Gemstone Earrings: Ruby, Sapphire, Emerald and Pearl with Diamonds

Color is the reason to buy a gemstone earring. Durability is the reason to choose one gem over another. GIA rates hardness on the Mohs scale, where diamond is 10.

Most emeralds have fractures filled with oil or resin. GIA warns that ultrasonic vibration and steam can push that filler out, so an emerald earring should never go in a machine cleaner.

Gemstone earrings in the catalog run from the Ward Off Evil Earrings ($495) at the low end to statement pieces like Ruby Ballerina Huggies ($3,010), which carries 1.72 ct of diamonds. In between:

• Azalea Earrings ($1,485): oval rubies with round diamonds in a cluster.
• Charlotte Blue Sapphire Huggies ($1,600): a huggie that mixes blue sapphire with diamond.
• Daisy Emerald Earrings ($810): a small floral stud for daily wear.
• Ruby Rose Earrings ($2,020): a fuller ruby design with 0.64 ct of diamonds.

Listings give the diamond weight and, where we have it, the gem weight separately. The Azalea, for example, lists 0.49 ct of diamonds and 2.05 ct of gemstones. Read both numbers: the gem weight drives the color, the diamond weight drives the sparkle.

The FTC Jewelry Guides require a seller to say when a gemstone is lab-created or treated in a way that affects its value or care. Heat treatment of ruby and sapphire is common and stable. Glass filling, fracture filling and dye are not, and they change how you clean the stone. If a piece matters to you for its origin, ask us what the gem is before you buy. For the bigger picture on color versus white stones, read gemstones vs diamonds.

These earrings are 14K gold, 58.3% pure gold, which is a better bet for sensitive ears than plated fashion pieces. Studs use a post and back; the huggies close with a hinge. If you want a back that cannot slip, read screw back vs push back. Size on gem studs is mostly about the cluster: a 6 to 8 mm cluster face reads clearly from across a room without feeling heavy.

Three numbers tell you most of what you need. Diamond weight (ctw) tells you how much sparkle frames the color. Gemstone weight tells you how much color you get. Gold karat tells you the metal; everything here is 14K. A design with a large gem weight and a small diamond weight is a color piece; the reverse is a diamond piece with a touch of color. Pick based on which one you actually want people to notice first.

Gem color shifts with light. A ruby that looks deep red in daylight can look darker under warm indoor bulbs, and a sapphire can lean more violet or more blue depending on the lamp. If color is the reason you are buying, look at the piece in more than one light before you decide. You can see pieces at our Miami showroom, 7900 NW 27th Ave, Unit 506, in the Northside Shopping Center area; call 954-504-5640 before you come so we can have the styles you want ready. Every online order ships insured.

• Match the gem to one other piece, not every piece. A ruby earring with a plain gold chain beats a ruby earring with a ruby ring and a ruby bracelet.
• Rose gold warms up rubies; white gold cools sapphires and makes them look bluer.
• Birthstone gifts land well: ruby for July, sapphire for September, emerald for May.

Want the same color story on a ring or necklace? Browse gemstone jewelry, or compare against plain diamond pieces in all earrings. Men shopping colored studs can start with the men's earrings guide.