Show me your engagement ring!

View Quoted Comment This is stunning! Truly. My daughter came over to me while I was looking at the picture and said that it was the most beautiful ring she had ever seen then proceeded to ask me if you were queen else (her favorite Disney queen) because she thought that would be the ring a queen like Elsa would wear. High compliments from my crew lol

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Thank you! My niece says the same thing, its my Elsa ring!

View Quoted Comment Kids are so adorable like that. Definitely a compliment though!

My Ring

I made a wishlist on Esty. My partner knew I really wanted something vintage and old. Something we could hand down to our grandkids. He bought this as a set with my wedding band. It was crushed and he had a jeweler restore it and size it to my finger. My ring is from 1901. It is a .5ct center stone and close to 1ct total diamond weight. It has a halo of sapphires and my wedding band is a band that matches the halo.

He picked out my ring with the help of his dad and my best friends. I had no idea it was coming. I love the band and sapphires

Hi Ladies,

I'm so excited my boy proposed to me last weekend. I had a look though all the communication he had with our jeweller Monroe Yorke Diamonds, he had been talking to them and designing my ring for 3 months. He got it perfect, just want I wanted. I will put a picture up once I get my nails done

I’m without my ring since it’s in for repair, so I’ve been drooling over all your gorgeous bling instead! 😭🤩.

For my ring, hubby knew I love asscher cut diamonds, and I wanted something with a dainty band to flatter my small hands. He knocked it outta the park!

Asschers are basically a square version of an emerald cut, but they tend to sparkle more than emeralds because of their symmetry. They do appear smaller than other cuts because of the depth required for their facets, but the cut shows off a diamond’s symmetry and clarity beautifully. You also get more of a “flashy“ sparkle, different than the twinkling of most diamond cuts.
I decided to pair mine with a simple .25 carat eternity band, and want to complete my stack with a diamond crossover band and maybe a 1 carat eternity band...eventually 😅
For size reference, this is a 1 carat centre stone (5.5mm x 5.5mm) on a size 4.5 finger. It was custom made from James Allen.

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Hi! Does he remember/do you know the cut and clarity of your ring? I want my e-ring from JA as well. Also, do you know the size of your band? It looks about 1.5 mm.

View Quoted Comment Hi Sam! I know you weren’t asking me, but I know a little about diamonds and my hubbs got my ring from JA as well. To answer your questions, just read the first couple paragraphs. I included a lot more info after this that was really helpful for us, so thought it might help you too! Congrats on your engagement ❤️🥰


As a quick reference, most diamonds you will see at Zales, Kay, or Jared type stores are an “I” colour, “very good” cut, and “SI1” or “SI2“ clarity. This isn’t great quality, but they sell these because of the sweet spot when it comes to getting a diamond that is the lowest quality (lowest price), but still looks colourless and beautiful against a white gold setting. So you can easily get away with these specs from James Allen, at a fraction of the cost.
Katie’s ring looks to be the “petite pave“ setting from JA, which is 1.6 - 1.8mm band. Mine is the same width and it’s definitely dainty, but still supports your centre stone unless you’re going with a really big diamond.
For more info you may or may not need, read on 😅
Regarding color, you pay more depending how colourless your stone is (D = colourless, then they get very slightly more of a tint for E, F, G, H, I, J, K and so on). The color grade is so slight however, that G, H, I stones are still considered “near colourless“, so not really noticeable against white gold. If you want rose or yellow gold, you can easily get away with a J or K colour and still appear mostly colourless.
For cut and clarity, it really depends on your diamond shape, mostly because of where their facets are placed. Diamond shapes that are best at hiding imperfections are round, oval, cushion, radiant, heart, and princess. These shapes reflect light in all directions so they camouflage a lot of imperfections. Shapes that you’d want to invest more in cut (including symmetry) and clarity would be emerald or asscher shapes. These diamonds give you more of a clear view into the centre of the stone, so you’re going to see any inclusions more easily.
One last thing you want to consider is the size ratio of your stone. Diamond carat is a measurement of weight, not length and width. As an example, you can get two oval diamonds that are both 1 carat, but one appears way bigger because maybe one is skinnier than the other or has thinner sides. JA will show you all the specs before you buy, so you can compare.
Good luck!! Xx

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Hi Kirsten! Thank you for the insight, and thanks for taking the time. I'm actually just a guest here, not engaged yet but looking for some ideas I originally wanted an earth-created diamond, but then I read more about it and I'm not too happy with ruining earth's creation (just my opinion) so I decided to go with lab-created ones and it's just as chemically identical AND it turns out, at a fraction of the cost. So we were looking into a 2+ carat, round solitaire, color E, clarity SI2, ideal cut vs color G and clarity VS2. Thoughts? I noticed some of JA's SI2 have minor to no inclusions that is not very visible actually. Also, for the band, I only like 14k yellow gold so I want that one, and for the width, I prefer less than 2mm because I have small fingers. I really like the intricate basket one with 1.8mm but I just don't know how comfortable the sides will be between my fingers. I wear two rings on my right hand with thin bands and they feel like they're non-existent.

View Quoted Comment Hi Sam,


Welcome! I’m so happy to help. I’m just a guest too...who is obsessed with diamonds 😅. And congrats on your future engagement then. It’s such an exciting time! 😊
Lab-grown diamonds are just as beautiful and, you’re right, less expensive. Win win!
Regarding color, here are my thoughts. Especially since you’re going with a yellow gold setting, you really wont see a visible difference between an E vs a G color. I noticed James Allen diamond videos make the diamonds appear much warmer than they will in person. Consider how warm an “I” looks on the website, vs how clear and white they look in a Zales or Jared store (most of those are “I” color). It’s possible that JA emphasizes the color to make people want to spend more on a “colourless stone”. I was told by a jeweller that, unless you’re purchasing an expensive diamond as an investment, the color grade isn’t going to matter much. An “I” is pretty standard for most engagement rings. Mine is an “H”, and I’ve included a photo so you can see how colourless it looks even in white gold.
For clarity, it’s really going to come down to each individual diamond. Many SI2 - VS2 diamonds can be considered “eye clean”, meaning they won’t show visible inclusions except under a microscope. That said, the larger the stone, the harder it is to find one without visible inclusions at those clarity grades. If you want a 2+ carat stone, I’d personally prioritize clarity over color, since at high color grades you won’t notice a visible difference anyway.
Regarding comfort, I can’t speak to the intricate basket setting, but I also have smallish fingers (4.5) and wear a 1.7mm pave band, and I don’t even know it’s there...except for the distracting sparkle 😅. Very comfortable. You do want to consider that the slimmer the band, the more likely your ring will shift on your finger because of the weight of your centre stone. I’d suggest trying on a similar width/style band at a jeweller to see if you like it on your hand. James Allen quality is great and should feel the same. Worst case if you don’t like your ring, they have a return/exchange policy. Happy shopping love! Xx

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Hi Kirsten! That's a beautiful ring! And yes, I agree with you that the color I online is warmer than it is in person. So I thought about it and will go with VS2 instead, thanks for your input! I have actually tried on a few different designs and found that thin bands looked and felt better on my finger. My size finger isn't very small, about 5.25-5.5, but it's still small since the stores I've been to only had size 6.5+ for some reason. I couldn't really get a feel for it.

View Quoted Comment Hi Sam,


Thank you! Glad to help. I had the same problem trying to find rings in my size to try on...I guess 6.5 or 7 must be pretty average 🤷🏽‍♀️. Boutique jewellers sometimes have estate jewellery in different sizes if you want to try something closer to your size, just to get a feel. That’s what I had to do lol. Cheers

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Hi Kirsten! I was actually able to try on both sizes. 5.25 is definitely snug but I feel like I have to go 0.25 size higher, which is 5.5 just because I want to be able to wear the ring even if I gain weight (for when I get pregnant, maybe) lol Also, I just wanted to thank you for mentioning the band width. I went back on JA and found the exact same intricate basket style with 2.5mm regular setting instead of the knife edge. I thought 2.5mm was wider than my taste but then I found a bracelet in my stash, grabbed a ruler, and realized it's a perfect width. I don't know why I never thought of measuring with a ruler, geez. JA makes their settings appear bigger than they are. Anyways, I hope my s/o delivers the details well lol

Me and my fiancé talked about rings and went to one store to figure if sizing. I knew I wanted a cushion cut diamond with a cushion halo and pave band. I picked out the setting and stone and he had it made, I didn’t see the finished ring until he proposed. My center stone is a little over 2.5 carats total carat weight is a little of 3 carats. The setting and diamond are from Jared. This is my dream ring ❤️ My fiancé loves it too and personally we had fun picking it out together

View Quoted Comment Hi Kirsten! Just wanted to share the good news! My now FH proposed a few days ago! The only deets I got from him was he went under 2 ct for a better color/clarity vs higher carat with ehh color/clarity + obvious blemishes without overspending. I'm wearing 2 other rings to push my e-ring forward. It seems like 5.5 is very loose on me.

View Quoted Comment Hi Sam!


Congratulations on your engagement! Your ring is absolutely beautiful and classic, FH did a great job! If you’re finding the fit a bit loose it’s possible JA sent the wrong size, but keep in mind that different jewellers can also have slight variants in their sizing, so I’d suggest making sure your finger has been sized using the same measurements that JA uses. I actually had my finger sized at a Helzberg diamond store, but it seems to be the same sizing that JA uses because my ring was spot on. Maybe try popping in there and have them compare the size of your ring to your finger size.
Good luck love! And congrats again on your new chapter. Wishing you and your fiancé a long happy life together ❤️

View Quoted Comment Thank you!! 😊 And that's good to know! I'll go to a nearby jewelry store to verify. But for now, I'm gonna try to wear it with a ring adjuster. It should come tomorrow. I don't want to resize it right now since it is the cold season so my fingers are def not swollen lol I'm planning on buying a flat ring with a 5.25 to get a feel for it and to secure my e-ring before purchasing a wedding ring.

After almost 10 years together, FINALLY!

We went “ring shopping” for mine. I tried on two different diamond shape: emerald and radiant. My only ask was no halo. I would like to think my FH did pretty good. 😉