Jewelry that brings out the full appeal of gemstones (Colored stone)

When designing and creating jewelry with a center stone, the most important consideration is “how to bring out the charm of its central gemstone.

In previous issues of Designer’s Journal, we have talked about the use of diamonds as center stones.

Jewelry that brings out the full appeal of gemstones (diamonds)

In this issue, I would like to talk about creating jewelry that brings out the “color” appeal of colored stones.

Needless to say, one of the most attractive features of colored stones is the color of each stone.　The three major precious stones, ruby, sapphire, and emerald, are of course beautiful, but recently, thanks to advances in polishing technology and the discovery of new mines, more and more so-called semi-precious stones are becoming available that have stunning beauty.

No two colored stones are the same, and all have different hues.　Some have strong primary colors, some have light colors, some change color depending on the light source, and some have subtle colors that are difficult to describe by color names.　When making jewelry, we try to know the characteristics of each stone and how to make the best use of them.

There is a sapphire called a padparadscha sapphire.

It is a beautiful sapphire with a subtle hue that has been described as “the color of lotus flowers” or “orange with a pinkish tinge like a sunset.　I like light colors, so at OKURADO, I try to select sapphires that are “pink with a hint of orange and a light hue.　In the padparadscha sapphire necklace below, the silhouette is designed with claws holding diamonds in K18YG, giving a lacy look to the whole piece.

Diamonds have the effect of enhancing the hues of colored stones.　However, we dared to keep the number of diamonds modest and used rose-cut diamonds, which have a subdued brilliance, to give the design a slightly antique look with less diamond brilliance.

By doing so, we were able to bring out the subtle “like the dusk of a clear, calm day” of the padparadscha sapphire.

Padparadscha sapphire, diamonds necklace; K18YG

Green is one of my favorite colors.

I am fascinated by the beautiful green gradation of leaves during the fresh green season.

Emerald is well known as a beautiful green stone, but sometimes the color seems too strong.

In contrast, garnet and tourmaline are a pale, subtle, delicate shade of green, rather than the deep green of emerald.　The ring below features two well-polished, highly brilliant garnet and tourmaline stones as center stones.　The diamonds around them are also understated in the design to express the subtle and beautiful green gradation of nature’s fresh greens.

Green tourmaline, green garnet, diamonds ring; K18YG

Color stones are also attractive because their hue changes subtly depending on the light source.

Colors seen under artificial down light will be different from those under natural light.

If possible, try to enjoy the color changes under various light sources.

While colors such as “pigeon blood” for rubies and “royal blue” for sapphires are good choices, I recommend that you see the stones with your own eyes and find the color that strikes your heart.

The best color is the one that makes you feel “beautiful” when you first see it. 

Since all colored stones have different colors, if you find several similar shades, you may want to compare them side by side.　

Our creators at OKURADO are dedicated to providing you with “beauty at the moment of seeing” at every stage of the process, from selecting the stones, to designing, to making the piece.

Hitoshi Okura

OKURADO

Journals about my taste for color stones

and about rose cut diamonds, mentioned in this article ▼

The charm of neutral-colored gemstones

Rose cut diamond