What is Tourmaline and is this gem suitable for jewellery?
Tourmaline occurs all around the world in a vast rainbow of colours. This, and its cost and durability, make it very popular for use in jewellery. It’s classed as a semi-precious stone.
Tourmaline is actually a name applied to a collection of minerals, all with similar crystal structure, but with very different chemical compositions, which is why it comes in so many colours.
Common kinds of tourmaline
Rubellite, for example is a name that is used to describe red, pink and orangey tourmaline. The red colouring usually shows the presence of manganese.
Paraiba tourmaline is an amazing neon blue to green colour. Copper is the magic ingredient here - but more on this highly prized gemstone in a later blog!
Indicolite, is used to describe the blue to blue-green tourmaline, where the presence of iron, copper and titanium give it its colour.
Chrome tourmaline is an intense green, coloured by chromium.
Clear and black tourmaline are also found. Black tourmaline (schorl) was used in Victorian mourning jewellery and is considered to have positive energy. It is one of the most popular crystals to be used for metaphysical purposes.
How tourmaline is formed
Most gem-quality tourmaline forms in pegmatites - igneous rocks that form during the last stages of cooling magma. It’s fascinating!
As rocks crystallise out of the magma, water and light elements separate out. This magma water is rich in mineral-forming elements, and since these elements are mobile in the water, large crystals form.
One amazing thing about tourmaline, is its ability to be multicoloured - bi-colour, tricolour or parti-coloured). These form when the water that supplied nutrients to the crystal changes in composition during its growth.
A gradual change over time can cause a subtle colour banding, whereas if the change is abrupt (e.g. an earthquake cracked the rock, allowing for water to flow quickly). It can result in a sharp contrast between colour zones, such as the well-known and beautiful green-clear-red zoning in watermelon tourmaline.
I love using tourmaline in my jewellery designs because of the vibrant, beautiful colours. The relatively low prices and its durability, mean I can incorporate larger stones in my designs.
Caring for tourmaline
It has a hardness of 7-7.5 on the Mohs Scale. Gems with a hardness of 6-7 or greater are quite suitable for rings which are worn regularly. I wouldn’t recommend it for an engagement ring, purely as it is likely to get scratched with everyday wear, especially if worn during sports or chores! Warm, soapy water is the best method for cleaning tourmaline. The use of ultrasonic and steam cleaners is not recommended.
Thanks for stopping by and reading my blog. You may want to have a quick nosey of some of the Tourmaline Jewellery I have in stock ;)
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