This beautiful ocean jasper is hanging out with some iolite to be used in a Mala. I hope I can make my very first Mala with it eventually. Isn’t it beautiful?!? 🤩 💎

Time to dig out the crystals for tonight's show. Is anyone interested in seeing Cabochons for tonight's Crystal Show & Tell? (Flat backed, polished stones for jewelry or mosaic-making?) Or what would you prefer?

@Suzanne Boben I finally got around to looking at this: Ocean Jasper is mined in a pretty unique way compared to most stones, mostly because of where it forms. Most Ocean Jasper comes from the northwest coast of Madagascar, especially near the Ambolobozo Peninsula. It forms in rhyolite (volcanic rock) as orbicular (circular-patterned) jasper deposits. How it’s mined 1. Access depends on the tide - The deposits are often along coastal cliffs or right at the shoreline and many areas are only reachable at low tide - Miners sometimes use boats to reach otherwise inaccessible spots 2. Manual extraction - No big industrial mining here - workers use hand tools, chisels, hammers to carefully break into the host rock to reach the jasper pockets 3. Following pockets and veins - Ocean Jasper forms in pockets or nodules, not large continuous seams. Miners follow these pockets, which can be unpredictable 4. Removing and transporting rough stone - Once freed, chunks are carried by hand or loaded into boats, then transported back to land for cutting and polishing Why it’s now considered rare - Many original deposits are now depleted. Some newer finds have happened, but not at the same scale or quality - The tidal access makes mining slow and limited What’s interesting energetically Because it forms in water-influenced volcanic environments, you get that mix of: - grounding (earth/stone) - flow and emotional movement (ocean influence) - circular orb patterns that feel very “cyclical” or rhythmic It’s one of those stones where the formation environment really shows up in the feel of it.

Welcome new people! Let's earn some tickets to the GIVEAWAY BOX we started earlier this month. At the end of the month we will gather all the tickets and put the names into a Wheel Spin app to determine the winner. EVERY COMMENT ON THIS POS THAT INTRODUCES YOURSELF, whether you are new or have been here for a while, Earns ONE TICKET to the drawing! (Please note: Sorry, but individuals outside of the United States are not eligible for the gift box. The shipping and tariffs are just too much right now, but please introduce yourself anyway. We'd love to hear from you!)

Let's play a card game. There are 78 cards in this deck. Comment a number between 1 and 78 and I will shuffle the deck and count out to find your crystal theme of the day.