Paraiba Tourmalines have stolen most of the Parisian High Jewelry showcases earlier this summer: here are all the reasons why.

Author By Marie-Caroline Selmer

The word Paraiba on its own has a special meaning for jewelers and gemstone lovers. As you may or may not know, Paraiba Tourmalines comes from the Brazilian state of Paraiba where the very first stone had been discovered in the 1980s by Heitor Dimas Barbosa who spent years digging in the “Paraiba-hill” looking for something special. His efforts have paid off when Barbosa’s crew finally brought up to light a variety of tourmaline no-one has seen before. The intense hue of the blue that characterizes the stone immediately caught the gemstone world’s attention.

What makes its color so unique? The interaction of manganese and copper gives the stone this incandescent blue-green glow. Caroline Gaspard, the creative director of French jewelry house AKILLIS, makes no secret of her particular love for the Paraiba tourmaline which reminds her vividly of the beautiful tropical seas of the world. To celebrate the brand’s 10^thanniversary and the opening of her new flagship in Paris located 354 rue Saint-Honoré, Gaspard has designed a spectacular tribal-inspired necklace made of six rows of Paraiba-tourmalines enhanced with white diamonds to really show off the rich color of the stone. The piece hides a double reference that makes the jewel even more special: one to the Amazonian art of the Guarini tribes and another to her wedding vows she has just renewed for the 6th times.

Not only known for its beauty, the Paraiba tourmaline is one of the most sought-after gem due to its rarity. It has become harder and harder to find natural Paraiba Tourmalines considering that most resources have been extracted from their mines. As a matter of fact, the Paraiba mines are practically exhausted and its extremely rare to find on the market any stone bigger than 3 carats, a reason that strengthen the aura of the Brazilian Paraiba tourmaline and keep on captivating the jewelry world!

If Brazil is number one country for tourmalines, Nigeria and Mozambique have also been gifted by Mother Nature with some shining blue-green tourmalines.

What exactly are the differences between the two colored gemstones?  According to purists, the Brazilian examples tend to be more intense in color, but the truth is that to the naked eye, difference are indistinguishable.

It is the Mozambique Paraiba tourmaline that has been selected by French jewelry house Pérouse to unveil its first high end piece. For Philippine Pérouse, the brand’s founder and designer, it was love at first sight with the shining blue-green tourmaline. The set made of one gorgeous necklace, one ring and a pair of earrings perfectly mirroring their workshop know-how and the brand’s new ambition. There was no better choice than this fascinating gem to mark the brand’s entry into the high jewelry world!