Diamond Engagement Rings, Diamonds and Fine Wedding Jewelry - Perfect Diamonds

Though presenting varying degrees of difficulty to the diamond setter, the ring setting style only minimally impacts the cost of diamond jewelry.

Engagement Ring Settings -  The most popular setting styles are:
Prong, Channel, Bezel, and Pave

• A channel setting utilizes a narrow metal rectangle, holding the stones in place on the opposite sides or girdle edges.  


• A bezel setting utilizes a metal ring into which the the stone is pressed to hold it in place around the girdle.


• A pave setting is created by drilling small holes into the base of the setting to hold each diamond in place by its cutlet, and then hand-raising small beads of metal with a cutting tool to hold multiple stones (often 4 or more) in place, resulting in a final appearance of being one, much larger stone.


• A prong setting consists of several (2-6) small metal arms that are notched and bent to hold the stone in place.
  
  

The Prong Setting is the most common setting used for solitaire diamond engagement rings. Prong settings place most of the emphasis on the diamond and not the setting itself. The main purpose of this kind of setting is allowing the light to enter the diamond for maximum brilliance. This is a very delicate balancing act as the more metal used to hold the diamonds, the more secure they are.

The less metal used the more the diamond can reflect the light. For this reason, platinum is often the metal of choice for diamond solitaires. Platinum is both dense and strong and very thin wires of it are usually sufficient to hold the diamond securely in place. The diamond may be raised high up above the shank of the ring to give it a larger, more important appearance, with only a hint of metal showing.

In this type of setting, the prongs are attached to the central setting of a ring, known as the head or basket. Each prong extends upward and outward from the head, arching over the diamond to form a secure grip.

The ideal prong narrows to a rounded point. It should be finished, diminishing any chance of the prong snagging the threads of your clothes. The prongs should be placed at the key points of the diamond, typically at four corners or at four, five or six points evenly spaced around the stone.

The prong setting has a few variations. One such variation is the V-prong setting mainly used for princess cuts.

Another variation on the prong setting is called the common prong. Here, the metal wire is grooved at the top and is used to hold two diamonds by their side (girdle). This technique is used to give a close side by side diamond relationship without the metallic interference of too many prongs.

Lovely sapphires, surrounded by pave diamonds. When the surface of a ring appears to be covered with tiny diamonds, the technique is called Pave - which means paved. So-called because the surface is reminiscent of a street paved with cobblestones.

The term channel setting means the diamonds are channel set or placed into a metal channel. The gemstones flow in a continuous row, because no metal is used to separate them. Channel settings are also popular settings for wedding jewelry.

 

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