Dagny Solheim 
I remember sitting in a tiny, dimly lit grading lab in Bergen, staring through a loupe at a piece of garnet that looked like a crushed raspberry after a heavy rain. A client had come in, convinced that because her astrological chart was in total chaos, her stone had somehow lost its “vibration.” I had … Read more
I spent six years in a grading lab, staring through a loupe until my eyes ached, and if there is one thing I’ve learned, it’s that a stone doesn’t care about your LinkedIn profile. I see so many people getting lost in expensive, flowery catalogs, convinced they need a specific, high-priced talisman to fix their … Read more
I spent six years hunched over a bench in a grading lab, staring through a loupe until my eyes felt like they were full of sand. I’ve seen the look on a client’s face when they realize the “brilliant” stone they just bought is actually just glass, and I’ve seen the look when they realize … Read more
I spent six years hunched over a microscope in a grading lab, staring at stones until my eyes burned, and if there is one thing I learned, it’s that the industry loves to use fancy language to inflate a price tag. You’ll walk into a shop and hear someone wax poetic about the “ethereal teal … Read more
I’ve spent enough time under a loupe to know that most people selling “relationship crystals” are just selling expensive pebbles and a lot of vague promises. You’ll see shops claiming that a specific rose quartz will magically fix a failing marriage, but that’s not how geology—or life—works. When you are choosing a stone with the … Read more
I spent six years hunched over a microscope in a grading lab, looking at stones that promised to be one thing but were actually quite another. I’ve seen enough “miracle” emeralds that were nothing more than glass with oil filler to know that the prettiest surface is often a lie. People tend to treat astrology … Read more
I spent six years in a grading lab, squinting through a loupe until my eyes felt like they were full of sand, and if there is one thing I’ve learned, it’s that people love to wrap simple things in layers of unnecessary mystery. You’ll often find shops trying to sell you a specific crystal by … Read more