The natural stones of Alison Mariot: what they are and what they stand for

Every stone in an Alison Mariot piece is 100% natural. Nothing synthetic, nothing lab-grown, no coloured glass.

That has an immediate consequence: no two pieces are identical. The stone you receive has a pattern of veining, a depth of colour and a tone that will not repeat.

This guide describes the stones we work with, how they look, and what they have stood for across the centuries.

Blue

Turquoise — sky blue crossed by copper veining that runs through it like a map. One of the oldest stones ever worn; Egyptians and Persians tied it to protection while travelling.

Blue Apatite — a deeper, almost oceanic blue with visible translucency. It shifts tone under different light.

London Blue Topaz — dark blue with a trace of grey. Quieter than the others, and more formal.

Lapis Lazuli — saturated blue flecked with gold pyrite. The stone of kings, once ground to make the ultramarine that Renaissance painters valued as highly as gold.

Aquamarine — pale, transparent blue, like shallow water. The name comes from the Latin for sea water. Traditionally associated with sailors and safe passage.

Blue Tiger Eye — blue-grey with a band of light that moves as you turn it. That effect is called chatoyance, and glass cannot imitate it.

Green

Green Apatite — vivid green, from olive tones to emerald. One of the most variable stones we use; two identical rings never look quite the same.

Prehnite — pale green, almost yellow, with a soft waxy lustre. Long associated with calm and balance.

Malachite — deep green in concentric bands of light and dark. The pattern is distinctive enough that it is mistaken for nothing else.

Green Jasper — dark, opaque green with fine veining. A stone tradition links to endurance.

Red and pink

Red Ruby — the most intense red in the collection. Since antiquity the ruby has been called the stone of passion and courage; in India it was known as the king of gems.

Red Jade — a deeper, earthier red. In Chinese culture jade has stood for fortune and protection for thousands of years.

Pink Aventurine — soft pink with fine glints inside. That shimmer comes from mineral inclusions, not from treatment.

Rose Quartz — translucent, quiet pink. The stone most tied to love across different traditions.

Purple

Amethyst Copper — purple with copper veining running across the surface. A rare combination, and one of the most requested in MERAKI.

Amethyst-Prehnite — purple and green in the same stone. No two pieces carry the same balance of colour.

Amethyst was called the stone of clarity by the ancient Greeks — the name comes from améthystos, meaning “not intoxicated”.

Black and grey

Black Onyx — solid black, polished to a surface that reflects light like a dark mirror. The stone our customers choose most; traditionally linked to grounding and protection.

Labradorite — grey at first glance, but move it and blue, green and gold appear. The effect is called labradorescence and has made it a legend among stones.

Volcanic stone — black, porous, raw in texture. Born from hardened lava and never polished: its character is its roughness.

Grey Jasper — grey with darker veining, quiet and masculine.

White and neutral

Natural pearl — the only “stone” that comes from a living creature. Every pearl has its own shape and lustre; the perfect ones are rare, and that is precisely why they are prized.

Opal — milky white with colour that shifts with the angle. No opal repeats the pattern of another.

Botswana Agate — fine bands of grey, white and pink, formed in layers.

Tiger Eye — golden brown, with the same band of moving light as the blue version.

Snow Quartz — opaque white, like packed snow.

Why no two pieces are identical

When a stone forms in the earth rather than in a laboratory, its colour, depth and inclusions depend on the conditions in which it was made.

That is why the same note appears on all of our product pages: the stone may vary slightly in tone due to its natural origin. This is not a defect — it is the evidence that the stone is real.

A synthetic stone would be flawless and identical in every piece. That is exactly what we do not want.

How to care for them

• A soft dry cloth is enough to bring back the depth of the colour
• Avoid chemical cleaners and ultrasonic devices
• Remove jewellery before swimming and sauna
• Pearls and opals are the softest — keep them away from perfume and store them separately
• Keep each piece in its own box, not mixed with others

A note on meanings

The meanings described above come from tradition, history and culture — from the way people have seen these stones across the centuries.

They are not scientific claims and they have nothing to do with health. We mention them because they are part of the history of these stones, not because we are promising anything.

What we do promise is concrete: the stone is natural, the finish is 18K gold vermeil at 3 microns, and every piece carries a two-year warranty.

See the full MERAKI collection.