In the past few years, colored gemstones have become quite popular, especially morganite – but is morganite suitable for an engagement ring? What makes a particular stone suitable for an engagement ring is not just a person’s taste but also durability. Durability means it’s ability to withstand chipping, cracking and scratching but along with those characteristics come other things that you might not think of. For instance, if a stone is not hard enough, of course it will scratch which will dull down the surface. It will also absorb soap, lotion, sunscreen, oils… anything that you would get on your hands.
Unfortunately, morganite is a softer stone that falls into this category. Morganite has a Moh’s rating (GIA scale) of 7.5 – 8. Many websites and people will tell you this is a very durable gem that makes morganite suitable for an engagement ring but it definitely is not a stone for an everyday ring (such as an engagement ring). It will not stand the test of time like a diamond or a moissanite. You want your engagement ring stone to look as beautiful 20, 30, 50 or more years down the road – bright, sparkling and void of chips and. scratches.
If your heart is really yearning for a pink stone, why not try a sapphire? Sapphires score a 9 on the Moh’s scale coming in just under moissanite and diamond. They are very durable, don’t absorb oils, soap etc and are extremely resistant to scratching and chipping. Sapphires come in almost every colour you can imagine – 4 shades of pinks! From champagne pink to light pink, hot pinks and deep pinks, even purplish pink. They also come in blues, yellows, greens, whites…a whole other blogpost really to sing the praises of sapphires or corundum as it is also called. (Stay tuned for that blog post – coming soon)
We don’t agree with mining or mined gems but we do offer synthetic sapphires – don’t leave at the mere mention of synthetic stones – they probably aren’t what you think they are. I have written an earlier post on synthetic gems, please check it out before ruling out synthetic. Brief explanation: they are synthesized – originally grown from a seed of a sapphire so they are entirely 100% the same properties as a mined sapphire. They are then reseeded and so on and so on. This makes them ecologically sound and a better price point. We use Chatham synthesized gems which are of a high quality in clarity, cut and color.
I love seeing the variety in styles and the many colors of gemstones women choose these days but morganite is not suitable for an engagement ring. If you still long for one, maybe chooses it for an occasional ring that doesn’t need to worn when washing the dishes, showering, gardening or many of the others daily tasks we tackle.