Taking Care of Tools: Gemstones

Gemstones are one of the most common and (can be) one of the most expensive tools that a witch uses. Truthfully, stones, rocks, and gemstones are incredibly accessible to anyone who is just getting started with their magic practice.

As kid, you probably had a rock or flower that was your absolute favorite or at least knew someone who did. They took it everywhere and cherished it. If that wasn’t you, that’s okay! I promise by the end of this post you’ll have fallen in love with some stone.

Stones come in all shapes, sizes, colors, and dollar values. I want to emphasize here that any stone you love and any stone that calls to you will work for you. Just because the price tag says $100 does not mean that it is perfect one for you. One of my best ‘earth-y’ stones is a river rock from a local creek.

But no matter the stone, I want you to pick the one that will work best for you and I want you to pick the tool that truly connects you with your practice.

Ways to Pick a Stone

Intuition will be a big part in picking your tool. Intuition is that gut feeling that says this is right or this is not quite it. Your intuition will lead you the right way even if your logic brain isn’t quite sure it’s doing.

If you can, hold the stone.
Pick up the stone you are considering and just hold it for a minute. Do you like how it physically feels in your hand? Does it have enough weight? Is it a good shape for your hand?
Does it speak to you?
When you are holding or examining a stone does it call to you? Not just is it pretty but does it capture your attention? Do you have a sensation when holding or speaking to it? You may feel such things as heat or cold in various parts of your body. You may feel more relaxed or more alert. All these changes are subtle signs of the stone working for you.
Do you feel more positive when interacting with this stone?
A stone that will work for you generally feels positive. Even stones that are for grief, banishing curses, or otherwise “dark” aspects will feel like they are helping rather than hindering.

Now What Do I Do?

So now that you’ve picked out your tool it is good practice to take care of and be respectful of it. For me, taking care of my tools means cleansing them, charging them, and respecting them.

Cleansing:

There are several ways to cleanse your stones. I do NOT mean for you to physically wash them! Water and soap do not always have the best reactions with semiprecious stones. A lot of times it will ruin the stone or even cause it to become poisonous.

(Malachite is incredibly toxic when unpolished or when it comes into contact with water.)

When I mention cleansing, I mean energetic cleansing. My favorite three methods are: smoke cleansing, aura cleansing, and fire cleansing.

Smoke Cleansing:

Items Needed:

Sage bundle or incense cone/stick
Lighter
Fire Safe bowl for the bundle or incense

Gather your items and stone to be cleansed. Find a comfortable position and bring yourself into a meditative state. When you are ready, light your bundle or incense.

Once the smoke begins to rise off it, pass the stone through the smoke and speak your intention over it.

Such as: “With this incense, I cleanse and purify my tool to do my work”.

Imagine the smoke passing through the stone and carrying off an energies that may have clogged your tool.

Once you feel you are complete, give thanks to your tools and in a way that honors your path.

Charging:

Charging a tool is a simple exercise but can sometimes take a lot of energy to perform. A lot of practitioners will charge their crystals by moonlight or sunlight. Leaving them in a window sill to absorb and collect over a day’s time.

You can also charge them yourself by building up energy through chanting or drumming and placing the energy into the tool.

Any way you do this is correct but I always caution to set an intention before getting started. I have a selenite wand that I use for aura healings.

If I set the wrong intention before charging it the tool may not work as well for my purposes.

Fire Cleansing:

I love fire cleansing an item because it feels the most transformative for me. Fire is a unique element of the four since it “eats” and “breathes”.

To fire cleanse an item you’ll need:

A candle
Candle holder
matches or lighter

Set your intention for your tool, whether it’s healing or protection or just general good vibes. Then light the candle and pick up the tool. Hold the tool or gemstone above the fire but not too close!

The point is to let the tool lightly warm up but not get hot. Circle the tool around the candle.

Counter-clockwise first to banish any negativity or hindrances.

Then circle the tool around the candle and fire clockwise to bring in your intended energy.

Let your intuition guide you on when you feel the tool is “full”.

Respect Always.

Most of the times when we hear of respecting our tools it is usually in the context of knives, guns, or weapons. Proper storage and cleaning are the forefront themes here.

The practice of taking care of our tools is respect. Just like you wouldn’t leave a knife lying about randomly or leaving it dirty, it is best to not leave your witchcraft tools lying about or dirty. Set them with love and respect on an altar or stored with your other tools in a box or drawer. Don’t forget them and if it’s been awhile show them some love.

Any way you practice that feels right and true to you is a good way to practice. Taking care of our tools is a great habit to develop and choosing the right stones for our work should be a wonderful and delightful event.