Topaz, turquoise, and tanzanite bring color, meaning, and a little of the wearer’s story to holiday giving.
A highlight of the holiday season for me is helping someone find a gift that feels truly personal. A birthstone does that beautifully—a stone tied to the month someone was born, or to a child or grandchild they hold dear. That detail turns fine jewelry into a keepsake.
For November and December, we are especially fortunate to have topaz, turquoise, and tanzanite—three very different stones, each with its own color and character. Here is what I would want you to know.
TOPAZ — November’s Warm Glow
Most people picture topaz as warm, golden yellow—perfect for November. But it also appears colorless, soft pink, peach, and in rich shades of blue. The most prized variety, imperial topaz, glows golden‑orange touched with pink.
Topaz has traditionally been a more accessible stone. But when you see imperial topaz in those rare, saturated colors, beautifully cut and set in fine jewelry, it truly stops you in your tracks. That is fine jewelry at its best. Linked with warmth and affection, it is a fitting gift for this season. Set in yellow gold, its tones deepen and glow. A note on wear: topaz is hard, but it can chip with a sharp knock, so look for settings that protect its corners.
TURQUOISE — December’s Timeless Blue
Turquoise is December’s most familiar birthstone, and one of the oldest gemstones in jewelry. Its color ranges from sky blue to blue‑green, often laced with a natural weblike pattern called matrix—no two pieces are exactly alike.
My enduring enthusiasm is for Sleeping Beauty turquoise, from a single mine near Globe, Arizona and prized for the opposite quality: a pure, clear sky‑blue with almost no veining. The mine closed in 2012, so everything available today is old stock—finite and increasingly rare. I still have a few Sleeping Beauty pieces here at Marchesa Jewelry, and each is such a wonderful thing to see. When we can get more, it is honestly a thrill, because it cannot be replaced at will. Set in yellow gold, that pure blue becomes even more vivid.
Treasured as a stone of protection and friendship, turquoise asks for gentle care—keep it away from perfume and lotions, and clean it only with a soft, damp cloth.
TANZANITE — December’s Blue-Violet Discovery
Tanzanite is the newest of the three, and in some ways the most dramatic. Discovered in Tanzania in 1967 — still the only source of gem‑quality tanzanite — it became a December birthstone in 2002. Its blue‑violet color shifts with the light, bluer by day and more violet by evening.
What always amazes me is the flash within the blue. Tilt a fine tanzanite and you can see a red or purple flash move across that deep blue, as if lit from within. In person, it is mesmerizing.
Right now, the trend I am loving is tanzanite in yellow gold, rather than the white gold or platinum we saw for years. The warm metal brings out both the blue and that violet‑in red flash. The same is true for topaz and Sleeping Beauty turquoise set in yellow gold. It sets off all three, giving them a richness that feels both current and heirloom at once. Tanzanite is softer than topaz, so it’s best set in earrings and pendants, or a ring worn with care.
Whether you are drawn to the golden glow of Imperial topaz, the pure blue of Sleeping Beauty turquoise, or the shifting light of tanzanite, a birthstone gift says: I chose this with you in mind. They are meant to be worn, loved and passed on.
From all of us at Marchesa Jewelry, warm wishes for a joyful holiday season.
Any content, resident submissions, guest columns, advertisements, and advertorials are not necessarily endorsed by or represent the views of Best Version Media LLC (BVM) or any municipality, homeowners associations, businesses, or organizations that this publication serves. BVM is not responsible for the reliability, suitability, or timeliness of any content submitted, inclusive of materials generated or composed through artificial intelligence (AI). All content submitted is done so at the sole discretion of the submitting party.
