life in the facet lane… by Diana Jarrett GG RMV

March is as good a month as any to welcome Spring with its burgeoning new life all around us. Since March also has everyone’s most inclusive holiday, St. Patrick’s Day, green is the way to go for the entire month. The first gemstone most of us think
of is emerald, with its verdant hues reminiscent of the Emerald Isle, Ireland itself.

Pick your Greens
But let’s venture out for a moment, and consider other greens that are not only magnetic in their appeal, but will give that life-affirming boost all year long. Other green gems that captivate include peridot, green tourmaline, and some dazzling green garnets. We can stretch it a bit and include the mesmeric green (often pistachio) tinted pearls. But what about the breathtaking opals? While they are lauded for their exciting play of color, opal may display dominant hues like red, blue or even black. Green dominant opals are exceedingly rare. And when you see one, you’ll understand why they are so coveted.

Uncovering the Mystery of its Rainbow Hues
Precious opal is a name given to a variety of opal that displays an obvious play-of-color—which is the stone’s dramatic flash of
bright spectral hues when one looks at the stone; a phenomenon of the stone’s internal structure. Other gemstones may have a
crystalline structure. But opal’s material is completely amorphous. Looking closely through a high-powered microscope, one can see minute spheres compacted closely together.  This unique property breaks up light entering the stone into its spectral hues before being reflected back to the eye.

Remember the billowing foam of your childhood (or recent!) bubble bath? Didn’t they display an iridescent sheen? What about those bubbles you blew from a soapy bottle as a youngster? You could often detect a rainbow-like iridescence to them before they drifted away and popped. Those round orbs handle light in the same way that opal’s round spheres do!

Opal-iscious
Why not encounter that same childhood delight now with the iridescence of an opal flashing its brilliance before your eyes? It’s a superb way to not only say Happy St. Paddy’s Day and welcome Spring, but to keep that vibrant feeling of new life all year long. OMI Privé knows just how to select the rarest of the rare gems for their collections. And now, it’s easier to appreciate their exquisite opal ring once we know how uncommon the green dominant opals really are.

Happy Wearin’ o’ the Green Everyone!

Contact Diana Jarrett at diana@dianajarrett.com and read color-n-ice.blogspot.com

DIANA JARRETT GG RMV

www.dianajarrett.com