what doesn't work for you

wizzle

We've had lots of threads about favorite gemstones. But how about discussing what doesn't seem to work for you and maybe why.

I can't seem to get into rose quartz no matter what I do. It just hangs there like a big "blah" for me. Apatite is also pretty iffy for me. So I just have to figure I'm not meant for the "pretty" pastel stones. I do fine with clear quartz and even very light citrine, though. I can only figure I'm too big and noisy to work really effectively with those more subtle stones. I limit my use of these colors to readings for clients who like the softer shades.

Among my least fav stones are malacite and turquoise, both found in cooper ores. And turquoise is my birthstone, but yuck!! I love the colors of these stones but they practically make me itch. I'm not all that fond of lapis either.

If there is a trend here, let me know.
 

Alectra

..

Well I can second you on the rose quartz. I am not too fond of the color and it doesn't do much for me either. I always here people rant and rave about how it is so great. I dont get that from Rose Quartz. I think alot of people suggest Rose Quartz because they dont realize that there are way better crystals/minerals used for the heart chakra. I tend to use green stones more for healing then pink.

Turquiose I have never really felt either. They have alot of it out here in the west. Its ok.. nothing special. It has a nice color, I just dont feel draw to it for healing purposes. But I do like Malachite alot... :)

A~
 

Sophie

I actually adore rose quartz - I've not found better for the heart chakra over the years, and I've tried. It's not the only one I use, but for me, it's the best.

But for those I don't like or don't do well with...well, many of the jaspers do nothing for me, except for dark red jasper. I have a green jasper wand, and have tried to work with it several times, but it feels like a stranger in my hand.

Malachite I like as decoration, but can't seem to work with it - so I just have it around, or give it as presents. I bought a lot of malachite in Lubumbashi, the copper capital of Congo - there they make it up as necklaces, jewellery boxes, animal figurines, etc. Really beautiful stuff. I think it works on you even if you don't work with it!

I'm not a big fan of jet, which I find dull and leadening in effect, quite different from either obsidian or black tourmaline, which I love. Turquoise always seems to me more like something so culturally-specific (both Native American and Eastern Mediterranean/Middle Eastern), that I haven't yet found a way of working with it in a way that makes sense to me, except when I was actually in the Middle East. But it makes nice jewellery ;).

Brown stones...apart from a Kalahari desert stone my shamanic teacher once leant to me, which was tremendous, I don't get on with brown stones, especially the lighter ones that look like sick.

Moonstone - funny thing about that one. Some days I like it a lot, and it helps me and I work with it very fluidly, and other days I can barely look at it, it makes me feel queasy. I suppose it's the lunatic effect ;)

I don't like nephrite, I never have. Light green jade, yes, but not that heavy nephrite.

I have a mixed record with agate. I love moss agate and blue lace agate, but I tried working with Botswana agate and it fell flat - but it looks good.

Not a big fan of chrysoprase, which some people recommend for the heart chakra. Those I've seen look like a blob of toothpaste to me, including one I have, which I've never felt drawn to work with.

On the whole, with the exception of obsidian, black tourmaline and lapis lazuli - and forest agate on a good day - I don't do as well with stones that have a solid, non-translucent colour than with those that have a translucent or glassy colour, whatever the tone and intensity of that colour is (so carnelian and fire opal I love, as I do aquamarine and amethyst).
 

wumpkie

Aventurine doesn't do anything for me, in any colour. I just think its monotonous. Also I find jaspers don't really work for me apart from like Fudugazi said Red jaspers and the Dalmation jasper which I use for my animals.
Apart from them I'm good to go :D
 

wizzle

Nephrite!!! pah.. gasp. Do NOT like that stone. I wonder why. I'd forgotten just how much I dislike it.

I think dismissing the jaspers might be premature. I've gotten a couple, notably poppy jasoper and ocean jasper, that are not in the usual brown range.
 

wumpkie

wizzle said:
I think dismissing the jaspers might be premature.

I don't mean to sound dense...but what do you mean? :confused: :D
 

HearthCricket

I seem to be drawn mostly to the lighter coloured stones: quartz, amethyst, rose quartz, citrine, anything soft or pretty or pastel. I have a few darker stones, but they don't seem to draw me to them. My favourite is Ametrine.

When I think about it, my favourite gem/crystal stone colours also match my wardrobe!
 

wumpkie

HearthCricket said:
When I think about it, my favourite gem/crystal stone colours also match my wardrobe!

That's a very good point: My favourites are malachite, turquoise, dioptase and ruby. So my wardrobe as my friend once said, looks like a dressing up box :D
 

crystalwoman

wizzle said:
We've had lots of threads about favorite gemstones. But how about discussing what doesn't seem to work for you and maybe why.
I never wear rose quartz as jewellery, I find it's a little too blah for me, but I do recommend it to people for relieving physical pain or if someone needs to be calmed down. Out of all the stones I've worked with or used for jewellery there's only one that I've actually had real trouble with and that's ajoite, or anything that had ajoite included in it. The impression I personally get off ajoite is that it wants to be left alone in the earth. I got a couple of pieces of ajoite that I didn't get any particular impression off them when I acquired them. But then I tried meditating with them and sleeping with them and the results were horrendous. I had horrible nightmares from sleeping with them, and meditating with them gave me a nasty headache. So now I leave them alone and only defer to them when the ajoite itself calls out to me to be used for doing a healing treatment on somebody else who is experiencing traumatizing chaos. For those folks the ajoite works wonders during a treatment.
 

SilverCloudedWolf

What seems to be odd about my dislikes is that they are very specific (except jade, both types). I love aventurine, but blue aventurine makes me feel queasy - despite blue being my favourite colour. And I'm fine with any jasper, tiger's eye and hematite but cannot stand tiger iron.

I think it's the same as not liking every single person you meet in your life, there's bound to be some people you just don't get on with - a personality clash.