Garnet - The Birthstone for January

A birthstone is a gift of a precious material (jewelry, mainly gemstones) that symbolizes the month of birth in the Gregorian Calendar.

The Gregorian calendar has poems matching each month with its birthstone. These are traditionally the stones in English-speaking societies.

By her who in January was born
No gem save garnets shall be worn
They will ensure her constancy
True friendship and fidelity.
author unknown


Garnets have been known to Man for thousands of years. Noah used a garnet lantern to help him steer his ark through the dark night. Garnets are also found in jewellery from early Egyptian, Greek and Roman times. Early explorers and travellers liked to carry a garnet. The garnet was popular as a talisman and protective stone, for it was believed to light up the night and protect its bearer from evil and disaster.
Red is the colour most often encountered, but the garnet also exists in various shades of green, a tender to intense yellow, a fiery orange and some fine earth-coloured nuances.

My favourite garnet variety is the rhodolite - a mixed crystal of almandine and pyrope. This popular garnet is of a magnificent velvety red with a fine violet or raspberry-red undertone. Drop-dead gorgeous when the light shines through them. Originally found in the USA, it now comes mainly from the gemstone mines in East Africa, India and Sri Lanka.

These are some of my favourite rhodolite garnet earrings from my Etsy store.



These garnets are facetted rhondelles that sparkle as they move



These garnets are randomly sized rectangular beads lightly facetted



It is said Garnet is the stone of passionate devotion. To your family, your friends, yourself, and your purpose or goals . Garnet will stimulate the senses, and increase your vitality and stamina.




Rhodolite garnet tend to be lighter in color than most other kinds of red garnet. It can be easily confused with ruby because of the similarity in color. The mixture of red and violet in rhodolites makes a very attractive plummy colour. Purple-red is the most sought after color for rhodolite. Assorted size rhodolite garnet hang from 3 intertwined rings. The rings were hand formed and fused closed. Sterling silver leverbacks.

Rhodolite garnet- assorted sizes varying from 3mmx5mm - 4mmx8mm
Rings- Argentium sterling silver- 15mm diam
Total length from top to bottom- 50mm (2")

Gracie Jewellery arrives in it's own storage pouch.

*Argentium Sterling Silver is sterling silver with less of the copper alloy. Copper is what makes sterling silver tarnish. Argentium is 92.5% pure silver with the balance a mix of germanium and copper. This makes Argentium silver harder, brighter and more highly tarnish resistant than traditional sterling silver.