When you think of colored gemstones, some of the first ones that come to mind are probably emerald, sapphire, ruby, and so on. Well, let me rephrase that. When the average person (er, me), and not a graduate gemologist thinks of colored gemstones, they likely think of those because they’re common, highly sought-after, and of course, beautiful. But there is a massive assortment of gemstones that aren’t necessarily part our everyday jewelry sightings. One of those gemstones, which I so long to see more of, is kunzite.
Discovered in 1902, kunzite was named after Tiffany & Co.’s then-chief jeweler George Frederick Kunz, who was also a noted mineralogist. The stone was originally discovered in California, but has been found in other U.S. spots as well as Brazil, Canada, Mexico, Afghanistan, and a number of other locations.
So what’s the deal with kunzite, why don’t we see it more commonly? Well for starters, it’s somewhat delicate. It measures roughly 6-7 on the Moh’s Scale, and while that isn’t exactly soft, it is prone to chipping. It’s also been known to fade when exposed to too much sunlight, earning itself the nickname “the evening stone.”
But let’s be honest, we’ve never been scared off by warnings of a delicate gemstone (hello, emerald). And the pros of kunzite defnitely outweight the cons.The feminine pink hue of kunzite, ranging from the lightest pink to rich, bold magenta, is entrancing, romantic, and, if my predictions for fall color are anywhere near accurate, so hot right now.
It’s still a relatively young gemstone, a likely reason we haven’t gone nuts demanding it. But because of that, it’s so refreshing, as anything different would be. It’s one of those stones that I would hope to see catch a customer’s eye, causing them to ask, “What is that?” while simultaneously falling in love with it.
Simon G.
So, for all of you purveyors of pink, revelers in rose, visionaries of violet, here’s to seeing more kunzite on our everyday jewelry adventures. The jewels highlighted throughout the post do plenty to prove the versatility of the stone, each design distinctively different than the last. I, for one, cannot wait to see what our favorite talented designers do with it next. Think pink!
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