For many of us, including me, grey skies and the permanent mist that clings to my hair and clothes that hangs over me like a dark cloud typifies mid-winter. It doesn’t seem to matter how many layers of clothes I put on, I still have that wet chilly feeling that somehow seeps into my bones....

For those of you who are celebrating birthdays this month, look no further than to the garnet, and not just towards the red colour of pyrope, almandine or rhodolite garnets...