Nature x Art = Crystal Healing Alternative?
This week’s YouTube video was a triple threat!
1. An Unsucky Art Project Demo (episode 2 in the series)
2. A lively chat about crystals for well being and how art is a great (and inexpensive) tool to use as a substitute
3. A list of 10 natural elements that you can use in your next art project to up your wellness game.
If you enjoy the content subscribe to my channel…I have tonnes of helpful ideas to share and I upload a new video weekly.
Here is the video:
And here are a few thoughts I had that the video addresses (I will be tidying up and adding new content to this section in the coming week.)
(starting at 12:00 minute mark of video, after art demo)
I realize that the video is getting lengthy, so I want to shift gears and talk about why I think that art and nature are a great alternative to crystals for healing.
I will be completing my sea biscuit art piece so def head over to my Instagram to check that out and for more healing tips for busy moms. The link to the momma’s healing IG account is in the description.
I read a post the other day on wellness being a luxury. And yes, if you are talking about all the wellness trends that are going on...it is a luxury. The water bottles with the crystal diffusers are what came to my mind immediately. But all of it...the sound baths, the special diets, and of course assistance from the gurus...can get a bit pricey.
And my predictions are that the costs are going to continue to sky-rocket.
I attended the AmericasMart show in Atlanta this July and it was evident that “the wellness trend” is not going to go anywhere. There was an entire section devoted to wellness that was completely non-existent a few years ago. Everything from Santo Palo beads, smudge kits, mercury retrograde calendars, crystal wands, crystal rollers, and ofcourse CBD everything!
And this is a great thing. It’s fantastic that we are looking at alternative methods for healing instead of running to Big Pharma! I’m totally stoked guys.
So let me know if I’m being Captain Obvious here...u can wear a whole nightgown encrusted with gemstones sis...but if your vibe is off it won’t give a spectacular results.
If you don’t do the internal work, it really won’t matter how many onyx butt plugs you own.
Where is the lie?
Obviously, you see me. I’m rocking my opalite plugs. I’ve posted on Insta some dope pendants I purchased before….so i’m not here to knock crystals in any way.
I’m just saying do your due diligence. Put in the work to heal yourself without the use of a crystal. The power really is in you already.
And I’ll let you in on a secret.
My day job is as a Creative Designer for a wholesale jewelry company. We have retailer come to us alllllll the time. “We love the look of this” Most of these vendors are your typical mall stores...and they are only concerned about their bottom line. they really don’t want to pay top dollar prices….and it makes sense. They have to be able to profit for the business to stay afloat.
Lots of vendors have no problem getting the “onyx” look or the “turquoise” look. Or if they insist on the genuine stones, they can choose to go with a lower grade of stone.
Here I have an example of a pair of High Reflection Labradorite stone...I’m not sure if you can see it but the stone if grey with very reflective purple parts...some parts even look like the rainbow. Then you have other parts of this same stone that is a lower grade and will have less of a reflection. And I’m not saying that’s bad…
It’s like that bible verse in 1 Corinthians that says:
Suppose the foot says, “I am not a hand. So I don’t belong to the body.” By saying this, it cannot stop being part of the body. 16 And suppose the ear says, “I am not an eye. So I don’t belong to the body.” By saying this, it cannot stop being part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, how could it hear? If the whole body were an ear, how could it smell? 18 God has placed each part in the body just as he wanted it to be.
It’s all a part of the same stone….so who am i to say that a less reflective piece of crystal has less healing properties than a more reflective piece ya know….
BUTTTTTT if that was the case and you are paying for a lower grade stone….but you are believing that this stone has all these properties….then isn’t it kind of a placebo effect.
You believe something is healing you so your mind believes it to be true.
Ok, for those of you who might be confused by this Bible/crystals combo deal, let me give you a breakdown of some of the personal views I have developed after a lot of reading (and simply knowing what feels right to me).
Firstly, the Bible does not condemn the use of stones. In the New Testament (Exodus 28:30) the high priest wore a breastplate over his ephod with twelve stones set in gold it to represent the twelve tribes of Israel. These gemstones included: sardius (ruby), topaz, carbuncle (garnet), emerald, sapphire, diamond, jacinth, agate, amethyst, beryl, onyx and jasper. In addition to these stones two special stones Urim and Thummim (yup…the same stones that Santiago was given in The Alchemist!! ) were placed inside a small pocket on the interior of the breastplate (against the wearers heart). These two stones were used to determine God’s will by casting lots.
Secondly, I don’t want to debate or argue with you over the mass book burnings throughout history or the tampering with the Bible by early Christians to suit their patriarchal will. I don’t want to haggle with you over the details of what I believe Jesus did in the first 30 years of his life (which is completely skipped over in the Bible). In fact, I “won’t“ even share my personal beliefs that He was in India becoming a yogi master. And I “won’t” say that I agree that the “Seven Churches” Jesus references in the Bible are our seven major chakras — in other words — our personal temples.
I believe in God. I believe that there is a universe. And I know that crystals are a real thing created by God, who created the universe. I do not worship crystals. I worship God. Source. Creator. Father. God who created the perfectness that is sacred geometry. God that created us in His perfect image.
Jesus is my homie. I loves me some him. Religion on the other hand, I’m not the biggest fan of.
Anyway (tangent over), you can “love the sinner and hate the sin,” (that sin that you believe is my once-again personal view) or I wish you well on your journey padawan.
Anywhoooo, where was I…
Stones, crystals and gemstones have had quite a buzz around them in recent years; with many big-name celebrities announcing their inclusion into their health routines and daily meditations.
Humans have been drawn to crystals for thousands of years. Kings and queens of days gone by used them for protection, shamans still use them for healing, traditional watch-makers use quartz crystals to tell time, and even modern-day scientists use them in microchips.
I first began wearing stone tunnels and plugs in my ears a few years ago, but just for aesthetic reasons. Gradually, I began researching the healing properties of the various stones I had in my jewelry collection.
Crystals are believed to work by balancing our energy fields and connecting us to the earth and universe at large.
A friend sent me a vid a few weeks ago on the gemstone industry and how it is booming. I’ll link to it in the description. In the video gem vendors are saying that prices are going up because demand is going up...so a stone that may have been just $3 a few years ago now can retail for $20 or more….think about that...it’s the same stone that they couldn’t get to move off the shelf for years...now flying off the shelves.
Once again, i’m not telling you to not purchase crystals I’m just saying don’t hop on the bandwaggon cuz it’s trending. I wrote a post last year after hearing Sandra’s Rose on Drake’s album that I knew that the crystal trend was just gonna blow up across college campuses and in the hood after that.
“My uncle tryna change my energy with stones and crystals”
And it’s alllll gooooood.
But before you buy your next piece of rose quartz...let me share with you really quickly the healing power of art x nature.
Art expression uses a different area in your brain than what you access when you talk.
That is why you can talk about things and say things out loud 100 times and it not have the same “AHA” moment that occurs when you create art.
This means that you can explore and address your issues at a deeper level than can be achieved a lot of time through verbal communication.
A lot of times we have built up so many walls and stories that we tell ourselves that’s it’s impossible to even speak our truths out loud.
So to tie that back to the crystals….if you own a crystal but are saying words you don’t believe...or you mean the words but your body can feel your anxiety and unease….it won’t work.
A lot of people are buying crystals as a quick-win solution to doing the work.
So they want to buy a piece of rose quartz for love instead of actually working on loving themselves.
Creating art can greatly improve your Self-esteem: The process will give you a feeling of self-accomplishment which can be very valuable to improve your self-appreciation and confidence.
And that is a tangible step to increasing self-love.
Here at Momma’s Healing my pillars for healing are radical self-reflection and radical self-acceptance. No stone or crystal will give you that.
Journaling can give you that.
Figuring out your triggers can give you that.
I do have more to say on this….if you want to go deeper on this subject with me then I’ll put a link in the description to a post i’m working on that’ll go deeper into this topic on my website.
I also have a video in the works explaining how the music we listen to can effect our mood and how we can utilize music in our art practice as well….so if any of that is up your ally then subscibe and consider hitting that notification bell as well.
10 natural items you can use to enhance your artwork:
Yoni Juice
Thyme
Star Anise
Rosemary
Bay Leaves
Tumeric
Coffee
Shells
Leaves
Flowers/Leaves
How many of you are still stuck on #1???
I’ll give y’all the full breakdown next week.
I’m rooting for you!!
Chat soon.