How To Decorate Natural Crystals And Gemstones Around Your Home

The need for decor ideas often only hits us when we are redecorating, moving furniture around, or moving from one place to the next. This is often when we realize it would be better to have some prior design knowledge and ideas in the event that such a scenario arises. Here, I will discuss several decor ideas to display crystals and gemstones around your home.

A crystal is a substance with several symmetrically arranged faces and is usually of a light color or transparent. These features make crystals a good decor piece as they are not imposing and they can also be placed at multiple different spots regardless of the surrounding design.

A gemstone is regarded as a piece of precious or semi-precious stone that has often been polished and is used in jewelry. For the purpose of this article, I will be discussing gemstones to be used as 'loose' stones in decoration.

It has long been thought that certain crystals and gemstones have healing properties, citrine quartz, for example, is thought to represent optimism and wealth. 

Here are some unique ideas to display natural crystals and gems around your home. 

1. Crystals in a Vase

Placing crystals and gems in a vase will help bring a splash of color to any corner of a room, or serves as a good piece to show off above a fireplace or on a coffee table. Not only will the vase provide a somewhere for storage, but it also allows for a viewpoint on lots of different colors in one place, offering practically unlimited opportunities for customization.

Vases have been used in homes for many, many years, having reportedly been invented in 3000 BC, so why not use this tradition and allow a clear vase to display your gem collection. 

2. Display Box

If you have a wide variety of different rocks, minerals, and gems, a great way to both show them and protect them can be via a display box.

Some boxes will provide you with single squares meant for each crystal or gem to be allocated to, and others will have more complex designs, therefore it is worth taking into account what type of collection you have and how you wish to display them. 

Having a collection box will also allow you to organize your stones into specific categories and you will also have the added bonus of an organized storage space that is neat and can easily be moved.

3. Framed on a wall

If your walls are looking a bit blank and you are looking for new ways to give them a bit of life, why not try framing some of your crystal or gem collection?

Framing your rocks allows them to easily be seen by guests and puts them in a spot where they can be shown off. This option is also good for when you don't have a lot of floor space or a table to show them on.

Framing your rocks and minerals can also allow them to be viewed and appreciated from a different perspective, the natural colors and radiance will complement the surrounding features. 

4. Acrylic Glass Display Case

A display case like the ones that are seen in museums may require a little bit more time and investment than the previous options, however, a display case can be a great addition to your home. 

Display cases will keep your rocks and gems free from dust and they will also be better protected from any 'wandering hands' that you may have in the house. This option could also allow pieces of your collection to be viewed from a full 360 degrees, an offering that frames or display boxes cannot provide. 

5. Singular Stacked

This option will be best for those who seek a simple yet creative way to display crystals, minerals, and rocks around the home. Singular crystals and gemstones of any color can be placed as single objects anywhere. Different ideas could include atop a stack of books, over the fireplace, or as the centerpiece of a coffee table. 

If you have a large collection and lots of space or you have run out of space in your other display options, this solution will be perfect, as showing off gemstones and crystals by themselves will allow their natural beauty and color to shine, bringing the character to specific spots around your home.

Silver-colored platters can be useful for this concept, as they are flat and will allow you to arrange the gems and crystals out over a decent-sized space, plus the silver platter will already act as an ornament for the home. 

6. Pyramidal Shelf

In order to spice up your crystal display, you may be looking for something that stands out amongst the other features of your home.

In addition to a standard straight shelf, there are peculiar pyramidal shelves that exist in order to help you display your rock and gem collection. The benefit here is that you can arrange your collection in any order you like, whether you wish to rank them from most favorite to least or if you want to have the option of customizing the arrangement every so often. 

7. As a Mini-Garden

Plants have long been used as decor material for home interiors. Data from the National Trust tells us that for as long ago as the 1700s, people have been keen to bring plants indoors to decorate their homes.

Since houseplants have historically been used as indoor decoration pieces, why not combine your crystals and gemstones together with houseplants to form an interesting showpiece for your home. This could be as a kind of mini-garden where a selection of rocks, gems, minerals, and plants come together to complement one another, or it could simply be a plant surrounded by decorative gems. 

The customization opportunities here are virtually endless, and if you have an abundance of rocks and gems then seeking out a new plant to add to your indoor decor collection could be a fun and creative exercise.

How to Mix Crystals and Gems 

For those with big collections or even small ones, mixing your gems and crystals together is a great idea and creative experience in order to maximize their properties.

There is no specific rule book that says which gems and crystals should go together or vice versa, although you may find some healing crystal websites that frown on the idea of certain combinations, the focus of this article is simply for decoration ideas. 

Utilizing complementary colors as properties of your crystals and gems can be a successful and creative technique to add color to your home spaces. 

Keep in mind that complementary colors are colors that have the sharpest contrast with other colors, they make each one look brighter. 

To successfully match the complementary colors of your rocks and gems together, it is best to assess your current collection and then assort them into groups of the same color.

Red and green are classed as complementary colors, so for example, you could mix some red jasper along with some jade or bloodstone in order to create a new decor piece. 

Blue and orange are also considered to be complementary colors, so it may be worth checking or adding to your collection gems and crystals that have this type of hue. A citrine quartz crystal surrounded by some sodalite stones or turquoise could make for a great addition to your home decor. 

Below I will list some more ideas for gems and crystals that go well together as complementary colors:

• Jadeite and Pink Agate - These two stones have naturally opaque colors and will complement each other. 
• Amethyst and Citrine Quartz - Purple amethyst and citrine quartz form in similar shapes and have similar transparency on their crystal forms.
• Clear Quartz and Blue Agate - The clear sheen and light hue of crystal quartz will allow the blue saturation of the agate to be enhanced, making these two stones an effective design combination. 
• Turquoise and Tourmaline - A light blue and yellow hue brings a warm, character to this combination of gems. 
• Lapis Lazuli and Carnelian Stone - The deep blue and brown-red colors here are a strong combination and will accompany the surrounding decorations of your home, bringing deep and warm colors together. 

There are lots of different ways to express your interior decoration abilities using crystals, gemstones, and minerals, and they go beyond the solutions suggested here. It is important, however, that you approach with a sense of creativity, every home is different and every collection is different, meaning there are endless ways to mix and match different combinations, display methods, and ideas. 

Also, consider what the particular space in your home is used for, whether it is a workspace, living room, or bedroom, consider its purpose and match your display technique and colors used accordingly. A front room may suit warm and ambient colors, whereas an office space may better utilize clear and sharp hues.