An exciting journey

Selecting an engagement ring is a magical time, brimming with excitement and hope for the future the ring will symbolise. If you are embarking on the journey of buying an engagement ring for your special someone, you have come to the right place. At W. E Clark and Son, we are passionate about finding the best engagement ring to suit your taste and personal style. Whether you are looking for engagement rings for men, for your partner or for yourself, we are here to provide you with a comprehensive engagement ring buying guide which will hopefully answer any questions you may have. If you still have any questions, do not hesitate to come down to our showroom in Lewes or Uckfield. We have an expert team of qualified designers, gemmologists, and jewellers on hand to ensure that you find the perfect engagement ring.

Engagement Ring Guide

Consider your partner’s style

You are buying this ring for someone else, so while your own tastes should be considered, try to make sure that the engagement ring you choose will reflect your partner’s tastes and style. After all, they will be the one wearing the ring every day. Perhaps you have had conversations with your fiancé-to-be about their perfect engagement ring, which would be helpful. If not, you can take note of the jewellery they already wear.

Do they gravitate towards more minimalist and understated pieces? If so, they might prefer a simple gold band with an oval diamond. Perhaps they wear more extravagant and flashy pieces, where a coloured diamond engagement ring would suit them more. Think about their fashion sense and try to pick a design that would go well with their everyday closet and mix well with any existing jewellery.

If you are comfortable, you can always ask your partner’s friends or family for any insight they might have into the perfect engagement ring.

It is not unusual for customers to be unaware of their partner’s dream engagement ring. A popular solution is to opt for a silver dress ring to pop the question with and come into our store to celebrate with a glass of prosecco while you try on multiple rings until you find the one.

Choosing your gemstone

Engagement rings can feature any gemstone you wish; however, it is worth considering the durability of the stone you choose. Engagement rings are traditionally worn every day, alongside the wedding band. Diamonds are a popular choice for engagement rings, not only because they are beautiful, classic, and versatile, but also because they are one of the hardest materials on earth, meaning they will withstand the test of time.

Diamonds and the Four C’s

As diamonds are traditionally the most popular engagement ring stone, it is worth knowing what makes a quality diamond, and what you can expect when choosing a stone for your partner’s engagement ring. It is important to remember the four C’s: cut, colour, clarity and carat.

Cut

A beautifully cut diamond or gemstone will have lots of sparkle and will refract light clearly. We can help you choose the best stone for your engagement ring, and even cut one ourselves to suit your tastes perfectly.

Colour

Traditional engagement rings showcase diamonds, which can come in an array of colours. Colourless and near colourless diamonds are most valuable and popular, but you can opt for coloured diamonds such as blue diamonds, green diamonds, pink diamonds or orange diamonds. However, these are extremely rare and therefore more expensive.

Clarity

Most diamonds have inclusions, but we can help you find the diamond with the highest clarity that fits in your budget.

Carat

Despite popular opinion, carat is the diamond’s weight, not the size. You can have a high carat diamond that is relatively small. This is something you will want to consider and can discuss with us if you would like.

Other durable gemstones

Your engagement ring does not have to feature a diamond at all. If you still want a durable gemstone, you can opt for sapphires and rubies.

Sapphires come in a variety of colours, typically in royal blue. Kate Middleton, Duchess of Cambridge wears an iconic sapphire blue engagement ring. Sapphires are known to symbolise honesty, sincerity, and faithfulness: a perfect prelude to a long and happy marriage. You can also buy stunning pink sapphire rings! 

Rubies are also a beautiful choice, with the deep red gemstones symbolic of love and passion. You cannot go wrong if you choose a sapphire or ruby engagement ring. Emeralds rings are another firm favourite with our customers, as emeralds symbolise wealth, refinement, balance, harmony, renewal, and growth.

Choosing a setting

The most popular engagement ring setting is the claw set engagement ring, in which prongs bend around the stone and hold it firmly in place. Other settings can include rub over, which is when mental encases the stone to secure it in place, and illusion set, where the settings are cut slightly differently to make the stone appear larger. We can help you decide on the perfect setting for your engagement ring.

Choosing a diamond or gemstone shape

There are seemingly endless choices when it comes to the shape of your gemstone for your engagement ring. The most popular and traditional options are round brilliant, princess cut, oval shape, pear shape and emerald cut. We can help you narrow down your options to the ones that suit your tastes the most.

Choosing a metal

There are many metals to choose from when it comes to engagement rings, each with their own special properties.

White gold

White gold is created by mixing yellow gold with white metal alloys such as silver or platinum. Its natural colour has a champagne appearance and so is coated with rhodium to give it a bright finish. White gold is modern and contemporary and will show off your diamonds brilliantly. However, you will have to get your ring re-coated in rhodium to get it to keep its lustre.

Yellow gold

Yellow gold engagement rings are most popular for a reason: yellow gold is a symbol of love, success, and luxury. Yellow gold does not tarnish, rust, or corrode, and with proper care will retain its highly reflective sheen. Yellow gold is also very wearable for almost all skin tones.

Rose gold

Rose gold is an allow of gold and copper and is the perfect metal for a more vintage inspired ring. Rose gold also has the benefit of having a very feminine effect.

Platinum

Platinum engagement rings are the most luxurious and expensive choice, and for good reason. Platinum is very durable and will stand the test of time, all the while retaining its beautiful sheen.

You can’t go wrong with any of the above metals, as long as they suit your partner’s style. It is important to note, however, that you pair your engagement ring metal with a complementary wedding band metal. If you buy a white gold engagement ring, which is a softer metal, and then a platinum wedding band which you stack on top of the engagement ring, the difference in hardness between the two metals will cause damage to the white gold engagement ring. This is something to look out for, but is something we can help you with if you come to our showroom and book a consultation.

Choosing an engagement ring size

The best thing to do is get your ring finger or your partner’s ring finger measured to ensure that your engagement ring fits perfectly. You can do this at any reputable jewellers, or you can come into our showrooms where we are more than happy to assist. You don’t want to guess a size and get it wrong on the special day!

Bespoke engagement rings

We specialise in creating beautiful bespoke engagement rings to ensure that you leave with a ring that you will love for life. We can help you create a fully custom engagement ring that will suit your tastes to a tee and can help you pair it with a wedding band that will compliment your jewellery beautifully. We can also help you create an engagement ring from another piece of jewellery you may already have, or a family heirloom. This maintains the special bond you have with the person who gave it to you, but you can also add your unique touch to the jewellery.
Our team of designers, jewellers, and gemmologists are more than happy to guide you through the process of creating your perfect bespoke engagement ring.