LEPIDOLITE.
The Pink Dragon
Lepidolite is a natural healer. It has tranquil, balancing, and soothing energy, perfect for those with anxiety, stress, or burnout. The surface of noduler Lepidolite sometimes resembles that of a dragon egg calling the mystical Dragon spirit to you. Lepidolite aligns with its Dragon spirit to aid in personal transformation, sharing its strength and wisdom to bring your power back to you. You are safe in your dragon’s embrace so let your anxieties and fears flow away on a river of cosmic relaxation. A guardian stone, its delicate colour belies its extremely protective qualities, absorbing the negative energies that may surround you, so you don’t have to, making it ideal for empaths or those sensitive to vibes.
Lepidolite is a form of lithium-bearing mica. It has a scaly surface due to its stacked layers of material. Its delicate colouring comes from Manganese and this can create beautiful lilac purples and rosy pinks, each with a silvery sheen. Lepidolite flakes are often found in pink and red Aventurine, giving it its colour and aventurescence shine. Less common colours of Lepidolite include grey, yellow, or even colourless. Lepidolite can form as a “massive” habitat, flat sheets called “books” or curved sheets which form botryoidal-shaped nodule-type clusters (main image).
Lepidolite in massive habitat
© Smithsonian
Polished Lepidolite tumble.
Lepidolite is mined in Brazil, Japan, the US, Sweden, Russia, Western Australia, Canada, and Madagascar. It is extracted for the crystal industry, as mineral specimens for collectors and as a compound for use in enamel. It used to be mined for its Lithium content but other sources of this element have since been found. Lithium is used in rechargeable batteries as you would find in your mobile phone, electric car, or laptop, and also mood-stabilizing and anti-anxiety medicines - disclaimer - do not ingest Lepidolite like a pill.
Buyer’s Guide to Lepidolite
Private Buyers
Lepidolite is such a cool crystal. It speaks to almost everyone on some level and I always feel it sparks a little joy. Its glittery appearance and gentle colouring give it great appeal. With Lepidolite a little goes a long way. I would recommend if you are using it as a spiritual tool a simple tumble will serve you well. Keep it close, on your desk, next to your bed or in a pouch in your handbag. It is a little delicate so won’t appreciate the rough handling it may get in a pocket or loose in a handbag. When you are buying a Lepidolite tumble or palm stone always check for damage and that it has some sparkle - it looks great in either pink or lilac purple, it’s your preference. If you want a particularly boujee piece then go for a high-grade palm stone with a deep purple colour and huge flash across its surface. Expect to pay $/€ 60-150 for a palm stone size piece.
If you are buying Lepidolite as a specimen collector then I would look for the more interesting habitats. A purple-lilac botryoidal cluster with curved flaky layers giving it the appearance of a dragon egg. If you would like a few pieces then look for the “book” habitat with its flat layers. You can find these in pale lilac, vivid pink and sometimes you can get slices with pink and purple. For those wishing to drop some dosh then you can get exquisite “book” habitat pieces from California, in the US, and also unusual colours such as yellow from Minas Gerais, in Brazil.
Lepidolite is fragile so you should always handle it with care. If you are buying specimens then they are best kept in a cabinet and cleaned very carefully with a make-up brush or soft long bristle paint brush.
High-grade polished Lepidolite.
Retail Buyers
Lepidolite was always a top-selling crystal in both the retail store and online store. A lot of people are looking for anti-anxiety crystals and its lilac, pink colour makes it very popular. The majority of this material that we handled was either in pink pocket stone size tumbles or as chunks of raw lilac-coloured botryoidal formations. The occasional tower slipped its way into an Instagram Live Sale. If you are considering buying towers always check for damage, due to the way this crystal forms it is delicate and prone to breakage. If towers come with glue to protect the tips, warm this with water to soften it before removing it or you will snap the top off the tower.
I would recommend tumbles and some raw pieces if you can get some good-quality ones. The raw pieces do require careful packing for ecommerce sales though. You can scale up a bit and sell palm stones just watch out for breakage at this size, and veer for more pinkish colours if you can. They will retail for $/€ 12-18 per piece depending on the quality.
Recently there have been some spectacular gemmy Lepidolite palm stones on the market. These are high-polish, rich in the deep lilac colour, and have an amazing flash across their surface when the stone is moved about. You can expect to retail these for anything from $/€ 30-200 per piece depending on the size and quality.
Lepidolite tumbles can be kept in bowls if you are selling out of a retail store, plam stones can chip with rough handling so a large bowl or laid out separately works best. Raw pieces will crumble and you will find Lepidolite “dandruff” on your shelves. If you are shipping Lepidolite always give it a little extra padding and inform people online that raw piece may flake during and after transit.
Quick Guide | Lepidolite
Zodiac: Lepidolite is associated with the zodiac sign Libra.
Ruling Planet: The ruling planets for Lepidolite are Neptune and Jupiter.
Chakra: Lepidolite is associated with the Third Eye (Ajna) Chakra
Element: Lepidolite is aligned with the element Water.
Crystal Charging: Lepidolite can be charged overnight under the light of a Full Moon. Lepidolite absorbs negative energy but it does not store that negative energy or energy build-up in general, it kind of just displaces it, like a redirect link. It is a ready-to-go crystal. If you would like to give it an extra cleanse then place it on some Selenite overnight, these two crystals pair very well together.
Crystal Elixir: Lepidolite is a form of Mica and while it is considered non-toxic and safe in small quantities it is generally not advised to ingest it. A quick dunk of a well-polished Lepidolite tumble should be safe enough to create a crystal elixir. However, do not soak Lepidolite (especially raw) in water, not only may this damage the surface of the crystal but it may leech some of its minerals into the water. There are better, safer crystals to use for anxiety in crystal elixirs such as Botswana Agate or Pink Chalcedony therefore I would advise that Lepidolite in general should not be used to make crystal elixir.
Crystal Care: Lepidolite can be cleaned with lukewarm soapy water (quickly - do not soak) or a soft cloth if it is a tumble or polished stone, and if it is in raw format then gently with a compressed air duster or a soft brush such as a make-up brush.
The chemical formula for Lepidolite: K(Li,Al,Rb)₂(Al,Si)₄O₁₀(F,OH)₂