The future is clear for Amy Dumond's crystal business

LACONIA — Amy Dumond tries to keep a crystal in her hand or a pocket at all times.

“It gives me peace,” she explained.

Passing that peace on to others is her work now.

Since 2021, Dumond, of Bristol, has operated Amy’s Crystal Creations in various locations in the region, and she recently moved her store to 371 Union Ave., Unit B, and is pleased to be in an area with a lot of consumer traffic.

She has something for young collectors, as well as those looking for rarer finds such as lemurian and citrine. Her wares range from polished, tumbled crystals to beaded bracelets and pendants, and a wide variety of carved and raw crystals.

“They put out the most energy, and I’m more drawn to that,” she said of the rarer minerals.

She opened her new location at the end of June, and while her official hours are 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday through Friday, and noon to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, she is caring for aging parents, and recently they have needed her help quite a bit, so her store hasn’t been open as reliably.

She suggests crystal seekers message her on Facebook or Instagram before visiting to make sure she’s open, or reach out via the store’s phone at 603-800-6871.

“If the ‘Open’ flag is out, the store is open,” she added. “I hate to keep people from their crystals.”

She’s done it all

Dumond moved around the country a lot as a child. Born in Lawrence, Massachusetts, she has also lived in Manhattan; Tampa, Florida; and Hudson.

After she graduated from high school in 1988, she took courses toward a liberal arts degree at Northern Essex Community College, and over several decades worked in many industries — as a claims processor for Aetna insurance, a bartender, a clerk at Filene’s, and at Hannaford, where she identified shoplifters.

“I still can’t go shopping without seeing people stealing,” she said.

In 2021, she turned her passion for crystals into a business, first selling out of her home, on Instagram and at fairs, and later opening a small shop at the Tanger outlets in Tilton. She moved to the Village at Paugus Bay in Laconia, but sales slumped there, so she went back to selling on Instagram and at fairs, which she continues to do.

“It looked like a crystal shop exploded in my bedroom, so I looked for a space in Laconia,” she said.

Intrigued as a child

Dumond’s fascination with gemstones began in 1980, when she was 10 and living in Methuen, Massachusetts. She visited the Boston Museum of Science on occasion, and never missed the chance to buy a crystal in the gift shop.

In 1992, her family moved to Tampa, and Dumond grew her collection from several crystal kiosks at the local flea market. “I really expanded my collection there, and I still have all the little crystals I collected in my storage unit,” she said. “I love the positive energy I get out of crystals. I’m sensitive to the vibrations that come out of them. Some of them give me a warm feeling.

“Collecting turned into an addiction to find crystals that are rarer or harder to find,” Dumond added. “I have a lot of wholesalers from all over the world. I do research.”

She noted that when she began collecting, there were few crystal shops, but, “This industry has exploded since COVID into this crazy huge industry.”

The crystal craze

Dumond said quartz is known as the master healer, including smoky quartz and rose quartz.

Citrine, one of the rarest crystals, said to generate joy and happiness, starts out as quartz, but continues to radiate and bake in the Earth, turning into a smoky gold color over millions of years. Because natural citrine is so rare, Dumond said there is a lot of citrine on the market now that’s fired in a kiln.

Lemurian, another type of powerful crystal, is also rare. They grow to a certain size and then fall away from the cluster in finger-sized points known as lemurian seeds.

“In ancient times, people would go in caves and find them scattered on the ground,” Dumond said. “They thought they were seeded there by the gods as the seeds of knowledge. They put out a higher vibration and more energy.”

Dumond uses her own crystals for emotional balance and in meditation.

“They are grounding and help you manifest things in your life,” she said. “They help you concentrate your energy and amplify what you’re trying to accomplish. Most people gravitate toward crystal because they have a lot of stress in their lives.”