A jewelry setting is the metal mounting of the gemstone.
Whether you're purchasing a ring with multiple stones or a single diamond
solitaire the type of the setting you choose is very important since it
determines the overall shape of the ring's design. There are several types of
settings and a sure way to find out which setting suits you the best is to try
them on. While modern technology has not enabled you to do so without leaving
the comfort of your home, we've provided the comprehensive & concise
information below to help you pick the right setting for your style of the
ring.
Prong is one of the most popular setting choices,
especially for solitaires, but many designs are achieved by mounting stones
into settings like Bezel, Channel, Bar, Pav?, Invisible, and the Cluster, with
different variations.
As we said earlier, prongs are the most widely used
setting, especially for the diamond solitaires, because the prongs are usually
fairly small and allow for most of the stone to be seen without any
interference. This setting is also sometimes called a claw setting, because
prongs extend upward and outward from the band, at the ends curving around the
gemstone to grip it securely. Well made prong settings are usually made with 3
or more prongs that hold the gemstone snugly and do not allow the stone to
wobble around. Its ends should be smoothly finished to prevent any snagging on
clothes.
Though the larger the prongs the more secure they'll be,
but that would take away focus from the stone onto the metal. It is very
important to achieve this balance between size and security and to find the
type of prong setting that fits your style the most. These setting could be of
different height and consist of different number of prongs. Since solitaires
are no the only shape of stones used in rings below are descriptions of the
different variations of the prong settings used:
Traditional Height - In this variation six
prongs hold a stone in place, with the stone sitting at a "middle" height, not
too low, nor too high as to protrude too much above the finger.
Tall - To show off the stone and draw
attention to it, the Tall prong setting was designed. It is usually made with
four prongs, and as the name might imply with the stone sitting very high up
above the finger.
4-Prongs - Though usually six prongs are used
to hold the stone, four prongs allow for more light to come through and enter
the diamond. This is especially useful in rings with multiple stones lined next
to each other.
Common - In rings that have multiple stones
positioned next to each other, each stone is held by 4 prongs, two on each
side, with each stone sharing two prongs on each side with the stones adjacent
to it. This technique allows for the maximum amount of light to enter the
stones and draws more attention to the almost continuous flow of the stones.
V-shaped - As the name implies these prongs
end in a V and are placed on the pointed ends of a stone, as to protect those
corners.
A bezel setting is a band of solid precious metal that
protrudes above the top of the ring to which it is attached, with the gemstone
sunk into it. Bezels setting come in two varieties, more traditional solid and
a more modern split. The split or half bezel is made out of two sections of the
band curving around the gemstone. Though most often used on round cut stones a
both solid and half bezel may be used with a fancy shape, with a solid band
covering a princess-cut stone, and a half bezel running over the wide curve of
a pear-cut gemstone, while being supported by a V-shaped prong on the pointed
end.
Multiple Round or Baguette stones set into the grooves,
or channels, in the metal part of a ring is a technique sometimes used as an
adornment for a larger stone, and sometimes appear as the main attraction.
That, in a nutshell, is what a channel setting is, stones set next to each
other into a channel.
When Inserted into the channels, round stones nestle next
to each other and retain tiny spaces between themselves and the metal, allowing
for the light to enter and illuminate the stones from the sides, creating a
smooth, flowing row shinning with great brilliance. Both Round and Baguette
stones could also be used beautifully as the main design feature, without a
center stone, encircling the entire band.
Since the channel encloses the stones completely it is a
very safe setting, leaving no vulnerable areas exposed to danger.
Bar is a variation on the classic Channel setting. In it
instead of leaving spaces between the stones the metal comes up to the top of
the stone. A thin bar of metal is used to keep the stones in place. Each stone
has two bars positioned on either side of the stone, and each bar has two
stones located on either side of the bar. This setting is especially
eye-catching when there is a considerable contrast between the stones and the
metal used. It is most often used for circular rings.
Similarly to an expression "streets are paved with gold,"
in jewelry, there are surfaces that are paved with multitudes of tiny diamonds,
or the Pave settings. In fact the name Pave means paved.
Pave is created by placing tiny diamonds into a small
hole that was drilled out of the metal surface of the ring. Though for the
greatest effect the stones need to be placed next to each other in such a way
as to cover maximum area of the surface, they do not touch. So that the tiny
diamonds do not fall out of place, miniature fragments of metal are pushed over
their edge, after each diamond is position in its hole. Those fragments of
metal later form into tiny shiny globules, adding to the surface's brilliance
and sparkle.
Each tiny diamond used to create the sparkling effect,
where the whole surface of the ring shimmers and lights up, is a perfectly cut
and polished Round Brilliant with 58 facets. Each stone, however small, play an
important part in the overall brilliance, therefore all of them needs to be of
top quality. To enhance the flow of this setting, on the rings that have narrow
areas, diamonds in those areas should gradually decrease in size as the area
narrows, while on the rings that have continuously the same width all diamonds
should be of identical size.
Creation of a truly beautiful and flawless Pave setting
demands a lot of patience, talent and time, therefore the cost and value of
rings set in it is determined by much more than just the contents of the
gemstones and precious metal in the ring.
The magic of an invisible setting is in the way it hides
the presence of its metal base. This is accomplished by cutting out small paths
in the girdle of the stone; these paths are precisely aligned with the metal
frame onto which the stone is place, and the stones are placed very tightly
together. Whether the stones are set next to each other in order to create an
impression of a larger stone or to simply create a ring that looks like it is
simply made out of diamonds, the metal structure hides within the stones. To
extend the appearance of the diamond even further, white gold is usually used
when diamonds are placed with this setting, sometimes even on rings that are
made out of yellow gold.
Since no metal is placed between the stones, it isn't in
the way of the light entering the stones. This arrangement allows showing off
the brilliance and fire and the color of the stones.
Not only diamonds could be invisibly set, darker stones
like sapphires have also been invisibly set. Besides rings, this technique is
used to create large sparkling expanses of stones in almost all other types of
jewelry pieces.
As with Invisible setting, clustering uses a number of
smaller stones together to create an effect of larger presentation and more
volume in a single place. Cluster setting is sometimes used to surround a
larger stone, and sometimes it can be used as the design of the ring itself.
Usually this setting is created as tiered rows ascending towards the center of
the ring, with each stone in a row encircled in a half bezel just below the
girdle.
When choosing a setting you need to consider how it would
look on the fingers of your hand. The stones in a Cluster setting could be
arranged more closely together, drawing more focus to the hand, or they could
be spaced out a bit more to create a free and light arrangement which lengthens
the appearance of the fingers.