Garnet Jewelry - The Reddest of Red

Garnet is a popular gemstone known for its deep red hue, but did you know that garnet can be found in almost any color? In fact, there’s even color changing garnet that can shift from blue in fluorescent lighting to a deep purplish red in incandescent lighting. Let’s do a deep dive into the garnet gemstone and see if we can find a few more surprises to share!

The name ‘garnet’ comes from the latin word ‘grinada” which means pomegranate – obviously the luscious red fruit’s signature crimson shade inspired this gemstone’s name. Garnet was first discovered in Ancient Egypt around 3800 BC and was used in jewelry, decorative carvings, and other artistic pieces. To date, there are more than 20 species of garnet! Some of the most popular varieties include pyrope, almandite, spessartite, and grossularite.

Garnet is the official birthstone for those born in January and is a symbol of lasting friendship, making it the perfect stone to gift between friends. While the deep red hue is the most traditional color, garnets can be found in blue, green, orange, pink, violet, and yellow! One of my personal favorite shades of garnet is called Rhodolite – a hybrid of almandine and pyrope garnet – which is known for it’s purplish raspberry color!

As I mentioned earlier, there is a color changing variety of garnet, which is one of the rarest forms this gemstone can take. Some of the best color changing garnet can be found in Southern Madagascar – these stones have such strong color changing properties, they’re often confused with Alexandrite, arguably the most well-known color changing stone. If you’re looking for a showstopping gemstone that will get everyone talking, color changing garnet could be that stone for you!

Garnet is one of the most popular gemstones used in jewelry around the world and if you’re lucky enough to call this stone your birthstone, your options are limitless. Be sure to find the color and cut that is perfect for you and then all that’s left is to show it off and enjoy wearing it!