As we approach the halfway point of 2026, I wanted to take a moment to reflect on everything that has happened so far at W.M. Opals. From community projects and giveaways to new jewellery creations and hitting personal milestones, it’s been one of the most exciting years since I started mining, cutting, and working with Australian opals.
🎁 Multiple Opal Giveaways
This year I’ve run several opal giveaways across my social channels, sharing everything from small Lightning Ridge rough to polished stones. It’s been a great way to give back to the community and introduce more people to the beauty of black opals, white opals, and crystal opals.
🎓 Sponsoring the British Academy of Jewellery Opal Project
One of the highlights of the year has been sponsoring an opal-focused project at the British Academy of Jewellery. Students explored ancient opalised fossils and created designs inspired by Australia’s rare natural treasures. You can read the full story here: British Academy of Jewellery Opal Project.
📈 Hitting 1,000 YouTube Subscribers
This year the W.M. Opals YouTube channel passed 1,000 subscribers — a huge milestone. I’ve been sharing cutting videos, mining stories, opal education, and behind-the-scenes content. If you haven’t joined yet, you can find the channel here: W.M. Opals on YouTube.
💍 Creating Custom Opal Jewellery
Custom jewellery has grown massively this year. I’ve created bespoke opal rings, pendants, and one-off pieces using Lightning Ridge black opals, Coober Pedy whites, and crystal opals. You can explore some of the collections here:
With more people searching for unique opal jewellery in the UK, it’s been amazing to help customers design pieces that truly mean something.
🎙️ Appearing on a Podcast to Talk About Opals
I was invited onto a podcast this year to talk about opal mining, cutting, and the realities of working with such a unique gemstone. You can listen to the episode here:
- YouTube: Watch the Podcast Episode
- Spotify: Listen on Spotify
🌱 Growing the W.M. Opals Brand
Beyond the big milestones, the brand has continued to grow in ways I’m really proud of. More people than ever are discovering Australian opals, especially Lightning Ridge black opals — one of the most searched gemstones on the site this year.
Some of the most visited educational articles this year include:
- Black Opal vs White Opal
- Crystal Opal vs White Opal
- Does the UK Have Opal?
- Lightning Ridge Black Opals
Seeing these pages grow in search results shows that more people are becoming curious about opal types, value, rarity, and how to choose the right stone — which is exactly why I started sharing educational content in the first place.
✨ Looking Ahead
The second half of the year is already shaping up to be even bigger. More cutting videos, more jewellery projects, more educational content, and hopefully more opportunities to share the beauty of Australian opals with people around the world.
Thank you for being part of the journey — whether you’ve bought a stone, watched a video, joined a giveaway, or simply followed along.
Here’s to an exciting rest of 2026.