You’ve searched everywhere and finally found a ring design that you LOVE. Congratulations! Your style sense has teamed up with your pledge of devotion in one small but mighty accessory. Now it’s time to get into the nitty gritty of that design: choosing the stones. When you are working with a custom designer (yours truly), the possibilities are endless. You can choose the scale, the colors of the stones, the quality of the stones, the metals, the shape and size of the band, and so on. Everything about your ring is customizable. This can be daunting, but it helps to know a little bit about the most commonly used stones in my designs.
White Sapphires
White sapphires are a fantastic option for anyone who wants a natural white stone without the high price tag of a diamond. Sapphires are durable (it scores a 9 on the Mohs scale), bright, and relatively inexpensive. When comparing to diamonds, they have a different sparkle, reflecting white light as opposed to the rainbow effect of a diamond sparkle. Therefore, I do not advise pairing them beside diamonds in a semi-mount or as the center (the halo is an exception, as I always use diamonds for the halo to give the max sparkle to the entire piece). White sapphires are best used in a ring as a whole, or paired with a colored (non-white) stone like a blue sapphire or black diamond. White sapphires also require cleaning more often to avoid dullness and to maintain their sparkle. Read more here.
Diamonds
Diamonds are the most traditional engagement ring choice, symbolizing an enduring, unbreakable love, strength and stability. A diamond is a no nonsense stone, requiring minimum maintenance to keep it’s rainbow-like sparkle - it is also much more expensive than it's white stone counterpart. I typically use G-H, SI1, GIA certified, eye clean only, diamonds in my designs which look fantastic. We can go up in quality as preferred as well.
Helpful Hint: Lab diamonds are another option for center stones in my designs at a fraction of the pricing of natural diamonds and are virtually indistinguishable. They are only available as center stone options, and look best when paired with natural diamonds in the setting. Beware of buying lab diamonds in the market especially online, as thee quality and materials of all “lab diamonds” are NOT equal. Many are calling CZ “lab diamonds” these days, a very low quality material. I only use high quality/material lab diamonds. Please inquire when ordering if this is a good option for you!
Moissanite
Many brides are opting for the diamond look without the price tag. Forever One Moissanite is an excellent stone, appearing just like a diamond - you can even fool a jeweler without a loupe! Read more about why this may be the perfect center stone option for you here. Because it is a created stone, larger sizes are available for a small fraction of the price of a diamond of the same size. Moissanite looks best paired with diamonds in the mount and the center can always be replaced in the future for an all diamond ring. I only use Forever One Moissanite when available for the shape. It has the best color and quality, and it comes with a warranty as well.
Now it's time to test your skills. Can you watch the video below to pick out which rings have all natural diamonds, which have white sapphires (inner halo diamonds), which have moissanite centers with natural diamonds surrounding and which have lab diamond centers with natural diamonds surrounding?
From the left to right: white sapphires, moissanite/diamonds, natural diamonds, lab diamonds/natural diamonds
Whatever your preferences, your ring will be a unique, one-of-a-kind piece, hand crafted and specifically chosen for YOU!