Moonstone Beads Guide: White, Peach, Grey and Rainbow Moonstone
Moonstone is a feldspar, usually orthoclase layered with albite, and its signature is adularescence: a soft glow that seems to float just under the surface and drift across the bead as you turn it. Moonstone beads come in white, peach, grey, chocolate brown and mixed colors, and all of them show that sheen to some degree. Rainbow moonstone, the other big seller, is a trade name for white labradorite with a blue flash, a different feldspar that the trade has called moonstone for decades. Here is what each type is, how to tell them apart and how to care for them.
Every variety below is in our moonstone bead collection. Moonstone also shares June with pearl, so you will find it among our June birthstone beads as well.
What Is Moonstone?
Moonstone begins as a hot mix of 2 feldspars, potassium-rich orthoclase and sodium-rich albite. As the rock cools slowly, the 2 separate into extremely thin, alternating layers stacked like the pages of a book, and light scattering off those layers is the glow you see. Thin layers give a bluish sheen; thicker layers give a white, milky one.
The effect takes its name from adularia, a moonstone feldspar named for the Adula mountains of Switzerland. Sri Lanka is the classic source of fine blue-sheen moonstone, and India supplies much of the colored moonstone and rainbow moonstone cut into beads, with more from Madagascar and Tanzania.
Moonstone Types at a Glance
| Type | Body color and sheen | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| White moonstone | Milky white to nearly clear, with a white or faint blue glow | Classic orthoclase moonstone |
| Rainbow moonstone | Nearly colorless to white, with a blue flash and sometimes violet or gold | Trade name for white labradorite, a plagioclase feldspar |
| Peach moonstone | Apricot, salmon and pinkish tan, with a soft glow | Moonstone with a warm body color |
| Grey and greyish brown moonstone | Smoky grey to taupe, with a silvery sheen | Moonstone with a darker body color, often sold as mixed strands |
| Chocolate and black moonstone | Coffee brown to near black, with a moving silver highlight | The darkest body colors of moonstone |
| Multicolor moonstone | White, peach, grey and brown on one strand | A mix of moonstone colors, sold random or ombre |
| Tourmalated moonstone | White or rainbow moonstone threaded with black needles | Moonstone with black tourmaline inclusions |
White Moonstone
White moonstone is the classic look: a milky, translucent bead with a white glow that turns faintly blue in the best pieces. Strands range from almost glassy to a soft creamy white. In fine gems, a colorless body with a strong blue sheen is the ideal; in beads, a white sheen over a slightly cloudy body is normal, and the glow, not perfect clarity, is what makes the strand. White moonstone is cut in nearly every format, from smooth rounds to tiny microfaceted rounds that work as bright spacers.
Rainbow Moonstone Is White Labradorite
Rainbow moonstone is not orthoclase moonstone. It is a nearly colorless form of labradorite, a plagioclase feldspar, and its flash comes from the same kind of thin internal layering that gives grey labradorite beads their blue and green fire. Gemologists draw the line between the 2, but "rainbow moonstone" is the accepted trade name and every dealer uses it, so you will see it on our strands too.
The difference you can see is in the light. Classic moonstone glows softly from within over a broad area. Rainbow moonstone shows a sharper, brighter flash, usually blue and sometimes violet, green or gold, that appears only when the bead faces the light at the right angle; our smooth rainbow moonstone shows it well. Most rainbow moonstone also carries dark specks or short black needles, frequently black tourmaline.
Peach Moonstone
Peach moonstone has a warm body color, from pale apricot to salmon and pinkish tan, with the same soft glow floating over it. The color is usually put down to traces of iron and fine inclusions in the feldspar. Strands vary from bead to bead, and mixed strands such as our peach moonstone mix run through cream and grey as well. Peach moonstone is often confused with sunstone, another feldspar in the same color range, but sunstone glitters with tiny metallic flecks while peach moonstone glows without sparkle.
Grey, Chocolate and Black Moonstone
A darker body color turns moonstone's glow into a silvery highlight that slides across the bead, like light on wet stone. Grey moonstone runs from pale smoky grey to taupe, and greyish brown strands mix the 2; grey microfaceted moonstone is a quiet spacer for neutral designs. Chocolate brown moonstone is a deeper coffee color, and the darkest material, close to black, is sold as black moonstone.
Multicolor and Tourmalated Moonstone
Multicolor moonstone strands combine white, peach, grey and brown beads, sometimes at random and sometimes arranged from light to dark as an ombre. Our multicolor moonstone rounds are the simplest way to get the full moonstone palette in one strand. Tourmalated moonstone is white or rainbow moonstone threaded with needles of black tourmaline, a graphic black and white look; see our tourmalated rainbow moonstone teardrops.
Which Cut Shows the Glow Best?
Adularescence needs a smooth, curved surface, so polished rounds and rondelles show the most sheen. Faceted and microfaceted cuts break the glow into small flashes and add sparkle, which suits pale or clearer material. A matte finish frosts the surface and hides most of the sheen, leaving a soft, chalky color that is a look of its own. If the sheen matters most, choose smooth beads of 8 mm or larger, where there is enough curved surface for the light to move.
How to Tell Moonstone From Look-Alikes
Try this first: hold the bead under a single light, such as a desk lamp, and roll it slowly. Moonstone's glow drifts across the bead as a soft band of light. Labradorite and rainbow moonstone flash on and off at one angle. Glass and chalcedony do neither.
Opalite is a man-made glass, listed in our synthetic beads collection as Opalite (syn). It glows milky blue against a dark background and turns orange to amber when held up to a light, a color shift moonstone never shows. Its color is perfectly even, often with tiny round bubbles inside.
Labradorite has a grey to dark body with a broad flash of blue, green or gold. Rainbow moonstone is the same mineral with a nearly colorless body, so body color is the dividing line.
White chalcedony and glass can look milky, but chalcedony is evenly waxy with no moving light, and the sheen on glass imitations looks painted on rather than floating inside.
Moonstone Hardness and Care
Moonstone is 6 to 6.5 on the Mohs scale, a little softer than quartz, and like all feldspars it has 2 directions of cleavage, flat planes along which a hard knock can split it. Quartz, topaz and other harder beads can scratch it, so store moonstone strands on their own. It wears best in necklaces and earrings; bracelets are fine with a little care, since the wrist takes the most knocks. Clean it with warm, soapy water and a soft cloth, and skip ultrasonic and steam cleaners, high heat and sudden temperature changes, all of which can crack feldspar. Our guide to the Mohs hardness scale explains how to mix stones of different hardness in one design.
Moonstone Meaning and History
The Romans believed moonstone was moonlight turned solid and linked it with their moon goddesses, and in India it has a long tradition as a sacred and wedding stone. Art Nouveau jewelers such as René Lalique set it often around 1900, and Florida named moonstone its state gemstone in 1970 to honor the moon landings, although none is found there. Moonstone is a June birthstone alongside pearl and alexandrite. In metaphysical belief, moonstone is associated with intuition, new beginnings and the cycles of the moon, and rainbow moonstone is linked with the same lunar themes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is rainbow moonstone real moonstone?
Mineralogically, rainbow moonstone is white labradorite rather than orthoclase moonstone. "Rainbow moonstone" is the long-standing, accepted trade name for this material.
What is the difference between moonstone and labradorite?
Both are feldspars with thin internal layers that play with light. Moonstone is mostly orthoclase with a soft floating glow; labradorite is a plagioclase feldspar with a grey body and a brighter, directional flash of color.
Why does my rainbow moonstone have black spots?
Dark specks and needles, often black tourmaline, grow inside rainbow moonstone and are normal for the stone.
Can moonstone get wet?
Yes. Water does not harm moonstone, and warm, soapy water is the right way to clean it. Avoid ultrasonic and steam cleaners, harsh chemicals and high heat.
What is the June birthstone?
June has 3 modern birthstones: pearl, moonstone and alexandrite. Pearl and moonstone are the 2 used most in beads.
Is opalite the same as moonstone?
No. Opalite is a man-made glass that glows blue on a dark background and orange when held to a light, while moonstone is a feldspar with a soft, layered sheen.
Shop Moonstone Beads
Our moonstone bead collection holds white, rainbow, peach, grey, chocolate, multicolor and tourmalated moonstone in smooth, faceted, microfaceted and matte cuts. For a bolder feldspar flash, browse labradorite beads; for birthday pieces, see June birthstone beads; and for warm glitter beside peach moonstone, try sunstone beads. To read more, see our post on labradorite meaning and The History and Origin of Birthstones.
These are traditional beliefs, not claims of physical effect. Crystals are not a substitute for medical care.
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