Stone 101
The January birthstone looks like pomegranate seeds and is tough enough to make sandpaper.
Most garnet is a deep wine red, but it comes in orange, green and more. Here you'll find bead bracelets, necklaces, earrings, spheres and raw crystals.
Shop Garnet by shape
The basics
Garnet is a group of minerals, not just one. They share the same crystal shape but swap in different metals. Almandine and pyrope are the classic reds.
Spessartine is orange, and grossular and andradite can be green or golden. Blue garnet is the rarest of all, first reported in the 1990s.
Rituals, not rules
These are traditions people enjoy, not promises. Pick the one you keep coming back to.
Care
Straight talk
Natural garnet is common, so it's rarely faked with much effort. Red glass is the usual imitation. Lab-grown stones like YAG share garnet's crystal structure but are man-made. Real garnet often looks very dark until light shines through. If one of our pieces were treated or man-made, the title would say so.
Keep going
Good questions
It's traditionally linked with passion, commitment and friendship. The name likely ties back to the pomegranate, whose seeds look a lot like garnet crystals.
Yes. Garnet is the traditional and modern birthstone for January, which makes it a classic winter birthday gift.
It's most often linked with Capricorn and Aquarius, the January signs. Wear it whatever your sign is.
Yes. It's a hard, sturdy stone, so a quick wash with mild soap and a soft cloth is fine.
