December | Tanzanite, Turquoise, Blue Zircon & Blue Topaz

All four of December’s birthstones are best known for their beautiful shades of blue. 

Tanzanite is the exquisite blue-purple variety of the mineral zoisite that is only found in one part of the world, Tanzania. 

Turquoise is semi-translucent to opaque, usually light to medium blue or greenish blue. It might have veins of matrix running through it (a remnant of its surrounding rock). Turquoise is often fashioned as a cabochon: the dome shape sets off turquoise’s color, texture, and any matrix beautifully. 

Zircon is an underrated gemstone that’s often confused with synthetic cubic zirconia due to similar names and shared use as diamond simulants. Few people realize that zircon is a spectacular natural gemstone available in a variety of colors.

Topaz is a silicate mineral of fluorine and aluminium. Due to its rarity in nature, blue topaz in most commonly obtained by heating and irradiation of colourless topaz. It registers 8 on the Mohs scale of hardness, making it almost as hard as sapphire and tougher than tanzanite.