Not to stir anything up once more after everything has resettled, but as I am looking to create my own set of Runes myself, I hope no one minds if I share some old stuff I think everyone here might appreciate. =)

I have personally purchased stone Rune sets for others, but have found certain stones seem more harmonious with Germany because they originate there. According to an old tome I borrowed entitled The World of Jewel Stones by Michael Weinstein, Rose Quartz is native to the region's geology.

Agate, Amber, Apatite, Apophyllite, Chrysocolla, Chrysoprase, Enstatite, Fluorspar, Iolite, Jasper, Jet, Plasma, Prehnite, Rosinca, Smithsonite, and topaz are all natives to that region.

The three big types of stones I see used for Runes are Rose Quartz, Amethyst, and Hematite. I've been reading about jewel stones and have found it rather interesting to note that not all of them are sourced equally.

If you lean more along the Celtic lines, Amethyst tends to be principally found in Ireland and other Celtic regions, but it can also be found throughout the world. Mexico, Brazil, and other regions in South America oddly enough also supply Amethyst, as does the US, so make certain you source your stones if you feel resonating with a particular region is important to you.  

If you intend to cleanse your stones in nature (such as running water outdoors) do not leave Amethyst in sunlight, as it will fade out that dark, beautiful purple. Siberian stones seem to hold different properties and do not fade as easily as others. Heating will also fade the color (Brazil seems to have been selling "burnt" Amethyst as Citrine due to this mistake, oops!). Artificially coloring stones has been a common process in mining and lapidaries for quite some time now, so if you want it as natural as possible keep that in mind.

Haematite, also known as the Bloodstone, was once commonly used as a jewel of mourning, just as Jet, so, if you prefer to avoid this connection, it's something to consider (or you may consider this a good association). Engraved pieces have been found in Egyptian graves and even in the mines of Babylon. The mounted, jewelry quality stone around the 1950s was coming out of Germany and France, but it can be sourced around the world near igneous and iron ore, and the sources may have changed again due to supply and demand.

Rose Quartz quality can be truly low, most pieces being white with only mere hints of pink- any rocks that have pink in their cracks beware, as these are most often colored or stained. This stone also fades in sunlight as well as when heated, so you may not want to hold this type and Amethyst too long in your hands, nor cleanse in light as someone suggested somewhere else on this board. It is said that, unlike Amethyst, Rose Quartz can regain its original color if kept cool and in a dark, slightly damp place, though why is unknown. The chief sources of Rose Quartz are Brazil, the US, Bavaria and the Ural Mountains, although this may have changed of late.

My own personal opinion of using stones for Runes is there is no substitute for a nice wooden Rune, especially considering the origin of the Runes themselves. Odin, hanging himself from a tree, spied the Runes. It seems only fitting that to honor the Runes one should use wood, but I am unaware of any rules to that effect, and most commonly the stones are used today. If it were me, however, I would be looking into German Amber for Rune stones, or petrified wood also sourced from that region.

Is anyone aware of any woods favored for making Rune sets? Does anyone know whether there is a record of what tree Odin hung himself from before spying the Runes? Or rather, should I ask, does anyone know what kind of tree the Yggdrasil is? I have read it is a huge Ash through some sources...but the poem stanza of the Hávamál does not tell you what sort of tree, or even if the tree is Yggdrasil.

I have always thought of Ash as Odin's tree.

Cassie