My interest in making gemstone bead bracelets did not emerge overnight. It’s been over two years since I first started reading about these stones. It was a very different interest from all the other craft stuff I was already doing…sewing, fabric crafts, hand and body products with essential oils, cooking and baking recipes and gardening and preserving food each summer. When I first started reading about the gemstones, I wasn’t even thinking about bracelets!
I think it all started with an advertisement from Sedona Crystal Vortex, a rock shop in Sedona (https://sedonacrystalvortex.com/). We had visited Sedona several years before and enjoyed the shops near our hotel. I seemed to be on their mailing list! One of the ads showed a little bag of stones that could be kept in my pocket. It said if I carried them in my pocket and handled them frequently throughout the day, they would help me lose weight. Riiiight! I was intrigued so I ordered them. There were 5 little stone chips in a tiny mesh bag tied tight. I started learning about those particular stones and carried them in my pocket for quite a while. Nothing magic, but every time I put my hand in my pocket, I noticed them and remembered the reason they were there. This ‘intention’ kept my focus on why I should pay attention to what I was eating. The picture below shows three of those stones that are now in my collection. I’m not sure what the other stones were, but it doesn’t matter. Three seemed to be the number of items I could focus on.
Over the next few months, I built the beginning of my stone collection. They were pretty and I enjoyed reading about their histories and how they were used in the past. I was so afraid I would mix them up I tried to make sure I labeled each one and put them into little drawers with the information cards about each stone.
This led to a set of drawers:
I learned about each stone and usually carried two or three in my pocket every day. Luckily, I was wearing cargo pants with deep pockets so none of the stones got lost!
I also found quite a few books at Barnes & Noble bookstore about crystals and stones. Here are a few I still have on my shelf:
Finally, finding ‘The Book of Stones‘ by Robert Simmons and Naisha Ahsian was a turning point for me. Besides color pictures of the stones, each description includes where and when it was discovered, where it currently comes from, its color and hardness number and many more details that I was not interested in when I first started reading about the stones That first year, I was reading about the stones, ordering more small samples and carrying them in my pocket. Crazy, I know!
On Etsy, I discovered a seller that made bracelets with 4mm beads, all the same stone… I ended up buying quite a few. It was a much easier way to take the beads with me, rather than a pocket of stones! However, many of the stones I wanted weren’t available as bracelets and the bracelets didn’t fit well, so they stayed in the drawers!
Then, the cultural shift of millions of folks following Taylor Swift around the world and instantly, beaded bracelets were all the rage! I thought how fun…a new craft! These friendship bracelets used plastic beads, often with letters to build messages. I tried a few, even some with PSU letters and blue and white beads…because I’m here in Penn State country! I had to buy letter packs of the whole alphabet! I could make about four bracelets with P S U and then I ran out of letters!
I tried making 5 bracelets with the words in a favorite poem but then I didn’t know what to do with them! Nobody cared about the poem except me!
Then I tried bracelets with a person’s name spelled out in Morse Code! At least then I could use some of the beads that I was learning about. That was fun, but once I’d given one to everyone I knew, I still wanted to know more about the stones.
At this point, my interest in the stone beads led me to make bracelets that would address a specific issue…like joy or courage. The first bracelet was my weight loss bracelet, using the same stone beads as the stones I carried in my pocket!
One of the most recent bracelets I’ve made had quite a few different beads, all to support motivation, energy, self-confidence and self-discipline. I made it just for me for days when I needed a kick to get me moving! It turns out several other people were interested in it also.
So, that’s how this all started! But…I have learned a lot…about how these stones were used in history, how they are still used in alternative health situations and how my creative mind can enjoy making these bracelets. My disclaimer with each bracelet reminds folks:
About Your Gemstone Bracelet
Each of the beads in your bracelet have meaning and together support each other for your well-being. They are described in the insert with your bracelet. You can wear the bracelet or carry it in your pocket. Each time you see it or handle it remember its intention as described on the tag, such as bringing you joy or lowering your stress level. Reminder: This bracelet is not a medical device. Its purpose is to help you focus and send positive energy to your mind and body. I have made your bracelet with love and the best of intentions for your well-being. Mary Kisner
I’ll try to not bore you with too many details about my bracelets. I do still cook, bake, garden, preserve food, sew, make soap, read fiction and now make bracelets! I’d love to hear from you, but remember to email me directly because too many spammers have drowned my website with junk!! I also post a link on my Facebook page to these articles, so you can comment there. Thanks! maryjkisner@gmail.com
Clear Quartz, Amethyst, Blue Aventurine, Blue Apatite