The reason people love Opal is for its iridescence. While most gemstones get their color from chemicals (like iron or chromium), Opal gets its color from physics.
Inside the stone are billions of microscopic silica spheres stacked together like oranges in a crate. When light hits these spheres, it breaks apart into a rainbow of colors reds, blues, greens, and oranges. This is why no two opals ever look the same; the arrangement of those spheres is unique to every single stone
To help your customers choose the right piece, you can break it down into these types:
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Precious Opal: This is the high-end material that shows the "play of color" (the rainbow flashes).
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Common Opal (Potch): A beautiful, opaque stone that comes in colors like pink, blue, or white, but it does not have the rainbow flash.
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Opalized Fossils: Because opal forms from water seeping into the ground, it sometimes replaces organic material. You can find opalized wood, shells, and even dinosaur bones!