December's Birthstones: Blue Topaz and Turquoise

Blue Topaz Bracelet in the natural gemstone pictured with a Blue Topaz Pendant with White Druzy

Pear Shaped Blue Topaz Pendant with Faceted Blue Topaz Bracelet

Blue Topaz with Blue Druzy Pendant

The birthstone for December is blue topaz and turquoise. ​Below are a few examples to show how many choices you have when choosing December's birthstone, you can go sparkly or earth tones and rustic.

Topaz is a hard gemstone and lends itself to the many faceted shapes that it can be cut into and is also a very durable stone. It is very similar in appearance to quartz and can be difficult to tell them apart. Natural Topaz starts out as red but then is heated to become the various shades of blue colors like London Blue, Swiss Blue and Sky Blue.

Our turquoise jewelry is fashioned from stones sourced from various countries; Ethiopian, Mexican, Tibetan,  and from the Sleeping Beauty mine, in Arizona.

The history of turquoise can be traced back to the Indigenous people of the Southwest who used it in jewelry making. It was found in copper mines as a by-product in Southern parts of New Mexico but was not as valued as it is today. It became popular after Tiffany marketed and trademarked the Tiffany Blue color and the now famous Tiffany Blue Box in the late 19th century.  Most of the mines have long since closed and most turquoise is sourced from other countries, touchstone has a limited amount of turquoise sold in small specimens from the Tyrone Mine. We encourage you to visit our galleries to pick out a piece of this limited specimen.

Copper and Turquoise Bracelet with Greened Amethyst