Know your Birthstone Series 1: January: Garnet

This is the birthstone for those born in January, whose Zodiac sign is Capricorn. The name Garnet appears to originate with the Latin granatum malum, the name for pomegranate, a bush which produces a red fruit with seeds thereby making the most popular shade of garnet, one similar to red wine.

Garnets given as a gift signify eternal friendship and trust, although the red colour is full of passion, it’s deep shade tempers any volatility associated with the hue. In this way garnet does reflect the values of constancy, friendship, and fidelity. Those born in the month of January have the pleasure of identifying with the beautiful, deep red garnet gemstone and all it embodies.

It is an old gemstone and references to it, dates back to 3100 B.C., when the Egyptians used garnets as inlays jewelry. These group of minerals referred to as garnets, comes in a rainbow of colours, from the deep red of the pyrope garnet to the vibrant green of tsavorites.  Garnet occurs in every color except blue and most varieties are named for their color i.e. Rhodolite is a purplish red. Today, the most important sources for garnet are Africa, Sri Lanka, and India.

Though garnet jewels are beautiful and can be quite expensive, the stone isn’t often considered to be a flashy choice. Garnets do need to be handled with care, however, as they are not nearly as strong as other gemstones, such as rubies, sapphires, or diamonds.

Tiffany & Co published a series of birthstone verses in 1870, which reflect the commonly recognized stones for each birth month. Here’s what the famous jewelers had to say about January:

“By her who in January was born
No gem save garnets shall be worn
They will ensure her constancy
True friendship and fidelity.”

Whether or not you believe a gemstone truly has the power to instill such qualities, they can at least be reminders that help us draw on our innate capacities for them. According to jewelsforme.com, mystical properties associated with garnet include healing properties for inflammatory diseases and all things related to blood. It’s also thought to encourage self-esteem and truthfulness, as well as warding off nightmares and depression.

Just as January is the first month of a new year, garnet is said to be a good stone to wear when embarking on a new venture or moving to a new city.

Have you got a Garnet in your jewellery box?

Xoxo

AngelBaiye

Keys of My Heart

I was racking my head for a name for this cute pair of earrings which I really love and the name that popped into my head was ‘Keys of my Heart’, maybe it’s the Valentine air that’s causing me to think in love terms but today I am going to get a little personal.

The common saying is ‘Key to my heart’, this got me to thinking……Do women actually have ‘A’ key to their hearts? Just one key?………………. I really doubt that. I’ve heard it said that women are like Onions…..they have many layers or should I say WE have many layers. Our hearts are more like bullet proof Security doors; you know those ones with the dead lock at the top, the 3 key holes, the slam bolt and lastly the slide chain? It’s more like that.

I think every guy would agree with me when I say it takes so long to scale through all those hurdles and get all those locks open, I cant blame them when they’re triumphant , they can finally say ‘YES! I’ve got the KEYS to her heart’.

Even in simple friendships I know when I say hi, smile and you smile back and we have a conversation, that’s just one bolt I’ve unlocked. You have to work a little harder for me to unlock the bolt of trust, loyalty and a host of other things.

In Honour of January

January, has come and gone and 2012 is on its way to the end.

It was a great month all in all, I had exams, beaded a little for a jewellery party (I haven’t hosted yet) and did a bit of research on jewellery photography and birthstones.

Learning about Garnet, the Birthstone of January was fun. Most people associate Garnet with burgundy as it was named after the red seed of the pomegranate fruit, it is said that the stone signifies everlasting friendship, constancy & trust and wearing the birthstone associated with your date of birth would bring good luck and protection.

Although the more prominent garnet is the deep red gem, it comes in all colours except blue and I have fallen in love with the green hued variety called Tsavorite.

I made two pendant necklaces in honour of this shade of garnet for the Jewellery party, the first one called the snow king I used as a banner at the top of this post and the second called the wishing well would be put up after I tell you about my ‘photography’.

My pictures are improving albeit slowly and I’ve come to appreciate those who practice the art of photography in a professional capacity. I recently opened a store on Etsy, an online community that celebrates all things handmade and I’ve been taking pictures for both my Facebook page and Etsy shop.

You should see the sort of tips I’ve garnered,