Recently, I was at a trunk show in Dallas, when a dear friend from home came by to say hi. I was so excited to see my friend from high school who I hadn’t seen in a long time and we had so much fun catching up. As she looked at my jewelry, she mentioned that her birthday was coming up soon and I commented that her birthstone is an opal. “I hate opals” she said with a slight frown. “No you don’t,” I responded. “You like them – you just don’t know it yet.”
I hear that comment about opals a lot, so I knew just what she was thinking. The opals of old were a milky white with minimal fire to them. They were boring and plain and were often set in ugly ways. (Thank you, 1970’s.) But the opals of today are stunning and lots of people still don’t know about them. Within the jewelry industry, these opals are now differentiated into two classes: precious (containing lots of iridescence or fire) and common (which does not). It is the internal structure of precious opals that causes it to diffract light and offer this play of color to the viewer. This play of color is often referred to as opalescence. Precious opals are quite rare – even more rare than diamonds! This is because the natural conditions that create them are quite rare. They’re also difficult and expensive to mine, which is another reason they are expensive and valuable stones. Let’s take a look at the modern day precious opal so that you can ditch any preconceived notions from your grandmother’s jewelry and appreciate them, too!
From a scientific perspective, opal is a hydrated amorphous form of silica. On the Mohs scale of hardness, they rank around a 5.5 or 6, so these are fairly soft stones. This is really important to know in making jewelry, as they are easily scratched. So, when creating a ring with them, for example, this should be taken into account when designing the setting. The stone needs to be well protected from the abuse that a ring usually takes. And typically, an opal ring shouldn’t be considered a daily wear item, but rather saved for occasional use. It is also important to know that opals are relatively “soft” stones (like turquoise is) when cleaning or repairing jewelry. Opals should not be submerged in jewelry cleaning solutions.
Opals are particularly beautiful stones, in my opinion, partly because they show ALL the colors within them. That’s a unique characteristic! You can see subtle flashes of pink, orange, blue and green in the stones used in the necklace pictured above, our Raindrops Necklace. There’s a whole world of beautiful colors hidden within many opals. Additionally, opals come in a spectrum of colors. White is among the most common, but they also come in gorgeous blues, greens, yellows, reds, oranges and pinks – and even black!
Blue opals are some of my personal favorites, and often appeal to people who don’t love white opals, like my friend at the trunk show – who loved the blue opal necklace that I showed her, pictured above! Blue opals typically come from Australia. Orange opals are often referred to as Mexican Fire Opals, because they hail from Mexico and boy, are they gorgeous. Black opals are among the rarest (and most expensive) colors and they are absolutely stunning and another favorite of mine! The second most expensive opal color is the Boulder Opal. These are found exclusively in Queensland, Australia and are mined from large ironstone boulders under the ground. Thin veins of opal form in the cracks of these boulders. Boulder Opals are characterized by ironstone on the stone. The most valuable have ironstone only on the backing of the stone, but many also show ironstone on the front of the stone as well, offering a beautiful view into nature’s display.
In addition to Australia and Mexico, opals can be found in Ethiopia, the Czech Republic, Indonesia, Canada, Slovakia, Hungary, Turkey, Central America, the United States and have even been found by NASA on Mars!
One more important thing to note about opals… Another woman at the same trunk show fell in love with our Harbour Island bracelet that features gorgeous white baroque pearls and an oxidized sterling silver center bead with pave set diamonds and beautiful opal cabochons set in it. She kept trying it on and then said several times, “but I just don’t wear opals.” Finally, I realized what she meant. “You think it’s unlucky to wear opals if you weren’t born in October, don’t you?” I asked her. Sure enough, that was her concern. I’ve heard that from clients a few times as well. I’m happy to report to you that this superstition came out of a book from the 1800’s called Anne of Geierstein by Sir Walter Scott and has absolutely no other basis. So, let the opal wearing commence!
A strand of beautiful opals makes a gorgeous layering piece to contrast with other necklaces, adding a gorgeous, but subtle play of colors! Our Grace Necklace (seen above) is a timeless and classic design that will be worn for many years to come.
The fire-filled opals on these earrings is beautiful with the contrast of oxidized sterling silver and gold-filled metals. These are an every day item, for sure and are well-priced for a gift item for our favorite October-born friend!
What do you think? Do you love opals or no? Are you surprised by how many beautiful colors of opal there are or did you already know? Which is your favorite? Tell us your thoughts in the comments below!
andrea
I began creating as a child with simple jewelry pieces and various art projects. Twenty years ago, I started creating jewelry for myself. It wasn’t long before friends and family began asking me to make pieces for them. Soon after, Andrea Montgomery Designs was officially born. My desire is to make timeless jewelry that makes you feel more beautiful each time you wear it -- which we hope is always! My philosophy is to WEAR THE GOOD STUFF everyday. There’s no such thing as “saving it for a special occasion” -- every day is a gift!
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