August babies, you’ve got a NEW birthstone—Meet the spinel!

If your birthday is in August, you know your birthstone as the periodot. Well, this past June, the American Gem Trade Organization (AGTA), official declarer of birthstones (bet you didn’t know there was one!), named a second birthstone for this special month, the spinel. Haven’t heard of it? You will, as this trend spreads. As the AGTA writes, “One of the strongest reasons for buying a spinel are its rich, brilliant array of colors and its surprising affordability. Spinel is a durable gemstone that is perfect for all jewelry uses.”

Spinel: Versatile and colorful

Spinel ranks an 8 on the Mohs hardness scale, which makes it suitable for most jewelry, from rings to pendants to bracelets and ornaments. According to the GIA, “spinel has long been mistaken for ruby by emperors and monarchs. Many of the famous “rubies” of history were actually spinels.

Violet stones get their color from trace amounts of iron, while saturated blue spinels owe theirs to trace amounts of cobalt. Pinks and reds have chromium; orange stones have chromium and iron.

Blue spinel

Healing properties

Some believe that spinel has calming energy, eliminating stress. It’s seen as a source of renewal and healing. Different colors of spinel have their own lore of energy and healing.

Taking care of your spinel jewelry

Spinel is relatively hard, so it doesn’t scratch easily. You can clean it with soapy water and a soft cloth (just remember to rinse it well). This is a better method than using an ultrasonic cleaner.

Interesting fact…there’s a lot of synthetic spinel out there. One way to tell the real from the synthetic is that there’s a certain level of iron in the natural stone, so there may be a slight magnetic pull with a magnet.

Spinel earrings

So, August birthday boys and girls, have a wonderful day! And be bold…treat yourselves to a beautiful piece of spinel jewelry and you’ll be ahead of a great new jewelry trend!

To value your new spinel jewelry—or any jewelry that you or your family have — call me to schedule an appointment.

Brilliantly yours,

Aimee