Don’t Be Fooled By the Rocks that I Got!…More Crystal Fakes

Ahhh, I get some sort of wacko geo-geek-high from writing these particular blog posts on “fake crystals” in my Fakes Series! Thanks for letting me indulge myself once again. You can catch my previous posts in this series here:

I chose today’s featured fakes b/c these seem to be showing up quite often at the gem shows & in my student forums or in our various Hibiscus Moon Private Facebook Groups. I feel it’s most definitely my duty to keep our community informed on this schist.

Now, if you choose to work with man-made crystals that’s totally fine. No judgements from me on that. I, personally, choose not to.

But, I do think its very important that you know what you’re getting & that you not be fooled & that you KNOW geologically exactly what you’re working with.

BTW, sometimes sellers aren’t looking to purposefully fool anyone…sometimes they themselves have no idea.

So let’s get to it!

Charoite

fake crystals High grade authentic charoite from Russia on the … Read More

2022-12-22T15:22:07-05:0036 Comments

How to Grow Your Own Crystal Geodes ~ Step by Step

When I posted a photo on my FB page of 1 of my recent crystal growing specimens, I got a ton of questions asking how, how, how?

So, if you’re one of those who always wanted to know how to grow your own crystals, this is the blog post for you!

You know I love my crystals for their healing props but I feel it’s really important to also get to know them in a different way; to learn how & why they grow, how Mama Earth cooks them up in her kitchen. This FUN activity gives us a little insight into that process. And you end up with some drop-dead gorgeous crystals in the end!

Plus this gives me a good excuse to geek out all the way!!

I know from many years in my old science classroom days that kids, teenagers (& adults!) really enjoy seeing the crystallization MAGIC at work! So, pretty sure you’re gonna eat this up with a spoon!

grow your own crystals

So first…

What’s a geode?

Basically, geodes are round rocks that have … Read More

2019-05-31T15:11:58-04:0013 Comments

Is Crystal Collecting Ethical?

Working in the crystal biz, I’ve been presented with ethics related questions regarding crystals & being a both a student & teacher of geology, I’ve had the opportunity to ask & explore the topic deeply.

I take this very seriously so this will be more of a serious & passionate post, Sweet Pea.

For years I’ve found myself having to defend mineral collecting against environmental activists (of which I consider myself to be one)…some of whom claim that crystal & mineral collecting is causing major destruction to our planet while also related to slavery + poor living conditions .

I think there may be some  confusion between mineral & crystal collecting VS. mining for precious gems (diamonds, rubies, emeralds)  & industrial ore (coal, aluminum, tin, etc). That stuff is not what I’m speaking of when we speak of mineral & crystal collecting AKA “specimen mining”.

SIDE NOTE: We all know about Blood or Conflict Diamonds, but you do not have to add to the turmoil. you can choose to purchase Ethical Diamonds. Here’s a great article on how to go about doing that.

In my extensive research I’ve found that specimen mining usually has little or no DIRECT … Read More

2019-09-26T23:32:36-04:0050 Comments
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