Amethyst ⋆ Metropolitan Girls

Taurus Birthstones

Madame Constella — Thu, 22 Jul 2021 05:01:26 +0000

These gemstones are said to represent Taurus. Find out what they are and what are their meanings. Decide for yourself if you think they’re worthy as Taurus’s birthstones.

Photo: Emerald ring. Credit: hpochop @ Pixabay

Taurus (April 20 – May 20) is ruled by Venus, the planet and goddess that embodies love, elegance, and beauty. The sign of the bull is blessed by Venus and this explains Taurus’s appreciation for all things beautiful, sensuality, and good taste. Astrologically speaking, Taurus natives are characterized by tenacity, stability, pragmatism, beauty, artistic sense, calm, patience, fidelity. They are also known to have a practical spirit but can sometimes become greedy their pursuit of wealth.

Birthstones refer to gemstones that represent one’s birthday. There’re birthstones for a particular day of the week, month, and, of course, zodiac sign. Similar to Astrology, there isn’t a central authority that dictates what gemstone is a Taurus birthstone and what isn’t. With that said, there are indeed some gemstones that are more popular as Taurus gems than others. And there are also stones that are believed to be more spiritually aligned to Taurus. The gemstones that have earned the title of Taurus birthstones are diamond, emerald, rose quartz, aventurine, and amethyst. Let’s now take a closer at each of these marvelous gems.

1. Emerald

Photo: Cut Colombian emeralds. Credit: Mauro Cateb @ Flickr

Emerald is the most popular gemstone for Taurus men and women. Known for its deep green color and namesake rectangular cut, emerald is one of the most famous gemstones alongside diamond, sapphire, and ruby.

In terms of symbolism, emerald is a stone of prosperity, love, and wisdom. It also symbolizes fertility, peace, hope, healing, nurturing, and growth. Many of these aspects are deeply valued by Taurus. For being an earth sign, Taureans are drawn to nature and greenery. As such, in many ways, emerald represents what Taurus wants and who they are. This makes emerald an excellent gemstone for Taurus.

In Roman Egypt, emerald was favored by Cleopatra. It is said that the Egyptian queen adorned herself in emerald jewelry and used emerald as decoration. The locally-mined emerald was given out as gifts to foreign diplomats as local specialties.

Emerald is a variety of beryl. Other notable members of the beryl gem family include aquamarine and morganite. Emerald is also a birthstone for the month of May. This means that emerald represents both April and May Taurus, but it doubly represents May Taurus.

2. Diamond

The symbol of forever, diamond, is another birthstone for Taurus. Since diamond is also an April birthstone, it is especially appealing to April Taurus.

Diamond is the most famous and most sought-after gemstone. It is known for being one of the hardest naturally-occurring substances on earth. A properly cut and polished diamond draws attention with its captivating sparkle.

The symbolism and meaning of diamond are closely related to its physical properties. See if you can detect a theme here. Diamond symbolizes invincibility, perseverance, strength, commitment, purity, and perfection. As an expensive gemstone, is also a symbol of luxury, wealth, achievement, self-confidence. This is to say that the diamond represents Taurus’ desires and traits. Taurus are hard workers and they work toward building wealth through perseverance. While they do seek luxury, they tend to be humble and do so with a pure intention. They just want to feel safe and secure in their position. All of these are embodied by the diamond. For having so much in common, it’s safe to say that the diamond is an excellent Taurus birth gem.

3. Rose Quartz

Photo: Rose quartz on filigree ring. Credit: starbright, Flickr

Rose quartz is the gemstone of love and relationship for Taurus. As a fixed earth sign, Taurus can be an introverted sign. But just because they are quiet doesn’t mean that they aren’t romantic. On the contrary, Taurus is one of the most romantic signs of the zodiac, in part due to the influence of the Goddess of Love Venus. Coincidentally, Venus is said to be the reason how rose quartz came to be.

Before Venus became Venus to the Romans, she was known as Aphrodite by the people of ancient Greece. It is said that when Aphrodite risked herself to save her love Adonis, they got hurt and their blood mixed and landed on a piece of quartz. Their blood stained the pure quartz, giving it a rosy pink color, forever. For rose quartz came to be from an act of love by the goddess of love herself, rose quartz is forever known as a stone of selfless love.

As a stone of love, it is favored by newlyweds or by those who are engaged to be married. Some believe that wearing rose quartz helps you to gain a more profound understanding of love and friendship. This understanding makes you wiser when it comes to these delicate but important matters. This means that the pink Taurus crystal would not turn Taurus into a hopeless romantic. But instead, it provides the wisdom and clarity that Taurus need in coming out as a winner in terms of love and relationship.

4. Aventurine

Photo: Aventurine, polished. Credit: Content Pixie, Unsplash

Aventurine is a healing birthstone for Taurus. Aventurine can exist in many different colors, but green color is the most common and also the color we recommend as Taurus birth crystal.

Aventurine is said to be a universal healing crystal. It is believed to promote healing and good health in general. And this applies to both mental and physical health. It is believed to sharpen and provide clarity to one’s mind. Purportedly, the green gemstone also helps prevent hair loss, mitigate allergies, soothe allergy reactions, and improve skin conditions.

Just like emerald, aventurine belongs to one of the colors the represent Taurus which is green. Unlike emerald, the green aventurine is opaque and has a dusty green color. In any case, aventurine has a much cheaper price range than emerald. Consequently, aventurine the Taurus stone can be used in areas that emerald can’t, such as home décor or even as paper weight using lesser-grade aventurine.

5. Amethyst

Photo: Amethyst. Credit: Amila Tennakoon, Flickr

Taurus is also lucky to have amethyst as their birthstone. The purple gemstone is a symbol of peace, calmness, relaxation, purity, gentleness, kindness, and clarity. While “luck” isn’t a symbol of the gemstone, I’d venture to say that amethyst is the lucky stone for Taurus. Why? I’ll explain more below.

The Taurus gemstone amethyst is believed to bring inner peace. It’s the perfect gemstone to have around especially when you’re going through some rough patches in life. For it symbolizes peace and relaxation, consider placing it in your living room or bedroom as decor. Gem-grade amethyst is more expensive, but there are other more affordable amethyst grades that are excellent as home decor.

The literal meaning of amethyst is “not intoxicated.” When you’re intoxicated your judgment is clouded. In other words, amethyst offers clarity and perhaps the wisdom you need to see things clearly. This couples with the stone’s calming effect makes it an excellent companion crystal for studying and learning. This brings us back to why amethyst is a lucky stone for Taurus. That’s because of the clarity it brings to the mind. Taurus is perseverant and hardworking, however, one of their biggest weaknesses is stubbornness. Amethyst can help Taurus see past their own stubbornness and this creates luck for the bulls.

Conclusions

We’ve discussed five unique gemstones that represent Taurus. These five gemstones are unique in their own ways. They’re not only aesthetically pleasing as jewelry and decor, but they are also believed to have many beneficial properties. While many of the effects can’t be proven scientifically, one cannot deny the positive psychological effects of wearing your own birthstone. In other words, it makes you feel good. And good things happen when you feel great about yourself.

Birthstones by Month

Birthstones by Zodiac Sign

Aries Birthstones | Taurus Birthstones

Taurus

The post Taurus Birthstones appeared first on Metropolitan Girls.

February Birthstones

Madame Constella — Tue, 16 Mar 2021 14:21:18 +0000

These are the birthstones February is blessed with. What gemstones represent February-borns? What are their symbolism, origins, and perhaps more importantly, meanings for February babies? Get the answers to these questions in this February birthstone guide.

Poem Source: Natal Stones: Sentiments and Superstitions Associated with Precious Stones

February is the second month of the year and the most beautiful month for the lovestruck lovers. It may be popularly known today as the ‘Love Month’ but this was not always the case. The name of the month came from the Latin word ‘februare’ meaning ‘purification.’

Back in ancient Roman times, February was most known for the Festival of Purification. It was the month when the Romans would ritually wash to purify both their bodies and soul. The birthstones for this month are known as excellent purification gems. Let’s get to know the birthstones of February so that we can decide which birthstone would make a perfect gift for ourselves or our loved ones.

1. Amethyst

Above: amethyst gemstone. Credit: Amila Tennakoon – the Gems of Sri Lanka photo album.

Both the modern and traditional birthstone of February is amethyst. Amethyst is a variety of quartz with a glass-like luster. Purple is the common color of amethyst but it can also come in more saturated shades such as violet and dark purple. The name came from the ancient Greek word ‘amethystos‘ which means ‘not intoxicated.’ It was believed that the stone can offer protection against intoxication. To benefit from its power, the ancient Greeks would either wear the stone as a piece of jewelry or carve it in their drinking cups. In the past, amethysts were considered to be more valuable than diamonds. The value of what once was a precious stone crashed abruptly as massive deposits were mined in Brazil in the 1800s. Despite that, today amethyst is still one of the most sought-after gemstones that everyone can afford to own and enjoy.

Those who were born in February are fortunate to have this mystifying and royal gemstone as their guardian birthstone. It is believed that the amethyst has the power to equip its wearer with mental and emotional strength. As mentioned earlier, it is also known for its power as a purifying gem.

The gem’s purifying power is similar to the viola–a birth flower for February.

The energy of the amethyst spiritually aligns with February folks. By wearing an amethyst, February folks will be able to draw energy from the spiritual alignment. The amethyst can also help its wearer become more connected with the universe. It will make a great lifetime companion because it has the energy to keep your mind at peace and the power to keep you away from wicked thoughts.

2. Hyacinth

Above: Hyacinth. Credit: Amila Tennakoon – Album: Gems of Sri Lanka

Another great February gemstone is the hyacinth. It is a red, orange, or yellow variety of zircon with an unbreakable mirror-like luster. The mineral was named after the flower of the same name. However, the connection between the two remains vague. One thing is for sure though, the beauty of the hyacinth gem is undeniable. It is even comparable to rough diamonds. Unfortunately, this gem had become a medium for fraudsters who alter the stone through heat treatment and sell it as a diamond.

Hyacinth (Flower)

Those who were born in February are more likely to find prosperity by wearing the hyacinth. This mirror-like mineral is also a gem for all people from all walks of life because it is inexpensive and known to purify and ward off nightmares for those who wear it.

If you are a keen traveler, you will benefit from this gem because it can change its luster depending on the weather and surroundings. It becomes dull if the weather turns unfavorable and gleams if the weather is pleasant. The hyacinth gem is a good February birthday gift or as a parting gift to a friend who will embark on a journey.

3. Jade

Jade and diamond necklace pendant

Jade is the mystical February gemstone. It is an opaque gem with a waxy and vitreous luster. The name was derived from the Latin word ‘ilia‘ which means ‘kidney area’ for it was used to treat loins and kidney illnesses. There are two kinds of jade namely, jadeite and nephrite. Both minerals are chemically unrelated but have identical physical properties and look extremely similar in appearance. Jadeite is the rarer kind that comes in many different vibrant colors. The nephrite is mostly green or white while jadeite can come in green, white, lavender, red, orange, yellow, and black. Jade is a precious stone that can soothe both the eyes and the skin. It is pleasing to look at and even more delightful to touch.

Virtue, wisdom, and prosperity are the energies that embody this gemstone.

People born in February will have an improved quality of life when they wear this gem. Jade is perhaps the most important gemstone in Chinese culture. These gemstones are sometimes more valuable than diamonds. Many subjects of greatness and beauty is compared to a jade stone. To the Taoists, the “Jade Emperor” is believed to the greatest and most divine ruler of heaven. Jades are amazing gems that can guard you even in your sleep. It protects you against nightmares and allows you to dream pleasant dreams.

Birthstones by Month

Birthstones by Zodiac Sign

The post February Birthstones appeared first on Metropolitan Girls.