Mostly mined in Brazil, China, and Pakistan, Aquamarine is the designated birthstone for the month of March. It is also the zodiac sign Pisces assigned gem, and for the18th anniversary. This gem is often cut into faceted shapes, smooth cabochons, beads and carvings.
Mohs' Hardness score is based on a 10 point scale where 10 is the most resistant, like a diamond, and 1 is easily scratched, such as Talc. Aquamarine gets a score of 7.5-8, meaning that it is quite scratch resistant and therefore suitable as a component of jewelry. Aquamarine gemstones should be regularly cleaned by a professional or with a soft rag and mild soap and water or an ultra-sonic cleaner. Avoid solvents and harsh chemicals when cleaning your handcrafted jewelry as exposure to these elements can damage semi-precious and precious gemstones and pearls.
Learn more about all semi-precious gemstones, including amethyst, apatite, black onyx, blue topaz, carnelian, chalcedony, citrine, coral, garnet, white topaz, crystal, diamond, emerald, iolite, jade, Labradorite, moonstone, pearl, peridot, prehnite, rose quarz, ruby, sapphire, smokey topaz, tanzanite, tourmaline and tourquoise when you check out this gemstone chart: www.dashaboutique.com/gemstone chart.html.
Are you familiar with jewelry?
Orignal From: Mostly mined in Brazil, China, and
In Tennessee, however, cultured freshwater pearls are grown around a shell shape making intriguing pearls which are extremely durable and lustrous. 
Several people worked on figuring out to start a pearl growing, but Mikimoto is often the man credited with carrying the process to full development. 
Say someone really liked strawberries, but could never find enough of them in the woods, or the ones they found were too small, or too tasteless? 
If you choose to give your loved one a pendant, just remember that it is not just a gift you're giving them. You will be capturing one of their symbolic treasures in a beautiful necklace, an adornment they will enjoy forever. 
Pendants are great gift ideas, acknowledging a friend or family member's interests. To consider what kind of pendants you can give a loved one, here are some ideas of how you can celebrate some of the things that they treasure most. 
Mohs' Hardness score is based on a 10 point scale where 10 is the most resistant, like a diamond, and 1 is easily scratched, such as Talc. Diamonds are often proved real by the fact that they can scratch glass. Because they are such scratch resistant stones, diamonds are extremelty suitable as a component of oft-worn jewelry. Diamonds should be regularly cleaned by a professional or with a soft rag and mild soap and water. Avoid ultra-sonic cleaners, solvents and harsh chemicals when cleaning your handcrafted jewelry as exposure to these elements can damage semi-precious and precious gemstones and pearls. 
Diamonds are often described and valued by their gemological characteristics: The Four C's (carat, color, cut and clarity). Although Diamonds are used in many types of fine jewelry, they are traditionally associated with engagement and wedding rings. Most people think diamonds are white or colorless. In fact, yellow and brown Diamonds are the most common. Any Diamond with a hue other than brown or yellow is considered a colored Diamond. Colorless Diamonds are pure or nearly pure. The color scale for colorless diamonds goes from D (colorless) to Z (light yellow). 
Learn more about all semi-precious gemstones, including amethyst, apatite, black onyx, blue topaz, carnelian, chalcedony, citrine, coral, garnet, white topaz, crystal, diamond, emerald, iolite, jade, Labradorite, moonstone, pearl, peridot, prehnite, rose quarz, ruby, sapphire, smokey topaz, tanzanite, tourmaline and tourquoise when you check out this gemstone chart: www.dashaboutique.com/gemstone chart.html. 
Mohs' Hardness score is based on a 10 point scale where 10 is the most resistant, like a diamond, and 1 is easily scratched, such as Talc. Aquamarine gets a score of 7.5-8, meaning that it is quite scratch resistant and therefore suitable as a component of jewelry. Aquamarine gemstones should be regularly cleaned by a professional or with a soft rag and mild soap and water or an ultra-sonic cleaner. Avoid solvents and harsh chemicals when cleaning your handcrafted jewelry as exposure to these elements can damage semi-precious and precious gemstones and pearls. 
Aquamarine gemstones look best as parts of formal evening jewelry when paired with Black Onyx, black pearls or dark blue sapphire. More casual combinations include lighter, bridal colored combinations with quartz, raw diamonds or pearls. To see a selection of handmade artisan jewelry featuring aquamarine, visit www.dashaboutique.com/shopbygemstone. Aquamarine is typically considered a sophisticated gemstone that works well with any outfit. In earrings, it works especially well to enhance the luster of blue or green eyes. 
Still sold on diamond but want something colorful? Believe it or not diamond comes in every color and colored diamonds are truly rare. On big problem, hold on to your wallet: yellow and brown diamonds are affordable but blues, greens; orange, pink and red diamonds are exceptionally rare and bring breathtaking prices. 
Sapphire and ruby, the royal gems of choice, are excellent candidates. They are really brother and sister, both members of the gem family corundum. Hardness and toughness are the two measures of durability. Diamond is the harder but ruby and sapphire are tougher and at 9 on the Mohs scale, ruby and sapphire are the second hardest things on earth. In fact, only another sapphire/ruby or diamond will scratch either. There are also expanded color choices: ruby is red but sapphire occurs in virtually every other color, besides, blue you may choose, pink, purple or yellow. 
Those big beautiful round lustrous pearls that have always been popular are often mostly a shell bead inside with a coating of pearl on the outside. Are they real pearls? Yes! But be sure to buy from a reputable seller to make sure the coating is thick enough not to peel or wear off. 
My son planted strawberry seeds this year in a planter. Without the seeds, no strawberry plants would have sprouted. 
Natural pearls are still being found all over the world...even 10 miles from my home here in eastern Iowa, people find natural freshwater pearls in the Mississippi River. 
Click the gift wrapping option. E-tailers that don't gift-wrap get crossed off my list. Why? Gift-wrapping is time-consuming and expensive. Christmas wrapping paper is about three bucks or more a roll; bows can be a dollar each, and you've got tags and tape, not to mention the time involved to crease perfectly wrinkle-free corners or get the wrapping on that oblong-shaped doll just right. Plus, like me, your might not be very good at it. At $3-$5 per gift, which is what the sites I shop at typically charge, it pays to have items gift-wrapped. Shopping online saves you money on gas, why not put that toward wrapping? Just make sure to have gifts tagged if you've ordered multiple gifts for multiple people or you'll have a lot of unwrapping and rewrapping to do. 
Turquoise is a semi-precious gemstone frequently incorporated into some of the most modern, beautiful handmade jewelry in the world. It is most often found in blue and turquoise hues, and is widely recognized as the December birthstone as well as the 11th anniversary gemstone. But beyond its modern-day uses and associations, turquoise holds a decadent mythological, spiritual and etymological history that adds nostalgic value to its already strong aesthetic worth. Read on for more information that will help you fall in love with your turquoise jewelry – or inspire you to buy some today! 
Chinese Turquoise comes in both green and blue colors, with many subtle color variations throughout the stone, and has spider web (matrix) veining. There are four to five regions in China where they are mined. The Ma'ashan turquoise mine is located near Shanghai, in addition to the Hubei Province, just to name a few. 
Diamonds are often described and valued by their gemological characteristics: The Four C's (carat, color, cut and clarity). Although Diamonds are used in many types of fine jewelry, they are traditionally associated with engagement and wedding rings. Most people think diamonds are white or colorless. In fact, yellow and brown Diamonds are the most common. Any Diamond with a hue other than brown or yellow is considered a colored Diamond. Colorless Diamonds are pure or nearly pure. The color scale for colorless diamonds goes from D (colorless) to Z (light yellow).