These are very pretty earrings. Am very satisfied with them, except: the posts are a bit thin and the earring backs are teeny-tiny. AAMOF I've never seen such small ones in my life (and I'm over 50 yrs. young!). But, I will assume that due to the $69.00 price (I don't believe these would or could sell for the "suggested" retail price shown of $250.00+), the weight of the gold settings and backs reflect that. However, I never use simple backs for my stud earrings anyway, so replaced them with bullet clutch comfort disc backs instead. The color of the amethyst stones is a deep purple and the stones are clear and beautifully faceted. They are a great size and I plan on wearing these as my go-to everyday earrings. Glad I found these on Amazon.