MOONSTONE (gemstone knowledge post 1)

Happy Saturday beautiful souls ! I am excited to be writing my first gemstone information post. I am going to keep this short and sweet. There are a lot of fake gemstone dealings going on in the bead market. It does bother me - although these beads may be pretty they do not have the metaphysical qualities that the real gems have- and to me that matters ! They are also selling them as the real things - that is lying. I am starting with MOONSTONE - this is one of my favorite gems, not only does it look magical but it has a really special energy. The following paragraphs are from my most favorite metaphysical knowlege webiste ( crystalvaults.com).

<<As ancient as the moon itself, Moonstone holds the power of mystery. Its secrets are locked beneath a pearly veil, and with them, our own hidden truths. Only within its reflected light can we begin to understand what it has to teach us. Moonstone is foremost a talisman of the inward journey, taking one deep into the self to retrieve what is missing, the parts of the soul left behind or forgotten, then brought to light. [Simmons, 267]

Since earliest times, Moonstone has been a tangible connection to the magic of the moon - an amulet of protection for travelers, a gift of lovers for passion, a channel for prophecy, and a path to wisdom. Our ties to the moon are strong. As it waxes and wanes in cyclic perfection, it creates the tides and rhythms of our mother, Earth, and influences our behaviors, emotions and spiritual growth. Moonstone calms and encourages, teaching us the natural rhythms of life.>>

Moonstone is a very powerful crystal for women in particular- it helps to heal the reproductive organs. I get many inquiries for custom orders using moonstone from women who are having trouble conceiving, I would be doing them a great disservice if I was making their jewelry with fake moonstone. Moonstone does grow naturall in a few colors ( white, gray, peach) Some are more opalescent, the white or rainbow moonstone is the most saught after. I am going to focus on the white/rainbow because that is what is most commonly labled wrong. I took some photos of my own personal moonstone raw speciemens, faceted high quality gems as well as some middle grade white moonstone. Also pictured on the right in my photographs is OPALITE - this is what is most commonly sold as moonstone to people who do not know the difference. Opalite is shiny and has a really neat mood ring like look to it. I do love how it looks and occasionaly use it ( labled correctly of course ) , but guess what? Opalite is GLASS...it is not moonstone, so it SHOULD NOT be sold as moonstone. I also have attached two photos that I have taken from Ebay - one is of faceted opalite the is labled all over the entire website as moonstone and the second is a newer style of beads they are producing in China and selling as moonstone - I have personally handled this stuff and it is also GLASS, many sellers are labling it as AAA rainbow moonstone and selling it for top dollar, in the picture you can see that the beads have SEAMS!!! Gems do not have seams.. do not be fooled by what the listing claims - gemstones are not regulated on Ebay. My number one tip for being able to tell if moonstone is natural and you will be able to see this just from these photos - if moonstone is natural the magical rainbows come from the INSIDE, not the outside like these coated beads that are being incorrectly labled. Ebay does offer seller protection so if you have been sold fake moonstone you should be able to get your money back ! I hope ya'll enjoyed this post & look forward to writing another in the next few weeks. Healing gemstones are my passion and the aim of this post was to help educate other jewelers and collectors so they are not wasting their hard earned money. Much Love, Mal