# Best birthstones of all? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 19, 2008, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-birthstones-of-all/473473 "2008-11-19T17:14:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2008, 5:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-birthstones-of-all/473473/1 "2008-11-19T17:14:50Z")
Inspired by the November birthstone thread going on now. I’m a September baby and so am sapphire. I recently got a sapphire necklace from my grandmother, and I like it. Blue is my favorite color. Other than sapphire, I also like diamond. (Cliche, but true.) What do you guys like the best? ---
**Author:** ![Santo\_Rugger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@Santo\_Rugger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Santo_Rugger)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2008, 5:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-birthstones-of-all/473473/2 "2008-11-19T17:19:06Z")
No brainer; June’s amethyst. It changes color in different types of light (sunlight, incandescent, florescent, UV). ---
**Author:** ![Gaudere](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e495f1/32.png) [@Gaudere](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gaudere)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2008, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-birthstones-of-all/473473/3 "2008-11-19T17:51:50Z")
Alexandrite, you mean. 🙂 February is amethyst. Natural alexandrites are a fortune but the synthetics are more reasonable and do show a nice color change. ---
**Author:** ![romansperson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/romansperson/32/17100_2.png) [@romansperson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/romansperson)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2008, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-birthstones-of-all/473473/4 "2008-11-19T18:01:06Z")
I really like opals. Too bad my birthday is in February! ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2008, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-birthstones-of-all/473473/5 "2008-11-19T18:04:08Z")
Amethyst is my favourite. I’m fond of my own - Garnet - too. ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2008, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-birthstones-of-all/473473/6 "2008-11-19T18:04:56Z")
> [@Gaudere](#): > > Alexandrite, you mean. 🙂 February is amethyst. Natural alexandrites are a fortune but the synthetics are more reasonable and do show a nice color change. [Color shift](http://gemwiseblogspotcom.blogspot.com/2007/04/color-changecolor-shift.html) can be seen in other gems than Alexandrite. This blog entry explains a bit. (I just Googled this, but have read the blogger’s book & enjoyed it.) Only the finest amethysts will have this quality; but even the cheaper ones can be quite lovely. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2008, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-birthstones-of-all/473473/7 "2008-11-19T18:13:57Z")
Mine is the opal but I love garnets best. I do have an opal ring from my great-grandma and some cool Australian opal earrings my parents brought back. ---
**Author:** ![KarlGrenze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/dbc845/32.png) [@KarlGrenze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGrenze)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2008, 6:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-birthstones-of-all/473473/8 "2008-11-19T18:18:41Z")
Mine is either diamond or white quartz… Not fair, I wanted something with color! ---
**Author:** ![maladroit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f475e1/32.png) [@maladroit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/maladroit)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2008, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-birthstones-of-all/473473/9 "2008-11-19T18:21:36Z")
I like my own - amethyst, the darker the better ---
**Author:** ![SaharaTea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@SaharaTea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SaharaTea)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2008, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-birthstones-of-all/473473/10 "2008-11-19T18:26:22Z")
Amethyst for sure. Second is emerald. Mine is aquamarine (March), which is nice but a little too light for my taste. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2008, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-birthstones-of-all/473473/11 "2008-11-19T18:33:58Z")
My tastes in descending order: opals, amethysts, sapphires, garnets, rubies, emeralds, moonstones, diamonds, peridots, aquamarines, golden topazes and finally turquoise. If we use December’s alternate, blue topaz, I’d stick it 'tween pearls and diamonds. I like bright and rich colors, and the warm creaminess of opals and moonstones. I’m not so fond of the pale watery looking gems. And I’ve never grokked turquoise as a gem. To me, it’s a polished rock. (Well, of course they’re all polished rock, but turquoise just seems so…common.) ---
**Author:** ![Unsquare\_Dance](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/b3f665/32.png) [@Unsquare\_Dance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unsquare_Dance)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2008, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-birthstones-of-all/473473/12 "2008-11-19T19:09:57Z")
I like the emerald, which is my birthstone, because I love green. I just wish it weren’t such a soft gem—makes it hard to wear in jewelry. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2008, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-birthstones-of-all/473473/13 "2008-11-19T19:24:54Z")
> [@KarlGrenze](#): > > Mine is either diamond or white quartz… Not fair, I wanted something with color! Hear, hear. April babies get ripped off. ---
**Author:** ![Atomic\_Mama](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b5ac83/32.png) [@Atomic\_Mama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atomic_Mama)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2008, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-birthstones-of-all/473473/14 "2008-11-19T19:34:27Z")
High-quality Mexican Jelly Opals, Fire Agate, Black Australian Opals, Watermelon Tourmaline. Some of these, of course, are NOT birthstones. But they’re beautiful. I’m an October gal, BTW. ---
**Author:** ![Omegaman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e480ec/32.png) [@Omegaman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omegaman)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2008, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-birthstones-of-all/473473/15 "2008-11-19T19:34:50Z")
Emeralds. Not my birthstone but I love the depth of them. Almost none are perfect but have interesting inclusions. I also like rubies. But like emeralds, it’s hard to find a good one. ---
**Author:** ![GingerOfTheNorth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/cdc98d/32.png) [@GingerOfTheNorth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GingerOfTheNorth)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2008, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-birthstones-of-all/473473/16 "2008-11-19T19:35:32Z")
> [@Unsquare\_Dance](#): > > I like the emerald, which is my birthstone, because I love green. I just wish it weren’t such a soft gem—makes it hard to wear in jewelry. Same here. I have had lots of beautiful emerald jewellery over the years, but I can’t wear them often. ---
**Author:** ![Jelymag](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d2c977/32.png) [@Jelymag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jelymag)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2008, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-birthstones-of-all/473473/17 "2008-11-19T20:08:34Z")
Garnet. A beautiful red color, not too pink like some rubies. ---
**Author:** ![torie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/77aa72/32.png) [@torie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/torie)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2008, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-birthstones-of-all/473473/18 "2008-11-19T20:42:36Z")
My favorite is my own and my son’s. Garnet. I also like our birth flower, Carnation. After those, I love Rubies and Emeralds. ---
**Author:** ![Rhiannon8404](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rhiannon8404/32/17929_2.png) [@Rhiannon8404](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhiannon8404)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2008, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-birthstones-of-all/473473/19 "2008-11-19T20:43:57Z")
I’m fortunate to be born in January. Garnets are my favorite. The deep, blood red color is just beautiful. Also, they are not terribly expensive, so I have quite a few pieces of jewelry with garnets. ---
**Author:** ![Santo\_Rugger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@Santo\_Rugger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Santo_Rugger)\ **Post date:** [November 19, 2008, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-birthstones-of-all/473473/20 "2008-11-19T20:46:50Z")
> [@Gaudere](#): > > Alexandrite, you mean. 🙂 February is amethyst. Natural alexandrites are a fortune but the synthetics are more reasonable and do show a nice color change. They, umm… both start with “A”? I was wondering why, when I looked at the Wiki after I posted, the color change was barely mentioned in passing, while it’s the first thing said in the alexandrite article. :smack: If that’s the dumbest thing I do today, I’m doing alright. 😉 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-birthstones-of-all/473473.md?page=2)