As featured in the Jersey Evening Post Wedding Supplement, February 2022. Written by Emily Moore.
IN the words of the song, ‘diamonds are forever’ and, in the world of engagement and wedding rings, this certainly seems to be the case.
But, as Rivoli Jewellers explains, while these precious gems remain a firm favourite, many other aspects of the rings’ designs are changing.
‘The round stones traditionally favoured in engagement rings are increasingly making way for different shapes,’ said Rivoli Jewellers’ Deb Macklin. ‘There is a rising demand for softer shapes such as pear, teardrop and oval. These designs offer all the sparkle and scintillation associated with an engagement ring but the appearance of, say, an oval stone can be greater than that of a round one.’
Driving this trend is, says Deb, a desire for the jewellery to ‘Tell a Story’.
‘This is largely inspired by rings people have seen celebrities wearing, which demonstrate that your jewellery can, and should, reflect your personality and style,’ Deb adds. ‘While our current collections provide inspiration, couples then cherry-pick the details they like before I design their piece.’
With the engagement ring selected, Deb adds that the storytelling continues in a couple’s choice of wedding band.
‘Couples are excited by the idea that they don’t have to pick something off the shelf but that they can have their own input in designing something unique,’ she explains. ‘They can choose the number and colour of the stones and, interestingly, many people are now being a bit braver with colour and incorporating yellow, blue, pink or black diamonds into their jewellery.’
The favourite setting for the stones at Rivoli is platinum.
‘This is by far the most popular metal and we have noticed an increase in people asking for single-mine-origin metal,’ said Deb. ‘This is an ethical and sustainable option as the metal can be traced to legitimate operations where there are strict health and safety measures, the miners are paid a fair wage and some of the income from the mines is ploughed back into the local communities.’
With all wedding rings at Rivoli made to order, Deb recommends that couples allow a minimum of three months between the initial consultation and the big day.
‘This is one of the biggest purchases a couple will make. It is something you will wear for the rest of your life so it is important that it is right,’ she added. ‘Three months gives plenty of time to choose and create the perfect design and add any extra details such as engraving.’
A popular choice for personalising a band, engraving has created some challengers for jewellers over the past two years.
‘A lot of bands are engraved with the couple’s initials and date of wedding but, when Covid forced many people to postpone their special days, the dates were no longer accurate,’ she said. ‘In those cases, some couples have chosen to keep the original date engraved, as it is part of the storytelling element, while others have opted to have the first date removed and the new one engraved in its place.’
For more information, or to arrange an appointment with someone from the team at Rivoli, telephone 01534 601930 or email deb@rivolijewellers.co.uk.