Gemstone Earrings

Which stones give which color

• Pink comes from pink sapphire, morganite, tourmaline and spinel. Pink sapphire is the most durable. morganite the softest, peachiest pink.
• Blue comes from sapphire, aquamarine and tanzanite.
• Green comes from emerald, tourmaline and peridot.
• Red comes from ruby, spinel and garnet.
• Purple comes from amethyst and tanzanite.

Which stones hold their color in small sizes

This matters more in earrings than anywhere else, because earring stones are small.

• Strong at small sizes: ruby, sapphire, emerald, tanzanite, amethyst and garnet keep their color well under half a carat.
• Needs size to show color: aquamarine and morganite are naturally pale, and in small studs they can read almost colorless. They suit drops and larger stones.

If you are buying small studs, choose from the first group. If you want a pale, bright stone, choose a larger drop.

Matching a pair across different gems

• Tanzanite changes with angle. It shows blue from one direction and violet from another, so a pair must be cut the same way to agree.
• Emerald pairs must match on clarity as well as color, since inclusions are unique to each stone.
• Pale stones forgive more. Slight color differences show far less in aquamarine or morganite than in ruby or sapphire.

Style and metal

Studs are the most worn, hoops and pavé designs spread many small stones, drops and halos suit larger stones, and flower motifs cluster several.

White gold keeps blues and greens crisp, yellow gold warms reds and purples, and rose gold flatters pinks. Earrings take few knocks, so softer stones such as tanzanite are practical here. Keep tanzanite and emerald out of ultrasonic cleaners.