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All those lucky enough to be in their second year of marriage or born in January have a wonderful stone to celebrate with.

The Garnet is the birthstone for January, which means that January babies have wonderful colours of Garnet to choose from! It is also the 2nd Anniversary Gemstone to celebrate the two years of love shared between a couple that can be represented by this stunning stone.

Fun facts

• Garnets are generally brownish red, also known as Merlot Wine red, and is mostly used for jewellery. Green garnets are known as Tsavorite garnets and those with a reddish pink colour are known as Rhodolite garnets. The very desirable Orange – Mandarine Garnets, are only mined in Africa.
• African Countries are where Garnets are mostly found (Tanzania and Namibia being the most important modern sources). Other major places that they are found include: USA, Sri Lanka, South America, India, Brazil.

About Garnet Gemstone

The word garnet meaning “seed like” was derived from the Latin word “granatum” which largely refers to the Pomegranate Plant. Garnet is so named due to its significant colour reference to the pomegranate, whose seeds are similar to the Garnet crystals.

One can also find an unusual ‘colour change Garnet’, which is especially unique and rare. It is a very sought after gem due to its unique ability to change colours in different sources of light. A colour changing gem combined with a unique design will undoubtedly be a very exquisite piece in one’s jewellery collection.

Folklore & myths

Your loved one will be happy to know that these are very passionate gemstones that inspires love and brings spirituality to relationships. Used to enhance sensuality, sexuality and intimacy.

The Garnet was said to give its wearer guidance in the night, allowing the wearer to see when others could not.

In ancient times red garnets were said to cure illness and was also believed to protect against nightmares.

History of the garnet

• The garnet has been around for more than 5,000 years with quite a history.
• Jewellery set with garnets from Czechoslovakia were extremely popular in the nineteenth century and prized by Russian Royalty as well as the great Peter Carl Faberge.
• Garnets have long been carried by travellers to protect against accidents far from home. In ancient Asia and the American South-West, garnets were used as bullets because the glowing red colour was said to increase the ferocity of a wound.
• Used as early as the Egyptian era where jewellery was created and also enclosed with Pharaohs in their tombs, the Garnet would bring all of its mythical magic to them. Red garnet necklaces graced the Pharaohs of ancient.
• The Crusaders believed Garnets would bring victory in battle the Crusaders and used them for protection against wounds.

Types and value

Red Garnet is the most common and widespread of the Garnet family. Green Garnet – Tsavorite, Orange Garnet – Manderine and Demantoid, formed similarly in nature to the red, only rarer as they need unusual rock chemistry and special conditions to form and are typically higher in value.

Conclusion

From our exquisite Holi rings, pendants and earrings to other bespoke jewellery, Jack Friedman has a wide selection of Garnet collections and we can easily customize any piece to meet our clients’ wishes. The colour availability for the Garnet ranges widely, which only assists us in increasing the level of unique designs possible.

Enquiries about the piece? Do not hesitate to contact us.

Did you know that the Blue Topaz comes in three exquisite shades of blue?

• Sky Blue
• London Blue
• Swiss Blue

What are these three shades of blue?

Although they are all blue, they are definitely not the same. In fact, to the eye they could be identified as completely different Gem Stones! And yet are all members of the same family.

Sky Blue Topaz

The lightest shade of blue, it is pale and has the translucency of water. It is a gentle “powder” blue, reminiscent of impeccably clear ocean water on a tropical island. Whilst pale, the Gem has incredible brilliance and has a Blue shimmer when worn.

The name is “Sky Blue”, for the palest of the shades of Blue Topaz, however, we at Jack Friedman believe that the Sky Blue is far more appropriate to the Swiss Blue Topaz below. Sadly, the people who coined the term probably did not have the benefit of seeing the African Sky.

Swiss Blue Topaz

This is the most famous of the Blue Topaz’s.

Perfectly balanced lighting within this Topaz cause it to be a bright electric and incredibly intense blue. Imagine a summer day with a perfect clear sky – “The Big African Sky” – this is the colour of the Swiss Blue Topaz, and the main colour we at Jack Friedman select.

London Blue

This gemstone is the darkest of the Blue Topaz and is a more dramatically vivid blue and is also the most valuable of the three. We are uncertain where the name London Blue originates, however the colour leans towards a vivid Greyish Blue, perhaps inspired by the Mid Summer late evening London sky – – dramatic and dark.

Conclusion – Advice for the Gentleman

Instead of surprising your lady with your preference of the 3 shades, let her select.

• Fistly, Blue is the colour that symbolises trust, therefore by implication she is saying “I trust You”? Maybe even implying I trust you so much that I am willing to be the mother of your children!
• Secondly, What does her selection tell you about her personality and character? This is an incredibly valuable tool to determine if you see yourself in this lady’s life!

Sky Blue – This the gentlest of blues and implies an innocent and caring nature. This lady wants a man to take care and provide for her, and would be the perfect mother for your children!

Swiss Blue – This strong blue would be selected by the determined woman that is feisty and will be an equal partner in all her endeavors. She is outgoing, sporty and fun.

London Blue – This woman is confident and successful in her career and business. She is hardworking, trustworthy and knows what she wants.

Enquiries about the piece? Do not hesitate to contact us.

The October birthstone is one of the most lustrous and radiant of gems – an ever-changing depth of fiery iridescence – ever refracting, ever reflecting, always giving wonder and delight.

It is Opal. And it just might possibly be the perfect gift!

Ethiopian opals are one of the most amazing stones on the market. The plays of colours often go through the whole piece of rough, which make it an easier to produce a nice form with remarkable patterns as well as plays of colour that can be seen anywhere else in the natural world. This type of Opal has proved itself to be just as stable as any of the premium Australian opals but at lower prices.

During the time of the ancient Roman and Greeks Ethiopian opal was often perceived as a Promethean cut stone that had stole fire from the gods and give it to mankind. As are primand that the gods bestowed opal with a reaction to heat that would make the high-water content silica gel to dry out and break up, referred to as “crazing” by gem dealers.

Overall, Ethiopian opals are the new frontier and they have a beauty all of its own.

How To Identify Fake Ethiopian Opal

The popularity of Ethiopian Opals has exploded in the last few years.

• Ethiopian Opals are mostly Hydrophane and do have waxy different feel compared to other Opals. It is fine if the Opal feels like this.
• Look closely at the pattern in the Ethiopian Opal. Fake or synthetic Ethiopian Opal will usually be ‘too perfect’ and look man made. A natural opal will have less systematic patterns. They will also sometimes have a difference of colour or brightness across the Opal.
• Look for what gemologists call ‘Columnar’ structure or ‘snake skin’ pattern. This is the sign of a fake Ethiopian Opal.
• Look at the shape of the Ethiopian Opal; even a polished natural Opal will not be perfectly round or oval. Many times fake Ethiopian Opal will be perfectly round in shape.

Ethiopian Opals are valued for their bright flashes of colour. Ethiopian Opals are knobby-formed rather than seam-formed and have characteristically brown or dark-nodule patch. Ethiopian opals with their vivid sunburnt green and collectors prize red flashes and patterns. Ethiopian Opals have only begun to be mined recently. However, anthropologists report that around 4,000 years BC, early man used opals to make tools, which means that Africa mined opals even before Australia.

How to care for opals

This is what the GIA in American said about Opal “The hydrostatic SG of the opals ranged from 1.80 to 2.10. This broad range is in part due to the high porosity of some samples, as revealed by a significant weight increase after immersion in water (up to 8%).

The ancient Greeks upheld the opal as a sign of purity and hope. The ancient Romans believed opals kept the wearer safe from harm and called opals cupid paederos, child as beautiful as love.

The October child has been blessed with one of the most beautiful birthstones on this earth, many say the most beautiful. For thousands of years opals have been regarded as a source of imparting inner beauty and faithfulness to the wearer. For centuries royal families have included opals in crowns and necklaces as a talisman for protection, calling them the “Queen of Gems”.

An Heirloom For Life

Opals fit perfectly into all the phases of life – birth, setting forth, romance and giving, learning and loving, aging gracefully and contentment.

An opal birthstone is the perfect gift for the birth of a child – a treasure that grows in value and wonder as the child grows through to the years of grace.

The romance of opals is legendary. Cleopatra is said to have worn opals to attract Mark Anthony, Queen Victoria was a passionate collector, opals were set in the crowns and necklaces of rulers who believed in their protective powers, and Aborigines believe in the spiritual value of opals, believing they represent a sign or presence of an ancestor.

But it is not only in the halls of the famous that opals are found. They hold a precious place in the everyday gifts exchanged by loved ones.

One of the highest qualities of opals is their timeless beauty. Because of this, an opal necklace, an opal bracelet or other piece of opal jewelry is frequently treasured and handed down as a family heirloom.

Other opal information

• Opals are unique.
• Opals are extremely rare because of its play of colours.
• Opals’ colours can come in flashes of red, green, purples, sunset orange, yellows, pinks, blues and some even golden.
• The variety of amazing color play in the opal stone makes it interesting, mesmerizing and absolutely unique.
• The play of colors in the Opal are often referred to as “pin fire”, harlequin, rolling mackerel, ribbon mackerel, broad flash, peacock harlequin, floral harlequin, flag harlequin, broad flash, Chinese writing, mintabie harlequin, miontabie harlequin broad flash and broad pattern.
• Opals’ formation had been determined to have been made up of small uniform spheres of hard transparent silica that fits in a three dimensional order like on top of a “batch” of silica solution.
• The light rays go through the spheres that are transparent that when directly hit, it bends and deflects at different angular form and therefore produces a rainbow of color effect.
• Opals are now getting very popular with investors buying rare and exquisite gemstones that have a massive play of colors.
• Ethiopian Opals are brighter, more colourful and more translucent that Australian Opals.