If you are looking for a jewelry gift that is not only pretty, but also personal, consider a birthstone. Each month has a precious and semiprecious or alternate birthstone, so you should be able to find birthstone jewelry in a wide price range. Many people like to wear their birthstone, or their childrens’ birthstones, as a personal expression, and many believe folklore that says their birthstones will bring them luck and good fortune. Here is some information on the summer birthstones of June, July, and August.
The precious birthstone for June is the pearl. Pearls come in two types, natural and cultured. Pearls are made by oysters, clams, and other mollusks. When sediment or parasites invade their shells, mollusks coat them with a substance that is hard and shiny, and eventually, a pearl is created. Natural pearls are those found in mollusks in the wild, and were created in a process unaffected by humans. They are difficult to find, and most of the pearls sold today are cultured pearls. They process is the same, but is forced when something is inserted into the mollusk to trigger the production of a pearl. An alternative and lesser known birthstone for June is Alexandrite, named for Russian czar Alexander II, since they were first found in Russia’s Ural mountain range the day he was born. Like some other gemstones, its color can vary depending on the concentration of certain mineral elements in the stone, appearing either green or red. The semiprecious stone for June is the Moonstone, a type of feldspar. The most valuable ones are blue, but they can also be clear, green, pink, or any number of other colors.
July’s precious birthstone is the ruby, and it is a red color. Many people do not know that rubies are second only to diamonds as the hardest substances on earth. Though perhaps not always as prized, they are also more rare than emeralds, diamonds, or other colors of sapphires. Unlike some other gems, rubies are only one color, red. The same stone, corundum, in different colors (and therefore different varieties) is called a sapphire.
August’s stone is peridot, a form of the mineral olivine. These green colored gems are created by volcanic activity. It is associated with nature and strength. Unlike many other birthstones, it is not very rare, and it also scratches much more easily than other gems. The semiprecious stone for August is sardonyx, which is a layered stone, usually brown and white.
Linda Polansky writes about Jewerly and Diamons, Jewerly Earrings and Diamond Deals. |
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