Quartz and semi-precious stones
Amethyst, citrine, agate, jade, turquoise and other semi-precious stones.
32 entries
Materials
Agate
Agate is a banded chalcedony (6.5-7 on Mohs); often dyed, cut into cabochons and slices, and very affordable.
Materials
Amazonite
Amazonite is a blue-green feldspar (6-6.5 on Mohs), opaque or translucent, used in cabochons, beads and pendants; it splits with knocks.
Materials
Amethyst
Amethyst is purple quartz, hardness 7, very popular for its color and affordable price; avoid intense sunlight so it does not lose its tone.
Materials
Carnelian
Carnelian is a translucent orange-red chalcedony (6.5-7 on Mohs), used for millennia in seals, intaglios and beads.
Materials
Chrysoprase
Chrysoprase is an apple-green chalcedony colored by nickel (6.5-7 on Mohs); it is translucent and fades if it gets very dry or hot.
Materials
Citrine
Citrine is a yellow to orange quartz (7 on Mohs), affordable and durable; nearly all on the market come from heated amethyst.
Meaning and symbolism
Feng Shui and jewelry: elements, jade and symbols of prosperity
What Feng Shui is, how the five elements relate to metals and stones and which symbols of Chinese jewelry are associated with prosperity.
Materials
Fluorite
Fluorite is a vividly colored banded mineral (4 on Mohs) with four directions of cleavage; beautiful but soft, best in pieces that are not knocked.
Materials
Garnet
Garnet is a group of minerals with hardness 6.5-7.5, from deep red to green; it is the January birthstone and an affordable, sturdy gem.
Materials
Hematite
Hematite is a dark metallic gray iron mineral (5.5-6.5 on Mohs) cut into beads and cabochons; heavy, brittle and looking like polished steel.
Buying guides
How to combine stones and colors in jewelry
How to combine stones and colors in jewelry: color wheel, safe combinations, metals, sizes and which stones should not be put together because of hardness.
Materials
Iolite
Iolite is a violet-blue silicate that changes color with the angle (7-7.5 on Mohs); often called “water sapphire” for its look.
Materials
Jade
Jade is the name for two minerals, jadeite and nephrite; very tough, it is the sacred gem of China, Mesoamerica and New Zealand (pounamu).
Materials
Jasper
Jasper is an opaque chalcedony in earthy colors with unique patterns (6.5-7 on Mohs); durable, affordable and widely used in cabochons and beads.
Materials
Kunzite
Kunzite is a soft pink-lilac gem (6.5-7 on Mohs), very luminous but delicate: it chips easily and its color fades in sunlight.
Materials
Labradorite
Labradorite is a gray feldspar that flashes blue, green and gold as it turns (6-6.5 on Mohs), an effect called labradorescence.
Materials
Lapis lazuli
Lapis lazuli is a deep blue rock with golden flecks of pyrite, used since ancient Egypt; it is soft (5-5.5) and breaks easily.
Materials
Larimar
Larimar is a sky-blue stone with white veins (4.5-5 on Mohs) found only in the Dominican Republic; beautiful but soft.
Materials
Malachite
Malachite is a green copper mineral with concentric bands (3.5-4 on Mohs); very decorative but soft, sensitive to acids and to water.
Jewelry around the world
Māori pounamu: hei-tiki, hei matau and koru
Pounamu (New Zealand jade) is a taonga for Māori: hei-tiki, hei matau, koru and toki are jewels of ancestors, journey and life.
Materials
Marcasite
Jewelry marcasite is actually pyrite: tiny brilliant cuts of metallic yellow set in silver; fragile and sensitive to humidity.
Jewelry around the world
Mesoamerican jewelry: jade, gold and feathers
Maya, Aztec and other Mesoamerican peoples valued jade more than gold, and combined it with feathers, obsidian and shell.
Materials
Moonstone
Moonstone is a feldspar with a moving bluish milky glow (adularescence); a June birthstone, it is delicate (6-6.5 on Mohs).
Materials
Morganite
Morganite is pink or peach beryl (7.5-8 on Mohs), soft in color and quite hard; widely used in engagement rings.
Materials
Onyx
Onyx is a flat-banded chalcedony, almost always dyed black (6.5-7 on Mohs); a classic of elegant and signet jewelry.
Materials
Peridot
Peridot is a gem of luminous olive or lime green, of medium hardness (6.5-7); it is the August birthstone and needs care with knocks and acids.
Materials
Quartz and its varieties
Quartz is the most common mineral in jewelry (hardness 7): rock crystal, amethyst, citrine, rose quartz, smoky quartz, agate and chalcedony.
Materials
Rhodochrosite
Rhodochrosite is a pink manganese carbonate with white bands (3.5-4 on Mohs); Argentina's national stone, beautiful but soft.
Materials
Rock crystal
Rock crystal is colorless, transparent quartz (7 on Mohs), used since antiquity in beads, carvings and jewels; also imitated with glass.
Materials
Rose quartz
Rose quartz is a translucent quartz of soft, milky pink (7 on Mohs); durable and affordable, cut into cabochons, beads and hearts.
Materials
Tiger's eye
Tiger's eye is a quartz with silky golden and brown bands (7 on Mohs) that give a moving sheen; durable and affordable for cabochons.
Materials
Turquoise
Turquoise is a copper aluminum phosphate in blue to green, prized since antiquity; it is porous and soft (5-6) and is usually stabilized.