Pearl and Moonstone, the birthstones for June

Colours
Pearls come in a variety of colours from white, pale cream, green, gold through to black and many colours and shades in between. Heat treatment and irradiation treatment are sometimes used to produce colours like yellow, purple and also bleaching to soften a pearls existing hue produces some other colours. A really interesting type of pearl is ‘Biwa’ Pearls (pictured in the brooch to the right). These are fresh water cultured and are obtainable in peculiar and extraordinary shapes. They are dark in colour and have an ‘oil slick’ effect across their surface. Moonstone is found as an almost transparent stone thought to a fine intense blue. Moonstone also has ‘adularescence’ properties, meaning that when the stone is moved its shimmers and the colour cast will have altered.