Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Shopping for Your Engagement Ring

This article deals with the 4 things that you should look for when choosing your engagement ring design.

An Engagement Ring design has to do 4 things. It has to :

1. be easy and practical to wear

2. withstand everyday wear

3. hold its gemstones securely

4. look good


If an engagement ring lacks any of these properties it is not of good design and is not the engagement ring for you.


1. Easy and practical to wear

What is easy and practical depends on your lifestyle. The higher the setting of the gemstone in your engagement ring, the more often it will catch on things. If you work behind a desk you may be able to wear a very high set ring, whereas a preschool teacher should wear a low safe design that won’t catch.


2. Withstanding Everyday Wear

Your engagement ring must withstand constant every day wear. Some environments are more destructive to jewelry than others. Surprisingly, one of the worst places for jewelry is an office where you use a lot of paper. Paper is mildly abrasive and constant daily exposure to that type of environment will wear your jewelry over the years. So if you are in an environment where your jewelry is likely to wear, a heavier style will last longer. However, “heavy” doesn’t necessarily have to mean wider, it just means a stronger band should be used. If you prefer finer more delicate styles, you should consider Platinum, as it will out wear gold many times over.


3. Holding gemstones securely

Your ring must hold your gemstones securely. The following is a general guide for gemstone settings :

1. 6 claws are normally safer than 4;

2. a bezel (rub-over) setting is safer than a claw setting;

3. a heavier setting is stronger than a light setting; and

4. a lower setting is less likely to be damaged than a higher setting.


4. Looking Good

This one is up to you.

If you find a design that you like and it complies with these four requirements you may have found the engagement ring for you. Happy engagement ring hunting!

No comments: