How Our Crystal Skulls Are Made

June 13, 2022

Hand carving our crystal skulls

Our hand-carved crystal skulls are some of our most popular products, and people are always amazed when they find out that we carve them ourselves in our factory.

Surely nothing that beautiful and perfect can be made by hand and replicated hundreds of times?

We’ve written this article to explain our process to you, to share the love that goes into creating each and every skull, and to quell any rumor that these stunning crystal skulls are not hand crafted.

Here is a link to our TikTok video of us carving our skulls: https://www.tiktok.com/@fortunelucksuccessshop/video/7106269072710454571?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc&web_id=7093600769648379393

Why we make skulls?

Skulls represent many different things and can bring peace, strength, and wisdom to many who incorporate their spiritual energy into their lives.

Often linked with death and darkness, skulls also have a lighter and more powerful connection. They represent power, knowledge, and peace and have been used in many different forms throughout history.

Skulls symbolize:

Transformation- our skull is continually transforming, as we grow from baby to adult, as we learn about the world, and again being revealed in death.

Wisdom- The skull houses our most vital and knowledgeable organ. Many believe the soul resides within the third eye, in the center of the head.

The Unknown- The skull ignites interest in so many yet remains unseen throughout life. It is only in death the skull becomes visible and death is also unknown.

That We Are All One- Skulls bring us together, we are all the same. They represent the circle of life being symbols of both birth and death.

What is Crystal Carving?

Carving crystals comes under Hardstone Carving which is a form of artistic carving of semi-precious stones, these can include both jewelry making and sculpture.

Semi-precious stones and crystals used in our skulls include:

Amethyst
Jade,
Rock crystal (clear quartz),
Agate,
Onyx,
Jasper,
Serpentinite,
Carnelian,

And over 40 different stones & crystals available. We add to our collections every week.

How do we make our crystal skulls?

Tools needed for crystal carving

There are lots of different tools and safety aspects that need to be taken into consideration when making our crystal skulls. The crafter needs to make sure they protect their eyes and airways from dust and debris. The machinery used to create our skulls is very fast and care must be taken at all times to avoid injury and mistakes when creating the crystal skulls.

Safety glasses and a dust mask
A high-quality rotary tool with a flexible shaft
Frame saw and diamond wire hand saw blades (for cutting)
Diamond cutting wheels/slitting discs (for cutting, shaping, and outlining)
Diamond burrs (for carving, engraving, grinding, deburring, and shaping)
Diamond drills (for drilling holes and diamond twist drills for enlarging holes)
Polishing wheel (for polishing and buffing)
Polishing compounds or rotary tool polishers (for finishing)

How to Carve Crystal

The carving of our crystal skulls is a 4-step process:

First, we cut the basic skull shape out of the crystal
Next, we carve out the details of the skulls, including the cheekbones, eye sockets, and teeth
Next, we sand and smooth down the whole skull
Finally, we polish the skull

How to use the crystal carving tools

Carving tools

The Dremel rotary tool is a great tool for carving our crystal skulls. It is very versatile and has attachments for carving, polishing, cutting, grinding, engraving, drilling, and sanding.

How to use the Dremel

Insert the diamond cutting disc, diamond burr, or diamond drill bit into the end of the Dremel, this part is called the chuck or collet and uses a screw mechanism to hold each tool in place.
The flexible shaft ensures a comfortable grip and a safe holding distance between the moving part of the Dremel and the handle.
The crystal must be kept lubricated whilst being carved, water is ideal.
Safety glasses and a dust mask must be worn when carving and many of our crafters choose to wear finger tape to protect their fingers from cuts and grazes.

Cutting Tools

There are a variety of cutting tools available for cutting crystal and semi-precious stones. They vary in size so that different complexities of designs can be achieved.

To make our crystal skulls we use diamond cutting wheels or slitting discs attached to a rotary tool depending on which part of the skull we are working on. Slitting discs are ideal for creating the teeth design on our skulls.

Water is also needed during the cutting process and used as lubrication between crystal and machine.

Polishing tools

Polishing our crystal skulls is done using an abrasive and then finished off with polishing.

Our polishing rotary tools come with a range of different discs ranging from rough to ultra-smooth to ensure each skull is finished to a high quality.

A polishing paste is used in the last part of the process.

How to use our polishing tool

Attach a 120-grit wheel, disc, or belt to the polishing machine.
We start with a light pressure and increase until we see the sanding happen.
We move the crystal around continually to stop gouges, chips, and undercutting from occurring
We then move up the sanding material to the next grit level and repeat the process until we are using the 1,200-grit material.
Once sanding is complete a buffing pad is added to the polisher and polishing compound paste is added to the crystal
We hold the crystal skull against the buffing pad, moving it in all directions until shiny and mirror-like.

Tips we use for carving crystal

Carving and cutting tools should never be run dry, as excessive heat will shorten their life and cause breakages.
Water is an excellent lubricant, that will reduce dust and keep your tools running smoothly.
Never inhale the dust created – always wear protective equipment such as a dust mask.
Carving can be hard work and is very repetitive, make sure to have good posture and look after your body.
Make sure to work in a well-lit area.