Put on your flip flops, your sunscreen, and your smile because June is finally here! No more cold winter days or snowflakes falling from the sky. Instead, roll down your windows and let the sun shine in ☀️. The flowers are bloomed, pools are open, and school is out for the summer. Head out to the beach and bask in the sun, you will be sure to leave feeling refreshed. Take a walk on the beach and search for seashells; if you are lucky maybe you will find an oyster with a beautiful pearl inside! However, you can also come into Emery’s and find beautiful pearls to call your own to celebrate one of June’s birthstones, pearl. Just like an oyster might have a special surprise pearl inside, June has an extra surprise birthstone, the alexandrite.

June Birthstones:

Pearl & Alexandrite

Pearls are truly one of a kind. They are the only jewels created by a living animal, and you can only find a valuable pearl in less than 1 in every 10,000 wild oysters. There are many different types of pearls, but the four main types are Freshwater, Akoya, Tahitian, and South Sea. They can vary in color, shapes, and sizes. Pearls are believed to attract wealth and luck, as well as offer protection. Known for their calming effect, pearls can balance karma, strengthen relationships, and keep children safe. This jewel is also said to symbolize the purity, generosity, integrity, and loyalty of its wearer. Therefore, a pearl is an extra special gift to give to anyone! 

Although pearl is commonly associated with the birthstone of June, this month has another extra special stone, too! Alexandrite is the rarest gemstone, and the most valuable of all other gemstones due to its qualities and its low availability as well. It is popularly referred to as ’emerald by day, ruby by night’ as it changes from a green color in daylight to a red color in incandescent light.  The gemstone is considered to bring love, good luck, and fortune. Alexandrite is associated with qualities to boost self-confidence, self-esteem, and promotes romance. It is also believed to aid in balancing the emotional state of mind. It also promotes imagination, creativity, and intuition for its wearers.

Fun Facts

Pearl

– They are formed when an irritant such as a tiny stone or bit of sand gets inside the mollusk’s shell. 

~A lustrous substance, called nacre, is secreted around the object to protect the soft internal surface of the mollusk. 

~As layer upon layer of nacre coats the irritant, a pearl is formed.

– The oldest pearl jewelry ever discovered was found in the sarcophagus of a Persian Princess who died in 520 BC.

Alexandrite

This rare and fascinating gemstone was first found in the Ural Mountains in Russia in the year 1830.

~It was named after Alexander the Second, Czar of Russia. 

~Interestingly, the color changes from green to red in this gemstone and these are the national colors of Russia.

– Alexandrite is also known as a magical barometer. 

~It was believed that the gemstone foretold the changes for the wearer by changing colors. 

~If a yellow color is displayed, it was believed to announce the onset of hard times for the wearer of alexandrite.