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With helpful articles on birthstones, jewelry care, and new product and event news.

Learn About October's Birthstones

10/10/2019

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People born in October have two beautiful birthstones to choose from: Opal and Pink Tourmaline. How lucky! Here’s 10 things you didn't know about these beautiful gemstones.
  1. Tourmalines come in a wide range of colors, including jet black. Their name comes from the Sinhalese word toramalli, which means “stone of mixed colors.”
  2. Tourmalines can carry an electric charge, and are commonly used to create the spark used to light a gas stove.
  3. Because tourmalines come in so many different colors, they’re often mistaken for other stones. Some famous gems, including the “Caesar’s Ruby” pendant in the Russian crown jewels, are actually tourmalines!
  4. While they’re normally mined in Brazil, tourmalines can be found other places including Maine and California here in the US.
  5. Watermelon tourmalines are crystals that have grown with a pink inner layer and a green outer layer. When cut into slices, they look like the fruit!
  6. In medieval times, opal pendants were believed to ward off evil spirits and protect your eyesight.
  7. The name "opal" comes from the Greek word opallios, which means "to change in color."
  8. Opals are also the traditional 14th wedding anniversary gift.
  9. Opals had a stint of bad press in the 1800s when they were believed to be unlucky. That’s because a character in a popular novel of the time possessed a magic opal, and (spoiler alert) she died. But Queen Victoria loved opals, and did much to popularize them again.
  10. Diamonds, rubies, sapphires, and emeralds (among others) can scratch opals. To keep your opal jewelry safe, store it by itself, away from other jewelry items that could damage the stone.

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