Black Labradorite Bracelet, 8mm

Black labradorite, 8mm. The dark end of the feldspar family, at the classic gauge.

Concealed flash. Blue and gold appear only at an angle, which makes the stone quieter than pale labradorite.

Stretch cord fit. One size, no clasp, made for daily wear.

• Material: black labradorite beads, 8mm, on stretch cord
• Flash strength varies bead to bead; some beads show little or none
• Labradorite is a feldspar and can chip along its cleavage planes; store apart from harder stones
• SKU: JB8LAR

Labradorite was named in the 1770s after the Labrador coast, where Moravian missionaries first collected it, and its flash is a genuinely physical effect: light bounces between microscopic internal layers and returns as colour that was never a pigment. Mineralogists call it labradorescence. Black labradorite is the darker material from the same feldspar family, and the trade uses the name loosely enough that some of what is sold under it sits close to larvikite. Modern crystal practice keeps labradorite for intuition and for what stays hidden until the light hits it right, which suits the black variety even better than the pale. It has no entry in Cunningham or the older folk sources, so we assign it no element or planet.

1. Cleanse it on arrival with smoke or moonlight; skip salt and water, which are unkind to feldspar and to stretch cord.
2. Wear it and move. The flash only appears when light strikes at an angle, so a wrist suits it better than a shelf.
3. Stack it with lighter stones if you want the black to read as a band.
4. Keep it from heat and lotions, and store it dry and unstretched.

• Labradorite Bracelet, 8mm: the pale variety, where the flash is obvious.
• Labradorite Tumbled Stones, 1 lb: the same stone by the pound.
• Bracelets: the full shelf.

What makes labradorite flash?

Light bouncing between microscopic layers inside the stone, an optical effect called labradorescence. It is structural, not pigment, which is why it only appears at certain angles.

How is black labradorite different from ordinary labradorite?

Base colour. The pale grey-green material shows its flash readily; the black holds it back until the angle is right. The trade uses the name loosely, and some material sold as black labradorite sits close to larvikite.

Will every bead flash?

No. Natural stone varies, and on the black variety some beads stay dark from every angle. That is characteristic rather than a fault.

What does practice keep it for?

Intuition, and for what stays hidden until the light reveals it. These are modern crystal attributions; labradorite has no entry in the older folk sources.

How do I care for it?

Soft cloth, smoke or moonlight cleansing, no salt or soaking, and store it away from harder stones since feldspar chips.