From geology to the metaphysical: Crystal Festival heads to Colorado Springs to celebrate rocks, gems and minerals
Toothpaste. A Frosty. Aluminum foil. Ceramic toilets. Eyeshadow.
There’s something these items have in common — they contain minerals.
Showing people how much they rely on rocks and minerals in day-to-day life is one of the main goals of the Crystal Festival, said curator Adrienne McElwain.
The Crystal Festival will be coming to the Colorado Springs Event Center this weekend, with more than 40 vendors specializing in rocks, minerals, gems and crystals. Most vendors are from Colorado, Arizona and Utah.
“We have a little bit of everything — from the geology end of it, all the way to the metaphysical end of it,” McElwain said.
An important tenet of the festival is education. Vendors will have educational displays, and there will be authors and experts in geology and rock collecting. The festival will also host mine owners and prospectors, including western Colorado’s Hummingbird Mine, an amethyst mine.
There will also be a kids corner, where children can put together some gemstone pins to take home and learn about geology.
“We really focus on the education end of it — getting people out rock hunting and getting them collecting, and all the different ways that people enjoy rocks and minerals, from learning to collect them and cut and polish them, to doing crystal grids and tarot readings with them,” McElwain said.
McElwain started the festival 14 years ago with several friends who made art with different stones and crystals. At the time, it was just a trunk show in Utah.
“We kind of just all got together on our own, and we wanted an outlet,” McElwain said. “I kept the shows going, and eventually started renting conference centers and expos to host them in because more and more people just kept wanting to join in.”
Now, the show has grown into a large community event, sharing the love of rocks and minerals around the country — and educating rock lovers on how to properly pursue their interest in rock hunting.
“Our goal is to expand the love of rocks and minerals and keep that hobby alive,” she said. “We’re just a really close community. … We hang out after the show, the community comes and helps put it together.”
