Information on Birthstones
Eternity rings come in all shapes and sizes but most commonly are simple bands set with small stones. There is of course a large choice of stones here and one of the most personal ways of narrowing down this choice is to use your, your partners or your children's birthstones in any combination for your own unique eternity ring.
Here is a list of which birthstone goes with which month:
- January's stone is garnet (a deep red colour)
- February's stone is amethyst (a deep purple colour)
- March's stone is aquamarine (a pale blue colour)
- April's stone is diamond (which is of course clear)
- May's stone is emerald (an intense green colour)
- June's stone is pearl (which can be a light cream colour)
- July's stone is ruby (an intense red colour)
- August's stone is peridot (a variety of green shades)
- September's stone is sapphire (which can be blue, pink or yellow)
- October's stone is opal (which come in various colours)
- November's stone is topaz (which can be a yellow colour)
- December's stone is turquoise (a light blue shade)
Assuming your eternity ring is to be a plain band with small invisibly set stones around the shank, not all of the above are suitable, namely pearl and opal, which are rather too soft to be sensible to use in an eternity ring. All the rest are fine and can be used in any combination that suits your particular eternity ring.
The above list of birthstones was agreed by the National Association of Goldsmiths in 1937 after a long period of there being many different lists. This had come about during the eighteenth century when it was fashionable to connect different months with different stones, following on from a trend of applying different colours to different months. There may also be a connection between the seasons and different stones going as far back as pagan times. Whatever the exact history, your own combination of stones in your wedding ring is a lovely and meaningful symbol.
