October Birthstone: Opal

If you were born in October, your birthstone is Opal.

Opal, the October birthstone is a favorite for all jewelry lovers.  Often called, the kaleidoscope gem, its flashes of color make this an alluring mineral.  While having no specific color of it's own, flashes include blue, green, purple, orange, yellow, and warm notes of red and pink.

According to the Gemological Institute of America, a leader in gemology education:

"Play-of-color occurs in precious opal because it’s made up of sub-microscopic spheres stacked in a grid-like pattern—like layers of Ping-Pong balls in a box. As the lightwaves travel between the spheres, the waves diffract, or bend. As they bend, they break up into the colors of the rainbow, called spectral colors. Play-of-color is the result."

Are you one of those people that still thinks opals are for your grandma's jewelry box?  Don't let it's reputation fool you, opal jewelry today is far from boring.  Today, opal jewelry includes modern bezel ring settings, eclectic tribal inspired pendants, and bold diamond embellished earrings to name a few.

Many people also believe that love, hope, purity, and truth are symbolized in this stone.  Imagine the beautiful meaning when giving someone born in October a piece of Opal Jewelry!