As a jewelry artisan with decades of time spent in the field, I am frequently requested to help young couples choose the engagement ring to represent their relationship and commitment as they anticipate their future wedding. My understanding of diamond settings and materials can be useful, but, of course, each person (and couple!) considers jewelry with their own personal style and taste, which absolutely must be recognized and upheld throughout the process.

There are a number of particular suggestions, though, which I have found can assist couples to gain a broader understanding of the many styles of engagement rings that can be found, and identify the particular style they are interested in.

First of all, many women approach buying jewelry with the thinking (very much encouraged by Tiffany & Co.) that the “normal” style of engagement ring is a solitaire diamond setting, in which you will find that the center stone is securely fastened in place by several prongs connected to a plain ring shank. These have kept up a reasonable popularity over the years, but they barely scratch the surface (no pun intended) of the many other options of diamond engagement settings! You can find an incredible diversity of setting styles beyond these solitaire settings, such as can be seen in 3 stone engagement rings, settings with pave diamonds along the band, diamonds held in position by physical tension, and many other options are available.

Another significant choice to keep in mind is whether to choose white gold engagement rings as your setting style of choice. Up until the 1980′s, yellow gold was much more commonly seen, and still represents a particular antique appearance for engagement rings. Now, however, it’s most common to see white gold applied as the metal of choice for wedding jewelry. One reason behind this change is that a white gold band makes the diamonds placed in it appear whiter. Because diamonds are almost never wholly colorless, there are visual benefits to choosing a white-colored ring.

In addition, it’s important to think about the type of setting in which your diamond(s) are secured in the engagement ring. Because gold is naturally a soft metal, it can occur that a bride will discover that the prongs of her setting have become bent after knocking into something, and the diamond has fallen out of its place. Hopefully she will be able to recover the lost diamond, but regardless,Unless the missing stone is found, this kind of accident can be expensive and heartbreaking!

For those with active lifestyles or who work frequently with machinery, you may consider bezel set engagement rings as a possible option compared to traditional prong-set rings. Bezel diamondsettings extend the gold used in the shank of the ring either part of the way (“half bezel”) or all the way (“full bezel”) around the center diamond in an engagement ring. By doing this, the diamond is held fast in position, and makes it almost impossible to dislodge accidentally. A very good idea!

I recommend that you begin the process of finding an engagement ring at your local jeweler, or searching the Internet to obtain an understanding of the options that are available.