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Ready to find the perfect engagement ring to seal the deal? This guide breaks down everything from diamond shapes to ring settings to help you pick the ring that'll make her eyes sparkle.
Deciding on the style of your gold engagement ring can be confusing when there is a great variety of diamond shapes and ring styles you can choose from. But no worries! Eternate’s Engagement Ring Guide is here to provide you with a simple yet effective guide on how to choose your ring. From the characteristics of each diamond shape and the details of setting styles to alternative engagement rings, you can find the essential information needed for choosing (and customizing!) the perfect engagement ring to pop the question with!
Solitaire is the first image that pops into mind when thinking about engagement rings. It is iconic, featured in almost all famous romantic movies, symbolizing eternal love and the bond between couples with a single diamond. Solitaire rings have this simple yet impressive elegance. Although the most popular diamond shapes are round and princess for this design, it can support any other choice of shape, offering a great deal of customization. You can find 4 and 6 prong settings in solitaire designs where the cradle of the diamond has 4 or 6 metal clamps that hold the diamond.
Who doesn't love a little more sparkle! Or a lot more… The perfect style for adding brilliance to your engagement ring by adding gems next to your center stone. You can prefer a whole row of small diamond stones or several symmetrically aligned ones on the bands. A highly customizable design that complies with any shape of diamond, the side stone style is perfect for scattering colorful gems. This design will accentuate the crown of your diamond in whatever color or format you choose and will be a splendid choice to top off your proposal.
The only rule in this design is that your engagement ring hosts three gorgeous gemstones. Traditionally, there is a bigger center stone with two smaller stones on either side. However, you are free to choose whether you want a size difference or not. You can also emphasize your center stone by choosing different colored or shaped complementary stones. Trust us; with all the customization options Eternate offers, three stone engagement rings have so much to offer!
Halo engagement rings scream “I love you” in stones! They feature a row of small diamonds surrounding the center stone. Though, nobody said that it couldn't be two rows. Any diamond shape you choose will radiate more, stand out more, and impress more with a halo around them. You can say that this design is less customizable than the others; nevertheless, it's one of the most astonishing.
A good vintage design is timeless. Vintage engagement rings have passed the tests of time and boast whimsically romantic characteristics such as filigree, engraving and milgrain. With different metals, diamond shapes and various customization options, a vintage engagement ring may well be the one you are searching for.
Cluster designs make the most exquisite rings with the composition of several bigger stones. You can choose your cluster ring similar to a halo ring with larger stones surrounding the central stone or go for the asymmetrical aesthetic that this design effortlessly provides. Either way, your cluster engagement ring is sure to be elegantly whimsical and brilliantly attractive.
The elegant frame of this design resembles the cathedral as two couples of arches stem from the band and settle on either side of the diamond. The cathedral engagement ring creates a stunning effect while elevating the center stone and making it more prominent. You can customize a cathedral engagement ring by adding more stones, choosing different metals or playing with colors. It will preserve its elegance and make a unique choice to celebrate your unique story.
A claw setting is the most common alternative for center stones, securing your center stone with metal clamps. As its name states, this setting features sharp curved nails like a bird's claw. Different shapes of diamonds require different numbers of claws. Typically a round diamond will be set in 4-claw or 6-claw; square and rectangular diamond shapes such as princess will require four, while other cuts like marquise and pear will require V-shaped claws to protect the pointy diamond.
The prong setting is very similar to the claw setting. It secures the stone to the ring's band and appears round or pointed, looking like pins on the diamond rather than claws. Prong settings can be 'shared' or 'high' based on preference.
The technique that aims to show the least amount of metal on the ring and create a gorgeous sparkly band while securing gemstones.
The technique where a thin metal rim surrounds the stone and binds it to the ring. It looks like a diamond engraved into the ring's band. Though subtle and beautiful, we should warn you that this setting hides more of your stone compared to the other settings.
Namely, this technique is about a channel sculpted in the band of your ring where stones lie. Stones sit side by side in this channel, secured and ready to take your breath away.
Let's get to know the anatomy of the diamond before we move on to different shapes of diamonds:
Table: A diamond’s largest facet.
Crown: The part of the diamond that extends from the girdle to the table.
Girdle: The rim that separates the crown from the pavilion. The girdle is where a diamond is held while setting it in jewelry.
Diameter: The measurement from the girdle, the widest horizontal line surrounding the diamond.
Pavilion: The part of the diamond that extends from the girdle to the culet.
Cullet: The tip of a gemstone. An untrained eye should not be able to see the culet.
Depth: The measurement from the culet to the table, the highest vertical line on the diamond.
A diamond's geometric outline and physical form are referred to as shapes. Shape influences the stone's overall appearance. Each diamond shape comes with its specific requirements and technical characteristics.
So you may have heard the term the four C’s of diamonds, these refer to the cut, color, clarity and carat of the diamond and have an important role to play in budget considerations.
The cut of a diamond refers to the symmetry, arrangement of facets and the proportions of a diamond, which all factor in the way a diamond transmits light. Graded on a scale between poor to excellent, the cut of a diamond is what determines its brightness, fire and sparkle. Meaning that a poorly cut diamond will have less sparkle. The better the cut is, the more sparkly the diamond will be.
A perfect diamond is colorless like a drop of pure water. When we talk about the color of a diamond, we refer not to the presence of color in a diamond, but to the lack of it. The scale of diamond color ranges from D to Z, with D signifying a perfectly colorless stone. D rated stones are extremely rare and are thus the most expensive. As you move down the scale, diamonds become more colored and less expensive.
Diamond clarity refers to the absence of inclusions (internal imperfections) and blemishes (external imperfections) on a diamond. The Gemological Institute of America (GIA) rates clarity on a scale from Flawless to Included. Professionals carry out this assessment under 10x magnification. A diamond that has some inclusions or blemishes that are not visible to the naked eye is called ‘eye clean’. So when looking for a high quality diamond, make sure that your diamond is eye clean.
In simplest terms, carat is the measurement unit for how much a diamond weighs. One carat equals 200 milligrams. To ensure precise measurement, each carat is subdivided into 100 points. One thing to keep in mind is that carats do not equal size, which is a common misconception. As it is harder to find larger carat stones in nature, the higher the carat weight, the more expensive a stone will become. And the pricing will not be linear, meaning that a one carat diamond will be more expensive than two 0.5 carat diamonds together. One more thing to know about carats is the ‘total carat weight,’ which is used when more than one diamond is used in a piece of jewelry. Total carat weight refers to the combined weight of all the diamonds used in the piece, or, for earrings, the pair.
At Eternate, we combine our 60 years’ experience with modern die-making techniques to create a non-porous, tensile metal property with excellent surface quality. To achieve their stunning color and shine, we purify and mix all metals and alloys used in our processes. Whichever metal you choose, rest assured that our exclusive in-house knowledge results in exquisite and durable jewelry with not only great designs but also the longest life.
We are committed to sustainability. Therefore we use 100% recycled gold in all Eternate products. Gold is a soft metal, which needs other metals to be added to it for strength and different complexions of colors. The word ‘karats’ refers to the amount of gold content in the jewelry. Do not confuse it with ‘carats’, which is the measurement unit for diamond weight. At Eternate, we offer three options of gold karats: 18K, 14K, and 10k, each containing 75%, 58.5% and 41.7% of gold, respectively.
A classic and timeless color. Yellow gold is never a dull choice; it never goes out of fashion.
Soft and romantic. Yellow gold and copper blend together to get that beautiful, rosy pink complexion.
A noble tone. The blend of yellow gold with zinc, nickel and other metals appears in this white complexion.
Luxurious. Rarer than other precious metals, platinum is naturally white and is a very durable metal. It is a perfect match for pieces that require strength, such as stone set rings.
Traditionally, when we think of an engagement ring, we think of a diamond solitaire. However, there are actually no rules for how an engagement ring should look like. In our opinion, any ring that symbolizes your intention to build a life together and that really speaks to your unique story should be your engagement ring. That is why at Eternate, we also offer a wide range of exquisite alternative engagement rings. Alternative engagement rings are rings that break away from tradition, in their use of different and colored gemstones, non-conventional settings and unique designs. They offer a great option to set your engagement apart and celebrate your one of a kind story. Our alternative engagement rings boast moss agate, alexandrite, opal, moonstone, black rutilated quartz and blue sandstone options. However, should you want some other gemstone, let us know and we will be happy to source it for you.