January’s birthstone is the beautiful garnet! I wanted to show you 3 amazing, unique rings I’ve designed with garnets, followed by some interesting garnet facts.

This is a coin ring like no other! It was such an honor to be commissioned to make this special ring. The coin is from Camp Waldemar in Hunt, Texas. Camp Waldemar is an all girl’s camp that was founded in 1926.
We set her beautiful yellow gold coin with a delicate halo of diamonds and accented with tsavorite garnets descending down the shank of her ring. The gallery has open petals that make this ring truly one-of-a-kind!

This second ring has a beautiful garnet surrounded by a delicate halo of baguettes. It’s such a pretty and wearable right hand ring! 

This last ring features a Tsavorite garnet that is flanked by a matching pair of round brilliant cut diamonds. It’s a sophisticated way to wear your birth stone as a right hand ring!

Alright friends. Let's talk s little bit about some garnet facts!

Not all garnets are red! Although garnets are more commonly in the red color range, there are also green, orange, and other colors.

Garnets score a 6.5- 7.5 on the Mohh's Scale of Hardness.

The term 'garnet' comes from an old word for pomegranate.

Low-grade garnet is used as an abrasive. When mixed with water, it has the ability to cut through materials like steel.

Tsavorite, a green variety of garnet, was first discovered in Tanzania.

Garnets are the suggested gift for the 2nd wedding anniversary.

If you’ve got a January birthday or know someone that does, shoot me an email to order a custom piece of birthstone jewelry!

Can you believe 2020 is practically halfway over? The past couple of months have definitely been unpredictable and unchartered, and I’m so grateful to have wonderful and understanding clients who have supported me and my business throughout it all.

Without further ado, I’d love to talk about one of my favorite gems to work with- pearls! It’s 1 of 3 June birthstones, with the others being moonstone and alexandrite. A quick couple of facts about the latter before I begin chatting about pearls:

Alexandrite:

1. Alexandrite was originally discovered in Russia, 1834.

2. Alexandrite is known as “Emerald by Day / Ruby by Night” because of its color change phenomenon.

3. Alexandrite is relatively hard—8.5 on the Mohs Hardness Scale.

Moonstone:

1. Moonstone ranks between 6 and 6.5 on the Mohs Hardness Scale.

2. Moonstone is a member of the orthoclase feldspar mineral family.

3. Moonstones are translucent with a blue sheen that is a result of the phenomenon “Adularescence”, which is the light that appears to billow across a gemstone, giving its surface a glowing appearance.

Now onto one of my favorite materials to work with. PEARLS. If you follow me on Instagram or have visited my online shop, you’ve seen my love for pearls shine through some of the pieces I design. I use a variety of pearls, including Tahitian, Keshi, and South Sea, that come in a variety of colors. Here are some current favorites:

Here is some wonderful pearl information from my alma mater, GIA.

This enchanting June birthstone originates from oceans, lakes and rivers around the world. It is a timeless wardrobe staple, beloved by women of all ages. The origin of pearls fascinated our forebears. Ancients from the Middle East believed that pearls were teardrops fallen from heaven. The Chinese fancied that the June birthstone came from the brain of a dragon. Christopher Columbus and his contemporaries thought that mollusks formed pearls from dew drops.

Pearls are organic gems that grow inside the tissue of a living saltwater or freshwater mollusk (either an oyster or a mussel). Natural pearls form when the mollusk secretes a substance called nacre around an irritant such as a piece of sand or a parasite that has invaded its shell. Cultured pearls are a product of human intervention. Technicians implant a piece of mantle tissue alone (common for freshwater cultured pearls) or with a mother-of-pearl shell bead (all saltwater) into a host mollusk. The mollusk covers the irritant with nacre, just like a natural pearl. Cultured pearls are raised in pearl farms – saltwater or freshwater operations where the mollusks are cleaned, protected from predators and eventually harvested. Thousands of years of pearl fishing have decimated the natural pearl beds, so cultured pearls account for the vast majority of pearl sales today. These cultured pearl birthstones come in a dazzling array of sizes, colors and shapes.

Pearls have long been associated with purity, humility and innocence. So it may be said that the June birthstone meaning is "sweet simplicity." As such, pearls were traditionally given as a wedding gift.

If you’re looking for some of your very own pearl or June birthstone jewelry, send me an email. I’d love to visit with you and hear all about your jewelry needs!