You’ve probably had to put up with a lot of nonsense over the years if you were born in the month of December – nonsense like suggestions that your special day be blended into the December holidays and celebrated together. You’ve likely heard all the reasons/excuses why this would be a “good idea.”
“There’s no time to fit it all in.”
“All of your friends and family will already be here then to celebrate anyways.”
“It’s just too expensive/stressful/time-consuming to fit both in by themselves.”
And so on and so forth. You’ve been fighting the good fight to have your birthday recognized on its own for years. And why shouldn’t it be? How would everyone else like it if they had to share their birthday with Labor Day or Earth Day? They’d hate it, of course, but it’s only babies born in December who have to deal with this sort of holiday spillover.
Well, here at the Birkat Elyon cubic zirconia jewelry blog, we believe that you’re special and beautiful and deserve a day all your own, just like everyone else gets. It would seem that the powers that be are of a similar mindset on this one. December babies are so special that they get not one, not two, but three birthstones. Lucky you. Now, let’s talk about how those gemstones help to make December all about you and only you.
Turquoise
One of the oldest gemstones to be discovered by man, turquoise has been popular around the world for many centuries. Native Americans wore it on their ceremonial dresses. Egyptian Pharaohs wore them set in necklaces. But perhaps most importantly, this “Turkish stone” has probably been worn by you.
The stones range in color from robin’s-egg-blue to sky blue to greenish-blue. The most-sought-after ones are an intense hue that will help their wearers to light up any room with their beauty. Some turquoise gems also have thin veins of different materials either isolated or networked within them. These intricate patterns of yellowish-brown, black or brown are called spider webs.
The ancients who first discovered the gemstone looked at it as a symbol of wealth and believed it had special healing powers. The thinking was that it could alleviate aches and pains, increase growth and stimulate muscle strength. It was also said to protect one from evil and bring about good luck. Having a December birthday is looking pretty good right about now, huh?
Tanzanite
Tanzanite was a bit of a latecomer to the jewelry world, having not been discovered until the late 1960s. It’s also only found in one place in the entire world: the foothills of Mount Kilimanjaro. Tanzanite is treasured by many due to its gorgeous violet-blue color. The stones don’t always achieve that exotic, velvety purple/blue color by themselves, however. Many tanzanite stones are heat-treated (either naturally within the Earth or synthetically by man) before they gain that striking appearance.
Tanzanite is one of the most popular gems around today, and it’s available in all sorts of different shapes, sizes and shades of blue. Those that have a moderate darkness to them, a tinge of violet and are vividly saturated are the most expensive. Still, it tends to be a less-expensive alternative for sapphires. Its modern popularity, however, has allowed it to move beyond the confines of purely being a sapphire alternative, and it’s now often admired and sought after for its own signature brand of beauty.
The mystics thought of tanzanite as a stone able to relieve depression and stress. They said that it had a calming nature to it that would bring poise and composure to its wearer. It was even believed that tanzanite could help one to develop clairvoyance and the ability to communicate psychically.
Zircon
What do you think of when you think of zircon? A blue that’s as bright as the sky over your head, right? That’s what comes to most people’s minds, but zircon is actually available in orange, green, brown, yellow and dark red. It’s true that the most popular zircon stones are those with the same hue as the waters sailed by Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean, but these gems are beautiful in all their many color varieties.
In fact, zircon is actually named after the Arabic words for gold (zar) and color (gun). Furthermore, red zircon stones are the most prized, even though the blue ones are more prevalent in jewelry. Interestingly, colorless zircons where once used as diamond alternatives, but these days there’s high-quality cubic zirconia – which is different than zircon – from Birkat Elyon for that.
Back in Medieval Times, zircon was said to help in resting, bringing prosperity and supporting wisdom and honor for its wearer. Today, the very best zircon gemstones are mined in Canada and Madagascar, but the United States, Ukraine, Sri Lanka and Australia are also home to large zircon deposits.