Tourmaline
Tourmaline is a popular stone for use in jewelry that also has a reputation for being a lucky gem that helps ward against mishaps.
What Is Tourmaline?
Tourmaline is a semi-precious gemstone that's found in a variety of forms in nature. By far the most frequently occuring of these is schorl and the names schorl and tourmaline are often used interchangeably.
Colours
Tourmaline occurs in many different colours, the best known of which are pink, green, blue and black.The wide variation in colour and form has caused much confusion over the centuries - for example black schorl was originally thought to be a separate stone whilst green tourmaline was sometimes mistaken for emerald. It seems likely that at least some of these "mistakes" would have been deliberate with unscrupulous dealers passing off tourmaline as a more valuable gem.
Many hues of tourmaline have been given their own names, for example rubellite (red), canary (yellow) and verdelite (green). There is also a form of tourmaline from Brazil called paraiba. This variety is known for its intense, vivid blue and green and turquoise colours which often seem to glow, resulting in the nickname neon tourmaline.
Tourmaline gemstones have numerous uses and are available to buy in a wide variety of jewelry settings including rings, earrings, necklaces etc. High quality stones are often paired with gold, either yellow or white. In particular black tourmaline stones can look especially striking alongside yellow gold or with white gold for a monochromatic effect.
Watermelon Tourmaline
As well as "plain" tourmaline of various colours, the stone is also sometimes found with bands of various colours. One particularly popular banded variety is watermelon tourmaline. This has green on the outside of the stone and pink in the middle, often with an area of white between the two. When cut the slice resembles the cross section of a melon.Watermelon tourmaline is often used in jewelry items such as pendants or earrings where the variegated face can be shown to best effect.