My Aquamarine Blue
This Aquamarine solitaire in a ‘whisper’ of a setting makes a loud noise on my finger! Not only in terms of the sparkle of colour but also in the story it carries. It marked my first fascination with gems.
It was years ago that the energy of all those gemstones gripped my attention for the first time. It all started with Maj Britt Baker, a Swedish Gemmologist living in Sri Lanka at the time. It was she who opened the door to the study of gems and I was like a sponge absorbing it all in. She gave me a basic introductory course, which gave me a taste for more.
“More” however had to wait. First, I had my beautiful baby. After that, it took time to fight off fear (!!!). The fear of not being able to keep it all together while being a full time mummy. I finally delved in and qualified in gemmology- while “keeping it all together”!! It had to be God who carried it all through!
I loved every minute of it but it wasn’t all a bed of roses. I travelled everywhere with my notes and highlighter and… felt as though my hair was turning grey!! Plus I dropped a few things to get in practice for the practical exam, blah blah. But what a fantastic ride and obviously…no regrets;)
It was during the introductory stage to gems and gemmology that I bought this beautiful, light sky-blue aquamarine. So mesmerised was I with the energy of this stone that I wanted only the colour of the gemstone to be seen. Of course it needed a setting of some sort. I chose a barely there, basic setting in white gold.
It holds the same magic today, as it did all those years ago…and that is what an Aquamarine does:) !
The colour of water and the sky, Aquamarine means ‘water of the sea’. The blue calms, relaxes and is said to exude trust, honesty and loyalty. It brightens a grey day and sparkles even more in a brighter one!
Aquamarine is from the Beryl family (along with Emerald) with a good toughness, stability, and with a hardness of 7.5 – 8.
The gemstone colour ranges from light blue to dark blue and blue-green.
The typical inclusions are: two phase inclusions, spiky cavities with liquid and gas bubble. “Rain-like inclusions” which are parallel tubes in a rain like appearance. I hope to photograph and post examples of these soon!
So there’s my story that the little aquamarine carries with it forever! Great beginnings and no turning back!
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