Gemstone & Birthstone Guide

We at Diamond Traces believe that well educated customer make a smart choice, so before you start shopping we would like you to understand what you're buying.
This guide will explain about the most desired gemstones and birthstones, so you can select your favorite gemstone based on its color, brilliance and cut or astrology.
We are confident this guide will help you find the right gemstone for you.

Color

The brilliant color of a gemstone is its most defining attribute, and many jewelers consider it to be the most important criteria when evaluating the quality of the stone.
When deciding upon gemstone color, it is important to examine the hue, tone, and saturation.

Hue - The most valuable gemstones are those that exhibit a pure and vivid color, with only slight hues of other colors present.
For instance, sapphires can range in hue from "slightly purplish-blue" to "slightly greenish-blue," a pink sapphire ranges from "pink" to "slightly purplish-pink," and rubies range from "slightly orange-red" to "slightly purplish-red".

Tone - The Tone of a Gemstone refers to the depth of color, which can range from colorless to black.
A gemstones tone can be described as "light," "medium-light," "medium," "medium-dark," and "dark".
The darker the tone of the gemstone the more expensive the stone will be.

Saturation - Also know as the colors purity, saturation refers to the degree to which the gem is free from brown or gray hues that might take away from the beauty of the stone.
The most desirable gemstones, classified as being of a vivid or strong color saturation, show little to no brown or gray whatsoever.

Clarity

Because gemstones form in nature, each individual consists of a mixture of trace minerals leaving a unique set of identifying marks, often called inclusions.
These inclusions will not necessarily take away from the beauty or desirability of a colored gemstone.

When considering a colored gemstone's clarity, it is imperative that you measure your expectations against the standard for that specific type of gemstone.
Certain varieties of colored gemstones, such as aquamarine, blue topaz, and citrine, have naturally fewer inclusions while other gemstones, such as emerald and ruby, tend to have a higher rate of acceptable inclusions.

Clarity is a significant factor in comparing quality colored gemstones.
Even opaque opals can have milky inclusions that will affect their iridescence and color play.
In general, the best values are available in gemstones that have a moderate amount of inclusions.
Extraordinary gemstones with fewer or no inclusions are available, but they attract high class prices.

Cut

Gemstones are usually cut specifically to maximize their beauty and bring out the spectacular colors.
A good cut showcases the gemstone's color, diminishes its inclusions, and exhibits good overall symmetry and proportion.
Since a gemstones color can vary from stone to stone, there aren't any rigit   geometrical standards when it comes to maximizing the brilliance or color.
For gemstones with a more saturated color, the best cut may be more shallow than average, permitting more light to penetrate the gemstone, while in a less saturated gemstone, the color may benefit from a deeper cut.
A well-cut gemstone is symmetrical and reflects light evenly across the surface, and the polish is smooth, without any nicks or scratches.

Enhancements

Almost every gemstone available on the open market has been enhanced. A non-enhanced gemstone is very rare and commands an extravagant price tag.
Most gemstones you will come across have been heat-treated. This process is a common practice around the globe and has been for centuries.
Heating simply completes a process that nature started, and is used to enhance and intensify the colors of a gemstone.
The jewelry industry recognizes heating as acceptable and expected processes.
Heating is part of the standard polishing and finishing process for many gemstone varieties.

Care

We recommend that after wearing any gemstone jewelry that you wipe it with a soft cloth to remove dirt and other residues.
To keep your gemstone clean, warm, soapy water and a very soft brush (a soft toothbrush and mild dishwashing liquid) will get the job done.
First, remove your jewelry and let it soak in soapy water for about 20 minutes. Then gently brush it and rinse thoroughly.
Be careful not to scratch the metal of your setting.
Home ultrasonic cleaners are not recommended for all of your colored gemstones.
Ruby and sapphire are typically safe to clean in an ultrasonic cleaner but other gemstones are not.
Always clean emeralds and opals by hand with a soft cloth.
Remember to store your gemstone jewelry in a lined case or a soft cloth, so the gems do not touch each other or parts of other jewelry.
Gemstones can easily scratch the surface of other metals and jewelry when not separated properly due to its hardness.

Amethyst

This brilliant violet colored gemstone is said to protect its wearer against seduction.
Having the most unconventional of crystal structures, the amethyst gem is the most striking gem in the quartz family.
There are many who believe that amethyst offers protection against drunkenness, stemming from the greek word 'amethystos' meaning 'not intoxicated'.

Aquamarine

This fine gemstone straddles the extraordinary color range of light blues.
This gem  complements almost any skin or eye colour, and creative gemstone designers are constantly inspired by it unlike any other gem.
Its name is derived from the Latin 'aqua', meaning water and 'mare', meaning the sea.
The blue of aquamarine is a divine, eternal colour that arouses feelings of sympathy, trust, harmony and friendship.

Citrine

The stone for the month of November is a relative of the large quartz family, despite its similarity to the higher quality topaz gemstone.
The name is derived from the color; the yellow of the lemon , although the most sought-after stones have a clear, radiant yellowish to brownish red.
Historically, Citrine has been found in Spain, on the Scottish island of Arran, in France and Hungary.

Emerald

A highly desirable gemstone, these gems have the most vivid, intense and most radiant green that can possibly be imagined.
Inclusions may be tolerated in emeralds. For centuries the green of the emerald has been the color of beauty and of constant love.
In ancient Rome, green was the colour of Venus, the goddess of beauty and love. The finest quality emeralds are even more valuable than diamonds.

Garnet

Garnet is traditionally viewed as having a deep warm red color, but the garnet also exists in various shades of green, a tender to intense yellow, a fiery orange and some fine earth-coloured nuances.
It as been said that Noah used a garnet lantern to help him steer his ark through the dark night.
Garnets are also found in jeweler from early Egyptian, Greek and Roman times.

Opal

All of Nature's splendor seems to be reflected in the beauty of fine Opals: fire and lightning, the magnificent colors of the rainbow and the serine elegance of far seas. Almost ninety-five per cent of all fine opals come from the dry and remote outback deserts of Australia. The name Opal is thought to have derived from the Sanskrit word "upala", meaning "valuable stone".

Peridot

When wearing your summer best don't forget to wear this vivid green gemstone. With just a slight hint of gold , caused by fine traces of iron, this gemstone reins as the gemstone for the month of august. Of ancient origins, period can be found in Egyptian jeweler dating back to the early 2nd millennium B.C. This stone has become extremely popular in more recent years due to the newly found abundance over the last two decades.

Ruby

As the undisputed King of Gems, the ruby's vibrant red color resembles passion and power as well as love and vivacity. An extremely rare stone, the ruby has been the most desired stone for thousands of years. Ruby is the red variety of the mineral corundum, which is considered one of the hardest minerals on Earth. Chrome is the key element which gives the ruby its radiant color, unfortunately it's also responsible for causing a multitude of fissures and cracks inside these magnificent crystals.

Sapphire

50% of all peoples favorite color is blue, which happens to be the main color of Sapphire. This gemstone comes not in one but in many rich blue shades , from the deep blue of the evening sky to the shining mid-blue of a lovely summer's day which casts its spell over us. Fortunately, these Gemstones aren't limited to the many elegant shades of rich blue but also captures the serene beauty of a sunset – in yellow, pink, orange and purple. Sapphires really are gems of the sky, although they are found in the hard ground of our 'blue planet'.

Topaz

This elegant stone comes in yellow, yellow-brown, honey-yellow, flax, brown, green, blue, light blue, red and pink. It can even be colorless. Dating back at least 2000 years, topaz is one of the gemstones which form the foundations of the twelve gates to the Holy City of the New Jerusalem.The Romans dedicated the topaz to Jupiter. It is inconclusive whether the name of the topaz came from the Sanskrit or the Greek, but we do know the Greek name 'topazos' means 'green gemstone'. In mysticism, it is said to dispel sadness, anger and nocturnal fears, to warn its wearer of poisons and protect him or her from sudden death. Topaz is the birthstone for the month of November.

Tourmaline

The 'gemstone of the rainbow' as it is known by many is believed by ancient egyptians to have have passed through a rainbow on its way up from the center of the earth and that's why tourmaline comes in such a wide variety of colors.
The name tourmaline comes from the Singhalese words 'tura mali'. This translates to 'stone with mixed colors', which is referring to the color spectrum of this gemstone.
Tourmalines color range is the largest of all the precious stones. These gemstones are mixed crystals of aluminum boron silicate with a complex and changing composition.
However, the slightest change in composition will result in completely different colors.

Tiger Eye

Tiger-eye is a chatoyant (cats' eye effect) variety of microcrystalline quartz, usually in a yellow to red-brown color with a silky luster.
This gemstone is normally cut en cabochon in order to best display their chatoyancy.
Tiger-eye comes from Western Australia as well many parts of Africa. Honey colored stones have been known to be used to imitate the more desirable and pricier cat's eye.
It has been claimed that tiger-eye has the ability to improve one's eyesight and insight; meditating on tiger-eye in sunlight can enable one to look clearly into the past and the future.

Onyx

As In the fashion industry, colors look crisper against a black background, well the same applies for jewelry.
The most commonly used gemstone for this effect is Black Onyx. Extremely popular with the ancient Greeks and Romans, this stones name was derived from the Greek language meaning nail or claw.
Onyx which is reddish brown and white is known as sard-onyx, which was highly valued in Rome because it was said never to stick to the wax.
A famous Roman General named Publius Cornelius Scipio was known for wearing it a good deal with his wardrobe.
Onyx has a very fine texture, which is ideal for shaping and carving in many different ways.

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