Greetings Beaders, Leah here from Eureka Crystal Beads! I’m excited to bring to you the third installment of 12: Birthstones! At the beginning of each month I’ll bring you a blog that is chock-full of everything you might want to know about that month’s stone. Were you born this month? If so, you might take particular interest in my third blog in this series: RUBY, the birthstone for JULY.

a Ruby is a pink to blood-red colored precious gemstone, and a variety of the mineral Corundum (Aluminum Oxide). The word “Ruby” comes from “Ruber,” which is Latin for “Red.” The color of a Ruby is due to the element Chromium and, interestingly, only 1% of Chromium is needed to produce a Ruby’s red color. It’s quality is determined by color, cut, and clarity, which, along with carat weight, effects it’s value. This is similar to the other traditional Cardinal Gems: Amethyst, Sapphire, Emerald, and Diamond. Rubies are a 9.0 on the Mohs Hardness Scale, which is just under a Diamond at 10.0.

If you’re a believer in the metaphysical properties of stones, Rubies are known for being the Stone of Divine Creativity. It is said that it boosts your energy levels and promotes high self-esteem, intuition, and spiritual wisdom. It’s also said to be a symbol of good fortune, pure love, and loyalty. (Sign me up!)

The world’s most expensive Ruby is the “Sunrise Ruby” which was mined in Myanmar. It’s a 25.59-carat (5.1 g) Burmese “pigeon blood” ruby mounted by Cartier and set between heptagonal diamonds weighing 2.47 carats (0.49 g) and 2.70 carats (0.54 g). It is considered among the rarest of all gemstones. The ruby sold for a record $30.42 million on May 12, 2015 at a Sotheby’s auction in Geneva, Switzerland to an anonymous buyer.

Is your birthday in July? Even if it’s not, do you just love Rubies and their beautiful gradation of reds? Is 30.42 million a little rich for your blood? (hehe) Eureka Crystal Beads can certainly help you out with our selection of red Swarovski Crystal beads and stones! Make sure to check out more than just Swarovski’s color “Ruby” – there are other stunning shades of red by Swarovski that would fit into a Ruby-type line up!

To start, check out these searches on our page, Eureka Crystal Beads, for “Ruby” to get yourself going! In additional, other great colors to use for a Ruby-type-red would be: Siam by Swarovski, Light Siam by Swarovski, and one of my favorites, Scarlet by Swarovski!

Hope this was informative, folks!

Until next time…!

-Leah