Beautiful Amethyst Geode Churches & Cathedrals

 Browse our Etsy shop for a great selection of amethyst geodes in churches & cathedrals!  These beauties are great for a desk, table, or on the floor.  A great display for your or office!

Amethyst is a violet variety of quartz, a silicon dioxide mineral. Gem quality amethyst is a relatively inexpensive gemstone often used in jewelry. Amethyst mineral specimens, geodes and large cathedrals are highly sought after and prized by collectors. Amethyst occurs in a wide range of colors; but is most known for its range of purple shades from pale lilac to deep black purple.


Purple Amethyst has been highly esteemed throughout the ages for its stunning beauty and legendary powers to stimulate, and soothe, the mind and emotions. It is a semi-precious stone in today’s classifications, but to the ancients it was a “Gem of Fire,” a Precious Stone worth, at times in history, as much as a Diamond. It has always been associated with February, the month the Romans dedicated to Neptune, their water-god, and is the traditional birthstone of that month. It is the stone of St. Valentine and faithful love, and signifies ecclesiastical dignity as the Bishop’s Stone. It carries the energy of fire and passion, creativity and spirituality, yet bears the logic of temperance and sobriety.


Amethyst is also a crystal of protection, selflessness, nobleness, spiritual consciousness, meditativeness, balance and inner peace. One very important feature of Amethyst is to serve as a stone of transfiguration and transformation, bringing harmony and peace wherever needed.

Amethyst From Uruguay

Here's a sneak peek at some of the most amazing amethyst from Uruguay.  For these and many others, visit our Facebook page and shop our online store!

Unique Amethyst Crystal Healing

Spirit Quartz is also sometimes referred to as Fairy Quartz or Cactus Quartz, and originates from Africa. When it was discovered by the local tribes in Mphumalanga, South Africa, it was hailed immediately for its beauty and distinct and powerful energy. The tribes named it Spirit Quartz because the milky lilac color of the stone was similar to that of mentholated spirits, an alcohol based cleaning agent that is widely used in that area. Some of the stones are a pure white with clear spots, others have inclusions of amethyst in their bodies and take on purple shades that can range in very light color that blend heavily with the clear and white of the quartz to being so dark that the pieces look as those they are mainly amethyst. Typically Spirit Quarts are found in points, wands and clusters and looks similar to Druzy Quartz because of the sparkly, bumpy surface of the stone. Once you see a Spirit Quartz you know there is no mistaking it from any other stone and it becomes a very distinguishable piece in any collection. Spirit Quartz is not terribly hard to come by but can be pricey depending on the piece itself. Currently it is only mined from one location in the world, Magaliesberg, South Africa.
 

Spirit Quartz is a stone that is used heavily in meditation and can help to provide insights into problems with friends, family and loved ones when used in meditation. Spirit Quartz has been used in group healing since it was first found and first used by the tribal healers in Africa. The stone promotes cohesiveness and a willingness to work together so it can be placed in the center of a group who may be working together to deal with difficulties or work out problems, especially one that are related to spiritual and emotional healing. It can be placed in a central place in the home if there are tensions among family members to help bring ease and a willingness to work together. This gives the stone an overall feeling of being a stone of togetherness and harmony and be used effectively for any of those issues.
Spirit Quartz can also be used for dream work, specifically lucid dreaming, as well as for astral projection, and can stimulate physical healing in areas of the body that might be out of harmony with the body as a whole. One way that Spirit Quartz can be used in healing is an amplifier for other stones used in chakra cleansing or balancing. Placing stones on the chakras to balance and align them is a common healing practice, but by including the Spirit Quartz, either at the crown chakra or directly next to another stone on a particularly difficult chakra point, you will find that the areas open up and balance quickly.

Spirit Quartz can work with any other crystal or stone and is a great piece to have as a point in your crystal tool kit as it can help to amplify other stones, can be used to help direct energy in healing work, and can also balance and cleanse other stones when they are placed in Spirit Quartz clusters or on top of flat Spirit Quartz points.
 
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References: crystal vaults & raven crystals

Natural Colored Amethyst Drusy

It is a rare and unique occurrence with Amethyst, but it does happen and when it does there is no other beauty like it. I am talking about the most spectacular all naturally colored amethyst drusy. 
 
The color spectrum ranges from light rose, pink, purple, pale gray, cream, and blue to medium rust, yellow, orchid, and pink to deep green, brown and dark purple colors and everything in between. 

There are 'bubble' and cactus formations, drusy and larger crystals.  All have been left in their 'earth' form, untouched, with just a few having the outter rim polished and the outside is all smooth.



It all starts in a premier mine in Uruguay, where some of the world's most sought after, highest quality amethyst comes from. 

  

 
Among the deep dark purple amethyst is a natural color in different shades; this is caused by the reflection of the jasper beneath the quartz crystal and the result is some of the unique, breathtaking drusy colors of amethyst you will ever see.

Visit our store, TimelessDesigns online at Ruby Lane to browse and shop our selection of the finest naturally colored drusy amethyst. There you will find mounted pendants (wire wrapped pendant to be released in the Fall, 2012), jewelry sets and collector specimens. 


Later this fall we will have amazing amethyst drusy geode jewelry boxes, more pendants & jewelry sets and larger collector specimens!

Citrine Amethyst Agate

Historically, the name citrine is derived from the Latin word citrus, meaning “lemon”. Until the Middle Ages this name was used to designate a wide range of yellow stones. Citrine has been highly regarded as gemstone and healing stone for almost six thousand years. The soldiers in Caesar’s legions wore citrine on their chest because the stone was believed to have life-saving properties in battle. As befits its color, it is recognized as the stone of light, sun, and life.

Citrine is yellow to brownish quartz and resembles yellow topaz. It is colored by hydrous iron oxide, and is found in the same hexagonal crystals as the other varieties of crystalline quartz. Natural citrine is much less common than amethyst or smoky quartz, both of which can be heat treated to turn their color into that of citrine. Most citrine that is available is in face heat-treated amethyst, although heat-treated smoky quartz comes from some locations.

Citrine occurs principally in localities that produce amethyst, and it is sometimes found as a zone of citrine in amethyst, when it is known as ametrine. Gem-quality citrine is found on the Isle of Arran, Scotland, the Ural Mountains of Russia, India, France, Brazil, Spain, and North Carolina.

Citrine is believed to have healing and traditional properties of Intuition, comfort, protection, creativity, physical energy, wealth, mental awakening. The purer and more intense the color, the greater the stone’s healing properties. It is linked to the star sun of Gemini and Virgo.

In this new design, I’ve mixed both Citrine and Amethyst together, highlighted by a smoky purple Brazilian Agate slice.


This and many other designs in natural stones browse and shop our website.




*Research from various mineral/rock/crystal books and websites.

Gemstone of Virtue

Leonardo Da Vinci said, “Amethyst dissipates evil thoughts and quickens the intelligence.” The mystery around Amethyst; it is a variety of vitreous Quartz with purple, violet, or red-purple coloration, Amethyst derives its name from the ancient Greek ‘amethustols’, meaning literally ‘not drunk’. Traditionally associated with purity and piety, amethyst has also always been favored by royalty as purple is considered a regal hue.

Ancient Greeks believed that drinking wine from a cup of Amethyst would make them immune to intoxication. This belief is founded upon the origin of Amethyst as described in Greek mythology. According to ancient myth, amethyst was created by Dionysus, god of fruitfulness and wine. Angered by the purity of a young woman named Amethyst, who preferred to pay homage to the goddess Diana, he ordered two voracious tigers to devour her. Diana came to her rescue, transforming Amethyst into white Quartz. Overcome by remorse, Dionysus shed tears into his goblet of red wine. Some of the wine spilled, running onto the white stone, which absorbed its color, creating the stone Amethyst.

It can be found in most countries where granitic rocks are exposed, amethyst occurs in alluvial deposits and geodes. Its coloration is principally due to traces of iron, and it is sometimes color-zoned due to twinning or preferential absorption on the rhombohedral faces. Major commercial sources of amethyst are Brazil, where it occurs in geodes that are frequently human-sized; but it is also found in Uruguay, Siberia, and North America.

Amethyst traditional properties: Contentment, spirituality, dreams, healing, peace, happiness, love, intuition.

Raw Amethyst cluster is provided by Panther Creek Minerals, San Antonio, Texas. It has been free form wire wrapped in non-tarnish Silver wire.

See more natural gemstone beauties mixed with wire work at Timeless Designs.


*Information re-printed from various rock, mineral and gemstone books.

Turquoise & Amethyst

Turquoise is extremely popular and many pieces are gone before I know it. Many times people miss out on the Turquoise pieces that I make and because they are not mass or reproduced, it’s often hard to be the ‘first’ to get the jewelry piece you want. I came to know a really great lady in Alabama and she loves Turquoise and Silver, with her favorite color being purple. Since missing several favorite Turquoise pieces, I offered to make a custom Turquoise and Silver piece just for her; mixing in her favorite color. While I have never put these two colors combinations together, I have seen them done before in spectacular jewelry pieces and I was up for the new adventure!

Enter the creation of Turquoise, Amethyst and Silver necklace set! This piece is made from Terconite Turquoise in medium pillow gemstone beads and accented with pewter filigree end-caps. The Turquoise has a very nice blue color and excellent brown/black matrix that gives it character. In-between I mixed Amethyst chips in 2-strands and added the same stones in dangle earrings. The necklace is 19.5” and the earrings dangle about 1”; making a very nice comfortable piece for that dressy or casual event!

The traditional properties for this piece are very interesting too…….
Amethyst: Contentment, spirituality, dreams, healing, peace, happiness, love, intuition.
Turquoise: Spiritual attunement, cleansing, healing, protection, valor, soothing, peace of mind, guidance through the unknown, romantic spontaneity.