Jewelry guide
Gemstones
This guide is about gemstones. First listed stones are able to be facet, and after them there’s list of cabochon cut gemstones.
There’s info about gemstones; Hardness on Mohs’s scale, origin, colors, jewelry (as in, what kind on jewelries are best for that specific gemstone), and cleaning.
If there is ˢ after the name of the gemstone, that means that gemstone can be lab-created. Lab-created stone has same chemical formula as the natural gemstones.
Hardness: Hardness of the gemstone is ordinal scale for the gemstones. 1st is softest (talc) and 10th is hardest (diamond).
1 | Talc |
2 | Gypsum |
3 | Calcite |
4 | Fluorite |
5 | Apatite |
6 | Orthoclase feldspar |
7 | Quartz (amethyst, citrine) |
8 | Topaz |
9 | Corundum (sapphire, ruby) |
10 | Diamond |
Origin: Where the stone or mineral is from. Some minerals/stones can be found many places around the world, but in this guide there’s three providers listed.
Color: Please note, that the colors aren’t exactly the same as it seems on your screen. The colors of the gemstones are still tried to do as close as they are in real life, to ease identifying gemstones.
Jewelry: As in, where that specific gemstone is suitable the best. Word are shortened to letters. If the gemstone is suitable for all kind of jewelry, this part has “All” – marking.
Earrings | Pendant | Ring |
E | P | R |
Bracelet | Brooch | Cufflinks | Tie tack |
B | BR | C | T |
Cleaning: USC means ultrasonic cleaner.
Please note, that the gemstone may fall of from the jewelry if it is not setted right. Ultrasonic cleaners aren’t suggested to use at home because of this.
⊕ – Ultrasonic cleaner can be used carefully; Inspect the stone, that it doesn’t have any cracks or the stone hasn’t treated other ways.
√ – Can clean in ultrasonic cleaner
× – Do not use ultrasonic cleaner
Cleaning has four different categories.
Soap | Water | Soft brush | Soft cloth |
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Mild (unscented) soap. For example, a dishwashing liquid. One or two drops is enough. | Hand-warmth water or a little bit colder. | Soft brush – unused toothbrush or small brush for painting. | Frizz-free, soft and clean cloth. |
Remember to check up the stone before you start to clean them! If the stone has scratches or cracks, ask from the jeweler can you clean the jewelry/gemstone. You can drop stone/jewelry in warm water (with soap, if the stone can handle it) and leave it lay there for a while, so the filth softens and loosens. After this, you can carefully brush the filth away / use the soft cloth. After cleaning, use dry cloth to dry off the jewelry / gemstone.
It is good to have frizz-free cloth just for cleaning and drying the stones, so the cloth doesn’t scratch the jewelry and stones.
If you have unfamiliar gemstone to you, a jeweler can identify the stones for you.
Alexandrite ˢ
Hardness: 8,5
Origin: Russia, Brazil, Sri Lanka
Color: Red to green
Jewelry: All
Cleaning: USC √




Amethyst ˢ
Hardness: 7
Origin: Brazil, Austria, Russia
Color: Purple shades
Jewelry: All
Cleaning: USC ⊕


Ametrine ˢ
Hardness: 7
Origin: Bolivia, lab-created
Color: Violet, yellow
Jewelry: All
Cleaning: USC ⊕


Aquamarine ˢ
Hardness: 7,5 – 8
Origin: Brazil, Burma, Madagascar
Color: Light blue
Jewelry: All
Cleaning: USC ⊕


Beryl ˢ
Hardness: 7,5 – 8
Origin: Russia, Brazil, Finland
Color: Transparent, yellow and green
Jewelry: All
Cleaning: USC ×


Citrine ˢ
Hardness: 7
Origin: Brazil, Madagascar, Russia
Color: Orange, yellow
Jewelry: All
Cleaning: USC ⊕


Diamond ˢ
Hardness: 10
Origin: Russia, Australia, Canada
Color: Transparent, yellowish
Jewelry: All
Cleaning: USC √