Tag: #Gemstones

#WednesdayWonders – Lapis Lazuli

Published on by Jan Sikes29 Comments

Time sure has a way of flying by, and it’s been WAY too long since I did a gemstone post.

Created in Canva

I’ve had a couple of small pieces of Lapis Lazuli for years, but on my recent trip to Missouri, I picked up two new ones, and I’m just loving them!

Photo by Jan Sikes

Lapis Lazuli stone meaning came from the Latin word Lapis means stone, and from the Persian word, Lazhward, meaning blue. It was used as the finest art through the ages, especially when it was used in ancient Egypt, beloved by the Babylonians, Minoans, Chinese, Greeks, and up to the Romans. It was historically used in the death mask of King Tutankhamen, where they inlaid it with turquoise and carnelian in bright gold. It was also a subject from a well-known writer Marco Polo way back in 1271. Michelangelo grounds up this stone to create blue paint called ultramarine that brings color and brings the robes of Mary of Nazareth painted on church walls.

Lapis Lazuli’s benefits consist of a powerful, intense royal blue stone used to open minds and give enlightenment. It is used to encourage self-awareness, self-confidence, self-knowledge, peace and harmony, compassion, and morality, putting the wearer in a good mood throughout the day.

Lapis Lazuli’s healing crystal was discovered to relieve anger and negative thoughts. It is a useful tool for those who suffer emotional breakdowns. It calms the senses and opens up the mind to produce knowledge and self-awareness. It is a stone of protection against anxiety and psychic attacks, allowing clearer thinking and enhancing the ability to be more creative. it stimulates clarity and objectivity and speaks one’s truth and emotions. It also brings to balance the male and female aspects of your personality, which vibrates with the energy of the inner king or queen, and are historically stones of royalty.

Lapis Lazuli’s emotional healing is not just with the inner issues, but it can help to generate goals and determination. It strengthens the mind to influence your body for being active at work, career, and in life, in general.

This stone can connect your heart and mind forcing it to create a good flow of blood and calms your emotions. It aids in the treatment of skin issues and respiratory ailments. It is good for the nervous system that controls brain disorders. It is also believed to boost the immune system, help the blood circulate normally, and soothe the areas of inflammation. Because of its intense blue color, it is related to the throat chakra, therefore being beneficial in helping regulate the thyroid gland.

This stone has a way of making you fearless with your choices or decisions throughout your journey, which lifts your spirit to become more motivated every day. It’s a highly spiritual crystal that expands your thinking, gives deeper connections to the spiritual world, and promotes awareness. 

**It is not uncommon to find Sodalite in stores being sold as Lapis Lazuli. The best way to tell the difference is the intense royal blue color and the specks of gold and pyrite found in Lapis, whereas Sodalite will have some gray and white, but not the other reflective minerals.**

I hope you enjoyed this!!

#WednesdayWonders – Citrine

Published on by Jan Sikes54 Comments

I am excited to share this gorgeous stone with you. I purchased it on our Spring Break trip last week and am completely in love with it. It is sitting on my altar.

Photo by Jan Sikes

Citrine has so many amazing properties. I believe there is always a reason you are drawn to a particular stone and as I looked at it in-depth, I understood the reasons why. Ironically, my twelve-year-old grandson also bought Citrine at the same shop.

Citrine is one of the stones of abundance. It can teach us how to manifest and attracts wealth and prosperity, success, and all good things. It is a happy generous stone and encourages sharing what you have and yet helps you hold onto your wealth creating a beautiful balance.

Psychologically, Citrine raises self-esteem and self-confidence. It enhances individuality, improves motivation, activates creativity (Yay!), and encourages self-expression. It can make you less sensitive to criticism and encourages acting on constructive criticism.

Mentally, Citrine enhances concentration and revitalizes the mind. It promotes inner calm so that wisdom can emerge. It aids in digesting information, analyzing situations, and steering them in a positive direction. It can be a powerful tool in overcoming difficulty in verbalizing thoughts and feelings.

Emotionally, Citrine promotes joy in life. It helps you move into the flow of feelings and become more emotionally balanced.

Physically, Citrine imparts energy and invigoration to the physical body.

Amazing, isn’t it?

I have a bracelet with two small citrine stones on it but this is my first bigger piece. And I only paid $2.50 for it. What a bargain for so much magic!

#WednesdayWonders – #gemstones – #Aventurine

Published on by Jan Sikes37 Comments
Photo by Jan Sikes

One of the first stones I bought as I began collecting was an Aventurine. I bought it at a rock shop in Arkansas, drawn to the properties they had written on the small card attached to the bin.

When combined with Tiger’s Eye and Jade, it helps draw prosperity to you and hold it. But recently I found an Aventurine Merkaba and I just love it. I know the photo won’t do it justice, but here it is along with another small piece of the pretty light green stone.

Photo by Jan Sikes

I wanted to take a photo with the Merkaba on a mirror so you could see the multi-dimensional effect. So, what is a Merkaba?

The combination of two three-dimensional opposing triangles is called the Merkaba. It is considered Sacred Geometry and used widely in the metaphysical world.

To delve more deeply into this, it’s helpful to give an overview of sacred geometry in general. All of these symbols have some roots in ancient traditions or religions and are designs that are revered for different purposes. Each also has its own history and significance.

Overall, it can be said that these symbols focus on personal development, the achievement of enlightenment and well-being, and/or communication with higher forms of consciousness.

Combined with the properties of Aventurine, it is a powerful and beautiful little piece. This one is about one inch in diameter.

Green Aventurine is known as the “Stone of Opportunity,” thought to be the luckiest of all crystals, especially in manifesting prosperity and wealth, or for increasing favor in competitions or games of chance. Its winning energy makes it a great ally for boosting one’s chances in any situation – a first date, tax audit, even landing a promotion. One needs only to be near it to derive its benefits. This beautiful stone, however, is not merely an attractor of luck, but one that aligns conditions so “opportunity” is inevitable. Green Aventurine releases old patterns, habits, and disappointments so new growth can take place.

Aventurine is one of the stones that can be placed in water to create an elixir. It is also one of the stones that absorbs electromagnetic smog and guards against environmental pollution. Aventurine is ideal for soothing quick-tempers or brutal temperaments.

Have you heard of this stone, or do you have this one? Let me hear from you.

#WednesdayWonders – #gemstones #PinkTourmalineinQuartz

Published on by Jan Sikes46 Comments

Hi, everyone. I love sharing these gemstone posts with you so much and the piece I’m highlighting today is one of my favorites!

My piece of Pink Tourmaline in Quartz is about 3″ long and 2″ wide and is just absolutely gorgeous! I photographed both sides of the stone because each is equally beautiful.

Photo by Jan Sikes – Pink Tourmaline in Quartz

Pink Tourmaline encourages an influx of love, joy, and happiness to fill your life. It has a beautiful energy that vibrates within both the heart chakra and the higher heart chakra. The vibration of this lovely crystal will help to bring back your passion for living. This lovely pink crystal is high in lithium. This inclusion of lithium is known to help emotional and mood-related problems such as depression anxiety and stress.

Deposits of this color of Tourmaline have been found in Afghanistan, Africa, Brazil, and the United States, with some of the best stones coming from California.

Not only does the Pink Tourmaline promote emotional healing, but it also helps balance a dysfunctional endocrine system, treats the heart, lungs, and skin. Placed on the heart brings an immediate sense of relaxation and peace.

It carries a strong feminine or yin vibration and is known to kindle feelings of joy, hope, comfort, and support. Its vibration also encourages a more cheerful frame of mind and helps you to rise above feelings of misery and sorrow. When it is used in meditation it commonly makes a strong connection within the highest chakra in the body, located at the crown.

Mixed with the quartz, it is just an all-around beautiful stone and works exceptionally well when combined with Rhodocrosite, Rhodonite, and Rose Quartz.

Now, it’s your turn. Do you have this stone? If so, what do you think of it?

#WednesdayWonders – #BlackTourmaline

Published on by Jan Sikes31 Comments

This will be my last Wednesday Wonders post for 2021 and I wanted to share a super special stone with you that I spent several years searching out to find the right one. My piece is about 6″ long and maybe 3″ in diameter. Black Tourmaline is most known for its protective properties.

Black Tourmaline Photo by Jan Sikes 12-28-21
Black Tourmaline Photo by Jan Sikes 12-28-21

This is such a gorgeous piece with the tinges of gold and clusters of quartz crystals. Black Tourmaline, also known as Schorl, is a silicate mineral containing boron and a member of the Tourmaline family. It was first named in 1400 A.D. by a small village in Saxony, Germany after their village’s original name, Schorl.

Black Tourmaline protects against cell phones, electromagnetic smog, radiation, psychic attacks, spells, and ill-wishing negative energies of all kinds. When your root chakras are beautifully balanced and in check, this grants you that deep-seated self-confidence to embrace who you are, speak your truth, and set upon your own path to spiritual healing. And Black Tourmaline can pave the way.

It’s recommended to have Black Tourmaline on or around you while using electronics for extended periods of time. Most people don’t realize that our electronics weigh on us energetically more than we think. Black Tourmaline can assist in mitigating those effects.

There are many shades of Tourmaline, but none that hold the protective powers associated with Black Tourmaline. Formed where steamy waters and minerals move through pockets of the earth, this stone is deeply enriched with iron and manganese, both of which help grant Black Tourmaline the charging and magnetic properties that make it such a vital tool in your grounding box.

If you want to cleanse your aura, clear out worries, and fall into the wonderful bliss of a good night’s sleep, then take a piece of Black Tourmaline and place it beneath your pillow. Having it close will help its nature to soothe aches and pains that plague your sleep, meaning you will wake up refreshed and ready to face another day.

Because Black Tourmaline works like a sponge, soaking up all those negative energies whizzing around, it’s important to keep your stone emotionally cleansed on a regular basis.

Black Tourmaline has an appetite and while it will easily digest toxic vibes, you do want to keep it purified to stop its potent powers from getting blocked. You can opt to smudge the stone to clear away the bad juju.

Another way of ensuring your Black Tourmaline piece is clear is by soaking it. Simply place it in a bowl of bright and clear spring water and let it soak for 24 hours to ensure that every ripple of doubt has flowed away.

What do you think? Do you have a piece of Black Tourmaline?

#WednesdayWonders – #Gemstones – #Seraphinite #Celestite

Published on by Jan Sikes37 Comments

The two stones I want to feature today are appropriate for the beautiful Christmas season, as they are both referred to as Angel Stones.

Seraphinite Photo taken by Jan Sikes 12-21-21

Seraphinite was named after Seraphim, the highest order of angels, due to the feather-like appearance of the chatoyant fibers in the stone.  Seraphinite is also known as Serafina.

It is associated with the heart chakra and is a gorgeous mixture of shades of green with bluish tints. It is a stone of spiritual enlightenment and is excellent for accessing self-healing. It is one of the crystals that assist in making an angelic connection and opening the crown chakra. This stone promotes living from the heart, and has a gently cleansing effect on the heart chakra, opening to love. Its feathery wings whisk you up to a higher spiritual vibration and is excellent for making journeys outside the body, protecting the physical body while you are gone. The physical healing aspects of this stone are related to the spinal column, especially behind the heart, and can release muscle tension up into the neck. It is also useful in overcoming chills and promoting weight loss.

Celestite stone photo taken by Jan Sikes 12-21-21

Coming from the Latin word Caelestis which means Celestial, it’s no surprise to hear that this shimmering crystal is soaked in rich mystical properties. Celestite is all about inner peace, quiet space, and elevating the spirit. It’s a stone that whispers of deep connection with other realms. With its ethereal energy and distinct heavenly hues, Celestite is one of the loveliest sky-blue gemstones in the world. My photo does not do it justice. Serving as an intuitive guide for those who are ever ready to embrace the new age, Celestite is radiant with spiritual healing and can help you on the path to peace. 

If Celestite was a song it’s sure to be a choir of angels singing. One glance at its hazy blue glimmer and you can’t help but feel as though you have been lifted to a higher plane of being. Celestite does a great job when it comes to chakra cleansing and grounding. This stone is like popping a chill pill, it instantly mellows the mind and douses hot heads.

This gentle and gorgeous stone is known more for its spiritual powers, but as the physical and celestial body are connected, there is certainly some knock-on effect. Celestite can help the body flush out toxins and is particularly useful in helping the body heal from stress-related disorders. Whether digestion issues or acne breakouts, Celestites touch is like an organic balm to the body. 

I hope you’ve enjoyed this look at the two Angel stones. This is my last post until after Christmas. I will be spending time with my daughters and grandchildren.

I wish each of you a joyous Christmas holiday!

#WednesdayWonders – Amazonite #Gemstones

Published on by Jan Sikes44 Comments

Welcome back to another gemstone post!

Today, I want to share with you a common gemstone that packs quite a powerful punch. Amazonite is a feel-better stone.

Photo by Jan Sikes 12-13-21

These are just a few Amazonite pieces I have scattered throughout the house. My favorite is the gorgeous bracelets that I wear often.

Amazonite has always been prized for its beauty and healing power. This pale green mineral rock is believed to date back as far as the 10th century BC.

Amazonite stones are also thought to have tremendous healing abilities. Similar to jade, amazonite is associated with money, luck, and overall success. It’s known as the “gambler’s stone,” encouraging good luck and fortune, especially when combined with Tiger’s Eye.

Amazonite is said to have a soothing effect on the nervous system. Since the nervous system controls our emotions a great deal, this stone is said to soothe tense and aggravated situations and to enhance love, especially when combined with Rose Quartz.

Since this stone is associated with the throat and heart, it is best when worn as a necklace near these areas. Amazonite is said to bestow truth, honor, and integrity to its wearer.

Amazonite is used to treat fatigue, trauma, or anything else that may take energy away from a person. Amazonite is said to help with thyroid gland issues and also aids in treating alcoholism. It has a gentle healing quality that is useful to nearly everyone in a general manner.

I’d love to hear from you. Do you have this gorgeous stone?

#WednesdayWonders – #Gemstones – #Malachite

Published on by Jan Sikes40 Comments

Welcome to another stroll through the amazing world of gemstones!

Photo by Jan Sikes

I only have a very small piece of the gemstone I am going to share with you today, but my sister, Linda Broday, sent me photos of her beautiful Malachite heart to show more of this stone’s beauty. Thank you, sister!

The first photo is my little piece and it is approximately 3/4″.

Photo by Jan Sikes 11-16-21

The next photo is my sister’s Malachite heart.

  • Photo by Linda Broday

Malachite is an important protection stone. It absorbs negative energies and pollutants, picking them up from the atmosphere and from the body.

It can help guard against radiation and clear electromagnetic pollution (like the Sodalite we looked at last week).  It is recommended that anyone who lives near a nuclear power plant, have this stone in their home.

Malachite clears and activates the chakras, especially the heart chakra and third eye. It is a powerful tool to assist with spiritual guidance. It opens the heart to unconditional love, encourages risk-taking and change, breaks unwanted ties and outworn patterns, and teaches how to take responsibility for one’s actions, thoughts, and feelings.  Malachite releases inhibitions and develops empathy with others. It alleviates mental disturbances and combats dyslexia. 

It can aid in enabling you to absorb and process information. It can also stimulate dreams.

Physically, Malachite is an extremely versatile healing stone. It is particularly useful for menstrual cramps and has been called the midwife stone as it aids in childbirth. It resonates with the female sexual organs. This stone can help lower blood pressure, treat asthma, epilepsy, swollen joints, travel sickness, vertigo and the parathyroid. It aligns DNA and cellular structure to enhance the immune system.

It is recommended that you wear Malachite on your left hand, if a ring and left wrist, if a bracelet. You may place it on your solar plexus to absorb deep negative emotions.

Use ONLY polished Malachite. If used as an elixir, place the stone near, but not in the water.

I’d love to hear from you. Do you have a piece of Malachite? If so, how do you use it?

#WednesdayWonders – #Gemstones #Sodalite

Published on by Jan Sikes38 Comments

Welcome to another stroll through the world of Gemstones!

Today’s spotlight is on a beautiful blue stone, Sodalite.

Photo by Jan Sikes 11-7-21

I absolutely love this stone and have the three shown above. I keep one by my bedside and often will slip one under my pillow. I also keep one next to my computer.

Sodalite was first discovered by Europeans in 1811 in Greenland but has been traced as far back as 2000 B.C. near Lima where it was used for trade among the Caral people.

It is associated with the throat chakra and brings order and calmness to the mind. It unites logic with intuition and opens spiritual perception, allowing for downloads from the higher mind to the physical level. It stimulates the pineal gland and third eye which deepens meditation. Sodalite clears electromagnetic pollution which is why I keep one next to my computer.

This stone is particularly helpful with group work, as it brings harmony and solidarity of purpose. It can help bring about emotional balance and ward off panic attacks.

On a physical level, Sodalite balances the metabolism, overcomes calcium deficiencies and cleanses the lymphatic system and organs which boosts the immune system.

It’s easy to find different jewelry pieces made from Sodalite and it is an inexpensive stone. It is not recommended that Sodalite be used to make an elixir as it contains traces of aluminum and is potentially toxic if taken internally.

Sodalite is often confused with or sold as Lapis Lazuli. But there are several distinct differences and qualities between the two, including the price. It’s always best to buy from a reputable dealer.

Do you have any Sodalite? If so, how do you use it? I’d love to know.

#WednesdayWonders – #Gemstones #Moldavite

Published on by Jan Sikes53 Comments

Welcome to another stroll through the fascinating world of gemstones and their fabulous properties!

Today, I’d like to introduce a specimen that I’ve had for many years and just love it (of course, I love all of my rocks.) 🙂

There are many theories about how and when Moldavite was created, but the most likely theory is it formed from the heat from an asteroid impact around 15 million years ago. After this event, the hot glass was sent flying across Europe where it is mined today. 

It is a dark green color and parts of it are translucent. Moldavite is a good stone that is used for those who want to magnify the vibrations of their other types of crystals.

It is good for protection, healing, and cleansing. It is also believed to help awaken the Chakras and prevent negativity.

Moldavite possesses powerful metaphysical properties and if you gaze into a more translucent piece of the gemstone while you’re meditating you will find that it is far simpler to connect with the higher powers in the universe and in your higher self.

It is believed that moldavite has the ability to enable you to surpass linear time. For that reason, many individuals find the stone useful when they would like to engage in a past life or explore the path that their soul is taking in any direction of time. Healers use moldavite to assist with removing emotions and clear the aura of any undesirable baggage from a past life.

Finally, moldavite is believed to raise a sense of self-awareness and assist people who are looking to uncover emotions or feelings which keep them stuck in unhappy situations in the present. Those people will be able to uncover those things that are trapping them in an unhappy present and move forward.

It is good for the crown, third eye, and heart chakras.

When someone picks up a moldavite crystal, the most common reaction – which most people feel first – is a tingling in their hand, which then spreads out into the body. Frequently, the reaction is then felt in the chest, in the vicinity of the heart chakra, and then your face as an intense heat flush. 

I have a small piece of Moldavite in a bottle of essential oils and use a tiny dab often.

What do you think? Is this a stone that you own? When I bought mine many years ago, I paid around $30 for it and that, to me, is expensive. I have no idea what they sell for nowadays.