Birthstone Jewelry Christmas Gift Guide

A Christmas gift has to compete with everything else under the tree. A birthstone gift wins that contest for one simple reason: it is the only present in the pile that could only have been chosen for this one person. The stone is already decided by a date. Your job is to pick the piece, the metal and the moment.

Birthstone Christmas Gifts at a Glance

Most Christmas birthstone shopping falls into one of a handful of situations. Find yours in the left column and the rest of the decision mostly makes itself.

If you are unsure which month or stone you are shopping for, our month-by-month birthstone finder lays out all twelve side by side. For a wider view of the season, holiday jewelry gifts gathers the pieces we see chosen most often in December.

December Birthdays: The Stones of the Season

Someone born in December has spent a lifetime having a birthday absorbed into Christmas. A December birthstone is one of the few gifts that answers that directly, because it is about their month rather than the holiday. We generally suggest giving it as its own present, wrapped separately, rather than folding it into a joint birthday-and-Christmas gift.

December carries more stones than most months. Turquoise, zircon and tanzanite are December's stones on the Jewelers of America list, and blue topaz is widely sold as a December birthstone as well, which is how we file it in our December birthstone collection. They differ more in durability than people expect.

Two points are worth knowing before you buy. Blue topaz is almost never blue straight from the ground; the color is produced by treating colorless topaz, and the shade names, from pale sky to deep London, describe how dark the result is. That treatment is standard and stable, and it is why blue topaz offers so much color for its price. Zircon, meanwhile, is a natural mineral and has nothing to do with cubic zirconia, the man-made diamond simulant, despite the similar name.

Those three run from an everyday 4mm stud to a pair that reads as an occasion. The Swiss blue topaz studs suit someone who already wears small earrings daily. The pear-shaped tanzanite and diamond drops make sense for a recipient who dresses up over the holidays. The round 5mm tanzanite posts carry the most stone of the three, 0.93 carats in total, with no metalwork competing for attention. Tanzanite's violet-blue shifts slightly depending on the light, which makes it especially good in earrings, where it moves. See the full range of the stone in our tanzanite collection.

A December birthstone ring

If a ring is the plan, blue topaz is the December stone we point people toward first. At 8 on the Mohs scale it is harder than the quartz in ordinary dust, so it resists the slow scratching that dulls softer stones. Topaz does have one weakness: it can split along a plane if it takes a sharp knock, so a protective setting is worth having on a ring worn every day. A bezel, the continuous metal rim around the stone, gives the most protection.

The stackable ring holds a 4mm blue topaz in a bezel on a slim band, an easy first ring that sits beside anything already on the hand. The oval Swiss blue topaz and diamond ring is the opposite brief: a large stone, prong-set, for someone who wants their birthstone to be seen. Tanzanite rings exist too, and they are beautiful, but at 6 to 7 they suit occasional wear better than daily. Browse every stone in birthstone rings.

January Birthdays: Garnet, Given a Few Weeks Early

For someone born in January, a garnet at Christmas reads as thoughtful rather than early, especially if their birthday tends to get lost in the post-holiday quiet. Garnet is a practical stone to give. At 6.5 to 7.5 it handles daily wear, garnets are generally not treated, and the deep red sits naturally in winter wardrobes. Our January birthstone collection covers studs, pendants and rings.

That ring pairs a 6x4mm oval garnet, listed as not enhanced, with two small diamond accents on a 2mm band. It is one of the more forgiving ring gifts on this list, because garnet's hardness means very little can go wrong with ordinary care.

When You Do Not Know Their Size

Christmas is a surprise holiday, and surprises make sizing hard. Rings and some bracelets need a measurement, and asking for one tends to give the game away. Earrings and pendants do not. That is the main reason we suggest them for most Christmas birthstone gifts.

• Earrings need no size and almost never strike anything, so they suit every birthstone, soft or hard. A 4mm to 6mm stud works for a teenager and a grandmother alike. Start with birthstone earrings.
• Pendants need only a chain length. 18 inches sits at or just below the collarbone on most adults and is the safest choice if you cannot check. Look through gemstone necklaces.
• Rings need a size. If you can borrow a ring they already wear on the right finger, our ring size guide shows how to measure it at home. If you cannot, give earrings now and keep the ring for a birthday when you know the size.

Christmas Gifts for Mom and Grandmother

This is the largest single group of Christmas birthstone gifts, and the brief rarely changes: something she will wear, that holds her children or grandchildren, and that does not feel like a souvenir. A family pendant answers all three. Each stone stands for one person, so the piece carries meaning without any engraving at all.

In practice, one to three stones looks intentional on a pendant. Past five or six, the stones get small and the piece starts to read as a chart, and a charm or one-piece-per-child approach often works better.

Both pendants hold birthstones in bezels, which protect the stones for years of daily wear. The stones in each are chosen when you order, so check the timing shown on the product page before you count on it for Christmas morning; a piece made to order needs more lead time than one already finished. The full range sits in mother's and family jewelry, with more made-to-order options in personalized jewelry and a wider edit in gifts for mom.

Birthstone Stocking Stuffers Under $50

A stocking gift should be small enough to tuck into the toe and specific enough that nobody mistakes it for an afterthought. Birthstone jewelry clears both bars. A good stocking piece is either a small pair of studs or a single charm that adds to something they already own.

The garnet posts are natural garnet in rhodium-plated sterling silver. The stainless steel January earrings are set with cubic zirconia rather than garnet, so they carry the month rather than its mineral, and they are labeled that way. They suit a younger recipient, or anyone who wants to try birthstone color before committing to a natural stone. The enameled stocking charm is the one piece here that is pure Christmas, made for a charm bracelet or a fine chain. More options sit in jewelry under $50.

The One Main Present

Some years call for one gift that carries the whole season. If you know the size and the recipient wears gold, a gold birthstone ring is the strongest choice you can make: it is worn on the hand where the wearer sees it all day, and it tends to be the piece kept longest.

This ring sets a 6x4mm oval natural emerald, the May birthstone, in four prongs with a diamond accent on a slim 14K yellow gold band. Emerald sits at 7.5 to 8 on the Mohs scale, but it is almost always included, and most emeralds on the market are clarity-enhanced with oil or resin as a matter of course. Those inclusions make it more brittle than its hardness suggests, so an emerald ring is best for a wearer who takes rings off for housework and the gym. For a daily-wear gold ring in another month, the harder stones such as sapphire, ruby, topaz and garnet are the safer choices.

Christmas Birthstone Gifts by Budget

Decide the band before you look. Birthstone jewelry spans a wide range, and setting the ceiling first keeps the choice about the person rather than the price tag.

• Under $50. Small natural studs, single charms and birthstone-color pieces in sterling silver or stainless steel. Ideal for stockings and for adding to a main gift. Shop under $50.
• $50 to $100. Bezel-set birthstone rings, family pendants and diamond-accented studs in sterling silver. This is where most Christmas birthstone gifts land. Shop under $100.
• $100 to $250. Larger stones, tanzanite and diamond combinations, and solid gold pendants. Shop under $250.
• Over $250. Gold birthstone rings with natural precious stones, for the one main present.

Price follows three things: the metal, the size of the stone, and whether diamond accents are involved. A smaller natural stone in solid gold will often outlast a larger one in plated metal, so if the budget forces a choice, we usually suggest putting the money into the metal for a ring and into the stone for earrings.

Sterling Silver or Gold?

The metal matters more than the stone for whether a gift gets worn. Someone who wears white metal every day will quietly never wear yellow gold, and the reverse is just as true. Check a piece they already own before you choose.

Sterling silver is 92.5 percent silver. Most of the sterling pieces in this guide carry a rhodium plating, which gives a bright white finish and slows tarnish. Gold, at 10K or 14K, does not tarnish and holds up better to decades of daily wear, which is why we lean toward gold for a ring meant to last. Stainless steel resists tarnish and suits pieces worn hard. Our metal and gemstone guide compares them in detail.

Timing, Wrapping and the Card

Order earlier than feels necessary, particularly for anything made to order. A ready-made pair of studs and a pendant set with stones chosen for each child are on very different timelines in the weeks before Christmas, and the product page is the place to check.

The card does more work with a birthstone gift than with almost any other present. Name the stone and the month, and if the piece holds several stones, say whose each one is. That one line turns a pretty piece of jewelry into a record of a family, and it is the part most people remember.

Winter Care for Birthstone Jewelry

Winter is hard on jewelry in quiet ways. Heavy hand creams leave a film that dulls a stone's sparkle, and wool and knitwear catch on prongs. Three habits cover most of it:

• Last on, first off. Put jewelry on after lotion, perfume and hairspray, and take it off before bed and before the gym.
• Clean softer stones by hand. Turquoise, tanzanite, emerald, opal and pearl should be cleaned with lukewarm water, mild soap and a soft brush, never in an ultrasonic or steam cleaner.
• Store pieces apart. A harder stone can scratch a softer one in a shared box, and sterling silver tarnishes less when kept in a closed pouch.

Our jewelry care guide has the full routine by material.

Christmas Birthstone Gift Questions, Answered

What is the best birthstone Christmas gift?

For most recipients, birthstone stud earrings or a birthstone pendant in the metal they already wear. Neither needs a size, both suit every stone, and both are worn far more often than statement pieces. Choose a ring only when you know the size and the stone is hard enough for daily wear.

What is the birthstone for December?

Turquoise, zircon and tanzanite are December's stones on the Jewelers of America list, and blue topaz is widely sold as a December birthstone too. Blue topaz, at 8 on the Mohs scale, is the most durable of the four and the easiest to wear in a ring.

Is it strange to give birthstone jewelry for Christmas instead of a birthday?

No. A birthstone marks a person, not an occasion, so it works at any time of year. For December and January birthdays, it can feel especially considered, since those birthdays are so often overshadowed by the holidays.

Can I give a mother her children's birthstones instead of her own?

Yes, and it is one of the most common birthstone gifts. A family pendant with one stone for each child is the usual format, and one to three stones reads most clearly on a single pendant.

Is zircon the same as cubic zirconia?

No. Zircon is a natural mineral and one of December's birthstones. Cubic zirconia is a man-made material used as a diamond simulant. The names are similar, but the materials are unrelated.

Which birthstones are durable enough for a ring worn every day?

Diamond, sapphire, ruby, topaz, spinel, aquamarine, amethyst and garnet all handle daily wear well. Tanzanite, turquoise, opal and pearl are softer and suit earrings and pendants better, or rings worn occasionally in a protective setting.

Do birthstones have healing powers?

No. Birthstones carry long traditions of symbolic meaning, and those traditions vary between cultures and sources, but they are folklore rather than documented physical or medical effects. The meaning of a birthstone gift comes from the person and the date it marks.

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