Alchemy Stones and Metaphysics: "Chakra Stones"

A dear friend of the family is a big fan of Alchemy Stones, and recently suggested that we explore some different metaphysical angles with the stone designs.

Specifically, he thought it would be interesting and cool if I could create sets of stones based around the seven chakra colors.

I'm always up for a challenge. Although I am fairly familiar with chakras already, I needed to do some more research on the colors... and then figure out how to incorporate the colors while maintaining the "integrity" of Alchemy Stone designs. Truth be known, I wasn't too excited about the idea of just "drawing triangles on a rock," simply to meet a specific color scheme.

Then the next challenge arose: Coming up with reasonably "matching" stones in groups of seven.

NOT as easy as it sounds! In fact, in going through the hundreds of beach combed stones at our house, I was only able to come up with two groups of stones that seemed like a "good set." Maybe I was being more particular than I needed to be, but it was important that the stones "feel right" together.

The first set I made ended up becoming a present for our friend, who got married in our back yard labyrinth, a few days ago. The second set (pictured above) became Sarah's... but now I feel more confident in working with this concept... it's just a matter of finding nice "matching sets" to work with.

At this point, I am only planning to offer Chakra Stones in matched sets of seven, although I may also make them available as individual stones matched to a particular chakra.

Working with LARGE Stones

The vast majority-- probably over 90%-- of all Alchemy Stones are between 1" (25mm) and maybe 3" (75mm) long (or in diameter). I have always used "fits well in the hand" as an important criterion for choosing a stone. On the occasions when I bring a large rock home for the beach it tends to be because it has a cool "natural" design or shape, not because I want to paint on it.

Every now and then, I do find a large stone that's suitable for painting.

Part of the reason larger stones don't often become Alchemy Stones is that they are very difficult to find with completely smooth surfaces. They are also often chipped and scuffed, as a result of impacts with other stones.

The stone pictured here is a little over 6" (15cm) across and weighs several pounds.

Part of what makes it very difficult to paint such a stone is that it has over a thousand individual design elements. And if I make one little mistake somewhere, hours of work goes down the drain. People do occasionally ask for a large stone... often because they want a "serious" piece of art. I am not quite sure what that "means," in a functional sense, but I do my best to meet requests like that.

For those who are curious-- a stone like the one pictured, with one of Sarah's specially made "Treasure Bags"-- goes for about $150.00-$200.00. I am not sure how many hours of work goes into one, because I tend to work a little bit on them, every day, for several weeks. And just because I "finish" painting does not mean the stone has succeeded... the design can also mess up and "feather" or "float" while the finish coat is being applied.

How many do I make? Maybe 3-4 a year.

A Garden Stone

All Alchemy Stones are given a durable clear finish, as part of the decorative process.

Here's a larger stone I made for the garden. It is about 6" long (15cm, for the metric folks) and has the same finish coat as the smaller stones.

As the photo obviously suggests, this is one of our "heart stones." It's named "Path of Hearts" and was made as a Christmas gift for Sarah, this past year.

It has been out in the weather for quite a while (since December 2013), and hasn't really suffered any ill effects, as a result. It's being cradled by the small Buddha statue next to our driveway.

For the time being, outdoor stones are are in the experimental and testing stage. Although I have little doubt that the stones will be fine if left outside, I'm not willing to release them to the world as "suitable to leave outside" until they've been through at least a full year of every conceivable type of weather conditions. It is, however, an idea we're planning to develop further.

Originally, the question of "leaving Alchemy Stones outside" came about because we decided the "petite stones" were perfect as small gifts or "offerings" for people to leave at the centers of labyrinths they were visiting. Of course, most labyrinths are outside, and we wanted to make sure the stones would hold up to the elements.

Maybe the idea of "road testing" items that are basically art or metaphysical altar objects sounds a bit strange. I chalk that up to my Danish heritage... in Danish culture, the idea of "form" and "function" being closely tied is extremely important, and I was raised with the idea of "functional art." Everyday objects were expected to not only be beautiful (or, at least, aesthetically pleasing) but also to have excellent functionality.

Hence the idea of having Alchemy Stones that look pretty but lose their decoration after a few months just rubs me the wrong way. And so, the "road testing" project continues.