We’ve created this article to share with you our most commonly asked questions around choosing an engagement ring. Hopefully the answers to these questions will help you collect an attractive engagement ring and you will definitely benefit from collecting accordingly. So without delay let’s see the content of today’s article.
1. An engagement ring is how it suits your finger
The most important consideration when choosing an engagement ring is how it suits your finger. What I mean by that is the distance that you have between your knuckle and your hand, the webbing of your hand. So if you have a longer finger what would suit would be a long stone like an emerald cut or a marquise shaped stone, for example, or even a halo style ring so you’ve got more length down the finger.
Equally if you have a shorter finger then you will be considering perhaps a round brilliant or princess cut solitaire or even a trilogy ring that would go across the finger. Obviously your personality plays a big part in this and we love to show as many options as we can so you can see how it fits on the finger.
Read more: 14 Unique Engagement Rings in 2023 From Couples
2. What stone should I choose?
The second most important consideration you’re going to make is the gemstone that goes in your engagement ring. We always stress that hardness is the most important factor to consider. That’s why a diamond is commonly chosen because of its hardness. Equally a sapphire or a ruby are very hard stones as well and could be worn every day. But that’s not to say that another gemstone could be chosen, for example an emerald. An emerald is a brittle and more soft stone and will need protection, so the setting will play a part in making sure that it can be worn every day.
3. What cut and shape should I choose?
The next consideration you’re gonna be making is the cut or the shape of the stone. Shapes we commonly sell are round brilliant cuts, princess cuts which is a square stone, and emerald cut being a rectangular. A marquise, an oval shaped stone, a pear shaped stone or even a cushion shape, but there are a lot of very unusual shapes of diamond as well that we can source.
A well cut diamond will give a really great dispersion of light from the light coming into it and refracting back out. Equally, a poorly cut stone will lose some of that light. But equally, a poorly cut stone could mean a much bigger diamond, and that could be really important to you.
4. What metal should I choose?
Your next consideration is going to be the metal that you would like your engagement ring to be in. We commonly sell our engagement rings in platinum, but equally in white gold, yellow gold, rose gold as well. Platinum’s often chosen because it is a very hard metal. We have some great article about that from our goldsmith in our Kingston store but it will give you that longevity and it will keep that strong white color. If you’re considering white gold it may be because you have a ring that you want to sit it next to or you, it’s a price factor as well.
White gold you need to consider the fact that is has this plating on it, the rhodium plating, and that can come off and will wear with time, so that’s a consideration to make. The other thing is the karat of gold. We commonly sell our rings in 18 karat gold. Anything higher than that in karat is going to be too soft for a ring that’s worn every day. But equally anything below that is gonna be less than 50% gold and I think when you’re buying an engagement ring it’s great to try and step up to that 18 karat gold mark where more than 50% of the ring is made from gold.
The final thing we do get asked for are silver rings. We really don’t suggest this for an every day ring that’s gonna be holding a gemstone that’s important to you. Silver is a very soft metal and will not last.
5. How should my stone be set?
Your next consideration is gonna be the setting of the stone. Commonly we see engagement rings set in a claw setting.This allows a lot of light to come in through the stone and reflect back up through it as well. Equally you may see a rub-over setting or often referred to as a bezel setting. We’ve seen that a lot online. That’s where the metal will be all the way the round the outside of the stone and really protect it. That will have an impact on some of the light that returns through it but it does make a beautiful looking ring as well.
We do see tension sets and we do sell them. That’s where there’s parts of metal holding the stone in from two sides maybe.This is something to consider in terms of longevity. There is a risk of the stone coming out. There’s equally a risk of you having a change in your finger size later on down the line, so that’s something to consider as to whether the ring can be sized in the future as well.
We would all, personally I would love to have as little metal as I possibly can around a diamond but we do need to make sure with a ring that you’re wearing every day that the setting really is protecting the integrity of the stone.
6. Will the engagement ring fit with my wedding ring?
The next decision is a very big one, is the wedding ring that fits next to your engagement ring. We often spend a long time going through and showing rings to make sure that you get the perfect match. Maybe wedding is a long way off but it is really important to get this right. If you’ve bought or chosen a halo style, it may be that we have to create a shape to fit a wedding ring that goes around it and sometimes people don’t like that.
Equally there may be a wedding band that needs to have a section cut out of it as well. Again that can impact the decision on the engagement ring. Equally the other thing to consider is the type of metal that is gonna go next to it. It’s really important to try and keep the same metal.
Platinum would wear white gold. And finally, the diamonds that you might want to have in your wedding ring. That can impact the look of the engagement ring as well so it’s an important thing to consider.
7. Does my diamond need to be certificated?
Your next choice is going to be whether to choose a certificated or non-certificated diamond. A certificated diamond is where the diamond has been sent to a laboratory and been measured for color, clarity, cut and carat weight. All of these factors and having a certificate will influence the price of the diamond. So if you’re considering a larger size stone it can be often better to consider a non-certificated diamond from a jeweller that you trust.
8. How much money should I spend?
Another question we get asked is how much should I spend on an engagement ring? This has been written about for decades. Whether it should be one month’s salary, two month’s salary, three month’s salary. That really is a personal choice and down to you.There are so many factors to consider when choosing a diamond that will influence its price, the cut, the color, the clarity, the carat weight.
The size of the stone will make a big difference but equally all of the other factors will make a big difference as well. I would say whatever is comfortable for you. It is a ring that you are gonna be wearing for the rest of your life and something that you’re going to admire for many, many years to come. So we’ll leave it to you to make that decision.
9. How long will my ring take to make?
Time scales are a thing to consider when choosing an engagement ring. If you’re going to propose very soon then I would suggest that you need to choose something that’s probably in stock. So something where if the ring needs to be altered in size can be done very quickly and be ready for that moment for you. But alternatively if you’re looking for a bespoke piece designed by us, or something slightly different to what was in the window then there is a number of weeks or even months that need to be considered in preparing that perfect piece for you.
10. Will my ring have a guarantee?
Your final consideration will be the real peace of mind you can have with wearing your ring. It’s really important to consider how your ring will be looked after by the retailer. Whether the diamond gets damaged or falls out of the setting, what will happen? And equally what will happen if the setting wears or a finger changes in size? This is such a big, important topic and I’ve discovered a separate article all about our diamond guarantees to really understand the intricacies of what needs to be covered.
Conclusion:
Making this Article has really reminded me of my experience of choosing an engagement ring for me. It really was the most enjoyable experience I’ve ever had. We love having people in our website and being part of your most significant moments in your lives, and I think that experience of being here and trying on all those different options that you need to consider is a really important next step for you. Thank you.