Today’s woman is modern and full of life. She is the showstopper herself who believes in making a style statement. Semi Precious coloured stones add that glamour and zing to the persona. Due to the elasticity in design and budget provided by ‘semi-precious’ gemstones, it is becoming widely popular amongst Indian jewellery buyers recently. To explore this colourful trend, Kunjal Karaniya spoke to various designers and jewellers.%% People have become very fashion conscious and would like to look their best and sophisticated. Jewellery is one such item that can immediately make any drab and boring outfit into an eye-catching and chic one. To keep purchasing jewellery matching certain attire is very heavy on one’s pocket and that’s exactly where semi-precious stones come into the picture. The perfect combination of a wide variety and affordable pricing is what makes this category in jewellery the ultimate choice for customers. Semi-precious stones are available in a variety of colours and designs which make it a very attractive market as it suits all kinds of people. This gives you access to use the matching stone according to your attire along with maintaining your sense of style. Also, another advantage of these stones is that there is astrology behind each stone which lot of people tend to follow, expressesAshutosh Sharma, Managing Director, Shreem Jeweler. “Although ‘semi-precious’ is a rather arbitrary and vague concept, it is often used to refer to gemstones which a target demographic recognises as being on the lower end of the price scale. These so called semi-precious gemstones are often treated or synthetic in nature. Due to this they offer a large variety of colours, shapes and good lustre and brilliance at a price that suits most budgets,” says Sonal Sahrawat, Creative Head, Sonal's Bijoux.The use of semi precious stones adds more variety to the piece, and also makes the piece attractive and affordable for the buyer. Today we see numerous colours added to the colour palette; and to match the basic red, blue, yellow, purple and green is difficult. People are certainly looking for a better variety. The use of semi precious stones certainly adds to this variety as there is more colour available. Also we are in an age of destination weddings. Carrying real jewellery with real stone could be cumbersome. Hence, people have now begun opting for a more stylised variety done in semi precious stones. Today with the kind of stones available in the market, a replacement for the real stone is very easy. The use of semi- precious stones makes it easier for the buyer to follow trends, explains Ravi Sanwalka, Director, Niki Jewels.%% Vikas S. Bagrecha, Director at Nikita Jewellers says,“According to me, stones are getting more popular due to their royal look and luster and the ability to make any jewellery look glamorous. Their availability in wide range and various shades and colour with the cost effectiveness makes them more popular and desirable.” “Coloured stones are attractive and eye-catching. It adds more value to diamonds. Now a days most of the jewellery comes with semi-precious changeable stones. These stones act as an enhancing factor of the jewellery because its gives more ‘philawat’to the piece in lesser value,” says Designer Sulish Verma for Vikas Chain & Jewellery.%%

Coming to the Indian market, “Semi-precious stones in India have historically been used for astrological purposes. However, we have recently seen a trend of customers willing to incorporate these in their jewellery wardrobe to go with Indian as well as western wear. While Ruby and Emerald still remain the most popular coloured stones, semi precious stones like peridot, tourmaline, amethyst and more are attracting affinity,” informs Gaurav Singh Kushwaha, Founder & CEO, Bluestone.com. In India, we have been using coloured stones in our jewellery for generations. Be it the Mughal jewellery or the temple jewellery of the South. But they were mostly precious stones like emerald, rubies and sapphires. Lately, there is a surge in popularity of semi precious stones. Beauty, a given, its attractiveness is largely because of its affordability,says Benaazir Mukherjee, Founder, MoodSwings Jewelry by Benaazir.%% Varuna D. Jani adds, “Semi precious coloured stones studded jewellery in India is here to stay primarily for two reasons. It adds glamour quotient and makes the wearer stand out in the crowd and secondly for the fact that its versatile. Coloured stones compliment the various outfits we chose. Fashion and jewellery go hand in hand, one signature piece of semi precious coloured stones studded jewellery can complement the outfit and create that desired impact. With the rising price of diamond jewellery, semi precious coloured stones offer opulence at great price. So you have the option of having great designs at pocket friendly prices with semi precious coloured stones studded jewellery.” %% As Indians are moving towards the western trend of clothing and fashion the popularity of semi- precious stone jewellery is also rising. Women like to mix vibrant coloured jewellery with their clothes thus creating an impact. Semi precious jewellery is also well priced and affordable compared to other jewellery, says Renu Oberoi for Mahesh Notandass.%% “Indians are changing and are accepting jewellery not just as an investment but also a Fashion Statement and also with changing trends women want something new every day. So to cater that segment of not exceeding or making it very expensive, women are ready for substituting semi precious colourstones in jewellery. It’s an in thing and here to stay,” says Shrenik Mehta, Partner, Kinerhs Collection.%%

Talking about the use of metal to compliment the semi precious stones Sourabh Kant Srivastava, Jewellery Designer suggests,“Today, I feel the world is all about experiments and India has a wide scope of jewellery brands and designers and each one of them try to achieve something innovative and fresh to offer their customers so they work according to their sensibilities and experiment in all possible ways. Although they fit well with other metals also but majorly been used in Gold or may be any other metal finished with Gold polish.” Varuna D Jani adds, “As an adornologist, I feel that the use of semi precious coloured stones in gold should be minimalistic. It best compliments diamond and even with diamond, it’s very important that there is a right mix of coloured stone and right balance in terms of shape, size, structure or else it ends up looking like a costume jewellery- very garish and unattractive.”%% The older generation certainly prefers a sound investment, hence they insist on the use of real stones, and go in for complete high end jewellery. The youngsters prefer experimenting, which is why they opt for semi precious stones. Yes there are some youngsters who also buy high end, but the ratio is much lesser compared to in the yester years, where stashing cash back in for jewellery or gold was considered a sound investment, adds Ravi Sanwalka.“The Youth is being more and more westernised day by day so the contemporary look and feel which semi-precious coloured stones giveis what makes it popular amongst the youths, also they go well with western wear and cocktail dresses which makes it more vivid and adds characteristics to their jewellery. Despite of this it’s also widely acceptable in elders and women, the fact that youth experiment more so it’s a center of attraction for them if compared to other jewellery,” adds Sourabh Kant Srivastava.%% Semi precious coloured stones are very popular in other countries like Hong Kong, Bangkok etc. In India, this category has great growth potentials owing to its low price points and popularity with the customers. Jewellery has always been classified as a solid investment and an alternative to money. The difference is that now a larger percentage of the population has the means to purchase it. Semi precious stones have also now found a place of pride in décor of homes and commercial places in India. It’s time once again when coloured gem stones rule the wave, Ashutosh Sharma says. “It’s here to stay. The demand for semi precious coloured stones is gaining momentum, today’s generation are versatile and modern, they like to switch colours of the jewellery and match it with their clothes. You have variety of designs that can compliment both high street or couture outfits, the mantra is to have the right mix. Also, one should choose the semi precious coloured stone that suits their personality and skin tone. If it’s a day function, just a drop of semi precious coloured stone would do the magic or if you are classic by style and persona, avoid the opulent colours and size,” says Varuna D Jani. %% Renu Oberoi adds,“Well I believe there is a market for every type of jewellery. When one lot grows out of it, there awaits a fresh younger generation of women ready to buy the same kind of jewellery. It’s a cyclic phase so it will always be in vogue.” As the Indian demographic is extremely large and since the semi-precious jewellery is available in a very affordable range, I think that over the years its popularity will keep increasing at a faster pace. Also, Indian women love to wear different jewellery as it complements Indian dressing and their need for variety is satisfied by the affordability of semi precious coloured stone jewellery, adds Ravi Sanwalka.%%

Today’s woman is modern and full of life. She is the showstopper herself who believes in making a style statement. Semi Precious coloured stones add that glamour and zing to the persona. Due to the elasticity in design and budget provided by ‘semi-precious’ gemstones, it is becoming widely popular amongst Indian jewellery buyers recently. To explore this colourful trend, Kunjal Karaniya spoke to various designers and jewellers.%% People have become very fashion conscious and would like to look their best and sophisticated. Jewellery is one such item that can immediately make any drab and boring outfit into an eye-catching and chic one. To keep purchasing jewellery matching certain attire is very heavy on one’s pocket and that’s exactly where semi-precious stones come into the picture. The perfect combination of a wide variety and affordable pricing is what makes this category in jewellery the ultimate choice for customers. Semi-precious stones are available in a variety of colours and designs which make it a very attractive market as it suits all kinds of people. This gives you access to use the matching stone according to your attire along with maintaining your sense of style. Also, another advantage of these stones is that there is astrology behind each stone which lot of people tend to follow, expressesAshutosh Sharma, Managing Director, Shreem Jeweler. “Although ‘semi-precious’ is a rather arbitrary and vague concept, it is often used to refer to gemstones which a target demographic recognises as being on the lower end of the price scale. These so called semi-precious gemstones are often treated or synthetic in nature. Due to this they offer a large variety of colours, shapes and good lustre and brilliance at a price that suits most budgets,” says Sonal Sahrawat, Creative Head, Sonal's Bijoux.The use of semi precious stones adds more variety to the piece, and also makes the piece attractive and affordable for the buyer. Today we see numerous colours added to the colour palette; and to match the basic red, blue, yellow, purple and green is difficult. People are certainly looking for a better variety. The use of semi precious stones certainly adds to this variety as there is more colour available. Also we are in an age of destination weddings. Carrying real jewellery with real stone could be cumbersome. Hence, people have now begun opting for a more stylised variety done in semi precious stones. Today with the kind of stones available in the market, a replacement for the real stone is very easy. The use of semi- precious stones makes it easier for the buyer to follow trends, explains Ravi Sanwalka, Director, Niki Jewels.%% Vikas S. Bagrecha, Director at Nikita Jewellers says,“According to me, stones are getting more popular due to their royal look and luster and the ability to make any jewellery look glamorous. Their availability in wide range and various shades and colour with the cost effectiveness makes them more popular and desirable.” “Coloured stones are attractive and eye-catching. It adds more value to diamonds. Now a days most of the jewellery comes with semi-precious changeable stones. These stones act as an enhancing factor of the jewellery because its gives more ‘philawat’to the piece in lesser value,” says Designer Sulish Verma for Vikas Chain & Jewellery.%%

Coming to the Indian market, “Semi-precious stones in India have historically been used for astrological purposes. However, we have recently seen a trend of customers willing to incorporate these in their jewellery wardrobe to go with Indian as well as western wear. While Ruby and Emerald still remain the most popular coloured stones, semi precious stones like peridot, tourmaline, amethyst and more are attracting affinity,” informs Gaurav Singh Kushwaha, Founder & CEO, Bluestone.com. In India, we have been using coloured stones in our jewellery for generations. Be it the Mughal jewellery or the temple jewellery of the South. But they were mostly precious stones like emerald, rubies and sapphires. Lately, there is a surge in popularity of semi precious stones. Beauty, a given, its attractiveness is largely because of its affordability,says Benaazir Mukherjee, Founder, MoodSwings Jewelry by Benaazir.%% Varuna D. Jani adds, “Semi precious coloured stones studded jewellery in India is here to stay primarily for two reasons. It adds glamour quotient and makes the wearer stand out in the crowd and secondly for the fact that its versatile. Coloured stones compliment the various outfits we chose. Fashion and jewellery go hand in hand, one signature piece of semi precious coloured stones studded jewellery can complement the outfit and create that desired impact. With the rising price of diamond jewellery, semi precious coloured stones offer opulence at great price. So you have the option of having great designs at pocket friendly prices with semi precious coloured stones studded jewellery.” %% As Indians are moving towards the western trend of clothing and fashion the popularity of semi- precious stone jewellery is also rising. Women like to mix vibrant coloured jewellery with their clothes thus creating an impact. Semi precious jewellery is also well priced and affordable compared to other jewellery, says Renu Oberoi for Mahesh Notandass.%% “Indians are changing and are accepting jewellery not just as an investment but also a Fashion Statement and also with changing trends women want something new every day. So to cater that segment of not exceeding or making it very expensive, women are ready for substituting semi precious colourstones in jewellery. It’s an in thing and here to stay,” says Shrenik Mehta, Partner, Kinerhs Collection.%%

Talking about the use of metal to compliment the semi precious stones Sourabh Kant Srivastava, Jewellery Designer suggests,“Today, I feel the world is all about experiments and India has a wide scope of jewellery brands and designers and each one of them try to achieve something innovative and fresh to offer their customers so they work according to their sensibilities and experiment in all possible ways. Although they fit well with other metals also but majorly been used in Gold or may be any other metal finished with Gold polish.” Varuna D Jani adds, “As an adornologist, I feel that the use of semi precious coloured stones in gold should be minimalistic. It best compliments diamond and even with diamond, it’s very important that there is a right mix of coloured stone and right balance in terms of shape, size, structure or else it ends up looking like a costume jewellery- very garish and unattractive.”%% The older generation certainly prefers a sound investment, hence they insist on the use of real stones, and go in for complete high end jewellery. The youngsters prefer experimenting, which is why they opt for semi precious stones. Yes there are some youngsters who also buy high end, but the ratio is much lesser compared to in the yester years, where stashing cash back in for jewellery or gold was considered a sound investment, adds Ravi Sanwalka.“The Youth is being more and more westernised day by day so the contemporary look and feel which semi-precious coloured stones giveis what makes it popular amongst the youths, also they go well with western wear and cocktail dresses which makes it more vivid and adds characteristics to their jewellery. Despite of this it’s also widely acceptable in elders and women, the fact that youth experiment more so it’s a center of attraction for them if compared to other jewellery,” adds Sourabh Kant Srivastava.%% Semi precious coloured stones are very popular in other countries like Hong Kong, Bangkok etc. In India, this category has great growth potentials owing to its low price points and popularity with the customers. Jewellery has always been classified as a solid investment and an alternative to money. The difference is that now a larger percentage of the population has the means to purchase it. Semi precious stones have also now found a place of pride in décor of homes and commercial places in India. It’s time once again when coloured gem stones rule the wave, Ashutosh Sharma says. “It’s here to stay. The demand for semi precious coloured stones is gaining momentum, today’s generation are versatile and modern, they like to switch colours of the jewellery and match it with their clothes. You have variety of designs that can compliment both high street or couture outfits, the mantra is to have the right mix. Also, one should choose the semi precious coloured stone that suits their personality and skin tone. If it’s a day function, just a drop of semi precious coloured stone would do the magic or if you are classic by style and persona, avoid the opulent colours and size,” says Varuna D Jani. %% Renu Oberoi adds,“Well I believe there is a market for every type of jewellery. When one lot grows out of it, there awaits a fresh younger generation of women ready to buy the same kind of jewellery. It’s a cyclic phase so it will always be in vogue.” As the Indian demographic is extremely large and since the semi-precious jewellery is available in a very affordable range, I think that over the years its popularity will keep increasing at a faster pace. Also, Indian women love to wear different jewellery as it complements Indian dressing and their need for variety is satisfied by the affordability of semi precious coloured stone jewellery, adds Ravi Sanwalka.%%

Today’s woman is modern and full of life. She is the showstopper herself who believes in making a style statement. Semi Precious coloured stones add that glamour and zing to the persona. Due to the elasticity in design and budget provided by ‘semi-precious’ gemstones, it is becoming widely popular amongst Indian jewellery buyers recently. To explore this colourful trend, Kunjal Karaniya spoke to various designers and jewellers.%% People have become very fashion conscious and would like to look their best and sophisticated. Jewellery is one such item that can immediately make any drab and boring outfit into an eye-catching and chic one. To keep purchasing jewellery matching certain attire is very heavy on one’s pocket and that’s exactly where semi-precious stones come into the picture. The perfect combination of a wide variety and affordable pricing is what makes this category in jewellery the ultimate choice for customers. Semi-precious stones are available in a variety of colours and designs which make it a very attractive market as it suits all kinds of people. This gives you access to use the matching stone according to your attire along with maintaining your sense of style. Also, another advantage of these stones is that there is astrology behind each stone which lot of people tend to follow, expressesAshutosh Sharma, Managing Director, Shreem Jeweler. “Although ‘semi-precious’ is a rather arbitrary and vague concept, it is often used to refer to gemstones which a target demographic recognises as being on the lower end of the price scale. These so called semi-precious gemstones are often treated or synthetic in nature. Due to this they offer a large variety of colours, shapes and good lustre and brilliance at a price that suits most budgets,” says Sonal Sahrawat, Creative Head, Sonal's Bijoux.The use of semi precious stones adds more variety to the piece, and also makes the piece attractive and affordable for the buyer. Today we see numerous colours added to the colour palette; and to match the basic red, blue, yellow, purple and green is difficult. People are certainly looking for a better variety. The use of semi precious stones certainly adds to this variety as there is more colour available. Also we are in an age of destination weddings. Carrying real jewellery with real stone could be cumbersome. Hence, people have now begun opting for a more stylised variety done in semi precious stones. Today with the kind of stones available in the market, a replacement for the real stone is very easy. The use of semi- precious stones makes it easier for the buyer to follow trends, explains Ravi Sanwalka, Director, Niki Jewels.%% Vikas S. Bagrecha, Director at Nikita Jewellers says,“According to me, stones are getting more popular due to their royal look and luster and the ability to make any jewellery look glamorous. Their availability in wide range and various shades and colour with the cost effectiveness makes them more popular and desirable.” “Coloured stones are attractive and eye-catching. It adds more value to diamonds. Now a days most of the jewellery comes with semi-precious changeable stones. These stones act as an enhancing factor of the jewellery because its gives more ‘philawat’to the piece in lesser value,” says Designer Sulish Verma for Vikas Chain & Jewellery.%%

Coming to the Indian market, “Semi-precious stones in India have historically been used for astrological purposes. However, we have recently seen a trend of customers willing to incorporate these in their jewellery wardrobe to go with Indian as well as western wear. While Ruby and Emerald still remain the most popular coloured stones, semi precious stones like peridot, tourmaline, amethyst and more are attracting affinity,” informs Gaurav Singh Kushwaha, Founder & CEO, Bluestone.com. In India, we have been using coloured stones in our jewellery for generations. Be it the Mughal jewellery or the temple jewellery of the South. But they were mostly precious stones like emerald, rubies and sapphires. Lately, there is a surge in popularity of semi precious stones. Beauty, a given, its attractiveness is largely because of its affordability,says Benaazir Mukherjee, Founder, MoodSwings Jewelry by Benaazir.%% Varuna D. Jani adds, “Semi precious coloured stones studded jewellery in India is here to stay primarily for two reasons. It adds glamour quotient and makes the wearer stand out in the crowd and secondly for the fact that its versatile. Coloured stones compliment the various outfits we chose. Fashion and jewellery go hand in hand, one signature piece of semi precious coloured stones studded jewellery can complement the outfit and create that desired impact. With the rising price of diamond jewellery, semi precious coloured stones offer opulence at great price. So you have the option of having great designs at pocket friendly prices with semi precious coloured stones studded jewellery.” %% As Indians are moving towards the western trend of clothing and fashion the popularity of semi- precious stone jewellery is also rising. Women like to mix vibrant coloured jewellery with their clothes thus creating an impact. Semi precious jewellery is also well priced and affordable compared to other jewellery, says Renu Oberoi for Mahesh Notandass.%% “Indians are changing and are accepting jewellery not just as an investment but also a Fashion Statement and also with changing trends women want something new every day. So to cater that segment of not exceeding or making it very expensive, women are ready for substituting semi precious colourstones in jewellery. It’s an in thing and here to stay,” says Shrenik Mehta, Partner, Kinerhs Collection.%%

Talking about the use of metal to compliment the semi precious stones Sourabh Kant Srivastava, Jewellery Designer suggests,“Today, I feel the world is all about experiments and India has a wide scope of jewellery brands and designers and each one of them try to achieve something innovative and fresh to offer their customers so they work according to their sensibilities and experiment in all possible ways. Although they fit well with other metals also but majorly been used in Gold or may be any other metal finished with Gold polish.” Varuna D Jani adds, “As an adornologist, I feel that the use of semi precious coloured stones in gold should be minimalistic. It best compliments diamond and even with diamond, it’s very important that there is a right mix of coloured stone and right balance in terms of shape, size, structure or else it ends up looking like a costume jewellery- very garish and unattractive.”%% The older generation certainly prefers a sound investment, hence they insist on the use of real stones, and go in for complete high end jewellery. The youngsters prefer experimenting, which is why they opt for semi precious stones. Yes there are some youngsters who also buy high end, but the ratio is much lesser compared to in the yester years, where stashing cash back in for jewellery or gold was considered a sound investment, adds Ravi Sanwalka.“The Youth is being more and more westernised day by day so the contemporary look and feel which semi-precious coloured stones giveis what makes it popular amongst the youths, also they go well with western wear and cocktail dresses which makes it more vivid and adds characteristics to their jewellery. Despite of this it’s also widely acceptable in elders and women, the fact that youth experiment more so it’s a center of attraction for them if compared to other jewellery,” adds Sourabh Kant Srivastava.%% Semi precious coloured stones are very popular in other countries like Hong Kong, Bangkok etc. In India, this category has great growth potentials owing to its low price points and popularity with the customers. Jewellery has always been classified as a solid investment and an alternative to money. The difference is that now a larger percentage of the population has the means to purchase it. Semi precious stones have also now found a place of pride in décor of homes and commercial places in India. It’s time once again when coloured gem stones rule the wave, Ashutosh Sharma says. “It’s here to stay. The demand for semi precious coloured stones is gaining momentum, today’s generation are versatile and modern, they like to switch colours of the jewellery and match it with their clothes. You have variety of designs that can compliment both high street or couture outfits, the mantra is to have the right mix. Also, one should choose the semi precious coloured stone that suits their personality and skin tone. If it’s a day function, just a drop of semi precious coloured stone would do the magic or if you are classic by style and persona, avoid the opulent colours and size,” says Varuna D Jani. %% Renu Oberoi adds,“Well I believe there is a market for every type of jewellery. When one lot grows out of it, there awaits a fresh younger generation of women ready to buy the same kind of jewellery. It’s a cyclic phase so it will always be in vogue.” As the Indian demographic is extremely large and since the semi-precious jewellery is available in a very affordable range, I think that over the years its popularity will keep increasing at a faster pace. Also, Indian women love to wear different jewellery as it complements Indian dressing and their need for variety is satisfied by the affordability of semi precious coloured stone jewellery, adds Ravi Sanwalka.%%