New Stones and Grid

I bought a few stones while we were on vacation, and I was also gifted a few. I saw lots of really neat ones, but I'm happy with what I restricted myself to.

These are the two I bought, actually from the rock shop in Wall Drugstore. Above is an opalized Ammonite fossil, and below is a piece of South Dakota Bubblegum Agate. The Ammonite was a little expensive, but I've never had any Opal before, so I was okay with that.

These two were gifted to me by a cousin of my mom's, who is an avid crystal collector. The top one is a chunk of rough Aventurine, and the bottom is a chunk of rough Snowflake Obsidian.

Then somewhat out of the blue, I got a message from a friend of mine (whose name and pseudonym I will leave out of this particular story) who was having some trouble with a malevolent entity in her household. I was out of the house at the time, but when I got back, I put together this crystal grid to help deal with the issue.

The crystals are all situated on a circular rug which gives the grid a clear boundary. In the center, my Generator Quartz is sitting on its box to tie together the energies of the other stones and send them out. Around it is a blue circle my friend crocheted a while back to act as a taglock, and then I have two more Quartz points facing the Generator for extra power. On either side are some olive leaves to bring in the power of Athena, and I also added the bird skull I found at Mabon because I felt drawn to include it.

In a ring around that, I alternated Tiger's Eye (and a Fluorite, because I only had three Tiger's Eye) with Smoky Quartz, Ametrine (I couldn't find my Citrine last night, although it has since turned up), Red Jasper, and Rose Quartz, and in the final outer ring are all the protective stones: Snowflake Obsidian, Black Tourmaline, Obsidian, Onyx, Apache Tear, and enough Tektites to bring the total stone count in that ring up to 12.

I was really happy with how it came out, and it seemed to do its job, which was to send protection and energy to my friend, who was really drained by the whole ordeal. 

Today, things have gotten largely back on track, so I took it down as it was a little obvious in the middle of my floor. I cleansed each of the stones before I put them away; I don't know that they would have picked up a lot of negativity all the way over here, but it seemed like a good practice, anyway.

July 23rd, 2015

Oh my goodness, the crystals I ordered arrived today, and I am in love!

Rebekka's products always come very well-packaged, as you can see. The items also come with labels, so there's no confusion about what is what.

This was one of her $10 "Mystery Boxes" (contents reflected by the price), and it's like Yuletide in July! For starters, she threw in a little white tea light, which are always useful to have around for spells and rituals, and then there were the crystals themselves.

Here, a glittering chunk of Black Tourmaline.

Next, seven lovely Amethyst points - maybe now I can look into some crystal grids for dealing with anxiety!

Then, two Selenite wands - I might use one of these next Esbat!

And finally, the pièce de résistance: a palm-sized chunk of Blue Calcite. This is my new baby. It's so beautiful, and the vibration it exudes is astonishing. Expect a post regarding its properties soon. In the meantime, see the following posts on Black Tourmaline, Amethyst, and Selenite for further information.

Please do consider supporting Rebekka's business. Her store can be found here on Etsy, and truly is a quality establishment. I don't believe she has any additional mystery boxes on sale at the moment, but she always has stunning handmade crystal jewelry at very reasonable prices. I know I plan to be buying from her again!

EDIT: Rebekka's store has moved - she now has her own website! Check out her work here.

An Update

First - an update on those activities which I mentioned in my last post! I did indeed end up doing a crystal spread and meditation. I went with chakra- themed stones, because I was feeling off energetically, and so laid the following crystals over the appropriate energy centers: Black Tourmaline for the Root chakra, Red Jasper for the Sacral chakra, Tiger's Eye for the Solar Plexus chakra, Green Calcite for the Heart chakra, Turquoise for the Throat chakra, Lepidolite for the Third Eye chakra, and Clear Quartz for the Crown chakra. I did this while laying down on my carpet, with a blanket thrown over my legs because it was chilly. There was a bit of stiffness in my lower back, but as I began the meditation, this relaxed and dissipated.

Afterwards, I walked over to the campus lake and rented a kayak. I spent about an hour paddling around, enjoying the weather and the wildlife.

There were a ton of ducks, and the turtles were also out in force, basking in the sunlight. By the time I was through, I'd counted eleven, including one itty bitty softshell turtle that was barely an inch and a half long. Moreover, there were many frogs sitting in the shallows, and I spotted a school of minnows darting just under the surface. All things told, it was a lovely way to spend the afternoon.
That evening, I had had plans to go to a meditation class at the Gaia Center, but when I got there, it looked like the class was in a different location.

I ended up just wandering around town a bit, and besides finding a little Chinese shop which sold delicious bubble tea, I also stumbled upon the Gaia Center's labyrinth, which is painted on an abandoned piece of concrete.

There's also a lot of pretty trees surrounding it, and a little waterfall.
Monday night was Esbat, and also represented my first official ritual since moving onto campus. I had located a really pretty area behind the dining hall near a creek where there was a grove of trees and several stumps. Since it was out of the way, I thought I might use it for my ritual. I don't usually get to do rituals outside, as doing so in our backyard would be more than a trifle obvious, and this seemed like the perfect place to get away from prying eyes.

I grabbed my travel altar and set up camp on one of the flatter stumps. The ritual went really well, I think, albeit a bit short, and even though I was in a pretty secluded area, there were still a few people who walked by. I'll probably do my Mabon ritual there, though, and see how it goes. Because it was a so-called "Supermoon", the moon rise was just beautiful. It was butter-yellow, and huge in the sky as it peeked up over the trees.

My cameraphone cannot begin to do the phenomenon justice, but for the record, that yellow blob in the middle of the picture is the moon (the one on the left is a street lamp).

July 13th, 2014

Black Tourmaline (aka Schorl)

Physical Characteristics: This is the only common mineral to form three-sided prisms, and the stone Tourmaline can be found in every color of the rainbow, different colors having different properties. Black Tourmaline gets its color by being rich in iron; pieces may exhibit reddish spots if the iron has been exposed to water.

In Nature: Tourmaline is a crystal Boron silicate found in Granite and metamorphic rocks. Heating or rubbing this stone causes it to develop slight electromagnetism, while Japanese research shows that even the smallest specimens always hold a constant electric charge of about 0.06 mA.

Chemical Composition: (Ca, K, Na) (Al, Fe, Li, g, Mn)3 (Al, Cr, Fe, V)6 (BO3)3 (Si, Al, B)6 O18 (OH, F)4

 Mohs Scale Hardness: 7 - 7.5 (middle-high)

Can be Found: Primarily Brazil, Africa, and the USA

Healing Properties*: Because it is such a powerful conductor of energy, Black Tourmaline is an excellent healing stone. Tourmaline wands are most often used for this purpose, but even chunks of the stone will do in a pinch. It soothes panic attacks, cures motion sickness, and reduces fear of the dark and/or confined spaces. If lustre of the hair and nails is a problem, one might consider using Black Tourmaline to repair keratin damage. The stone works with conditions of the lower back, legs, and feet, realigns the spinal column, and relieves pain caused by muscle strain, arthritis, and scar tissue.

Magickal Properties: Black Tourmaline is a scrying stone, but it is most famous for its protective qualities, of which it spans the full spectrum. It wards off negativity caused by people acting as emotional drains, shields against environmental pollution and electromagnetic smog, and purifies the mind and body of even the most severe negativity, including substance abuse and suicidal thoughts. Besides being protective, it is a stone firmly rooted in Earth energy which makes it an ideal grounding stone for meditation and healing.

Chakra Association: First (Root) chakra

Element: Earth

Energy: Projective

Planetary Association: Saturn

*Magickal healing should never take the place of seeing a doctor and following any recommended prescriptions, actions, or other advice. Magick works best in tandem with physical efforts, anyway, so don't skimp on those check-ups!