Essi Seppälä is the woman behind Esmeralda Soul. She is a soulful and intuitive crystal jewelry maker. In this interview, she shares her path into her passion, healing and beautiful gems, and shares recommendations for everyone interested in wellbeing and crystals.
What is your career background like and what have you studied?
I have studied psychology in the Open University. After that, I went to study to be a mental health nurse. I had various interests and thoughts during my early career, for example, I was also interested in art therapy. I have worked as a psychiatric nurse and helping patients with mental problems and intoxicant addictions about 10 years in a psychiatric hospital. After that, I took a bit different turn on my career path. I have studied many alternative healing methods, for example Shindo, Reiki healing, CST, sound healing etc., and I have applied these learnings in my practice.
What do you do for living now?
I make jewelry from crystals and gems. Moreover, I arrange different kinds of courses around them. I also arrange sound healing sessions and participate in organizing retreats.
What got you into gems and crystals?
I have always been interested in gems, ever since I was a child – and always had lots of different kinds of gems at my home. After I got my first child, I did some soul-searching in order to clarify what I want to do next regarding my profession. One day I meditated and had a vision of a giant crystal quartz and realized that crystals had always been my biggest passion. In other words, the interest in crystals had always been there, but I never imagined they would be an essential part of my job. Yet, at the time, it made total sense: I had intuitively used crystals in my healing sessions, given them to my clients etc. Gems had always been there in a side role, but never as “the main actors”.
Photo by Essi Seppälä
How did you begin your jewelry-making career?
I had given a lot of gems to my friends as gifts. At some point I wondered how to make people wear the gem so that it wouldn’t be such a hassle to always put it somewhere, like in a bag, pocket, wherever. I figured to make a little “net pouch” for the gem with my sister, to make it a little bit easier to wear the gem as jewelry. This led me to the path of making jewelry and dreamcatchers, in which the gem was always in the main role. I only participated in a few jewelry making courses or jeweler trainings. The main agenda of my jewelry making is that the gem will always be with the person in a very natural and pleasant way. It was perfect that I could transform my passion and love for the crystals into an entrepreneur career!
What is the process of making jewelry like?
I always listen to my intuition when making jewelry. However, I also prefer clients to participate in choosing the right gem for themselves – eventually they are the experts of their own needs. Depending on the case, clients might have a clear vision of the crystal they want, yet sometimes I am helping in choosing the crystal. In this case, I would send some pictures and tell about the properties of the crystals to the customer. In the end, I try to emphasize that we, ourselves, need to be the active ones when taking care of our wellbeing. Crystals can support you but are not miracle-makers.
For more than a year now, I have run my web-shop where people can also find crystals and jewelry for online ordering.
Do you have a favorite gem or crystal?
Yes I have, Clear quartz crystal, which I sometimes call my “soul crystal”. Clear quartz is widely called the “master healer” because of its versatile healing properties. For me personally, this gem is very clarifying, empowering and grounding. Naturally, many other crystals also resonate with me.
How to take care of the gems and the jewelry? How to cleanse their energy?
Keep it simple. The gems are a part of nature. Get to know the composition of the gem, for example, can it handle water or sunlight? If it can handle moisture and water, you can bury it on the ground for cleansing. By doing this, the gem is closer to its original source, where it has found. Moonlight is also widely used. On the other hand, you can boost your gem’s energy by exposing it to sunlight. Smudging and making sounds are also common ways to cleanse your crystals. Simply loving your gem is a good way to keep it in a good condition. Most importantly, remember to show gratitude and love for your crystal – a precious gift from mother nature.
What about when the gem gets broken, what does it tell?
Okay, sometimes accidents happen. But if you feel like there could be some deeper meaning behind it, you can take a moment and listen to yourself. Perhaps if the stone has broken in half, it can mean that there is someone in your life who may need the other part. On the other hand, have you remembered to take care of your crystal’s energy and give it a rest from time to time – or cleanse it on a regular basis? Sometimes crystal’s journey with people ends, and the gem can be placed back to nature – to its origin.
Photo by: Essi Seppälä
Do you have any recommendations for newbies with gems?
Usually I recommend quartz crystals for beginners, for example clear quartz, rose quartz, amethyst and smoky quartz. These gems have a long and widely used history in crystal healing. You can also visit a crystal shop and see if some crystal catches you eye.
In my crystal healing sessions, I like to use quartz crystals. I recommend starting with one or two crystals only. That way you can better focus and identify the effects of the gem in your daily life. Be patient, there is no need to rush to buy more crystals in a short period of time, level-headed consuming also applies to crystals.
Final words for our readers?
Make it simple and keep it connected to your life. Listen to yourself, that is the most important thing. All in all, crystals and gems are a part of nature and they can remind us of our connection to it.