The pink variety of sapphire claims the title of today's October birthstone. The old October birth stones, pink tourmalines, were lovely but in the long run impractical, since it is quite fragile & not suitable to cut into the uniform shapes and sizes an eternity band's gems require. The pink sapphire birthstone for October was the smart choice because sapphires are the strongest naturally pink gemstone other than the scarce pink diamonds, and are much more affordable than the latter. The October birth stone in folklore has been regarded as symbolic of hope and believed to boost creative inspiration.