Most people arrive at their first consultation with a folder of saved images and less certainty than when they started, Pinterest boards, screenshots from Instagram, a photo of a ring a friend was wearing, sometimes months of looking online that somehow left them feeling further from an answer rather than closer to one. I don't find that surprising anymore. There's an enormous amount of information available about engagement rings, and very little of it explains how the decisions actually fit together. You're asked to pick a diamond shape, a setting, a metal and a band style as though they're separate questions, before you've held a single ring in your hand.
That isn't how I work, and it isn't really how any of it comes together in practice. Every bespoke ring I design starts as a conversation rather than a checklist. In my experience, almost every engagement ring comes down to five decisions: the stone, the style, the setting, the band profile, and the metal. Once those feel right together, everything else falls into place fairly quickly.
Choosing The Centre Stone
Most people think the first decision is carat weight. It usually isn't. Shape is where I start with almost every client, because it's the one thing you'll recognize every time you glance down at your hand, long after the details of buying it have faded.
I could spend hours talking about diamonds alone. In fact, I already have. If you're still deciding between shapes, this Diamond post explains what makes each one different and what to look for when choosing your diamond. But if you’re thinking about a sapphire, emerald or coloured diamond instead? This Gemstone guide will help you figure out.
For now, let's assume you've found the stone you love, because that's when the design really starts to come together.
Choosing Your Ring Style
Once the stone is chosen, the next decision is how it's presented. There are a handful of styles I come back to again and again.
Solitaire
Side Stones
Three Stones
Halo
Toi Et Moi
Cluster
Solitaire. A single diamond, unaccompanied, designed to let the stone do all the talking. It's the style most people picture first, and for a lot of clients, it's exactly right.
Side Stones. A centre stone flanked by smaller stones, taper baguettes or round brilliants set alongside or into the shoulders, adding sparkle without competing with the main stone. Worth deciding early if your wedding band will carry diamonds too, since it affects how well the two sit together later.
Three Stone. A centre stone set between two flanking stones of roughly matched size. It's often read as past, present and future, though I'd rather you choose it because you like the proportions than because of what it's supposed to symbolise.
Halo. A centre stone encircled by a ring of smaller diamonds, which adds perceived size and an extra layer of sparkle. Worth knowing: this is a completely different thing from a Halo band profile, which is about the shape of the metal band itself. I always make sure clients know the difference before we start designing.
Toi et Moi. Two stones set side by side rather than one dominant centre stone, often two different shapes or colours. It's a style I love working with because it doesn't force a single stone to carry the whole design.
Cluster. The centre stone is fully surrounded by smaller diamonds for a denser, more eye-catching display. Cluster rings can read anywhere from clean and modern to distinctly vintage, and the proportions and setting style matter more here than almost anywhere else in the design, since that choice does most of the work in deciding which direction the finished ring leans.
Choosing Your Setting
How a stone is actually held into the ring changes three things: how much light reaches it, how durable the ring is day to day, and its overall visual character.
Claw Setting
Talon Claw Setting
Full Bezel Setting
Partial Bezel Setting
Claw Setting. The classic prong setting, holding the stone with four or six rounded claws while letting in the most possible light. It's the most traditional setting I work with, and one of the most versatile across almost every diamond shape.
Talon Claw Setting. A sharper, more angular claw with pointed tips, for clients who want something with a more architectural edge while keeping the metal frame minimal.
Full Bezel (Rub-Over) Setting. The stone is fully encircled by a rim of metal, with no claws visible. Some jewellers call this a rub-over setting, same idea, different name. It reads sleek and protective, and I recommend it often for a stone that's going to be worn every day without a second thought.
Partial Bezel Setting. A hybrid of the two above, the stone partially framed by metal, leaving part of it open to the light. It carries some of the openness of a claw setting alongside the security of a bezel.
Understanding Your Ring Band Profiles
This is usually the part of a consultation that catches people off guard. Most clients have never heard the term "ring profile" before they walk into the showroom. They've thought about the diamond, compared a few settings, sometimes already decided on a metal, and the band profile simply hasn't come up. Then they try a few rings on, and within minutes they're talking about comfort, proportion, and how one ring simply feels better on the hand than another. That's the moment the profile starts to matter.
The profile is the shape of the band in cross-section. It changes how the ring feels between your fingers, how it sits against the skin, and how it pairs with a wedding band later. You'll rarely notice it in a photograph, and you'll notice it every day once it's actually on your hand.
Court. Rounded on both the inside and outside of the band, for a soft, balanced feel. It's one of the profiles I recommend most often for everyday wear, and a lot of clients land here naturally once they've tried it on, even without knowing its name beforehand.
D-Shape. Rounded on top with a flatter inside. One of the oldest profiles in fine jewellery, and it still reads as quietly classic from above, with the curve that gives it its name only visible from the side.
Flat Court. Flat on the outside with a gently rounded inside, for clients who want cleaner lines without giving up comfort. It's a subtle detail, but it changes the whole character of the ring.
Double Comfort. Rounded on both sides, more generously than Court, for the smoothest possible feel against the finger. Some clients notice the difference immediately. Others only notice it once they've tried several profiles back to back, which is exactly why I have them try profiles side by side rather than describe the feeling in the abstract.
Flat-Sided Court. Gently rounded on top with flatter, more defined sides. It sits between the softer profiles and the more structured ones, and I show it to clients who want a crisp outline without the ring feeling sharp against the finger.
Halo. Fully rounded, with a continuous curve all the way around and no flat sides at all. This is the profile that causes the most confusion, because it shares a name with a halo setting, small stones circling a centre stone. The two have nothing to do with each other. A Halo profile is entirely about the shape of the band itself, and I always clarify the difference with clients so there's no confusion once we're actually designing.
Flat. Clean surfaces and defined edges, with very little curvature. I reach for this with clients drawn to something minimal and architectural.
Concave. Curves gently inward across the outside of the band, changing how light and shadow move across the surface as the ring turns. It's one of the more sculptural options I offer, and it works well in both engagement rings and wedding bands.
Choosing The Right Metal
By the time the stone, style, setting and profile are chosen, there's one decision left, and it's the one that changes the colour of everything you'll see every time you look at your hand.
The first thing to think through is colour, white or yellow, and what suits the skin tone, the centre stone, and the person's actual personality. Most clients lean toward white gold or platinum, for two real reasons. White diamonds reflect light internally before sending it back to your eye, and set against a yellow surface, that reflected light can tint the stone, making it read slightly more yellow than it actually is. White gold and platinum are also harder to wear than yellow gold, worth considering for a ring that's going to be worn every day through an active life.
Yellow Gold. Warm, and it suits a wide range of skin tones. Kimjoux works with 18k yellow gold, 75% pure gold combined with other precious alloys for strength, which develops a soft patina over time while staying easy to polish and maintain. Coloured diamonds and gemstones such as yellow diamonds, emerald and ruby often look better set in yellow gold, since the warmth of the metal deepens the stone's colour rather than competing with it.
White Gold. Starts life as yellow gold, alloyed with naturally white metals, then finished in a rhodium plating for its bright white appearance. On its own, white gold always carries a faint yellow tone, a warm white rather than the icy white most people picture, which is what the rhodium layer corrects. That layer wears down gradually with everyday use, which is completely normal, and most clients have their rings re-plated every few years to refresh the finish.
Rose Gold. Takes its colour from the copper in the alloy, a warm, soft blush that's distinctive without being loud. Clients tend to choose it because they're drawn to the colour itself, and it pairs particularly well with white diamonds, champagne diamonds and a lot of coloured gemstones.
Platinum. Naturally white, so it never needs rhodium plating, and denser than gold, which gives it a reassuring weight in the hand. Rather than wearing away, it develops a soft surface patina through everyday wear, a lived-in look some clients love and others prefer to have polished back to a brighter finish occasionally.
Gallery Height
There's one more detail that rarely comes up until someone's actually trying rings on: gallery height, meaning how high the setting sits above the finger.
A higher setting allows more light to reach the stone from underneath, which can make a diamond appear brighter, but it also catches on gloves, jumpers and bag straps more easily. A lower setting sits closer to the finger and feels less noticeable day to day, at the cost of slightly less light beneath the stone. It depends entirely on how you actually live in the ring, and it's one of the details I always talk through in person, because it's much easier to judge on your own hand than in a photograph.
Designing Around Your Style
The last thing I ask about, and one of the most useful questions in the whole process, is how you actually live. Do you work with your hands, or type most of the day? Do you take rings off for the gym, or wear them through everything? Do you gravitate toward jewellery you barely notice, or pieces you like fidgeting with?
None of this changes what looks beautiful. It changes what holds up. A ring with fewer claws and a lower gallery suits an active, hands-on life better than a high setting with delicate prongs, even if the two would look nearly identical in a photograph. This is exactly the kind of detail that never comes up until you're standing in the showroom trying rings on.
Ready for your engagement ring?
By now, you've hopefully got a clearer idea of the decisions that go into designing an engagement ring. You don't need to have every answer before we meet. That's what the consultation is for. We'll look at different diamonds, compare settings, try on ring profiles and explore the details that don't always come across in photographs. Sometimes the smallest adjustment changes the entire feel of a ring.
If you're thinking about creating your own engagement ring, I'd love to help. Explore our Engagement Gallery or book your private consultation to begin designing your ring.
And if you found this guide helpful, feel free to share it with someone who's starting their own engagement ring search.
