Collection: Gemstone Jewelry

Shopping gemstone jewelry by stone

Most jewelry sites organise by necklace, earring, bracelet, ring. That is how a warehouse thinks. It is not how anybody actually shops a crystal, because you almost never arrive wanting a bracelet — you arrive wanting amethyst, and you will take it in whatever form it comes.

So this is sorted by stone. Pick the material, then pick the shape.

The stones people come here for

Amethyst. Purple quartz, February birthstone, the calm-down stone. Our single most-worn material, partly because purple suits nearly everyone and partly because good amethyst is genuinely affordable.

Labradorite. Grey until it isn't. Turn it and a sheet of blue, green or gold flashes across the surface — that is labradorescence, caused by light bouncing off internal layers. The stone people pick up and then will not put down.

Moonstone. A soft blue-white shimmer that floats rather than flashes. June birthstone. Reads gentler than labradorite and pairs well with it.

Rose quartz. Pale pink, the heart stone, the one nearly everybody starts with. Impossible to wear wrong.

Tiger eye. Golden brown with a moving band of light. Confidence and grounding, and one of the few stones that suits a wrist stack and a boardroom equally.

Rutilated quartz. Clear quartz threaded with gold needles of rutile. No two pieces alike, which is the appeal.

Beyond these you will find turquoise, carnelian, citrine, garnet, smoky quartz, lapis, aventurine, agate and druzy through the grid.

Genuine, lab-created, and glass

The crystal market is full of material pretending to be something else. Dyed howlite sold as turquoise. Glass sold as opal. Heat-treated citrine that started life as amethyst. None of these are bad materials — they are only a problem when nobody tells you.

Every listing here names what it is. Genuine stone is called genuine. Lab-created, hydro quartz, opalite, glass and dyed material are each named specifically, on the product page, before you buy. Opalite is a man-made glass and we do not call it a crystal.

Metals and wear

Sterling silver, gold plate over brass or steel, and waterproof PVD stainless. Sterling patinas — normal, and it polishes back. Gold plate lasts longest away from perfume and chlorine. Waterproof steel is for the piece you never take off.

Softer stones need more care than the metal does. Moonstone, opal, turquoise and malachite do not enjoy ultrasonic cleaners, harsh soap or a knock against a countertop. Quartz family stones — amethyst, rose quartz, citrine, tiger eye — are hardier and forgive more.

Where to go next

If you know the month rather than the stone, shop by birthstone. If you are working with energy centres, shop by chakra. If you want to know what a stone is traditionally used for before you commit, the crystal properties guide covers meanings across the catalogue.

Prices in CAD. Canadian small business, Calgary, Alberta, since 2008.