My favorite gems!

My favorite gemstones are inspired by my mother, grandmothers, and great-aunts who weave a colorful pattern of history throughout my life of their selections of jewelry as I listened to stories of family, culture, and especially bridal celebrations as a girl until I had memorized the stories passed down a generation.

My mother's favorites were ruby, emerald, pearl, and 22K gold. Her favorite color was green but she believed a woman should have pink. And so ruby and emerald became her go-to pieces when getting ready for a formal occasion.

Her favorites remain my favorite and I am also a fan of blue and so I love turquoise and sapphire which I add to the ruby, emerald, pearl, and 22K gold. I don't mind silver or white gold for many pieces but for culturally inspired pieces, I still prefer yellow gold.

Another favorite of mine in multi-color jewelry is Nouratan (Urdu language) or Navratan (Hindi Language) (translation: Nine Stone) jewelry made with famous precious and semi-precious gemstones in one circular, and oftentimes floral, pattern that is also popularly made with just seven stones.

Also, a favorite of mine, is the famous Saat-Lari Haar (Seven-Strand Necklace) presented by Kings to their Queens (Raja and Rani, Badshah and Beghum) in the times of royalty. These days, this necklace is available as artificial stones or beads are used in all colors to make this design available to all people who would like to purchase it.

There are so many beads in one piece that has so many strands as the strands start at the shoulder and work their way down to the belly, that designing such a piece with real gems is expensive indeed.

One note is that such pieces often use a stone called Kundan which is simply translated to an untreated diamond that is cut down to smaller pieces for use in setting the stone in jewelry. It is not as beautiful to look at as Western diamonds that have the 4-Cs to describe them. The pieces are often intricate to make them look beautiful as-is.

I bring my likings and favorite stone colors to you for you to see the essence of all that was centuries ago, in time periods gone by as you decide what you like to complement your own attire, whether casual or formal.