Last week I had the very lovely privilege to share a collection of moonstone jewelry from a wide range of brands and designers. As moonstone is one of my favorite gemstones, each image was a total thrill—and potentially hazardous to my savings account.
While each supplier featured had a range of moonstone jewelry to offer, I was able to zone in on one particularly special style to include in the roundup—a game I really enjoy. Fun fact: When I worked as a retailer, I used to paw through JCK magazine and select my favorite piece from each page, pretending I would come away with them in the end—call it an early version of Britt’s Pick, I suppose.
So picking a preferred piece from each designer was a piece of cake—except when it came to Rachel Atherley.
The Hudson Valley, N.Y.–based designer (who was born and raised in Montana) boasts a line of work that equates to a moonstone lover’s paradise. Atherley works with a myriad of colored gemstones, but her rainbow moonstone selection is seriously the stuff of dreams.
“I don’t have any favorites [stones]—I love so many it’s impossible to choose,” says Atherley. “But I am always drawn to blues and greens, and the flash in rainbow moonstone seems like the closest thing to actual magic.”
Her designs mix a sculptural elegance with a bubbly jubilance, making each style versatile for the most buttoned-up among us, and the freest spirits too.
Earlier this week I shared a host of scarab jewelry (as a follow-up to the much beloved—not!—cicada story). Well, as it turns out, Atherley has something of an affinity for scarabs, too. And scarabs in moonstone? Take. My. Money. It’s like I’ve come upon my very own spirit jeweler, if that can be a thing (it’s definitely a thing).
Note that there’s an assortment of scarab-themed pieces crafted in alternate gemstones, much like the gorgeous labradorite piece above.
Atherley’s love for the scarab can be traced back to elementary school, when she became interested in ancient Egypt. “I made many things in art classes throughout the years with the scarab—I even have a pencil jar on my desk that I created in high school ceramics class that has a scarab relief on the outside,” she says. “I love the idea that the scarab embodied the symbolism of rebirth, transformation, luck, and protection to the Egyptians. You can’t really pack more into one talisman than that. I like to wear the scarabs to remind me to believe in myself and follow my heart, and thus I can create my own luck.”
Gemstone-minded customers will love the variety the designer offers—her pieces range from centerpiece-style necklaces and earrings that gather rounded and flat pear-shape stones in feather-like plumes, to contrastingly streamlined styles with fewer gemstones but not an ounce less detail.
Expect to fall in love with other gemstone varieties from the designer—labradorite, kyanite, quartz, tourmaline, and fluorite, just to name a handful—but it’s the magical moonstone treasures that feel especially swoon-worthy given we’re in the midst of June.
And a very important note for retailers: Rachel Atherley offers all styles crafted in recycled gold and silver—a strong selling point for many customers seeking responsibly made goods.
Top: Caviar earrings in 14k yellow gold with rainbow moonstone, $1,375; Rachel Atherley
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