How to cleanse crystals, according to experts - even if it's not a full moon

So you're getting into crystals and learning all about their energies - but do you know how to cleanse crystals? If not, listen up because cleansing crystals is an essential part of charging them up to reach their highest energetic potential.

Before you even embark on discovering how to use crystals in the home, helping them help you is a must. Leading crystal expert Emma Lucy Knowles tells woman&home, "Much like a sponge, your crystals soak up the remanence of your emotion." Therefore cleansing negativity away is essential to attract more positive energy to your home. 

Remember, it’s important to know the types of crystals and consider their color and fragility when cleansing them as it's not necessarily a one size fits all process. Luckily enough there are many different options that you can try, to suit different types of crystals – as our experts explain.

How to cleanse crystals – 6 effective methods

"It's good practice to cleanse your crystals every month," says qualified crystal healer Astrid Carvel, author of The Little Book for Crystal Lovers. "If you regularly wear crystal jewelry, you should cleanse them even more often and every time after you have actively worked with a crystal."

There are plenty of quick and easy ways to cleanse your crystals. Emma, who is also the author of The Power of Crystal Healing, and resident crystal expert on the hit UK show This Morning, says, "you cannot beat the Moon when she is full for cleansing and charging your Crystals." 

Although consulting the moon Calendar 2022 and using a full moon to cleanse your crystals may be easy as pie, having one opportunity in the lunar cycle to charge them up won't suit everyone. So here are the other effective ways to recharge yours, with or without the moon...

1. Purify with smudging

Qualified crystal healer Astrid suggests smudging as an excellent way to say goodbye to any unwanted energies that your crystal collection has soaked up.

"Light some white sage or scented wood such as palo santo with a match or lighter and pass the crystal through the smoke to purify it," says Astrid. 

Make sure you're fire safe though and use a plate to collect any ash that falls while you're smudging.

2. Utilize moonlight

Mother moon has many uses, as we all know all too well, and on top of manifestation - you should add a good old crystal cleanse to your monthly full moon rituals.

"For those stones that are not soluble," says Emma, "I would run them through or bathe them in cold water before laying them out in the moonlight or on your window sill during a full moon."

3. Seek sunlight

Similarly to the moon, the natural light that beams from the sun provides the right kind of energy to cleanse crystals. 

"Place them in sunlight for a few hours," says Astrid, "and ask the light to cleanse and then recharge your crystals."

The expert warns, however, that this won't suit every stone. "Light-colored crystals, such as Rose Quartz, fade in sunlight and are more suited to other methods of cleansing."

4. Wash clean with water

You don't need a full moon for washing your crystals to have the desired effect, but you need to add a heavy dose of your own mental energy to rid your precious stones of nasty energies.

"Hold your crystal under running water and imagine the water washing away all the negative energy," says Astrid, who also warns, "fragile crystals such as Selenite, Black Tourmaline, Kyanite, and Iron Pyrite are not suitable for cleansing in water."

5. Nest them in salt

"When a full moon feels too long away, you can either wash them through or nest them in sand or natural salts," says Emma.

Emma goes on to explain, "Not all crystals can be cleansed with water so we can use other elements of mother earth's goodness to clear and power them up. All crystals can be nested in natural or Himalayan salts, or even a bowl of lavender – they are nurturing and grounding, energetically soaking up and out the emotion held within the crystal (which elementally is water) much like us bathing in them."

"I would say to do this for at least a day and overnight," suggests Emma. "Try placing them outside in a garden or on the window sill for the moonlight to deepen the cleansing, then in the morning sun they will be empowered with her light rays."

6. Use the frequency of sound

If you've had the joy of attending a gong bath or even been taken to another planet by that one piece of music that gets you every time - you're well aware of the transcendent capabilities of sound. These superpowers are also able to shake up your crystals and clear up all the unwanted energies that they've collected.

"Sound vibration is excellent for cleansing crystals," explains Astrid. "You can use small Tibetan cymbals known as tingshas, singing bowls, a tuning fork, or anything where sound frequency moves energy through the crystal."