Precious ... Handmade Jewelry featuring Sapphire, Ruby, Emerald and Diamond

Today I'm featuring four pieces made with precious stones. These four gemstones are often thought of as the most valuable gems used in jewelry making; of course there are others like precious opal, tanzanite and demantoid garnet but the classic precious gems are sapphire, ruby, diamond and emerald.

I did try to find affordable examples; of course it is easy to find very expensive pieces containing these beautiful gemstones; just go to any mall and there are thousands of pieces in your average jewelry store featuring these gems. These four are all handmade one of a kind artisan jewelry pieces currently available on Etsy!

Sapphire is a multicolored gemstone also known as corundum; basically the stone is an aluminum oxide. The color of the gem depends on the chemical impurities it contains; deep blue sapphires have trace amounts of iron and titanium and are the most valued sapphire color. Red sapphires are always called rubies; fancy sapphires can be pink, green, yellow, purple, a bright orange color called Padparadscha - sapphires can even be black!

The wire wrapped sapphire briolette earrings shown on the right were lovingly handcrafted with sterling silver wire by Angelene, an Etsy based jewelry artist living and creating beautiful jewelry in Australia.

These earrings are a nice size ... just over 2" top to bottom, and the wire wrapped sterling silver forms are just over an inch wide.

These one of a kind AAA grade sapphire briolette earrings are priced very reasonably - at just $149.00!

This red-hot necklace features a combination of red pearls and ruby rondelles, accented with sterling silver beads and clasp. As I mentioned above, ruby is also a corundum, but is never called sapphire. The red color is due to chromium; ruby is an exceptionally rare stone, especially good gem quality ruby.

You'll find this gorgeous necklace at CrystalImpressions; it was made by Lucia, the jewelry designer and owner of this wonderful Etsy shop. Her Ruby Rose Necklace was made with top drilled cranberry colored freshwater pearls and bright red 5mm faceted ruby rondelles; the length is a versatile 18", but can be adjusted at your request. This necklace is a fantastic deal at just $95.00!

When people think of the color green ... one of the things they always mention is emerald! This beautiful green gem is available in many shades of green and various qualities from gem grade to ... well, almost gravel. Emerald belongs to a family of gems called beryl, and has several popular "cousins"; aquamarine, a bluish green variety; heliodor, a greenish to bright golden yellow gem; bixbite, a bright red variety; Goshenite, a clear, colorless stone; and Morganite, a pink beryl. Green beryl is always called emerald.

Clear, transparent emeralds are among the most rare and valuable gems. But strong green colored, included stones are fairly affordable. This Emerald and Silver Coil Necklace was made with individually wire wrapped faceted emerald stones by the very talented wire jewellery artisan at Shazzabeth Creations!

The necklace features 13 faceted emerald stone beads; five are wired to the coil in front as a focal component. The necklace is a 20" length; the price is $320.00.

Last for today is this simply beautiful olivine diamond ring handcrafted by the amazing metalsmith behind the scenes at DreamsandJewelry, an Etsy shop featuring a nice variety of handmade silver and gold jewelry; some pieces are made with diamonds, and this ring is a nice example!

A lightly hammer-textured band of sterling silver is topped with a 14k white gold tapered bezel setting; the bezel holds a .5ct natural olivine color 5mm round diamond. This is a pretty ring; the uncomplicated design is the perfect setting for the sparkling olive green gem. The style puts emphasis on the stone, where it should be! This olivine diamond ring could be your favorite for a very reasonable price. Only $175.00!

Diamonds are carbon crystals; natural fancy colors are caused in two ways: heat and radiation from naturally occuring sources near the deposit, and by other minerals "contaminating" the pure carbon crystal. Clear, colorless diamonds are highly prized; but there are many other diamond colors ranging from a pale yellow to black. Many famous diamonds are actually colored stones; one of the most well known is the Hope diamond, which is a deep, rich blue!

So ... that's today's look at handcrafted jewelry. I hope you enjoyed seeing these pieces as much as I did! Please stop in here tomorrow ... I'll have four more pieces for you to check out!

Robert Edwards is a proud member of the Jewelry on Etsy Team - JET. He is a jewelry designer and metalsmith in New York City with over 30 years experience in the jewelry trade, specializing in handmade silver jewelry and custom made silver chains. This article may be reproduced provided all content and links in the article including this author's statement remain intact. ©2010 Robert Edwards