Do you have a special person with a birthday in December? They are in for a treat! If you're looking for a meaningful birthday gift for someone in December we have some really unusual pieces lined up for you at DesignYard. As December has three birthstones - Turquoise, Zircon and Tanzanite - you'll find lots of options, so let's get started.

Turquoise

Turquoise is one of the world's oldest gems and has been used in jewellery for thousands of years. It came to Europe via Turkey and is also known as Turkey stone. Mined in Iran for over 1000 years the prized even-coloured, intense blue turquoise from this region is dubbed “robin’s egg blue,” “sky blue” and “Persian blue”.

Turquoise is also popular in native American Navajo jewellery, ranging from intense blues to greens and often showing interesting patterns of matrix stone. Turquoise found in the U.S.A. tends to be named for the mines in which it was found, for example the Golden Hills Turquoise bangle below. Turquoise is said to bring the wearer good fortune and to be a stone of protection - signalling danger by changing colour or even breaking.

Zircon

Not to be confused with the man-made cubic zirconium found in cheaper jewellery - Zircon is a rare and gorgeous natural gem that is known for its exceptional refraction and fire, second only to that of a diamond. In fact clear zircon is often found in estate jewellery as a diamond simulant. Besides the clear variety, Zircon comes in a variety of colours ranging from yellow, green, red, and reddish brown, to blue hues. For example Angela Hübel uses Blue Zircon in her spectacular Treasure Island ring.

Tanzanite

The deep violet blue Tanzanite is a recent gem discovery and is the latest addition to the December group. In 1967 a Masai tribesman stumbled upon a cluster of highly transparent, intense violet-to-blue crystals weathering out of the earth in Merelani, an area of northern Tanzania. Originally hoping they had found a new source of blue sapphire, it turned out to be an entirely new gem variety. The gem became an overnight success and is widely used in both fine jewellery and more casual designs.

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