As long as I can remember, I have been in love with nature, and been able to find magic in all aspects of it - especially stones. Every time I have traveled, I have spent time finding and exploring local stones and rocks there, seeing what they had to show and tell me, energetically speaking. Throughout my years of high school and college, my artistic abilities were a constant companion. They have led me in many different directions, from dried flower arranging to pinstriping cars, just to name a few. In February of 2002, they led me to a workshop on beading, and so began Zu Zu's Beads.

At first I was making jewelry for my family and friends, but quickly through word of mouth things got busy and grew much bigger. Before I knew it, I was selling it as fast as I was making it! I quickly became an expert on the craft and new age show circuit, which eventually led to my opening a storefront in March of 2005 in Saugus, MA called Zu Zu's Beads New Age Gift Shop. Our shop in Saugus was only 300 square feet, but we lovingly and thoughtfully filled every corner of it with goods, carefully selecting each of our products and product lines.

In the spring of 2006 I began organizing and putting on 2 local "ZuZu's New Age Expos" a year, one in July and one in November (see Events page for details). Our events quickly gained popularity and helped support the growth of our business. I continued to attend other expos as a vendor for a few more years, but only seldom do that any more, as my attention is focused mainly on our new (as of 2009) expanded location of at 122 West Emerson Street in lovely Melrose, MA. When we moved to our new location, the expanded space of now 1500 square feet gave us the opportunity to offer our customers more than before. We still offer our retail space with the products our customers have come to know and love, but are now able to also offer classes, workshops, seminars, pamper parties and mini-events. Also added is a private healiing room operated by our good friend, Beth Anderson. Beth is a Usui Reiki Master/Teacher and a Nationally Certified Reflexologist. In addition, she holds certifications in energy medicine and fitness counseling, and we are very pleased to be able to offer her services as part of ZuZu's.

With the move to the larger space, we changed our name to ZuZu's Healing Arts, to better describe all that we are able to offer now. Aside from featuring some of my handmade beaded jewelry, the shop also offers a large selection of crystals, candles, incense, sterling silver gemstone jewelry, books, greeting cards, prints, authentic Native American gifts, relxation CDs, statuary, faerie and angel gifts, and many other inspirational products. We do our best to stock unique, thoughtful products for our customers, and each item is carefully chosen by me, the owner, Sue Ustas. I am also a psychic medium, and am available at the shop for private intuitive or mediumship readings by appointment, along with guest readers and workshops, so keep an eye on our website or join our email list for the most up-to-date information.

People often ask me about stones/crystals/rocks, and whether I "believe in that stuff"...the thing is, it's not about just believing in the support the stones can give, it's about understanding that on a scientific level vibrationally stones affect us, whether we choose to believe it or not. Of course consciously working towards a goal is what is necessary to make a stone's support and/or results most effective. When shopping for a stone or a new piece of jewelry with a natural stone in it, if you're drawn to a particular piece of jewelry or stone, go with that feeling. Natural stones each have different properties. Just like when your body needs certain nourishment, you'll then crave a certain food containing it; when your body's energy needs a particular boost or more support, you'll then be drawn to certain stones with those properties that can assist you in your goal. It's best to listen to your own inner voice and heed that call.

For instance, Amethyst has been known to work well for assisting peaceful sleep/dreams, strengthening intuition, and meditation. Rose Quartz is well known as the stone of love, and has been known to work well for assisting in forgiveness, self-love, and emotional healing. Turquoise, a Native American classic, has been known to work well for supporting communication, friendship, and spiritual upliftment. Those are just a few examples of some more popular stones, but they give you an idea of what I mean. Most importantly here, trust your intuition - just as different foods affect different people differently, so can stones work differently from one person to the next. So yes, start with books, a knowledgeable friend or storeperson's guidance, but ultimately trust your own intuition.

I also hand-choose each stone and piece of jewelry that you see in my store; the energy and quality of the pieces I sell is very important to me, as I know it is to you as well. So, whether you purchase my products for fashion or intuitive reasons, I thank you for your patronage, and want you to know each piece is made with love and heartfelt intention. I'm very blessed to have my shop and do what I do for a living, and wouldn't be as successful as I am today without the love and support of my family, friends, and customers. I want to express my deepest gratitude to each of you for your part in supporting this business, and my dream; THANK YOU!