IMPORTANT: This jewel is limited and we are unsure if they'll be available again in the future. We recommend Express Shipping with signature required upon delivery to best ensure it arrives safely in your hands. 

PLEASE NOTE : This necklace will be created with an 18" bar link chain. If you desire a different chain length, it's important that you email us immediately after placing your order. 

A special version of our new petite Datura Moths ( found here ) feature ornate antennae and tails that terminate in tears, are forever conjoined and guard a "full moon" fine cut quartz teeming with black tourmaline threads. This gemstone's unusual features occurs deep underground in molten temperatures and beneath intense pressure. As both circumstances decreases, the crystals solidify; the tourmaline becoming trapped within the clear quartz, giving these cuts the appearance of black 'witches' hair within polished glass. This process reminds me a bit of the liquefaction of the caterpillar when it undergoes its truly intense transformative process within its chrysalis before emerging into a moth. 

Eclipse is a word used for a grouping of moths, due to how they "eclipse" light sources they cluster around, as they are nocturnal and are drawn to light. As an ancient species, moths used the moon and stars as a source of navigation ( called transverse orientation ) to fly straight, similar to how early humans used the North Star before navigational tools were invented. As artificial light has permeated every aspect of modern living for many if not most parts of the world, moth's flight patterns have changed, with some exhibiting disorienting spiral flight patterns. 

Truly a talisman of the night and how certain people, flora, and creatures are more attuned and comfortable with it, this jewel contains the symbology of the Moon, Datura, & the Moth. Highly tactile, this necklace is meant to be a comfort on multiple levels: the textures of both the conjoined moths as well as the smooth surface of the gemstone ( it also features a shallow culet on the back ), as well as designed to be a companion for all of your Night time journeys as you bloom in the dark. 

Because these stones are limited, we are not able to accommodate any requests for specific stone preferences.

Datura Moths:

Datura stramonium ( with a species of 9-14 ), also known as Jimson weed, Thorn apple and Devil’s Trumpet, is a flowering plant that originated in the Americas and spread across the seas. Much like other members of the solanaceae family, it is highly toxic in high doses. This includes all parts of it, from its gorgeous trumpet like flowers, to its toothy leaves, its roots and its infamous inky black seeds which are incased in spiky seed pods. In smaller doses, it has been used in the past as healing salves for inflammation and pain while also being utilized in folk magic to induce visionary and hallucinogenic states. Among tribes with shamanic practices, Datura was considered sacred and can be found in cave paintings and on pre-historic ceramics, suggesting its use during these times. 

One of the attributes of this plant that drew me to it aside from its beauty and folklore, is its ability to grow alongside the edges of places, even here in the city. Its seeds disperse when its pods dry and crack open and I’ve witnessed it grow from cracks in the sidewalk, through holes in chain link fences, abundantly in between buildings and in other abandoned empty spaces in the city where such beauty seems out of place. It is seemingly weed like in nature and yet in other places, it is planted with care as an ornamental despite its poisonous properties. 

I’ve been amazed at the thick roots of one bush that grew wild in an abandoned space between two buildings before it was cut down, its seeds freckling the earth as if to say, you haven’t truly destroyed me. Its hardiness in the face of a gritty landscape and Phoenix like regenerative qualities endears me to it as much as its beauty and magical properties. 

Moon colored, Datura unfurl and open at night and is therefore pollinated by moths, Sphinx moths in particular who hover around its blooms like hummingbirds, sipping from them with their long tongues. I witnessed this for the first time last summer, while visiting one plant with a friend from out of town near where I live in a fairly industrial part of the city. We watched the moth drink from flower to flower in wonder in the hot summer night air until it moved on. It felt both strange and wonderful to witness and I don’t know why it surprised me to see; if there are flowers thriving in the city, surely there could be Sphinx moths ?

This fortuitous moment inspired the jewel on offer here : a hybrid creature, a moth that is a Datura, a Datura that is a moth. Its sinuous body is meant to evoke the rippling petals of the Datura flower in bloom while also retaining the gesture and features of a moth, albeit one born from dreams rather than natural history. 

Moths have long been a creature I’ve used in the library of my personal symbology within BloodMilk. As a symbol of transformation: beginning their lives as caterpillars, they gorge themselves before outgrowing their exoskeletons. They will sometimes shed their skins ( like a snake ! ) up to five times with their final time forming its chrysalis or pupa. ( Find our Sphinx Chrysalis jewel here ). This is the fascinating / magical part for me: their caterpillar bodies will begin to disintegrate into a kind of jelly yet its believed they retain some of their memories as their new body moth body forms in the velvety dark protection of its cocoon. Once its ready to emerge, it begins to break free and its struggle to release itself also helps pump fluid and energy into its wings. Moth signifies, a period of patience, surrender and profound transformation or awakening through introspection. Just like Datura, Moth is linked to the Unseen world and many feel that moths are messengers from the spirit world, bringing signs from their beloved dead to them.

 *Details* :

- 40 mm wide 

- 29 mm from top to bottom  

- Solid sterling silver: oxidized to achieve a stormy gray. Hand polished to reveal the luminous silver tones beneath.  

- Seen on Miguel on a 18 inch chain

- Set with one 20 mm fine cut tourmalated quartz stone

Black Tourmaline Quartz:  Black Tourmaline Quartz is a variety of clear quartz with naturally occurring needle-like inclusions of black tourmaline. Quartz is a considered the 'Master Healer, and is known for its propensity to improve memory and bring clarity to the consciousness. In this way, it is also a helpful tool in meditation. Black Tourmaline Quartz is well known for its protection qualities, acting as psychic armor against negativity and psychic attacks. 

This jewel is hand cut and therefore may have small signs of the carver's hands along the edges. It has not been fabricated by a machine rather it hand cut and therefore might not be uniformly perfect. The photographs accurately portray the quality of the stone and the cut. 

***IMPORTANT***

This jewel is handmade to order, just for you, with care and focus. Please allow approximately 6-8 weeks for creation before shipping.                   

Visit the Policy Page to make an educated and informed purchase HERE.

If you have further questions, we are always here to serve you in a kind and timely manner: via bloodmilkjewels@gmail.com