Hi there crystal lovers, Im going to give you a few tips on crystal basics, cleansing, charging and choosing crystals, I hope this helps you in your crystal journey. Fistly, I just wanted to say, that I am no expert but these are things that I practice, everyone has their own methods and ways of doing things, but this it what my experience has been, crystals from me has always been about intuition and finding what works best for me. Choosing a crystal There are various ways of doing this, for some people it is intuative they can sense that the crystal needs to be in their lives for example not being able to stop thinking of a certain crystal or by seeing one and falling in love at first sight, another way is by researching something in paticular that you want to bring into your life or focus on, usually there is more than one crystal that fits the catagory but there maybe one that stands out, you feel particuarly drawn to or one may align more with other healing properties that you feel you are needing to bring into your life and lastly by holding a crystal and sensing how it makes you feel ... warm, sad, happy, anxious light hearted etc. Cleansing crystals I would reccomend doing this around once a month as crystals have the ability to absorb and hold both positive and negative energies, there are so many ways to cleanse crystals these days which makes cleansing them so easy! Selinite - Selinite is a self cleansing crystal and magnififier of energy, simply place your crystals on or around selinite for 24 hours and it will cleanse and charge them. Selinite bowls and charging plates make this method really easy. and the best part... selinite is super affordable Other crystals are self cleasing like citrine, carnelian and kynite so if you have a bowl of tumbles simply place these crystals in with them to keep them cleased at all times. Buryring crystals - Crystals love to be grounded .. just like we do, so although it can get messy and a little time consuming its another gret way to cleanse and charge your crystals, other options that can be used are: sand, garden soil or clay, this method is slow and and gentle and can range from 1 day to several days or even months. Full moon - Place your crystals out on the earth, I like to put them out just as the sun is setting, you may also put them inside on a window sill that the moonlight touches. I like charging them in the moonlight of the ful moon as not only does the moonlight charge the crystals but its also a time of letting go of what no longer serves us and a time to bring in new intentions Water - I like to use natual water e.g sea water, water from a lake or stream or rainwater but you can also use tap water. Be mindful with this method as some crystals such as malachite and selinite will be damaged with this method. Smudging with palo santo/ sage - This is a super easy method and is a quick way to clease not only crystals but also any unwaned or stagnent energy around our environment. We can also use this method to cleanse ourselves. This method releases certain elements into the air via smoke which can effectivley remove any toxic/ bad energy. A feather can be used to fan the smoke accross the crystals, 20 - 30 seconds should be enough. Charging crystals If you leave your crystal out in the full moon it will charge the natural properties of the crystal filling them with positive energy from the heavinly bodies, you can also charge them in the sunlight but please be mindful of crystals that are sensitive to light such as fluorite as this can affect them. It is also important to charge crystals with a specific intention. Program the crystal by focusing what energy you would like the crystal to possess, keep it to one intention and make the intention align with the healing properties of the crystal. Most important of all, have fun, use you intuition and try diffenernt things that work for you If you have any other ways you like to choose, charge or cleanse your crysals please leave a comment down below so others can try it too Mel x