Tourmaline and Opal, October’s Birthstones

Tourmaline was first discovered in Sri Lanka. It was first brought to Europe by the Dutch East India Company. The most common tourmaline is schorl, it makes up about 95% of all tourmaline. Tourmaline comes in just about any color depending on trace elements found in the semi-precious gem. Multicolored crystals are common and this is one of the desired properties of the gem. The color of tourmaline can also be altered by heat and radiation. Tourmalines can now be found in Brazil, Tanzania, Kenya, Madagascar and primarily in Maine and California in the United States. Tourmalines are a great addition to a fashion ring, pendant or earring.

Opal is a gem that is multicolored. One of the most popular opals in modern times is the fire opal from Queretaro, Mexico.  The color ranges from yellow to orange to dark red. It is a transparent opal. The common opal is not multicolored in nature and more opaque, they are not often sought for jewelry. Another hugely popular opal is the precious opal. These are opals that present flashes of colors depending on the viewing angle.  The term “play-of-color” is associated with precious opals, the play-of-color basically means that multi flashes of color depending on how it’s seen by the eye. Precious opal is found in Brazil, the U.S., Canada, Honduras and a few other places in the world. There’s also a black opal that’s found almost exclusively in Australia.

If you’re shopping for an October birthstone jewelry piece we can help design the perfect gift for a loved one or yourself. Our jewelry design experts can take your initial idea and make your jewelry dream a reality. Your jewelry design is executed in-house from design to manufacture. You’ll even be able to see your jewelry rendered out by computer-aided-design even before it’s created. Check out our online jewelry design form or call (210) 490-2404 for more information.

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