Quartz | All you need to know
The many types & benefits of Quartz
Beautiful sparkles and eye-catching colours, quartz is a beloved gemstone that deserves a place in your jewellery box. Whether you’re a lover of vibrant pink or a fan of clear simplicity, quartz not only goes with everything but makes a wonderful gift for birthdays, anniversaries, and Christmas. Here’s everything you need to know about quartz.
An explosive discovery
Millions of years old, quartz has been extracted from open pit mines for centuries, with miners occasionally using explosives to expose deep pockets of quartz from the earth’s crust. Quartz is the most common mineral found in the Earth and occurs in crystals or veins found in igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic rocks. It’s found in many countries including China, Japan, Russia, Brazil, France, Belgium, Germany, Bulgaria, South Africa, and the UK.
Just like ice
Quartz is a crystalline mineral that’s composed of silica and forms in a triagonal system. The name quartz is derived from the Ancient Greek ‘kruos’ which means icy cold, as many philosophers believed that quartz was a form of supercooled ice. It has a hardness rating of 7 on the Mohs scale, meaning it can be moulded and cut into jewellery but still needs some TLC to keep it in top condition and without any scratches. Quartz has many different varieties and colours, but when we refer to the gemstone as quartz, it refers to clear quartz, which is transparent and lets the light shine through its crystal structure.
Types of quartz
From rose to smokey, clear to milky, quartz comes in many different types and varieties, including the ever-popular rose quartz and smokey quartz. Rose quartz has a light pink colour and is known as the stone of universal love due to its rosy-pink hues. It’s said to purify and open the heart for love, friendship, peace, and healing, and is the birthstone for October. On the other end of the spectrum, smokey quartz has a chocolate brown colour that’s grounding and brings stability. It’s also said to clear negative energy and it’s the November birthstone. Other popular types of quartz include amethyst, aventurine, and citrine.
The Stone of Clarity
Quartz is an incredibly powerful gemstone and is known as the stone of clarity. Wearing quartz jewellery or owning a quartz crystal is said to help with mental clarity and emotional stability. Often used for manifestation, quartz can help bring more focus into your life and is often used to amplify physic abilities. So, if you have a birthday or anniversary coming up, a piece of quartz jewellery is full of meaning and offers a wonderful sparkle and shine to any outfit.
Image credit: AD, Ebay & Britannica