The gemstone Citrine is a yellow variety of quartz.  It is sometimes confused with the other beautiful gemstone for November, golden Topaz.  The name Citrine comes from the old French word for lemon.  It's color can range from a pale yellow, through orange and almost brown.  Since Citrine is somewhat rare in nature, many of the Citrines sold today are actually Amethysts or Smoky quartz that have been heated at high temperatures to produce the yellow orange color.  However, that shouldn't keep one from appreciating the beauty of the warm yellow colors of the stone which seem to go perfectly with the glowing colors of Autumn.  An advantage of Citrine is that it is very affordable unlike other yellow gemstones on the market.  And wearing a piece of Citrine jewelry can brighten your day by bringing you a spot of golden sunshine.

Citrines are rated at 7 on the Moh's scale of hardness.