Born to shine.
Born to shine.
Curious about Birthstones? Here is a little bit of info for you.
Curious about Birthstones? Here is a little bit of info for you.
Birthstones are gems used to represent the month of your birth, and can come in a surprising array of colours.
Sometimes the traditional options have gone out of fashion and have been given the option of different gem. Scroll below to see your month's gemstone!
What does hardness mean? This refers to the Moh's scale of hardness, which is a scale of how easily the surface of a gemstone is scratched. Across the industry, a hardness of below 7 is understood as 'not suitable for jewellery'. This also depends on how often the piece is worn, how hard it's worn and how old it is. As an example, wearing jewellery to the gym, rock climbing, clapping at the football and opening and closing filing cabinets can wear jewellery down quicker than you'd think. These are all examples we have come across from clients!
This also has a bit to do with what kind of jewellery it is. A ring, for example, will wear down faster than a pair of earrings, which hardly get scratched during daily wear.
Bare in mind - scratch hardness is not the only factor to take into account when choosing a gem. Inclusions (colloquially known as flaws), brittleness, exposure to chemicals, cleavage and crazing are also factors that determine whether or not a gem should be worn every day.
This is why it's important to have a conversation about the gem you want in your jewellery with your jeweller.
Hardness - 7-7.5
Cost factor - $-$$$
Garnet come in nearly all colours. Most commonly they are found in varying tones of reds, pinks, oranges, greens and purples. A Blueish colour has been discovered, but there's not enough gem-quality material available.
Hardness - 7
Cost factor - $-$$$
Amethyst is available in an array of purple tones, from very pale lilac to a deep violet.
Hardness - 7.5-8
Cost factor - $$-$$$$
Aquamarine are mostly a baby blue colour, and vary between a very deep colour to a nearly colourless gem. More often cut in long shapes rather than round and square due to how the crystal grows.
Hardness - 10
Cost factor - $-$$$$$
Diamond come in many colours, not just colourless. Browns, yellows, 'salt and pepper' and blacks are relatively cheap in comparison to colourless. Blues, pinks, greens and reds are extraordinarily rare and fetch a huge dollar. Treated colours are available too.
Hardness - 7.5-8
Cost factor - $$$-$$$$
Emerald are found in varying tones of green with secondary blue tones. Due to their composition, they're often found with many inclusions which can make them less durable to knocks. Clean material fetches a higher price.
Hardness - Alexandrite - 8.5 - $$$$
Hardness - Moonstone - 6 - $
Hardness - Pearl - 2.5 - $$-$$$$
Alexandrite is a colour-change gemstone which is meant to change from green in daylight to red in incandescent light, but such striking colour difference fetches a high price, often more than diamonds. Most available cheaper material are duller in colour.
Moonstone is a colourless to opaque white gem with a sheen of blue that moves across the gem.
Pearl is an organic gem created by a mollusc. The majority of pearls are cultured by man.
Hardness - 9
Cost factor - $$$-$$$$$
Ruby is a gem that has recently started going for higher than usual prices due to less material being available from mines that are drying up. It's a gem that has varying red tones with secondary pink colours through it.
Hardness - Peridot - 6.5-7 - $-$$
Hardness - Spinel - 8-8.5 - $-$$$$
Peridot is a grass-green gem of varying tones, and is relatively inexpensive and can be quite bright.
Spinel is a gem that comes in many different colours, and in recent times has gained popularity as a red alternative to ruby, and grey spinels have also become popular.
Hardness - 9
Cost factor - $$$-$$$$
Sapphire is a gem that comes in all colours except for a pure red, which is known as Ruby. One of the most durable gemstones for scratch hardness as well as breakage.
Hardness - Tourmaline - 7-7.5 - $$-$$$$
Hardness - Opal - 5.5-6.5 - $$-$$$$
Tourmaline come in all colours, though some colours are a lot more expensive and sought after than others.
Hardness - Citrine - 7 - $-$$$
Hardness - Topaz - 8 - $-$$$
Hardness - Zircon - 6.5-7.5 - $$-$$$$
Hardness - Tanzanite - 6.5-7 - $$$-$$$$
Hardness - Turquoise - 5-6 - $-$$$