As versatile as it is stunning, January’s birthstone comes in an enormous variety of colors and has long been a symbol of friendship and trust. Commonly seen in a dark red color, it can also be green, blue, brown, orange, pink, purple and just about everything in between.
Garnet has long been used as an abrasive and the types of Garnet differ fairly considerably in chemical composition. Garnet has several subspecies that vary in hardness, fault patterns, color and many other things.
Doesn’t Garnet Translate to “Dark Red”?
While the word Garnet comes from the English word for dark red, gernet, that was likely established due to the fact that most Garnet comes in a dark red color. Back during it’s discovery we didn’t have the different species of gemstones classified, so Garnet became a classification that includes several times of gemstones.
Where Was it First Discovered?
It’s long believed that Garnet was discovered sometime during the Late Antique Roman era, but several species of Garnets were actually discovered in the late 1990s in the country of Madagascar. As one of the more recent gemstone discoveries, Garnet found its way in the jewelry world very quickly. In particular, pink garnet has become a staple of a lot of jewelry stores.
How to Use Garnet in jewelry
While it’s incredibly versatile, Garnet can be a bit on the softer side. It’s also one of the more expensive gemstones, which is a place where its versatility kind of hurts it. The more colors it comes in, the more rare every color becomes essentially.
While not typically recommended for bigger purchases like wedding rings, garnet does go well in rings, pendants and earrings. If you’re looking for the dark red color then that shouldn’t be hard to find, it’s when you get into the fiery oranges that the price becomes a central point.
Garnet looks terrific in several colors with the popular ones being dark red, light blue, purple and pink and it’s versatility means that you can use multiple garnets in a single multi-colored piece. With how flexible it is, it’s often an easy and fun gemstone to use in jewelry, particularly custom made jewelry.
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