When I travel, I often look for jewelry native to the local geography or the styles and colors that reflect the area I’m visiting. At the beach, for instance, the hues and texture of the sand remind me of unique finishes we can put on our gold – like sandblasting or matted textures, as seen in these gold bangles.

One of my favorite getaways is to the beaches of 30A in Northwest Florida, dubbed the Emerald Coast. The beaches here are among the softest and whitest I’ve ever experienced, and the sand is as white as pure sugar, so soft that you feel like you are walking on pillows. Most of the time, you can walk across it with your bare feet without feeling the burn from the hot summer sun. In the afternoon sun, the sandy beaches glisten like the beauty of 18K gold and pristine diamonds set together in unique and beautiful diamond bands from Mystique.

As a gemologist, I am fascinated by the beautiful gemstones and metals created in nature by our planet. So, it’s fitting that my favorite beaches are a story about earth’s natural creation. The unique white sand along the Emerald Coast consists of pure, small quartz particles which came from a process starting in the Appalachian Mountains. Over thousands of years, as the Appalachian Mountains weathered, quartz and other particles were washed down through the Apalachicola River, ending in the Gulf. As the sediment-filled water reached the Gulf, the lighter quartz particles were left to form the beautiful, pristine beaches. Centuries of tidal friction against the quartz left us with the small, fine-grained sand we enjoy along the Emerald Coast beaches today. The white sand sets beautifully against matted gold ovals with pave diamonds links.

Of course, the Emerald Coast gets its name from the eye-catching emerald green and blue waters of the Gulf. In the right light, the water here reflects a luminescent, unique green appearance. More frequently, I see shades of blue that reflect some of my favorite gemstones, like aquamarine cabochons, green-blue tourmaline, and aqua blue topaz.

Come visit us at Mystique Jewelers and share the stories of your favorite beaches and places to visit.