Colorful gemstones are just anybody’s dream to have. Their natural colors more than match your very fashionable dresses. Their sheer range could strike you spell bound. Gemstones are precious or semiprecious mineral stones which when cut and faceted can be used as jewels.

There is more to gemstones than just being jewelry items. They are regarded as lucky when worn specific to an individual’s birth month. Before we deal with this aspect in detail lets see the classification of gemstones.

Classification and Characteristics of Gemstones
There is a tri-level classification of gemstones namely, groups, species and varieties. Simply put, rubies which are red in color belong to conundrum species which in turn belong to hematite group. Others like emerald, aquamarine, goshenite, heliodor and morganite, all of them belong to that variety known as beryl. There are over 150 different species available.

Gemstones display all characteristics of crystals like dispersion, refractive indices, hardness, and specific gravity etc. They also possess characters like inclusions, fractures and cleavage which play upon their quality and values. However gemologists include all gems into the precious list.
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Gemstones

Some of the most beautiful jewelry is made using semi-precious gem stones. A gem stone is a mineral, a rock or a petrified material that is cut or faceted and polished before it can be used in jewelry.

Some gem stones are fairly rare, such as amazonite, which is a bright green variety of feldspar. Formerly it was obtained almost exclusively from Russia, but recently it was found in Colorado and Madagascar. Its limited occurrence makes it prized as a gem stone.

Citrin, also called citrin quartz, is an amber colored gem stone.

Aventurine is commonly a green gem stone, but can be orange, brown, yellow or grey. The rarest is red and highly prized as a gem stone.

Cordierite is a magnesium, iron and aluminum cyclosilicate, the transparent variety of which is iolite, which is used as a gem stone. The name, iolite, is derived from the Greek word for violet.

Lapis lazuli is a stone which has been classified as a gem stone. This deep blue gem stone dates back to the pharaohs of ancient Egypt.

Jade is an interesting gem stone. The name is applied to two different silicate materials. It is a very tough material and was first used for axe heads, knives and weapons. It was only when other materials were found that could be used for these purposes that jade become a prized gem stone. Nephrite is either green or creamy in color, while jadeite comes in a variety of colors. In New Zealand, where nephrite jade is known as greenstone and not gem stone, the Maoris consider it a treasure. In traditional Maori designs, this gem stone is still widely used to make jewelry. Jade is the official gem stone of British Columbia. Many minerals are sold as jade. These can certainly be used as gem stones, but are not the real thing.

Turquoise is another gem and ornamental stone. The name is a very old word , probably derived from the French meaning Turkish stone, although turquoise was not found in Turkey, but was traded there. Iran and the Sinai Peninsula were sources of very fine turquoise. In the United States, the deposits were mined by pre-Columbian Native Americans. Nowadays there is some imitation turquoise, which is so good, that only an expert could tell the difference between the real stone and the fake!
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Some people have specific color preferences while some people also like only specific stones, and are energized by being around them. Gemstone earrings exist so that people may be able to select their jewelry based on their own preferences, and customize their accessories according to their desires.

Experts in psychic phenomena believe that each gemstone stands for something. Certain stones perform certain functions, or encourage a specific aspect of one’s personality. For example, wearing garnet is said to help ease the pain of a bad breakup, or cause jealousy between lovers. Amethyst is said to protect its wearer against the ill effects of alcohol, slow down intoxication and prevent hangovers. Turquoise is said to give emotional strength. Jade has always had enormous importance in Asian civilization; it is said to have the mystical power to protect its wearer against nightmares and other psychic attacks.

Diamond — currently the hardest mineral known to man — is said to stand for strength and purity, which is why it is in demand in gemstone earrings among both men and women. Emeralds are said to stand for harmony, strength of heart, and luck with love. Emeralds themselves are rare, and the extremely rare red emerald is said to be even more valuable than diamonds. Sapphires stand for wisdom, calm and faith. Finally, rubies stand for passion, excitement, loyalty and sexual pleasure.
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In most traditional relationships, women expect their man to give them gifts of jewelry, and the men do so. Today, more women are paying special attention to giving jewelry to their men than ever before.

Giving jewelry to your spouse or romantic partner has always been a popular gift. Often holidays like Christmas, anniversaries and Valentine’s Day prompt men to run to the jewelry store for something shiny and expensive. Imagine how much more valued this gift would be if given without a major holiday attached to it. Why not give your partner jewelry for no particular reason, other than love?

Diamonds are always popular when it comes to choosing jewelry, other gemstones or simply silver and gold can be just as popular. You probably know that each month has a gemstone that represents it, and those gemstones each have a symbolic meaning. If you really want to blow your partner away, select your jewelry for it’s significance to a particular month (birthday or anniversary for example) or for another more personal meaning.

Here’s a brief look at the gemstone for each month and their meanings.
January – garnet, represents faith and stability and is available in many colors, except blue
February – amethyst, represents sincerity and happiness and is royal purple in color
March – aquamarine, represents hope and bravery and is a blue-green or sea-green color
April – diamond, representing joy and innocence
May – emerald, represents peace and tranquility and is always green
June – pearl, standing for wisdom and pureness
July – ruby, represents passion and nobility and is always a beautiful red
August – peridot, stands for patience and has a yellowish-green color
September – sapphire, represents honesty and hope and is available in a variety of shades of blue
October – opal or tourmaline, represents confidence and sweet love
November – topaz or citrine, stands for friendship and faithfulness and both are brown through orange or yellow
December – turquoise, represents understanding and success. In 2002, the AGTA added Tanzanite as another December birthstone
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