Semi Precious Gemstones

Amethyst is a violet variety of quartz. It is semiprecious stone and is the traditional birthstone for February. Amethyst occurs in primary hues from a light pinkish violet to a deep purple. The world's largest deposits of amethysts can be found in Brazil, Mexico, Uruguay, Russia, France, Namibia and Morocco. Sometimes amethyst and citrine are found growing in the same crystal. It is then referred to as ametrine.

Citrine is a variety of quartz whose color ranges from a pale yellow to brown , Natural citrines are rare; most commercial citrines are heat-treated amethysts or smoky quartzes. It is difficult to differentiate between cut citrine and yellow topaz visually, but they differ in hardness. Brazil is the leading producer of citrine, with much of its production coming from the state of Rio Grande do Sul.

Garnet species are found in many colors including red, orange, yellow, green, purple, brown, blue, black, pink, and colorless, with reddish shades most common. Garnet species' light transmission properties can range from the gemstone-quality transparent specimens to the opaque varieties used for industrial purposes as abrasives. It has hardness of of about 6.5 to 7.5 on Mohs scale.

Peridot is one of the few gemstones that occur in only one color: an olive-green. The intensity and tint of the green, however, depends on the percentage of iron that is contained in the crystal structure, so the color of individual peridot gems can vary from yellow, to olive, to brownish-green. In rare cases, peridot may occur in a medium-dark toned, visually pure green with no secondary yellow hue or brown mask.