These Blues Chase Your Blues Away

September’s birthstone is the sapphire, which happens to be one of my favorite gems.

Are you aware that the sapphire comes in a spectrum of colors and is not just the common blue?

There is also white (colorless), pink, yellow, green, orange, purple and black.

The range of color is what makes this gemstone so fascinating. The other plus is that sapphire is a hard gem; it registers just below diamond which is a ten (10) on the Mohs scale (The Mohs scale rates the hardness from one to 10 and is a convenient system to help identify minerals, including precious gemstones). The sapphire is a nine on the Mohs scale. What that means is it’s a very good choice for a ring or bracelet due to its resistance to scratching and its durability. Many other gemstones such as amethyst, topaz and especially tanzanite are very low on the hardness scale and can show scratches and damage in a short time if worn on a 24/7 basis.

Let’s get back to enjoying the blues. Many of the sapphires available to the public originate from Australia and that source can be found in several shades of blue, blue green, green and even black. The most coveted and expensive blue sapphires come from Sri Lanka, Kashmir, and Burma (now Myanmar). There are several other countries mining for sapphires and that includes the U.S.A. 

The rarest, most expensive and highly prized sapphire is from the Kashmir region (Cornflower blue in color, it is also called “Blue Velvet”), high in the Himalaya mountains. The mining process is only a few months a year due to weather conditions. 

In my shop sapphires are always popular and to my amazement I hear from customers that the darker the sapphire the better. I must disagree; a very light washed out blue colored sapphire is just that - “a washed out blue.” Or going to the other end of the spectrum, an almost black blue is not the most desirable. In my opinion, if you like a black sapphire that has no color or brilliance, save yourself some money and purchase cheap black onyx if you wish to acquire the same result. The ultimate color for a truly stunning blue sapphire is cornflower blue or the colored blue bottle of Milk of Magnesia (now I’m showing my age here!). 

I recently presented my wife with a stunning Burmese blue sapphire for our anniversary. It’s a 4.00 carat oval flanked with two half carat white round brilliant diamonds. The classic three stone mounting is the bomb - I call it a “KISS” designed ring (keep it simple stupid!). You want the center stone to be the main focal point and the diamonds simply accent the sapphire and make it pop. Her ring gets a lot of attention and compliments on its size and beauty.

Natural sapphire is not an inexpensive gem. The Padparadscha sapphire is a mixture of pink and orange and is very rare and also the cornflower blue sapphire; they can cost many thousands of dollars per carat. I recently sold an oval cut Padparadscha in a single stone 18kt. yellow gold custom setting. This was a truly unique and special design. A few years back I had a large demand for yellow and pink sapphires; the nice quality stones rival the same color and brilliance as natural or colored diamonds, just not as expensive.

As with most things in life there are alternatives to a natural sapphire. Lab created or man made synthetic sapphire is available. That watch you are wearing may have a scratch resistant synthetic white sapphire crystal. The Chatham Co. has been creating in the lab “gemstones” for many decades and the result is near indistinguishable to the natural gem, and much more affordable. I have sold many Chatham emeralds, rubies and different colored sapphires over my illustrious 50-year career.

It’s not just a September birthstone… Sapphires have been cherished for thousands of years. Who doesn’t remember the spectacular sapphire ring Princess Di wore, now being worn by the Duchess of Cambridge? There is also the pear-shaped blue sapphire and diamond ring that Emperor Napoleon of France presented to his wife Josephine. That ring sold for $1.17 million Euros in 2013. In the U.S. there are important sapphires as well… The Blue Giant of the Orient, a whopping 486 carats and The Star of Bombay (182 carats) named after the gin, I’m told, and given to silent movie star Mary Pickford, a gift from her husband Douglas Fairbanks. It is presently on display at the Smithsonian Institution.

I love the range of color that sapphire possesses - the many shades of blue resemble the colors of the oceans which is one reason I love incorporating them into many of my sea life themed designs. Last season I created a 14kt. white gold wave designed pendant with light to dark blue sapphires and diamonds - the flow of color is surreal, almost fluid like…what a great looking piece. It sold within days once I put it on display in my window. Now I’m in the process of designing matching earrings.

It’s mostly “The Blue’s” nowadays - that’s what I have been accommodating my clients with - and being in the Blues isn’t always a bad thing.