If September reigns supreme as the month of my absolute favorite birthstone—sweet, sweet sapphire—then October is not far behind. Coming at us with not one, but two multicolor gemstones, October’s opal and tourmaline should have birthday revelers feeling serenely spoiled.

Opals are to me forbidden fruit—that which I will always admire but never wear, hopelessly succumbing to that silly superstition I can’t possibly shed. But that makes them all the sweeter to admire. I can still profess my love for a jewel while wishing that it finds its way into the collection of someone who can do me one better than just waxing poetic—they can wear it.

And so I do with this piece from Cathy Waterman, another gorgeous opal (aren’t they all gorgeous, though?). This time, its sorceress-like powers glow from within a frame of black rhodium, which, like the sapphires I shared last week, makes an eye-popping companion to such a beautifully colored stone.

The heart shape of this pendant is certainly romantic, but in no way twee. I see it more as a dark heart—a powerful, perhaps dangerous amulet worn by a wicked queen with a flair for good style. Given the product name, Thorn, the jeweler seems to agree on the design’s enchanting aura with a slightly devilish twist. The designer is also selling a similar, larger version of this pendant with an elongated silhouette, an equally bewitching item.

Which makes this piece an apt choice for the Halloween season, which is all of October basically and right in step with opal as the birthstone of the month. This won’t be the last time you see a blackened setting bursting with an electric opal in this space during the month of October, that’s for certain.

Top: Small Jeweled Thorn pendant in blackened 22k yellow gold with 5.03 ct. boulder opal and 0.31 ct. t.w. diamonds, $13,300 (price is for pendant only)

Brittany Siminitz

JCK Contributing Editor