How to buy a gemstone for her or him?

Choose by Color

Color is king with gemstones. The bottom line is to find out what is the recipient's favorite color. This can be done quite subtly without giving away the idea that you are planning to buy a gemstone.

If the answer is green, for example, you can just use our comprehensive list of green gemstones to choose from.

Gemstone Color Tips and Knowledge

Gemstones come in every shade of color imaginable and the strength of that color can affect the price but the only important factor is whether it is the right color for you.

Classic gemstones such as sapphires and rubies have ideal color tones that are described as deep and saturated but even these stones have a wide range of alternative hues to explore.

For more color inspiration you can have a look at our "Gems by Color list" below:

Brown

Choose from an endless variety of natural colors

Gemstones with pastel colors are valued lower than the deep saturated colors despite the fact that lighter stones will show off the sparkle a bit more and can look quite stunning.

Both gray and yellow pastel colors have been named as the pantone color for the year 2021 so they are very fashionable at the moment.

Choose by Birth date / month

The best and most common way to personalize gemstones is through birthdays. Each birth month has at least one associated birthstone. If your loved one was born in July and likes red, it is your lucky day and ruby is your stone.

Of course it does not always work out, he or she may love red but was born in November! See our detailed "Birthstones by Month" article below:

You can dig deeper into special gemstone connections by using our "Gemstones by Birth date" filter. The date, month, year, zodiac and more come into play and a few more choices appear. Someone born on the 6th February 1990 and loves red could have ruby or garnet gemstones in stunning red tones.

Gemstones By Birth date, select by Time, Day, Month and Year

Matching personality

No gift shows how much you care than one that matches your loved one's personality.

If the person is quite conservative they would probably appreciate a time honored classic like sapphires, rubies, garnets, pearls and the like.

Conventional men would prefer the dark masculine colors of tiger's eye or black tourmaline.

Gemstones for Men

Perhaps the person is the fun-loving out-going type so frivolous pink, purple and yellows will be perfect.

Unique individuals might appreciate a gemstone that reflects their originality so odd-shaped or irregular patterns will appeal. See some great examples here:

Choose Gemstones by Spiritual Connection

Many people have a strong spiritual connection to gemstones and incorporate them into a daily health regime that keeps them both physically and mentally well. This provides another great clue for buying that special gemstone.

We have a number of guides to gemstones and the spiritual world that can help you choose the perfect present. Certain gemstones can be a significant influence on Karma, the Chakras, Qi or Blood groups. A quick read of these guides should making choosing a gemstone to boost Karmic love or aiding the Third Eye Chakra a breeze.

Chakra Gemstones

Karma Gemstones

Gemstones for Blood Groups / Types

Gemstones and Qi

What is your star sign?

The signs of the zodiac play an important part of many people's lives and each has an associated gemstone or two that could be a perfect gift.

Take a look at this article on our website to give you some ideas.

The 4 Cs

Carat

This is simply the weight of the gemstone - one carat is 0.2 of a gram so a 5 carat gem will weigh 1 gram.>

A quick word of warning here. Different gemstones have different densities so a 2 carat zircon will look much smaller than a 2 carat emerald. Always buy your stone on the actual dimensions NOT the carat size. A very general rule is that the bigger the carat, the bigger the price, with all other factors being equal.

Clarity

Gemstones fall into three categories of clarity with variations within each category.

• Opaque
• Translucent
• Transparent

If you are choosing a transparent stone, choose one that is 'eye-clean'. This simply means that any flaws or blemishes (inclusions) are not visible to the naked eye. When looking at the gemstone's specifications look out for VS clarity or better.

Some gemstones, most notably emeralds, are known for their inclusions. They bring a certain charm and softness to the gem. Inclusions can also be a sign of a genuine gemstone, any totally flawless example is likely to be either a glass imitation or it has been created in a laboratory.

Cut

The cut of a gemstone is often confused with the shape but the cut is just how the stone is faceted and polished to show off its color and sparkle to its maximum. Opaque gemstones are usually just polished with a domed top and a flat bottom known as a cabochon.

Shape

Popular shapes for gemstone include:

• Round
• Oval
• Pear
• Heart
• Trillion
• Square
• Octagon
• Baquette
• Marquise
• Cushion

The shape of a gemstone is another personal choice - which style appeals the most?

If you choose an opaque gem why not an odd shaped one? This will mean having a totally unique gemstone which can be fashioned into many types of eye-catching pieces of jewelry. They can be found in lovely large sizes, too, with intriguing patterns and colors to boost the individuality.

Odd-Shaped Gemstones

Durability

Durability

Diamonds are very durable and will not be easily damaged. They have a rating of 10 on Mohs Hardness scale - a gauge of gemstone durability ranked from 1 - 10 - while sapphires and rubies are rated 9, emeralds 8, amethyst 7 and so on.

Very broadly speaking, any gemstone with a rating of less than 7 should be only used for jewelry such as pendants, necklaces or earrings where they will not be subject to knocks and bangs. If you want a gemstone for a ring, choose one 7 or above or make sure it is placed in a protective setting.

Gemstone Hardness Explained