Happy birthday October girl! If your girl has an October birthday, surprise her with a beautiful opal and diamond ring,  a pair of or something completely unexpected like a diamond engagement ring! The opal is the traditional birthstone for October, and the tourmaline is the modern birthstone, so you have two beautiful choices. The fiery opal is long prized for its unique capacity to refract and reflect light, which creates its mesmerizing bursts of rainbow colors within its pearly white base.  Its name comes from the Latin work “opals” which means precious jewel, and one of the more celestial explanations for its origins claims that it fell from heaven in a blaze of lightning.  When you look into the fascinating festival of light and color that is the great beauty of an opal, you will understand why the ancient Romans called it “Cupid Panders” – a child as beautiful as love. Ancient rulers and royal families treasured opals, believing they had protective powers to ward off evil and, interestingly, to protect eyesight. Monarchs wore opals as a pendant around their necks as ornaments and to keep the protective powers close by. Opals were set in the crowns of royal families, and ground into power to take for medicinal purposes. Many believed consuming opal powder kept nightmares at bay. Opals are made of non-crystalized silica, a mineral actually found close to the earth’s surface, where ancient geothermal hot springs once existed; opals were formed as the hot springs dried up. Layers of silica combined with water were deposited into nooks and crannies of the earth’s bedrock to form opals. Opals are 30 percent water, and fairly delicate. They must be well cared for and kept away from high heat and harsh chemicals, which can destroy their water base and cause the opal to crack and lose its iridescence. Even a hard blow can harm the opal, so they need t be treated with care. Southern Australia is home to most of the world’s opal deposits. Opals are also mined in Brazil, Czechoslovakia, Mexico and Nevada. Like most gemstones, high quality opals can be expensive, particularly because they require very tender handling when they’re being cut and polished in preparation for being set into jewelry. Giving an opal to the woman you love is symbolic of your faithfulness to her, and confidence in your future together. Of course, she may love sapphires, rubies, and emeralds too. If you know what her favorite gemstone is, surprise her with a gift she'll treasure a lifetime. If tourmaline seems more fitting for your October birthday girl, you might like to know that this particular gemstone possesses the (somewhat) magical property of pyroelectricity. That means when takes on a static electric charge which allows it to attract light objects during periods when its temporary voltage is charged. Naturally, the tourmaline was believed to hold mystical properties in centuries past. It has long been called the “stone of the muse,” as common thought believed it to stimulate the creative process in those who wore it. The pink varieties of tourmaline can range in color from pastel pinks to deep ruby reds. Surprise your October birthday girl with a gift of fine jewelry she'll treasure forever.