Apophyllite is used as an aid to meditation and helps us make a conscious connection with the spiritual world. It has been used to help in mind over matter (eg fire-walking) and astral travel. It ...
A very common, coarse-grained variety of the silica mineral quartz that ranges in colour from nearly black through smoky brown. No distinct boundary exists between smoky and colourless quartz. Its abundance causes it to be worth considerably less than either amethyst or citrine. Heating bleaches the stone, the colour sometimes...
Spinel crystallizes in the isometric system; common crystal forms are octahedra, usually twinned. It has an imperfect octahedral cleavage and a conchoidal fracture. Its hardness is 8, its specific gravity is 3.5–4.1, and it is transparent to opaque with a vitreous to dull luster. It may be colorless, but is...
Black Tourmaline (Schorl) are ideal for psychic protection for anyone who must work or live in challenging place or circumstances, is one of the premier stones for our age. It has the ability to transmute and purify negative energy, turning it into usable energy. This is especially important as one...
A tetrahedron (plural: tetrahedra) is a polyhedron composed of four triangular faces, three of which meet at each vertex. A regular tetrahedron is one in which the four triangles are regular, or "equilateral," and is one of the Platonic solids. Tetrahedron
Garnet - aren't these the wonderfully deep red gemstones which are often found in antique jewellery? Well, this is only the partial truth, as a warm and deep red is indeed the most frequently occurring colour for Garnets. But unfortunately only few people know that the realm of Garnets holds...
Colour is often light-blue or white, colourless. Lustre is vitreous, pearly and is translucent. The hardness scale: 3 - 3 1/2. This crystal grown in clusters and is brittle and factures unevenly. It may fade if exposed to direct sunlight. It has natural termination points.Some peices are like wands, wide,...
Hematite is the most powerful gemstone to use for grounding. It can help you clear away confusion and orient you toward practical action in the real world. It brings the energy of higher consciousness down through the chakras to your root, and helps you transform that energy into physical reality. Hematite bracelets are...
Geodes, a term derived from a Greek word meaning earth-shaped, are irregular, roughly spherical bodies. They can be oblong or shaped like invertebrate fossils. Some are hollow and lined with most beautiful and unusual layers and clusters of various mineral crystals, but others are completely filled by inward-growing crystals. Hollow geodes,...
Lapis is a gemstone straight out of fairy tales of the Arabian Nights: deepest blue with golden shining Pyrite inclusions which twinkle like little stars.This opaque, deep blue gemstone looks back at a long history. It was one of the first stones ever to be used and worn for jewellery....
The name Aquamarine is derived from the Latin aqua (water) and mare (sea). Aquamarine is one of our most popular and best-known gemstones, and distinguishes itself by many good qualities. It is almost as popular as the classics; ruby, sapphire and emerald. In fact it is related to the emerald both...
Malachite is copper carbonate formed from very small crystals. It is usually found with alternating layers of light green and darker green. These color layers give malachite its distinctive appearance.Malachite is sometimes called the stone of transformation for its ability to help you on your path to spiritual growth. It...
Gypsum is found in nature in mineral and rock form. As a mineral, it can form very pretty, and sometimes extremely large, crystals. As a rock, gypsum is a sedimentary rock, typically found in thick beds or layers. It forms in lagoons where ocean waters high in calcium and sulfate...
Ancient and yet always at the height of current fashion: that is Turquoise for you. Its brilliant sky-blue belongs to the all-time favourite trend colours in the world of fashion and jewellery.In many cultures of the Old and New World this gemstone has for thousands of years been appreciated as...
Lepidolite is an uncommon mica and has only in the past decade become available on the mineral market in large quantities. Lepidolite is an ore of lithium and forms in granitic masses that contain a substantial amount of lithium. The lithium content in lepidolite does vary greatly however and low...
Which colour would you spontaneously associate with love and vividness, passion and power? Obviously this will evoke the colour red. Red symbolizes love, it emanates warmth and a strong sense of life. Red is also the colour of Ruby, the King of gemstones. After all, in the fascinating realm of...
Named from the French name for lemon,"citron," many citrines have a juicy lemon color. Citrine includes yellow to gold to orange brown shades of transparent quartz. Sunny and affordable, citrine can brighten almost any jewelry style, blending especially well with the yellow gleam of polished gold. In ancient times, citrine...
Since at least 2950 BC, jade has been treasured in China as the royal gemstone, yu. The character for jade resembles a capital I with a line across the middle: the top represents the heavens, the bottom the earth, and the center section, mankind. The word yu is used in...
This gemstone is called the gemstone of the Vikings, Iolite is also very often mistaken for Tanzanite. It derives it's name from the Greek work 'ios' which means violet. This gemstone is bluish violet in color, Iolite with prominent blue color tones resembles blue sapphire and in lighter blue violet...
Dinosaurs have been more popular than ever since their starring role in the movie Jurassic Park. A more surprising result of the movie's popularity has been a worldwide surge in demand for amber jewelry. Although amber's use in adornment is probably as old as mankind, in recent history it has...
The name "topaz" is derived from the Greek topazos, "to seek," which was the name of an island in the Red Sea that was difficult to find and from which a yellow stone (now believed to be a yellowish olivine ) was mined in ancient times. In...