The Value of Amber: How Much Is It Worth?

Amber is a gorgeous honey-colored gemstone. While technically a wood resin, amber holds its own with the best and brightest jewels and minerals in the world.

Country artisans have used time-honored techniques to carve and shape this mysterious substance. Families in the artisanal Baltic amber trade pass down secrets from one generation of craftspeople to the next — turning already stunning natural amber into beads, cabochons, and other objects of beauty. However, amber is fragile. Unless stored and maintained properly, small pieces can become brittle or wear down. 

Even the simplest of amber creations can rival the most ethereal gems in value. Clearer amber is worth more, but gemstones that contain well preserved specimens of prehistoric living things can fetch a pretty penny. In some parts of the world, a gram of fine amber is so rare that it can fetch a better price than gold.

What are the different birthstones for each month?

Did you know that there is more than one birthstone for each month? Traditional stones were established for centuries. But when retailers got involved to try to influence the sale of certain jewels... the traditions changed. Here’s a list of all the stones which correspond to each month. Enjoy!

January’s birthstone is garnet.

February’s birthstones are amethyst, pearl, and zircon.

March’s birthstones are aquamarine, bloodstone, and jasper.

April’s birthstones are diamond, sapphire, and mystic topaz.

May’s birthstones are agate, emerald, and chrysoprase.

June’s birthstones are agate, alexandrite, cat’s eye, moonstone, pearl, and turquoise.

July’s birthstones are carnelian, onyx, ruby, and turquoise.

August’s birthstones are carnelian, moonstone, peridot, sardonyx, spinel, and moonstone.

September’s birthstones are chrysolite, lapis, and sapphire.

October’s birthstones are aquamarine, opal, and tourmaline.

November’s birthstones are citrine, pearl, and topaz.

December’s birthstones are bloodstone, lapis, ruby, turquoise, and zircon.

Although most birthstones were pretty well-established by the 1400s, modern jewelers have altered the traditions by inventing new birthstones for the months. There aren’t any real reasons for this spiritually speaking — it was just a marketing ploy to sell more of certain gems. Therefore, don’t worry too much about it. The powers are inside of you, and you’ll intuitively know  which crystal should be yours!

Magickal Properties of Sand

 It might sound obvious, but sand is made from organic materials (like animal skeletons or plant matter) as well as pieces of rock sediment. Over time, water flow breaks these things up... and sand is born! So it’s basically components of what we already consider crystals: lovely minerals of all types (depending on where you live), including tiny crystals and other organic things. Bits of shells, pearls, driftwood, and coral are all contained there.

If you think coral, pearls, and shells all have special properties, sand might be a nice medium to work with. It also contains rocks, minerals... baby crystals. Of course sand has magickal use! Whether wearing a crystal point of pressed sandstone or even just molten glass, you can depend on its good vibes.

After all... sand makes glass and in a lot of cases, the glass we make gets returned to the beach.

In short, sand contains a bit of all elemental forces. It’s merely pieces of our earth tossed and broken by air and water, warmed by a fiery sun and cooled by the light of a million moonlit skies.  I don’t know about you, but that sounds like a shitload of magic to me. I use sand bits in some of my crafts for this very reason.