So Many Garnet Colors To Choose From

Originally Posted on January 1, 2019

Garnet Color Overview

Many of you might have the belief that garnet is only found in the dark and dull, red color you see in birth stone charts online. Or perhaps someone gave you a piece of garnet jewelry for your 12th birthday that now sits in a jewelry box collecting dust. We'd hate for you to miss out on the stunning and gorgeous colors garnet has to offer! So, please, allow us to introduce you to seven varieties and color of garnet: Pyrope, Almandine, Rhodolite, Spessartite, Tsavorite, Demantoid, and Color-Change. Despite their common crystal structure, garnet's color varieties come from different chemical compositions in the gem material. Actually, over twenty types of garnet have been discovered, but only a handful of these are gem quality and used in jewelry today. It is this wide spectrum of garnet colors and types that deserve our attention.

A Rainbow Possibilities

First we have the deep, dark red color we normally see in commercial jewelry stores. These are a mix between Almandine and Pyrope garnets. Pyrope garnets are dark red in color, like the color of pomegranate seeds. Almandine tends to have more of a brownish red hue.

Rhodolite is another commercially popular garnet, like the pyrope and almandine varieties. This gemstone has a slight hint of magentas, pinks, and purples. While it might sound overwhelming, this stone is actually the perfect blend of these three colors, making it an easy pairing with rose gold.

Moving on to the less commonly known types of garnet. These gemstones tend to be more expensive, more rare, and in their more perfect state, sought after by collectors. If you’re not a huge fan of the reds, but like orange tones, Spessartite garnets are something to behold. Since it is uncommon to find an eye-clean stone, the ones that are, tend to be higher in price, but absolutely worth the investment! If you are looking for the perfect non traditional gemstone option, it is worth taking a look at Spessartite.

Next up is green. If you’re into green and like the idea of an emerald, but are not too thrilled with the qualities or colors available for your budget, be sure to take a gander at Tsavorites and Demantoid garnets. These beauties come in a range of vivid green tones that are sure to dazzle the eye. And better yet, they don’t tend to have the large number of inclusions that make emeralds so fragile.

Last but definitely not least, and one of the more challenging to find, is the color-change garnet. Now, if you’re as curious about color-change garnets as we are, these gemstones are worth the search. Some of you might be aware of different type of color-change gemstone, the alexandrite. Ironically enough, color-change garnets can sometimes present a more intense color shift than alexandrite and can be more affordable! Luckily, this is due to Alexandrite's high demand. It also helps that the color-change garnet is a well kept secret in the jewelry industry. The color-change garnets we have been seeing recently are a grape purple that shift to red and blue.

Shopping Garnets at Everling

Click the image to shop this ring on our site!

One of our favorite garnet vendors is another local, lady-owned business, Anza Gems. Monica, the owner, hand picks her rough gemstones directly from Tanzania and Kenya. Each gem sale goes to help fund schools and education within the mining communities of East Africa. Every gemstone provided by AnzaGems comes with a paper trail of its journey from rough to a cut and faceted gem. By purchasing from companies like Anza, we are ultimately supporting the miners that help bring these stunning gems to market!

Have we peaked your interest, yet?! We have explored seven different color varieties of garnet. They are jewelry friendly, absolutely gorgeous, and definitely worth looking into! Plus we are very excited to be hosting a handful of these in our studio that are available for viewing and purchase. If we don’t have a stone that you are looking for in stock, we are happy to bring a couple in for you to view.

Please Contact us to find out more!