Tag Archives: chromium

Tourmaline – October Birthstone

If garnets and sapphires naturally come in every color of the rainbow, it may be said that tourmaline naturally comes in almost every shade of every color of the rainbow. Outside of possibly fluorite, which is not the best choice for setting in jewelry, tourmaline is the single most colorful mineral on the planet when…

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Chromium – The High End of Color

Since we’re in July, and I’ve been talking about rubies lately, I thought I’d cover a very important part of what makes ruby burn with such crimson glory: literally, what makes a ruby a ruby. There is some science involved; some parts of consumer education are more complex than others, but don’t be afraid. It’s…

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Alexandrite – June Birthstone

Have you ever seen a gemstone change from one color to another right before your eyes? If not, you’re in for a treat when you see your first fine alexandrite. Raspberry red in tungsten light or firelight, teal green in direct sunlight or fluorescent light – fine alexandrite is the color-change gemstone against which all…

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Emerald Ethnicity

The prime consideration for emerald quality comes down to color, more so than for almost any other gemstone. The rarity of large, cleaner emeralds of top color has logically led to sky-rocketing values. The finest emeralds are among the rarest and most valuable gemstones in the world, on par with top rubies, and dwarfing all…

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Emerald – May Birthstone

Pliny the Elder, the great naturalist of Antiquity, once wrote, “Nothing greens greener than emerald.” He was not wrong: to this day, emerald is still the green gem against which all green gems are compared. For over three thousand years, emerald has been treasured above many other gemstones for its rarity, and its largely unrivaled…

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The Green Garnets

Most people born in January know their birthstone is the garnet. Most people who know that think of garnets as red. Predominantly, that’s true. Of the six species of garnet, one is exclusively red, and three others grow in – if not true red – very warm tones from orangey red to brownish red. But…

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May’s birthstone: the lovely emerald..green fire.

I first got turned on to emeralds in Munich, Germany, while walking through a museum housing some of the most fantastic pieces I had seen. I remember being in a short passage (lined with cases of incredible jewelry) and glancing to my left seeing green fire. The emerald in the collection was a square emerald…

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