Diamond & Jewelry News, Advice and Prices for Consumers
Diamond & Jewelry News, Advice and Prices for Consumers
August 27, 2010
My mother recently passed away and left me her diamond engagement ring. The diamond is a whopping 3 carats and is truly stunning but its setting isn't to my liking. I was thinking I'd remove the diamond from my mother's old engagement ring and have it re-set in a new ring. I was wondering which ring setting I should choose, which could best balance my large diamond. I don't want to have my jewelry looking awkward or bulky.
August 31, 2010
A large diamond center stone can cause your jewelry to appear disproportionate. That is why it is important to find a setting design which will not only be able to accommodate the large gemstone, but will be able to balance out its large proportions with the ring's overall design. The following jewelry settings would best complement a high carat diamond center stone and eliminate the need for a clumsy bulky setting or a wide banded ring:
1. Split shank setting – with a split shank setting, the ring's band splits into two or three bands, which surround the ring's center stone. A split shank setting sis designed to leave a slim gap between the ring's bands and the ring's center setting. The gap in the ring's metal band helps balance the ring's overall design, giving the ring an appearance of airiness and fluidity, even if the ring were to be set with a large center stone. Also, the split shank setting is designed to securely hold a large gemstone in its setting (due to the split bands which secure the center stone from all of its sides).
2. Bezel setting – a bezel setting will cover your center stone's culet, girdle and a portion of its table, in metal. The less exposed the diamond's body is, the smaller it'll look. And, you can play with the amount of metal which covers the table (the top half) of the diamond. If you want your diamond to look smaller so that it'll be a bit more proportionate to the ring's band, simply ask your jeweler to add more metal to the bezel setting, so that it'll cover a higher percentage of the diamond's table.
3. Tension setting – with this particular setting, the diamond is held in place by the exerted tension of the edges of the ring's band, which grip the diamond's girdle. A tension set diamond may appear smaller since both of its sides are engulfed in the band's metal.
4. Flush setting – A flush set diamond is completely immersed in the ring's metal band. The only part of the diamond left exposed is the diamond's table. Therefore, flush set diamonds have a more demure, subtle appearance. Consequently, a larger diamond can be made to look smaller when mounted into a flush setting.
5. Micro pave setting – a large diamond center stone could be balanced by rows of accent stones, mounted into a micro pave setting, which surrounds either side of the large center stone, and runs along the length of the ring's band. The brilliant smaller accent stones will help balance out a large center stone.
Whatever your choice of setting, I would recommend you avoid settings which leave most of the diamond's surface exposed. These settings are designed to highlight a diamond's natural size, as well as its brilliance (settings such as the prong setting, the illusion setting, the invisible setting, etc.).
