Frequently Asked Questions
Here is where we try to answer some of the most common questions
or requests we receive.  If you don't see it here, just ask!

How and when did you get in to rocks and minerals?

We have a friend who is Brazilian and he has been importing rocks and minerals from all over his native country Brazil to his home here in Florida for years.  We fell in love with the beauty, energy and metaphysics of the rocks and minerals he had.  Since we live closely to each other, I knew I could offer these fantastic rocks and minerals to my customers at a reasonable price.  (I don't have to pay shipping to get the goods from my supplier as many other rock sites do)  So, we decided to team up.  We did this in December of 2003.

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Do you have a physical store front?

No, we do not.  We save lots of money by working out of our home.  This means we don't have to increase our prices to pay a big overhead.  We pass the savings on to you!

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What's the difference between you and other rocks sites?

Well, in addition to having my friend as a supplier, I am able to get almost anything a customer asks for.  In other words, if a customer wants a Citrine Cathedral instead of an Amethyst Cathedral, I can go to the warehouse and take photos of Citrine specimens that are available.  In short, if you want something that you don't see on my site, there is a very good chance I can get it!  I also post the weight of each specimen/item.  Almost all rocks and minerals are sold, even to the supplier, by weight.  It is my duty to let you know the weight of the item(s) you are purchasing.  This is very helpful in comparing prices with other sites as well as determining the approximate shipping weight of your order.  However, it appears to me that very few sites publish the weights of the specimens they want you to purchase.  I think that is misleading and not the best practice.  Don't be afraid to ask!  Last but not least, we do our own photography and website work.  This allows us to be more rapidly responsive to our customers at lower cost.

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Why does your shopping cart collect $4.99 for shipping?

I think that the most difficult issue we have had with this web site is the shipping issue......:-(   I have done tons of research and looked at hundreds of other web sites to see what they do.  A major 'overhaul' or new shopping cart for us would not be cost effective and really isn't necessary.  We found many other sites doing primarily what we are.  We have the shopping cart collect the MINIMUM of ONE POUND for shipping.  I have addressed this on the policies and shipping page as well as IN the shopping cart and then again in the auto responder email you receive after purchasing.  It has worked really well so far.  Many of our items are less than a pound and can be shipped at the one pound rate, thus the decision to automatically collect the one pound minimum shipping amount.  For multiple items and items OVER one pound, we adjust the shipping accordingly at the time we ship to you and perform the final approval to your credit card.  Since I post the weight of each specimen, it is very easy to see if your order is going to go over the one pound minimum.  I do NOT profit from shipping as many retailers do.  Please pay attention to the weight of the items you purchase and remember there is some additional weight in the packaging material.

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What is Freespirit Emporium?

Freespirit Emporium is the love of my life!  LOL  It is where this all began years ago.  FSE is the first domain name I bought and registered.  We started with our fabulous handcrafted soaps, candles, lip balms and more....(and we still make soap!!  :-) )  Later, when we added rocks and minerals, I bought and registered Freespirit Rocks which resides as a 'sub' site of Freespirit Emporium......:-)

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Do you wholesale?

We get asked this question almost every single day, and strangely enough, it's the hardest to answer.  Many folks have written to me and made the comment that many of my prices were at or close to wholesale prices and they had the impression that my site was a wholesale site.  Well, it's not.  However, we do have many crafters who buy 'bulk' slabs and other items for use in their projects.  We do offer these folks a discount under certain circumstances.....ie  quantity, quality, minimum purchase of $100.00 before shipping, and so on.  We are considering devoting an entire site to the wholesale buyer to help meet the demand.  For now, we will continue to treat requests on an individual basis.

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Are there really different levels of quality in rocks and minerals?

Yes there absolutely is!  Rocks and minerals are 'graded' much like diamonds.  You can have a superior specimen with a grading as high as Extra Quality or AAA Quality.  Lesser qualities would be a low B Quality or C Quality.  Much depends on the clarity of the specimen.  The clearer the specimen, the higher the quality.  Geodes may be partially graded by the thickness of their 'matrix'.  A thinner matrix means higher quality as does darker, larger points.  However, you can have a high B Quality specimen and it would be very nice.  Obviously, the higher the grade, the higher the cost.  Many customers have some level of understanding of the quality of rocks and minerals.

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Do you really ship fast?

We normally ship the day after we receive your order.  We sometimes ship the same day if the order is received early enough.  Our customary shipping method is USPS Priority Mail up to 5 pounds.  We have found it to be cost effective to ship UPS Ground when the order exceeds 5 pounds.  (By the way, UPS rates increased 1/1/05)  PLEASE do not expect us to read your mind regarding shipping.  You have several ways to let us know if you have a preferred shipping method.  You can type anything you want in the comments section of the shopping cart.  For example, if you WANT your order to be shipped UPS regardless of the weight, please simply type that message to us in the comments section of the shopping cart as you check out.  You can also email me with your preference.  If anything about shipping is not clear to you, please let me know before placing an order.  I have a shipping question.

International shipping is accepted and we love our international customers.  However, it is costly, and for me to give you a shipping quote, I need the entire address including the postal code of where the package will be delivered.  I will calculate the shipping costs and email it to you to accept or decline.  You must  provide us a good email address to receive the shipping quote.

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Do you have any Reading recommendations?

I am often asked if I can recommend good starter books and yes, I can. There are several that are great for beginners.  We like The Illustrated Guide To Crystals by Judy Hall and The Crystal Bible by Judy Hall.  These are easy reads and have great illustrations.  We also recommend books by Diane Stein who is a customer of ours we are proud to say.  She is a best selling author who writes books dealing with Reiki, Psychic Healing, Gemstone and Crystal Healing and more!  We encourage you to purchase these books from Amazon through us.  They really offer books at fantastic prices!  You can go here to find more great books.  We think you will enjoy the Reading and Resources Room!

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