November Citrine or Topaz?

A while back we received a sternly worked e-mail accusing us of being part of the Citrine conspiracy. The writer told us that the Citrine was just a cheap imitation of the real November birthstone - the Golden Topaz.

It is true? Are we part of a global conspiracy? It would be fun to part of a conspiracy, but no.

We've talked before about the evolving birthstone calendar and this is a perfect example of that evolution. The problem is that jewelers want to be able to sell you birthstone jewelry and they can't if the supply of stones is inconsistent or dwindling. In other cases certain stones just go out of fashion. Golden Topaz is one of those traditional birthstones which have disappeared from jewelry store display cases along with others such as onyx, moonstone and bloodstone.

The truth about Citrine is that it is beautiful, plentiful and affordable. Learn more about the November birthstone.

October Opals Direct from Australia

Jewelry stores can be a great source of fine opal jewelry, but there are other ways to get your hands on unique specimens of October's Birthstone. Most of the world's opals come from Australia and many Australian sites offer rough and polished opals in a variety of sizes, shapes and colors. We discovered a unique site that brings them all together in an auction style environment. Opal Auctions (www.opalauctions.com) offers a huge variety of opals and opal jewelry from a variety of sellers. When we visited we found some neat looking rough opals and small polished opals for as little as a couple of dollars. Of course you can also spend thousands on some stunning and colorful large opals. Check them out here.