THE LANGUAGE OF JEWELLERY - GEMSTONES

A guide to crafting and selecting luxury pieces.

Gemstones

At Helene, we use natural, synthetic and simulated gemstones in our fine jewellery – each selected based on their visual qualities and unrivalled allure. Our gemstones are chosen meticulously based on brilliance, colour, clarity, durability and of course, beauty. Each raw gemstone is hand-cut, polished and set using traditional methods to create pieces that last.

Natural gemstones

These gemstones occur naturally in nature and are mined from the ground. The traditional classification of natural gemstones goes back to the ancient Greeks, who created a distinction between precious and semi-precious stones. Precious stones include emeralds, rubies, sapphires and diamonds, with all other gemstones falling into the latter category. In their purest form, natural gemstones are translucent with colour, with the exception of the colourless diamond.

As opposed to laboratory-grown gemstones which can be modified for clarity and colour, natural gemstones may not be as rich in colour and may have blemishes. But due to their rarity, they are prized at a much higher value than most synthetic and simulated gemstones.

Synthetic and simulated gemstones

Lab-created gemstones are man-made as opposed to being mined from the ground like their natural counterparts and as a result, are free from the destructive environmental effects of mining. Lab-created synthetic gemstones have an identical composition and chemical structure to natural gemstones. They also carry the same colour, hardness and brilliance. Fine jewellery made with lab-created gemstones has less environmental impact and provides a responsible option.

Simulated gemstones, however, have different gemological qualities to natural stones. However, some varieties have improved hardness and durability.

Both synthetic and simulated gemstones offer perfect clarity and colour and unlike natural gemstones, they are responsibly and ethically sourced.