household $35 dues and the first-Saturday cadence are copied from official Membership Info and About Us pages checked on 2026-10-05 and may change. Prefer those pages and the printable membership form before paying.
The site serves over http only on this check — https://dmlapidary.org/ did not return a usable response from the check network. Cite the live http URLs.
A first-party home-page banner of lapidary stone samples is saved as des-moines-lapidary-society.jpg. It came from dmlapidary.org (/Portals/0/!Resources/Images/Banners/Banner-LapSamples.jpg) and was JPEG-recompressed only. The banner is a wide landscape crop.
Not affiliated with Lapidary Plaza.
No Lapidary Plaza contact, purchase, booking, or publication action was taken.

FAQ

Q: What does DMLS membership cost?
A: Membership Info (checked 2026-10-05) lists Individuals $25/yr and Households $35/yr, cash or check. See http://dmlapidary.org/Our-Club/Membership-Info

Q: When and where does the club meet, and can members use the workshop?
A: Meetings are monthly September–May on the first Saturday at the clubhouse, 2608 24th St., Des Moines, IA 50310 (About Us / home, checked 2026-10-05). Member workshop hours on that About Us page print most Saturdays 10:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m., most Tuesdays 3:30–7:30 p.m., and most Thursdays 12:00–4:00 p.m., after equipment safety training.

Q: When is the 2026 annual show?
A: Our Shows (checked 2026-10-05) lists October 17 (9 a.m.–6 p.m.) and October 18 (9 a.m.–4 p.m.), 2026, at the Iowa State Fairgrounds Elwell Family Food Center. Admission $6; children 12 & under free. See http://dmlapidary.org/Shows-Swaps/Our-Shows

Q: Is DMLS a lapidary school or a rock shop?
A: Neither as listed here. DMLS is under Clubs. It is a membership society with a member workshop, meetings and an annual show. For public-enrollment classes at art schools, see Workshops. For equipment and rough, see Suppliers.