Here's an article on gemstone engagement rings by Eva Meijer for Bridal Musings. With the days getting shorter and colder, you may feel romance is... Read More
Here’s an article on gemstone engagement rings by Eva Meijer for Bridal Musings.
With the days getting shorter and colder, you may feel romance is in the air…it’s no surprise then that winter is the most popular season for people to get engaged in!
Perhaps you’re planning to make the most of engagement season with a proposal? But what if you feel a conventional diamond just can’t express your love to your better half and something more colorful is required? Enter the fine-quality colored gemstones! Only these rare stones have the quality to stand the test of time and the expressive beauty to capture your love’s heart.
Whether your hopeful future bride (or groom!) loves dainty pieces, is more into fashion-forward looks or is a jewelry connoisseur fond of some glamour, the alternative bride & groom want their engagement ring to be exquisitely incomparable to anything else. Your other half wants a ring to express their unique style and to be wearable on a daily basis at the same time.
To help you out, we’ve got just the line-up of extraordinary colored gemstone engagement rings your love will adore. From electric blue, pinkish-red and vivid green to light peach pink – meet the colorful stones for your special day and the ever after.
1. Classy Corundum
The gem species “corundum” may not sound familiar. But you will surely have heard of two of its most famous varieties: the rare blue sapphire and red ruby.
These top gemstones are renowned for having adorned emperors, kings and queens for millennia. This is not only because of their exquisite beauty and fantastic durability – you can wear them every day and for any occasion just like diamonds – but also because, with only a handful of fine stones produced worldwide on a daily basis, these stones are extremely rare. Their deep blues and reds tend to be for the more classic lady but have a look at the designs and see how versatile these historic stones can be.
2. Stun With Spinel
An exquisite gemstone you may never have heard of, Spinel has often in history been mistaken for ruby and was regarded as such in Europe’s crown jewels. Even the Black Prince’s ‘ruby’ set in England’s Imperial State Crown and displayed in the Tower of London is, in fact, a red Spinel!
Spotted in unique high-jewelry pieces of Christian Dior, Louis Vuitton and Harry Winston, this stone can also easily be worn every day, has great brilliance and comes in exceptional colors ranging from light traffic red, pink or pink-orange to cooler hues, such as ice blue, glamorous grey and lavender blue and pink. Perfect colors for the fashion-forward woman, in our opinion.
3. Enviable Tsavorite Garnet
Luscious green Tsavorite is often mistaken for Emerald while usually consisting of far superior quality. Tsavorite Garnet tends to be much ‘cleaner’ inside and has a natural brilliance that an Emerald could only dream of.
Its name comes from the place where the stone was first discovered: the Tsavo National Park in Tanzania. This is another stone you can wear every day – whether at work or during party hours – but be warned as this vivid green stone will cause some enviable glances along the way!
4. Rich Rhodolite Garnet
“Garnet” reminds most of us of those dark red gems set in antique jewelry. That variety is, in fact, the lowest quality garnet there is! Garnets are a group that includes a number of different minerals in stunning different colors, such as this deep pink or pinkish-red Rhodolite Garnet.
Related to the green Tsavorite Garnet above, this stone also has a beautiful sparkle and can transform your daily style into effortless and feminine-chic – a colored stone for the eternally elegant lady.
5. Cocktail-Hour Tanzanite
Violet-blue tanzanite is considered approx. 1000 times rarer than most diamonds… And its blue can compete with fine blue sapphires while being less expensive. Few people know that it was Tiffany’s who introduced this beautiful stone to the world in 1968 after its discovery in Tanzania.
As this gem’s durability is a bit more fragile than the previous stones, better to wear it as a cocktail ring which makes it perfect for the woman who shines during after-dark hours. (Keep in mind that all gems have some “instructions” of use – also diamonds – and this stone is a stunner). If you do want to wear it daily, try to have the stone protected by smaller stones around it – as in this lovely Tiffany’s design.
6. Electric Paraiba Tourmaline
An extreme rare beauty: for every 10,000 diamonds that are mined, they find 1 gem-quality Paraiba tourmaline! That’s why a good quality Paraiba can easily fetch five figures per carat.
The moment these stones were discovered in Brazil in 1989, they caused a frenzy on the market as gem dealers fell for this incredibly vivid blue, turquoise or green stone – which seemed to glow from within. This head-turning stone can be spotted in high jewelry lines and is for the lady who loves an avant-garde look.
Like Tanzanite, one should wear this stone as a cocktail ring or have it surrounded by other stones as in this eye-catching design.
7. Sweet Peach Morganite
Belonging to the same family as the light blue aquamarine and emerald, morganite is the lesser known variety of this family. The stone comes in lovely soft blush or peachy pink hues and is perfect for a more soft and feminine look.
Morganite crystals can be very large and so you can find some stunning big faceted morganite stones out there (just for the rock stars among us).
Eva Meijer of Eva Gems & Jewels travels the world to source the world’s finest, rare gemstones in contemporary colors. As a certified gemologist, gem dealer and jewelry designer, she helps unconventional jewelry connoisseurs or customers who want to elevate their jewelry with fewer, but high-quality, wearable pieces. Take her Quiz “Discover Your Gem” and instantly discover the perfect gemstone for you.