Owner Amanda Heslinga opened Rocks With Sass in 2014. Credit: Courtesy of Amanda Heslinga
Filled with crystals, body oils, jewelry and other crystal-themed materials, Rocks With Sass is a sight to behold.
Opened in July 2014, the store aims to increase customers’ overall health and happiness by providing crystals that can be used as healing tools, owner Amanda Heslinga said. Before launching Rocks With Sass in Westerville, she worked as a designer for Abercrombie & Fitch, but living with Crohn’s disease — a lifelong inflammatory bowel disease that causes swelling and irritation of the digestive tract — inspired her to start her own business.
“I spent a lot of time at home on the couch,” Heslinga said. “So, I started buying these little geodes on eBay and making them into necklaces.”
Before starting Rocks with Sass, Heslinga said corporate life became mentally and physically taxing, especially as a person with Crohn’s disease. Stress exacerbated her symptoms and led to flare-ups — which coupled with a desire for independence — led her to resign from Abercrombie & Fitch in 2014, she said.
To raise money for her first Crohn’s walk with the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation, Heslinga decided to sell her handmade jewelry on Etsy, she said. Her passion for crystals took root, as did the initial idea for Rocks With Sass.
“I was going to spend one year focusing on myself,” Heslinga said. “But Rocks With Sass kind of exploded because I was putting all my time and energy into something I really loved.”
Besides being popular decorations, Heslinga said she believes crystals can be highly conducive to self-care. She said they are capable of generating a strong, stable energy because of their molecular structures that are geometrically balanced. If one subscribes to this belief, they can use crystals to complement or lessen intense feelings, Heslinga said.
“I like to think our offerings are for people who believe that even though we can’t measure happiness or sadness, that energy still exists,” she said. “Crystals can support us through that.”
Since its inception, Rocks With Sass has evolved into a successful retail and online business, Heslinga said. Potential customers can browse online or in-person at just a 20 minute drive from campus.
If consumers want to learn more about crystals, they can visit Rocks With Sass’ website, Heslinga said. According to its website, 100-plus variations of crystal are available for purchase.
“We have pages dedicated to about 50 crystals right now,” Heslinga said. “Each page maps out where a crystal is mined, its chemical makeup and metaphysical benefits.”
People can also purchase or collect crystals purely for aesthetic reasons, shop lead Alexis Graffice said. Organizing inventory or creating new displays for the storefront is almost therapeutic in nature, she said.
“It’s a nice, quiet place where you can just look at things for a long time,” Graffice said. “Everything is color-coordinated, which is very soothing and pleasing.”
When college students become anxious, Graffice said smoky quartz, blue calcite, green calcite and Botswana agate are worth considering. Heslinga also said fluorite and lepidolite can help facilitate a clearer mind and focus the senses.
To learn more about Rocks With Sass, visit the website or make the brief trip to suite J at 611 Park Meadow Road in Westerville. Currently, the shop is open from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Mondays and Fridays, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and 1- 7 p.m. on Thursdays. Rocks With Sass will also open on select Saturdays, announced via their Instagram account.
