Baby jewelry can be a perfect gift for a special occasion, such as marking the birth of a newborn or as a christening or confirmation present. The wonderful thing about baby jewelry is that a high quality piece of jewelry is not just a great gift, it will also often become a highly-treasured keepsake and family heirloom that can be handed down through many generations.

This kind of value cannot be measured in monetary terms and, in reality, the actual cost of baby jewelry is not important; it's the sentimental value that is priceless.

The classic baby jewelry items are of course bracelets, with bangle bracelets in gold or silver being the most popular. These are also the safest items of adornment for babies, but pendant, charm bracelets, beautiful crosses and stylish earrings are also popular choices. Gold and silver have always been the materials of choice, however, in these days of ?bling,? diamonds and colorful charms are increasingly being used and designs are becoming more intricate.

If you are looking for a slightly different piece of baby jewelry, or one with a more special significance, a great idea is to get a piece which incorporates a birthstone. What better way celebrate a new life, than with a piece of jewelry that has a connection with the date of their birth. Birthstones are gems associated with the calendar months of the year and they are considered lucky for people who are born in those months. Some scholars attribute the origin of the tradition of birthstones to the Breastplate of Aaron (the brother of Moses), a religious caftan arranged with twelve gemstones that represented the twelve tribes of Israel. It is believed that the power and luck associated with a gemstone increases during the relevant month.

You need to be careful when choosing birthstones though; each month has a number of birthstones associated with it, based on a number of different factors. For example, my birth month is December, which has the following birthstones:

1.Modern birthstones: Turquoise and Blue Topaz,

2.Traditional Hebrew birthstone: Ruby,

3.Traditional Roman birthstone: Ruby,

4.Traditional Arabic birthstone: Ruby,

5.Traditional Hindu birthstone: Topaz.

Alternatively, my Zodiac sign is Sagittarius, which has the following birthstones:

1.Zodiac stone: Topaz,

2.Talismanic stone: Beryl,

3.Birthstones: Blue Topaz, Blue Zircon, Ruby, Lapis Lazuli, Turquoise, Citrine.

Take your pick!

Of course, if we are talking about baby jewelry, safety is a very important issue, for example, teething babies will always want to bite into their bracelets, or put them in their mouths. In general, you don't need to worry though - baby jewelry is necessarily hypoallergenic, to keep it from irritating a baby's extremely delicate skin. In addition, the charms that come with baby jewelry are usually tightly woven in, so there is little danger of them falling off or apart even if the baby is teething. But always check!

There is no doubt that, if carefully chosen, even the simplest piece of baby jewelry can have an effect that could last fro several lifetimes.