This year’s installment of the famous Tucson gem shows was all about affordable colour. These February shows, which traditionally set the coloured gemstone trends for the upcoming year, emphasized the fact that you can still get some dazzling gemstone jewellery for mom this Mother’s Day without breaking the bank – and in this tough economy that’s welcome news, indeed!

A focus on aquatic colours were one of the big trends to come out of Tucson this year. This has helped make turquoise a hot commodity. This stunning gemstone, one of the birthstones for December, comes in a range of hues from sky-blue to blue-green. It also is considered a very affordable blue gemstone for its carat weight.

In addition, turquoise has been highly sought after by kings and queens going back to the pharaohs of ancient Egypt. You can carry on the tradition and treat that special mom in your life like royalty by giving her a gift of turquoise jewellery this Mother’s Day.

Moonstone is another less traditional gemstone that has made a big splash this year since Tucson due to its unique colour and affordability. This striking stone, which is one of the birthstones for June, comes in a range of shimmering colours, including orange, peach, white, beige, brown, green, blue, grey, champagne, black and red. The hallmark of this wonderful stone is its outer transparency, impressive three-dimensional depth of colour and its breathtaking inner play of light that resembles moonshine. Moonstone was extremely popular during the “Art Nouveau” period in the late 1800s and early 1900s and is making a comeback. This singular stone is sure to make mom stand out this Mother’s Day!

There were several other surprise hits in Tucson due to their uniqueness and affordability – and they all would make memorable, one-of-a-kind gifts for mom this year:

Green Quartz – Also called prasiolite, this member of the quartz family is typically a light to medium green shade. It is produced when a certain type of amethyst is heated (either by nature or man).

Rose Quartz – Another member of the quartz family, rose quartz is typically a light to darker rose or pinkish coloured stone. Some rose quartz exhibits asterism, a rayed or star-shaped figure of light on the surface of the stone.

Sunstone – This type of feldspar comes in clear, yellow, red and green shades.