We are in the midst of a brand new year, and to give it a
good kick-start, we wanted to provide you with a guideline for gift-giving for
the next 12 wonderful months of birthdays! Whether you’re looking for a special
Valentine’s gift right now or for that perfect birthday present later on, we’d
like to help steer you in the right direction.
What comes to mind when you add
jewelry+birthdays? Birthstones, of course. And there’s a lot of confusion with
these beauties, so we’d like to clear them up.
First of all, let’s take a quick little, internal test.
Answer these questions for us. What is the birthstone of March? Did you say
aquamarine? If you did, you’re right. Half right. March has ANOTHER birthstone,
called Bloodstone. These stones are about as opposite in appearance as you can
get. While the ranges of aquamarine – mixed intensities of deep blue to
blue-green – are very recognizable, the dark green almost-black jaspers are
not. Both are beautiful in their own way, and just like March babies can enjoy
these varietals, so can most of you who were born in other months.
Here’s an
easy breakdown (and reference guide!) of every birthstone in all 12 months.
January: Sorry January babies…not to contradict our previous
statement, but there is only one birthstone for you. Fortunately, it’s a
beautiful one that comes in a rainbow of colors (so there may as well be more
than one stone, right??). Garnet can range from the deep reds that most
envision when they think of garnet, to green, orange, pink, purple, and even
black. Choose one or go ahead and mix a variety of garnet stones for your loved
one with a January birthday; the options are endless.
February: Amethyst is the only birthstone for February, but
what a wonderful one to represent a solo-stone month. It is a semi-precious
stone, and a varietal of quartz, that ranges in color from light pink to deep
purple.
March: See above
April: Those of you lucky enough to be born in the month of
April already know that your birthstone is the one-of-a-kind Diamond. The word
alone provokes images of clear, bright white beautiful stones, but diamonds
also range in color from yellow to blue to pink and black. There’s no limit as
to what can be done with these gorgeous stones. BUT…did you know that April
babies can also choose from a wide variety of Sapphire stones as well? As April’s
secondary birthstone, Sapphire (or “blue brilliant”), can also be found in
shades of orange, blue, yellow, purple, and green.
May: The rich, green color of May’s birthstone, the Emerald,
carries the color of spring and radiates beautifully vivid tones. Another
solo-stone month, but we are okay with this. The Emerald is strong and
brilliant enough to hold its own!
June: Pearls are a girl’s best friend in June, but so is a
lesser-known friend – and a mighty vibrant and ever-changing one – named Alexandrite.
No description for pearls is needed. They are simply elegant and timeless, and
you June babies are lucky to have them! Want to add a little color to good ol’
Pearl? Enter Alexandrite – a scarce and valuable stone that possesses chameleon-like
features. In different lights, it can change from greenish-blue to
purplish-red.
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| June's ALEXANDRITE |
July: Awe, Rubies. Red, red, red. Beautiful. It’s the only stone
for July, and that’s okay. This stone signifies love in its deepest form. Ranging
in shades from light to deep red, the jewelry options are endless.
August: Peridot is a beautiful stone that, as rare as this
is, only comes in one color – green. But don’t worry. If you want to mix it up
with some other earth-tone colors to give it some diversity, you can add a
stone called Sardonyx – August’s SECOND BIRTHSTONE – which contains bands
of browns, reds, and whites.
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| August's SARDONYX |
September: The Sapphire,
said to represent the purity of the soul, is September’s birthstone. Its rich
blue presence evokes this emotion and, set in jewelry, offers a vivacious
appearance that demands adoration.
October: Opal – a beautiful
stone that ranges from milky white to black and possesses flecks of yellows,
reds, blues, greens, and oranges – probably comes to mind as October’s
birthstone. And it is. But the month’s secondary stone is Tourmaline, famous
for its pink center, white ring, and green edge.
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| October's TOURMALINE |
November: Another
twofer month, November’s stones are the Topaz – available in a rich range of
colors – and the Citrine – ranging from pastel yellow to dark brownish orange.
December: What a
perfect month to have THREE stones to choose from. Shoppers for December babies
and of Christmas gifts are in luck. The three birthstones of December - Tanzanite,
Zircon, and Turquoise – are mostly bluish-shades in nature, but range in other colors
and provide an endless world of jewelry-making possibilities.
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| The Beautiful Blues of December |
