Birthstone Meanings

Amethyst wedding rings - should I be concerned about sun discoloring?

I've been toying with the thought an amethyst wedding ring for my fiancee. This seems to be more common than I'd expected, but I've read that long periods of sunlight can discolor one that is natural and dye free. Anyone have empirical knowledge on this? We're in Southern California, so lots of sunlight is to be expected. Does this apply to something as small as a wedding ring as much as it does to like, a full crystal?

Public Comments

1. id be more worried about her thinking your a cheapskate
2. Yes, they do fade and amethyst is fairly tough but it could easily chip. You should not heat clean them as they can be damaged by extreme changes in temperature. You may want to look at a garnet they come in a large color range - even a deep purplish red - and are more durable.
3. I live in Florida and have had many amethyst rings and jewelry and none have ever discolored. However, if this is a concern get insurance on the ring. And to the person who said you would be cheap by getting Amethyst get over yourself. It's a beautiful stone and personally I find diamonds disgusting, tacky and WAY over done. Love is not shown by a damn stone.
4. I wear an amethyst necklace almost permanently in the northern Australian sun. It's a very big stone - not sure about carats or anything like that, but it's a pear shape 17mm long and 12mm wide at it's widest point. I've had it for almost six years now, and I haven't noticed it fading or discolouring at all. I would recommend chatting to the jeweller about it. The internet is a good place to start, but you can't trust everything you read on here :o)