December Birthday gemstone Blue Topaz
Mood:  celebratory
Topic: Gemstones
Blue Topaz is the gemstone for a December birthday.

Hall Mark History
Mood:  cool
The British hall-marks date back to the year 1327, when the Royal Charter ... was granted by Edward III to the ‘Wardens and Commonalty of the Mystery of the Goldsmiths of the City of London’. The statute ordained that no gold or silver wares should be offered for sale until they had been assayed by the Wardens of the Craft and marked with the Leopard’s head if found to be of the required standard. Wares which failed to reach the standard for hall-marking were forfeited to the King. From: THE GOLDSMITH’S AND SILVERSMITH’S HANDBOOK by Staton Abbey pub The Technical Press Ltd 2nd edition revised 1968.

Sagittarius
Mood:  celebratory
Topic: Gifts
Sagittarius birthdays fall between 23 November and 22 December. Topaz is one of the birthstones for Sagittarians.

Silver
Mood:  lyrical
Topic: Silver
Silver has been widely used for jewellery and ornaments throughout time. Its soft white gleam encourages the reflection of light from semi precious transparent gems, enhancing their appearance.

Peridot
Mood:  celebratory
Topic: Gemstones
The gemstone Peridot is the birthstone for August and the astrological signs of Leo, Virgo, Scorpio, and Sagittarius. It ranges in colour from yellowish green to dark lime-green. Green signifies a good luck stone. Peridot is thought to bring power and influence to its owner. It is also considered to

• foster emotional balance
• help heal emotional wounds
• clear the path to the heart, and
• heal damaged egos

Some also think it is a visionary stone, bringing understanding of destiny and purpose. A Money Stone, wear Peridot to draw money and opportunity towards you.
Hand Crafted Indian Silver

Preventing Tarnish
Mood:  special
Topic: Tarnish
To prevent sterling silver jewellery from tarnishing quickly, store it in a zip-loc plastic bag, jewellery box or pouch or in tarnish prevention cloths or bags. Tarnish prevention cloth is treated to slow down the tarnishing process and it also stops your jewellery from rubbing against harder jewellery that can scratch it.
Hand Crafted Indian Silver

Sterling Silver
Mood:  cool
Topic: Sterling Silver
Silver combined with a small amount of other metals (alloy) is harder and more durable. The most popular alloy is sterling silver, formed from 92.5 percent silver and 7.5 percent copper. Any metal can make up the 7.5 percent non-silver portion of sterling but centuries of experience have shown that copper is best, as it improves the metal's hardness and durability without affecting its beautiful colour.
Hand Crafted Indian Silver

Silver
Mood:  lyrical
Topic: Silver
Pure (100%) silver (also called fine silver) is a beautiful soft white metal, very durable and malleable but too soft for use by itself as jewellery, as it scratches easily; but combined with small amounts of other metals, often copper, in a form known as sterling silver, it is harder and can last for hundreds of years with a little tender loving care.