Learning Center

• Are you in the dark about diamonds and want to find the perfect engagement ring? Are you wondering if a fresh string of pearls will be anything like your beloved grandmothers’? Check out our learning center for valuable information on how to seek out and care for your precious jewelry. At DeNatale we pride ourselves in keeping our customers informed.

• Precious Stones and Metals

  Garnet This gemstone is found in many colors including red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, brown, black, pink and clear. With a high refractive index, garnet is known for its brilliance. It has a hardness of 7 to 7.5 on the Mohs scale making it an attractive jewelry option. Red garnet is the January birthstone.

  Rhodolite Typically lighter in color than other kinds of red garnet, rhodolite is often mistaken for ruby because of the similarity in color. The mixture of red and violet in rhodolite attracts and engages its viewer. It is available in a variety of cuts and shapes.

  Tsavorite Unlike many other gemstones, tsavorite does not require any treatment, neither burning nor oiling. Robust, it has almost the same hardness as the emerald, approximately 7.5 on the Mohs scale, but is markedly less sensitive—not likely to crack or splinter on impact. The color range of the tsavorite includes a light, blue, and deep forest green.

• Iolite Colored blue, violet, or brownish, iolite has a particular softness in its tone making for an exceptional stone. Iolite can have different colors depending on the directions in the crystal. A cube cut from iolite will look more or less violet blue, almost like sapphire, from one side and clear as water from the other, and a honey yellow from on top. Its hardness of 7-7.5 makes it a suitable jewelry stone, though the presence of cleavage must be taken into account and some care exercised.

  Tanzanite Tanzanite is an extraordinary gemstone occurring in only one place worldwide. Its blue base, surrounded by hints of purple, makes a wonderful color. Tanzanite consists of calcium aluminum silicate and is not particularly hard, giving it a value of 6.5 to 7 on the Mohs scale. Tanzanite is a brittle stone and although it can be worn daily, care should be taken to protect it from knocks, pressure and extreme temperature changes. It is one of the birthstones of December.

  Tourmaline Tourmaline is home to an array of colors—from red to green and from blue to yellow. Some can have two or more colors, while others change their color to match daylight or artificial light. No two tourmalines are exactly the same. With a hardness of 7 to 7.5 on the Mohs scale, tourmalines are easy to look after and have excellent wearing qualities. Pink tourmaline is known as one of the birthstones of October.

• Moonstone The moonstone is characterized by mysterious plays of light, which make it look different when the stone is moved. This beautiful gemstone, however, does have one weak point, and that is its relatively low hardness of only 6 on the Mohs scale. For that reason, moonstones should be handled with care. It is a birthstone of June.

  Spinel Spinel is most famous for its deep red variety, which is nearly indistinguishable from ruby. In addition to beautiful rich reds, spinel can be found in a range of pastel shades of pink and purple. Its hardness is 8 on the Mohs scale with transparent to opaque qualities and vitreous to dull luster.

  Star Sapphire Star sapphires contain unusual needle-like inclusions that intersect each other at varying angles to produce a phenomenon called asterism. The presence of a star asterism is prized in the world of gemstones—found in a very small percentage of mined sapphires. Star sapphires range in color including blue, pink, orange, yellow, green, lavender, gray, and black. It is a tough and durable gem, with a hardness of 9 on the Mohs scale. Despite its strength, sapphire is still subject to chipping and fracture if handled roughly. Care should be taken to ensure it is properly handled.

  Quartz Quartz is one of the most common and well-known minerals on earth. It is attractive and durable, as well as inexpensive. Transparent to translucent, the color of quartz is as variable as the spectrum, but clear quartz is by far the most common.

• Lemon Quartz Heating amethyst, yellow quartz and iron together at extremely high temperatures creates lemon quartz. This heating process gives lemon quartz its brilliant, yellow color, which truly comes to life whenever light catches its facets.

  Smoky Quartz Smoky quartz is unusually colored for a gemstone—gray and translucent—and easily recognizable. It ranges in clarity from total transparency to a brownish-gray opaque or black.

  Rose Quartz Rose quartz exhibits a pale-pink to rose-red hue. It has been used for ornamental and religious purposes for thousands of years and is a symbol of love and beauty.

  Sky Blue & London Blue Quartz The blue color is actually caused by inclusions of other minerals. It can range from translucent to opaque, and its color from gray to deep blue. It is renowned for its stress-reducing quality.

  Zircon The brilliant luster and fire of zircon, combined with an apt hardness and range of colors, make it highly sought after. Often found in browns and greens, zircon can also be heat treated to make beautiful blue and golden colors. Rating 6.5 to 7.5 on Mohs scale, it is still sensitive to knocks and pressure, so care must also be taken when faceting zircon gemstones.

• Onyx Known for its fine texture and black color. Some less common types of onyx display white bands or ribbons in a variety known as sardonyx. It has a long history of use for hardstone carving and jewelry, where it is usually cut as a cabochon or into beads.

  Lapis Lapis is a rare semi-precious stone that is prized for its intense blue color and golden inclusions of pyrites, which shimmer like little stars. At between 5 and 6 on the Mohs scale, this stone is among the more sensitive gemstones. Throughout the years, it has shown remarkable stability as a fashion accessory.

  Hematite Hematite is a silvery, shiny opaque gemstone that almost looks like metal. It can also range from brown to reddish brown, or red. While the forms of hematite vary, they all have a rust-red streak. Hematite is harder than pure iron, but much more brittle. Hematite's popularity in jewelry was at its highest in Europe during the Victorian era, and has since seen a strong resurgence in North America.

  Coral An organic jewelry material, coral reflects the complexion of its wearer, and creates a dazzling look on bare skin. Particularly sensitive, with a hardness of only 3.5, it is much softer than any other gemstone material. Unprocessed coral is matte; polishing is what gives it its trademark glow and what makes it one of the most attractive decorative materials imaginable.