This is the start of a few blogs with my favorite crystals. I want to start with mica, because it was really the first crystal I actively found in nature and played with and I didn't quite realize what it was or what I had until much later. My family would go on camping trips in the mountains in Colorado every summer. And while camping was not my favorite thing at all, the tents and bugs and dirt and outside and bathroom situation all just were not great combinations for me, I was very much an indoor let me read and take no risks type of child. Which, while I do challenge that nature from time to time now, it still seems to stand pretty strong for my life currently as well. I've gone from camping and four wheeling practically every weekend during the summer to now going camping once a year as a big family get together, but those have RVs now and actual campgrounds and bathrooms ha. Anyway, one of the things my mom and brother and I would do is walk around and find mica, which I have since learned that the variety we were finding is called Muscovite. We found these slabs of rock that were shimmery, glittery and were stacked together with multiple thin layers. I unfortunately loved to break them apart and see the fibers crumble and sparkle away from my hands, it was very pretty and we could find mica in abundance, it was just laying all over the place in huge pieces. It was also a fun challenge to try to pull the thin layers apart while trying to keep the sheets whole. I'm pretty sure my mom still has some around somewhere, I wish I had actually held onto a piece or two, they are much harder to find now and in much smaller pieces. These hunts made the camping and four wheeling a bit easier to deal with. I'd love to go looking again I think it would be a lot of fun to take my family and continue the mica hunt tradition with my daughter. It may be a bit harder than when I was little though.
Muscovite is also known as muscovy glass and is an aluminum potassium mineral. It is the most common member of the mica family. It can crystallize in the form of small hexagonal or tabular "crisps" or as elongated sheets or solid masses. Muscovite is mostly found in a gray to silverish- brown color. It can also be found in white, green, yellow, red, colorless and just recently it has been found in blue. The blue variety was found by a group of miners in Western Australia in 2004. It is frequently referred to as "Australian Lapis" and is the only place the blue color has been found in.
Muscovite was "officially" discovered by J.D. Dana in 1850 but its history goes back to 1568 when it was referred to as Muscovy glass. This mineral was first reported in a letter by the English Ambassador to Russia. It was found in the Muscovy Province of Russia and was named after the region. The main historical use from this time to the late 1700's was as the worlds first solid and transparent window. Many sheets in the original Muscovite deposit were very long, thick and transparent which allowed workers to split them and shave off extra layers. This created multiple sheets from a single piece. This new trade material was highly desired throughout northern Asia and progressed through Europe. In todays age, this mineral is still highly used in many commercial items. It is used in the production of rubber, paint, plastic, roofing material, taping and sheetrock and is an essential ingredient in mascara, nail polish, eye shadow and glitter.
Metaphysical Properties:
The metaphysical properties include helping with manifestation, lucid dreaming, living in the present moment, knowledge, intuition, inspiration, insight, meditation, inner peace, growth, gentle self expression, expanded awareness, sense of purpose, wisdom, truth, trust, transformation, enlightenment, self discovery, psychic abilities, peace of mind, opportunities, rejuvenation, new beginnings, astral travel, anxiety relief, patience, channeling, channeling and grounding higher vibrations, clairvoyance, clarity, compassion, creating your own reality, decisiveness, determination, empathy.
**The metaphysical section contains opinions on spiritual, physical, mental/psychological and other crystal healing related matters. This information is provided as matter of opinion and informal guidance only. It is not intended for and neither should it be taken as professional medical advice, nor a substitute for any professional medical service.**