Pink Tourmaline Oval Studs in Sterling Silver

This stud takes its shape from a long-running current in studio silversmithing: rather than a perfectly symmetrical, machine-turned circle, the oval is left slightly uneven at the edge, a visible trace of the hand that shaped it. Oxidizing the recesses of the silver -- deliberately darkening it with a chemical patina, then polishing back the raised surfaces -- is a technique silversmiths use to carve contrast into a small piece of metal, so the eye reads depth and texture rather than a flat disc.

Setting a single faceted stone in simple prongs, against that blackened ground, is a classic way of letting the gemstone do the talking. The dark frame doesn't compete with the tourmaline's color; it sets it off, the way a dark mat sets off a bright print.

There isn't a single culture or region this specific design is drawn from -- it reads as modern studio jewelry, built on old goldsmithing fundamentals of oxidation and prong-setting rather than on a named regional motif. We'd rather tell you plainly what the piece is than dress it up with a heritage it doesn't have.

A stud like this starts as a flat or lightly domed disc of sterling silver, cut and hammered or filed into its slightly irregular oval so no two edges are quite identical. A liver-of-sulfur or similar oxidizing solution is brushed on to blacken the surface, then the raised areas are hand-polished back to bright silver, leaving the patina to sit in the recesses. Small prongs are soldered or set to hold the faceted tourmaline, which is pushed into place and the metal tips burnished down snug against the stone before the post is attached and polished for wear.

• Ideal For: Everyday wearers who want a small, colorful stud with more texture than a plain silver ball.
• Wear It With: Wear alone for a quiet pop of color at the earlobe, or stack with plain silver hoops or studs up the ear.
• Purpose: Everyday wear, gifting, adding a small accent of color to a simple outfit
• Gemstone: Pink Tourmaline
• Metal: Sterling Silver

Pink tourmaline is prized among gem cutters for a color range that runs from pale rose to deep raspberry, produced by trace amounts of manganese in its crystal structure. It's one of the few gemstones that can show more than one color within a single crystal, which is part of why cutters fashion it to maximize the brightest, clearest color -- as seen in this stone's faceted, light-catching cut.