Those born in October enjoy two spectacular birthstones to commemorate their birthdays – opal and tourmaline. Both October birthstones have endless color combinations and beautiful coloring characteristics. Learn more about these two October birthstones and discover the perfect gift for those born in the tenth month. OPAL BIRTHSTONE MEANING & HISTORY The name of this, the traditional October birthstone, is believed to have originated in India (the source of the...

October also has two birthstones; Tourmaline and Opal. Tourmaline is a favorite gemstone for many because it’s available in a rainbow of beautiful colors. Opal gemstones are truly unique because each individual gem is adorned with a one-of-a-kind color combination.

Tourmaline ranks 7 to 7.5 on the Mohs hardness scale.   Hardness and toughnessGem and mineral hardness is measured on the Mohs scale. The numbers are based on the relative ease or difficulty with which one mineral can be scratched by another. But the Mohs scale is deceptive. The steps between the minerals are not evenly spaced. For example, diamond is only one number away, but it’s many times harder...

Tourmalines are gems with an incomparable variety of colours. The reason, according to an old Egyptian legend, is that the tourmaline, on its long journey up from the centre of the Earth, passed over a rainbow. In doing so, it assumed all the colours of the rainbow. And that is why it is still referred to as the 'gemstone of the rainbow' today.The name tourmaline comes from the Singhalese words...