Heathergem Thistle Pendant

Heathergems are handmade from the stems of heather, a common Scottish plant renowned for its purple bloom. The heather used is too old to provide any nutrition for wildlife and is pulled in a manner which promotes the growth of new heather.

The stems are dried, shotblasted to remove the bark and dyed various colors using natural dyes. Stems of different colors are then mixed together and compressed into a block. Eighty tons of pressure is required to press the block of stems together. The block is then cut into slices and individual pieces are cut, shaped and filed by skilled craftworkers before being lacquered to give the final finish. The Heathergem jewelry we offer are set into sterling silver fittings. Handcrafted in Pitlochry, Scotland.

Each Heathergem is unique, with it's own distinctive medley of colors typical of the Scottish moors -- orange, red, green, blue and purple. Sorry, we are not able to offer a choice of colors.

The thistle is the national flower of Scotland. At one time a band of English soldiers were sneaking up on a group of Scots at night when one of them stepped on a thistle and cried out, so alerting the Scots. Since then the thistle has held a place of honor in Scotland.