Gemstone Engagement Rings and Promise Rings
What is the world
without color? Without flowers, without the rainbow, or without beautiful gemstones, the world would be a very
different place.
Gemstone engagement rings are becoming an increasingly popular
alternative to diamond engagement rings. Gemstone engagement rings add a brilliant splash of color and allow more individual
expression then ever before. MyJewelrySource offers a beautiful selection of truly unique precious and
semi-precious gemstone engagement rings and birthstone promise rings, most of which are exclusively sold here.
Tips for Choosing a Gemstone Engagement Ring
Tip #9- Perfectly Pink: If she is partial to the feminine shades of
pink, there are many gorgeous options like pink sapphire, pink tourmaline,
kunzite and pink topaz. Pink is the color of romance and passion and is
also the color of happiness. Pink sapphires are found in colors ranging from
pale baby pink, rose pink, bubble gum, cotton candy, fuchsia, raspberry, hot
pink to pinks with hints of lavender and peach. Light pink sapphires can even
look like the very rare pink diamond. Pink sapphires are by far the rarest of
the pink gemstones. At MyJewelrySource, we offer over 70 carefully selected
styles of pink sapphire engagement rings. For each and every ring, the center
pink sapphire was hand picked for its exceptional color, clarity and overall
appearance. Pink sapphires in sizes of up to 1 carat are fairly easy to find in
all shapes, but in sizes over that, certain shapes are very rare. For example,
one shape we will find very infrequently is the princess cut in sizes over 1.5
carats. The gem material is so valuable and cutting a princess cut stone leads
to a lot of wasted material, so gem cutters simply do not cut large princess cut
pink sapphires. Pink tourmalines are a very unique stone with trichroic
properties. This basically means that a given gemstone will display three
distinct colors when viewed from different angles. So for example, the
traditional pink tourmaline color of a raspberry pink may will generally show
flashes of purple, magenta and peach. How cool is that!? Tourmalines are often found with
inclusions in large size stones but at MyJewelrySource, we have an amazing
selection of eye to loupe clean large size gems. Tourmalines are also found in a
light pink shade, which reminds us of a pink diamond.
Sapphire: Although
sapphire means
blue in Latin, sapphires can be found in a
rainbow of colors. Kings once
believed these stones offered protection form harm and envy. Sapphires are calm and relaxing. Until the
discovery of extraordinary stones in Kashmir in 1880, Sri Lanka (formerly known as
Ceylon) was the standard
bearer of sapphire. The Kashmir supply was essentially exhausted by 1930, leaving
Sri Lanka as the location of
the world's most beautiful sapphires. Sapphires are also mined in Madagascar, Australia and Thailand. Sapphires
come other colors such as red,
orange, yellow, green,
blue, purple and
pink. Colors other than blue are
referred to as "fancy sapphires".
Sapphire is the traditional gift for the fifth and forty-fifth wedding anniversaries and the
birthstone for September.
Enhancements: Although cutting is the most basic enhancement method necessary to display the beauty of
a gemstone, there are many
fascinating methods by which man has demonstrated his ability to draw maximum color, luster, clarity and
brilliance from nature's earthbound treasures. A basic understanding of these enhancement techniques will add to
your appreciation of the beauty, durability and value of the
gemstone jewelry you already own,
or plan to purchase in the future. Most sapphires are treated with heat after being mined. Heat treatment of
sapphires is a permanent, industry accepted treatment requiring no additional care over that of unheated
sapphires. There are other treatments used to enhance the color of sapphires which are not industry accepted, may
not be permanent, and therefore not sold by our company. Approximately, 99% of sapphires used in jewelry are
heated, leaving 1% which are unheated and considered very rare. You should assume that the sapphires sold at
MyJewelrySource are heated unless stated otherwise.
Buying a Sapphire: All in all,
sapphire can be considered
the ideal colored gemstone. Besides excelling in color selection,
sapphire excels in durability
with a rating of 9 on the Mohs scale of hardness.
Sapphires in sizes of 1 carat and over are considered to be important. Some inclusions are accepted although
certainly not as many as with
ruby or emerald. Nearly
all of the sapphires at MyJewelrySource.com are eye clean and most important, all are pleasing to the eye. We
offer a wide range of colors from a traditional Ceylon blue, to rich lustrous
royal blue, to many styles with pink,
orange, and yellow sapphires.
Care of Sapphires: Since sapphires are tough and durable, they can withstand most cleaning methods.
While steaming and ultrasonic cleaning will not damage the gemstone, these methods are not recommended by MJS as
they may loosen the setting, and subsequently, stones may fall out. Your
sapphire jewelry may be
cleaned with a soft-bristled brush or a cloth with plain or soapy water. Sapphires must not be put in boiling hot
water. Avoid exposure to hairspray, perfume and chlorine, which can dull gemstones.
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