Obsidian is volcanic glass, lava that cooled too fast to grow crystals, and snowflake obsidian is what happens when it starts to change its mind. Over thousands of years, tiny patches of the glass begin to crystallize into white cristobalite, and those patches bloom across the black surface as soft grey-white flowers. Nothing was painted or added; the snowflakes are the stone slowly turning back into rock. Most of it comes from Utah and Mexico, and it has been knapped into blades and polished into mirrors for as long as people have lived near volcanoes. In crystal lore it is the gentler obsidian, the one for looking at your own patterns without flinching. At Plentiful Earth we carry snowflake obsidian as tumbled stones and pebbles by the pound and as beaded bracelets.
What You'll Find Here
Tumbled snowflake obsidian. Smooth black stones with white snowflakes, sold by the pound, in a standard tumble and a smaller pebble size for jars, grids, and pouches.
Snowflake obsidian bracelets. Eight-millimeter beads or a stretch bracelet of smaller beads, each bead showing its own scatter of snowflakes.
Kits. Snowflake obsidian is one of the five stones in our Purification Gemstone Kit, alongside other cleansing stones.
What Is Snowflake Obsidian Used For?
Black obsidian is the blunt instrument of the protection shelf; snowflake obsidian is the same material with a softer touch. Practitioners use it for shadow work, the practice of looking honestly at the habits and fears you would rather not see, and for balance, the white in the black. It is a root chakra stone for grounding, and a favorite for people who find plain black obsidian too intense. Folk use includes keeping a piece by the door and carrying one during a hard season of life.
Obsidian is glass, 5 to 5.5 on the Mohs scale, so it scratches more easily than quartz and can chip if dropped on tile. It is safe in water and indifferent to sunlight. Store it apart from harder stones.
Explore Related Collections
Compare it with plain black obsidian, or with the other grounding stones, black tourmaline, hematite, onyx, and smoky quartz. Browse all of our protection crystals, root chakra crystals, and tumbled stones.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is snowflake obsidian?
Snowflake obsidian is natural volcanic glass in which small clusters of white cristobalite, a form of silica, have crystallized. The white clusters are the snowflakes. It is mined mainly in Utah and Mexico.
Is snowflake obsidian natural or dyed?
Natural. The snowflakes form by slow devitrification of the glass over thousands of years. Nothing is added.
What does snowflake obsidian mean spiritually?
Balance, honest self-reflection, and gentle protection. It is a root chakra stone used for shadow work and for grounding without the heaviness of pure black obsidian.
What is the difference between snowflake obsidian and black obsidian?
They are the same glass. Black obsidian is uniformly black; snowflake obsidian has crystallized white patches. In crystal lore black obsidian is sharper and more protective, snowflake obsidian softer and more reflective.
Can snowflake obsidian go in water?
Yes. It is non-porous glass and is safe to rinse and soak.
Is snowflake obsidian a good beginner stone?
Yes. It is inexpensive, durable enough for a pocket, and its lore is easy to work with: carry it when you want to feel steady and see clearly.
