20 <strong>With</strong> <strong>This</strong> <strong>Ring</strong> RING IN A Rainbow One of the new style trends in engagement rings, is the return of coloured stones. Combined with the sparkle and purity of diamonds, multistone designs can include your favourite shade of gemstone or your birthstone. While sapphires, rubies and emeralds are the “big 3” that always spring to mind, there are other stones representing all the colours of the rainbow that will make you an engagement ring of value and unusual individuality. RED - Garnet The name garnet comes from the old English “gernet” meaning “dark red”. Garnets have a crystal structure and range in colour from mid to dark red and from transparent to opaque. They are less valuable than rubies but an affordable and popular gemstone as well as being the January birthstone. Garnets are mined in many parts of the world but particularly India, USA, Australia and China. ORANGE - Tourmaline Tourmaline is a semi-precious hexagonal crystal gem that can be of various colours including the unusual “chrome tourmaline” which is orange. Produced in Zambia, India, Sri Lanka and USA, the stone varies from transparent to opaque. However, the rarest and most recently discovered variety of tourmaline is the Paraiba which was found in Brazil in 1989 and has become sought after for its quality and value. YELLOW - Topaz Topaz is a rare combination of brilliance, hardness and colour, with yellow topaz being more unusual and valuable than blue. Meaning “fire” in the Sanskrit language, the golden colour of yellow topaz has fascinated people since ancient times and been associated with the earth, harvest and fertility. It is mentioned in the bible as one of the 12 gems worn by High Priests. In modern times it has been adopted as the November birthstone. BLUE - Aquamarine Known as “the gem of the sea” and chosen as the March birthstone, aquamarine is derived from the Beryl mineral. Aquamarine is favoured for its glorious blue-green colours but the best quality gems combine high clarity with ice blue colour. Because of the light colour that shows any flaws, it is important to cut the stone carefully in order to maximise its brilliance. The best aquamarine is sourced from Brazil, East Africa, Australia and India. INDIGO - Tanzanite <strong>This</strong> blue-violet toned gemstone is a variety of the mineral zolsite and changes colour when illuminated, becoming bright blue under fluorescent light. It was only discovered in 1967 and has become particularly sought after as it is only found in a very small area of Tanzania, hence its name. Renowned international jeweller Tiffany’s uses the rare tanzanite in a luxury selection of jewellery for wealthy clients from all over the world. VIOLET - Amethyst Amethysts are violet-hued quartz stones named from the Greek “amethystos” meaning “intoxicate”. The value of an amethyst is primarily in its colour, ranging from violet to deep purple – the darker the better. Purple was a colour associated with royalty, so amethysts have always been accorded status despite being widely available. The best quality amethysts are found in Russia, Sri Lanka and Brazil. GREEN - Peridot The peridot is a pale green silicote mineral gemstone. It is the <strong>August</strong> birthstone, but was called the “gem of the sun” by the Egyptians. The intensity of the peridot’s colour depends on the level of iron in the stone and varies from pale leaf green to olive. Peridots were first found in ancient times on an island in the Red Sea, but recent findings of flawless crystals Myannmar and Pakistan have created new interest in the stone.
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