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A Matter of Brilliance is a professional jewelry appraisal company based in Newton, MA, founded by Aimee Berrent, Graduate Gemologist. Our appraisals can be used to:
Your December birthstones: Tanzanite, zircon, turquoise
December babies have birthstones that are bathed in blue: the deep, rich blue of tanzanite, the range of brilliant colors, including blue, of the zircon, and the sparkling aqua (“turquoise?”) of, well…turquoise. Your stones represent some of the oldest — and newest — stones.
- Tanzanite is a relative newcomer. In the 1960s, Tiffany & Company named it after its country of origin (Tanzania), became a major distributor, and launched a major publicity campaign. This hard stone with amazing clarity and a deep blue-purple hue quickly became a popular favorite. To this day, it’s only been found in one place in the world.
- Zircon (not to be confused with artificial cubic zirconia) is a naturally occurring gemstone. In fact,
it’s one of the oldest gemstones on earth. Yellow-brown to orange and red stones are common, but blue, the most popular, occurs when brown stones are heated.
- Turquoise jewelry has been discovered in Egyptian tombs and Chinese collections from 3,000 years ago. This relatively soft stone ranges from sky blue to grey-green: its
blue color comes from copper; the green hues from iron. Most often cut into cabochons or beads than facets, turquoise can be sensitive to heat, so leave it inside when you’re sunbathing.
So, December birthday ladies and gents, happy birthday! And may all your days be as full of blue skies as the brilliant blue birthstones that symbolize your special month.
As always, if I can help you with anything, let me know!
Brilliantly yours, Aimee
What yarn do I get for my linux scarf?Suggested yarn and estimate yaagdreBackground colour: 300 g Novita 7 veljeste4 (light green)[150g skein = 300m/328yd; gauge: 18×26 = 10cm/4″ on 4mm/US5-6 needles]Foreground colour: 150 g Novita Wool (black)[50g skein = 135m/148yd; gauge: 22×26 = 10cm/4″ on 3.5mm/US4 needles][Translator’s note: You’ll probably have to substitute the Novita yarns this pattern calls for. It’s usually recommended to knit illusion scarfs with a tight tension in a worsted or light worsted yarn (20-22 stitches = 10cm/4″), for instance Brown Sheep Nature Spun Worsted or Katia Diana.Please note that Heidi used a thinner yarn for the foreground colour to enhance the illusion effect. Don’t assume from the above you’ll need twice as much background colour as foreground colour. Usually illusion scarfs use up roughly the same yaagdre for both. My guess based on my skull illusion scarf which half as wide is that you’ll need at least 150g or 300m/330yd in each colour, more if you wish a longer scarf.]