Put blue sandstone under a jeweler's loupe and the night sky turns out to be suspiciously tidy. Every "star" is a tiny flat crystal, and they come in very nearly the same shape and size, scattered evenly through deep blue glass. No natural stone grows its sparkle that neatly, and that's the giveaway: blue sandstone is made in a glassworks, not dug from the ground.
The blue sandstone meaning is big goals and a calm mind: a midnight-blue stone for aiming high without losing your cool. And since blue sandstone rings are so popular, the question of whether it's tough enough to wear every day gets a straight answer.
Blue sandstone quick facts
- Chakra: Throat, third eye
- Zodiac: Sagittarius
- Element: Water
- Planet: Jupiter
- Color: Midnight to royal blue, full of silvery sparkle
- Hardness: About 5.5 to 6 on the Mohs scale, like other glass
- Commonly from: Glassworks (man-made)
- Pairs with: lapis lazuli, sodalite, red goldstone
Big goals, a clear voice, a cool head
Big goals. Blue sandstone is kept for the long-range plans, the ones that take years and a lot of small effort. Its scattered sparkle is a reminder that a big picture is built from many small points of light.
A clear voice. As a throat stone, it's linked to speaking up for your plans and owning them out loud, even before they're finished.
A cool head. Its deep blue keeps the drive in balance. It's chosen for staying calm and clear-eyed while the work is still underway.
Blue sandstone is the blue form of goldstone, the glitter glass first documented in 17th-century Venice. The full Venice history is in our goldstone guide.
Throat, third eye and Sagittarius
Blue sandstone is placed at the throat chakra, for confident speech, and the third eye, for vision and insight, both fitting its deep blue. Its sign is Sagittarius, ruled by Jupiter, the planet astrology ties to expansion and wide horizons, a match for a stone of big ambitions. Its element is water, for the calm that balances that drive.
Wishes, nightstands and first steps
- On a nightstand, as a small piece of night sky
- Beside a journal where long-term plans are written down
- In a pocket before a presentation or a pitch
- In meditation, gazing into the sparkle to settle the mind
- On a shelf in a child's room, for a sky full of wishes
- As a keepsake for someone who has just made a big decision
Say it to the stars. Set your blue sandstone on the nightstand. Before sleep, hold it and say out loud one thing you want to say tomorrow, at work or at home. In the morning, say it.
Blue sandstone or lapis lazuli?
Blue sandstone is often confused with lapis lazuli, a natural deep blue stone with its own sparkle. Up close they're easy to tell apart.
| Blue sandstone | Lapis lazuli | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Man-made glass | Natural rock |
| Sparkle | Tiny, even, silvery flecks everywhere | Scattered gold-colored pyrite flecks |
| Other colors | Deep blue only | White calcite streaks, sometimes gray |
| Hardness | About 5.5 to 6 | About 5 to 5.5 |
Even sparkle from edge to edge means blue sandstone. Gold flecks gathered in patches, with white streaks, mean lapis.
Tough enough for a ring?
Blue sandstone rings are a favorite for their galaxy look, but glass at 5.5 to 6 on the Mohs scale will scratch and scuff with daily wear, and the edges of a stone can chip if they knock against a counter. For a ring worn every day, a bezel setting, with metal wrapped around the stone's edge, protects it best. Even then, it suits a dress ring or an occasional ring better than a lifelong everyday engagement ring, unless the wearer is happy to see it age.
Blue sandstone and similar pieces in our shop
Blue sandstone is between batches in our shop. These pieces share its deep blue and its sparkle.
Wear a deep blue. Our lapis lazuli elephant necklace shares blue sandstone's throat and third eye chakras, with an elephant for good fortune.
Carry it. A lapis lazuli crystal chip pendulum brings the same midnight blue to a pocket or a meditation corner.
Keep the copper original. The goldstone tower glitters red-brown where blue sandstone glitters blue.
Lapis, sodalite and red goldstone
Lapis lazuli is the natural stone blue sandstone resembles most, and the two share the throat and third eye. The lapis lazuli guide covers its long history. Sodalite adds logic and clear thinking to blue sandstone's ambition (read the sodalite guide). Red goldstone makes a sunrise-and-midnight pair beside the blue.
Our throat chakra crystals collection holds more stones for confident speech.
Caring for glass that glitters
As glass, blue sandstone stands up to everyday use, but it can scratch against quartz and chip on a hard floor. Water is no problem: wash it in mild soapy water and dry it. Avoid sudden temperature changes, like moving it from hot water to cold, which can crack glass. To cleanse it, rest it on a window ledge after dark or beside a piece of clear quartz. Quick care facts for every stone we carry are in our crystal care chart. Every crystal in our shop is smudged with sage and charged in the moonlight before it ships.
Blue sandstone FAQ
Is blue sandstone the same as blue goldstone?
Yes. They're two names for the same cobalt-blue glitter glass. Blue goldstone is the more accurate name.
Is blue sandstone natural?
No. It's man-made glass, the blue version of goldstone.
Is blue sandstone water safe?
Yes. Glass isn't harmed by water. Just avoid sudden hot and cold changes.
Is blue sandstone expensive?
No. It's man-made glass, not a rare gem, so it's affordable.
Can you wear blue sandstone on your wrist?
Yes. Bracelets are fine for most days. Take it off for heavy work, since glass beads can chip if knocked against something hard.
See also: how to tell real crystals from man-made ones.
Why it's called sandstone
The name is a trade mistake that stuck. Goldstone has long been sold under the label "sandstone," especially on watch dials and in jewelry, though there's nothing sandy about it, and blue sandstone carried the name along. The glass itself is made by melting silica with metal oxides and holding the melt at a narrow temperature with little air, so tiny flat metal crystals form and spread through it. Cobalt gives the glass its deep blue. Against that blue the crystals look silvery instead of coppery, and under magnification they show the even shapes and sizes that mark it as made, not mined.
Each piece we sell is one of a kind, and the one pictured is the one you'll receive.