Sapphire engagement rings have been a symbol of love among royalty and famous personalities for centuries. While it’s almost impossible to trace the first ever instance in which a sapphire gemstone was used in an engagement ring, I can tell you about some nobilities who started this trend. Did you know that Napoleon Bonaparte, the famous French military commander, proposed to her second love, Joséphine de Beauharnais, with an engagement ring fashioned with an inverted pear-cut sapphire and an upright pear-cut diamond? Each of these two gemstones was just a carat in size.
This style of engagement ring, the ‘You and Me’ style engagement ring, was quite popular in the 18th century. Another great example of a sapphire engagement ring is the Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton’s 12-ct oval-shaped Ceylon sapphire engagement ring with a diamond halo. This ring previously manifested the love of Prince Charles and Lady Diana back in the 80s. Both Prince Charles and Lady Diana had picked the centerstone of this historical piece that inspired millions to pop the question to their love with a sapphire engagement ring. After Lady Diana, her son, Prince William, presented her sapphire engagement ring to Kate Middleton in 2010.
The list doesn’t end here. Sapphire engagement rings are also a big hit among some of Hollywood’s most famous film personalities, such as Penelope Cruz and Elizabeth Hurley. So, you can say that nobilities and celebrities have created a fashion for sapphire engagement rings over the years. Now that you’ve also decided to propose to your lady love with a sapphire engagement ring, let’s go through some of its crucial aspects to help you make a sound, hearty investment.
Which Color Sapphire Engagement Ring Stone Are You Choosing?
If your heart is set on a blue sapphire engagement ringstone, I can’t blame you because it is as celestial and monumental as it could get. Period. All those nobilities and celebrities that we just talked about also felt blue sapphires to be the ideal centerstone to celebrate their love story. But sapphires aren’t just blue; in fact, they come in a myriad of colors, such as blue, green, blue-green, orange, yellow and purple, to name a few. Sapphires occur in every imaginable color except red. Sapphires are even colorless.
Sapphire is a variety of the mineral corundum, and all non-red gem-quality corundum are sapphires. This stellar thing of beauty enjoys its status of belonging to the corundum mineral family of species with rubies. Now you know why sapphires encompass only non-red gem-quality corundum. Anyway, the thing is that with a sapphire engagement ring, you get the leeway to choose a sapphire in your or her favorite color. Sapphires other than the blue ones are known as fancy sapphires. Among these, padparadscha sapphires are the extremely expensive ones.
You can choose from the many fancy sapphire color varieties or blue sapphire for your sapphire engagement ring, but I insist that you pick a fancy color sapphire in order to stand out because blue sapphires have become quite ubiquitous nowadays.
Why You Should Evaluate The Source Of Your Chosen Sapphire
A sapphire’s source can make a big difference in terms of the value of the stone. This inclination is a result of the connotations of high prestige that top-quality stones from certain sources boast. Some sapphire sources are known for producing top-of-the-line stones. Thus, sapphires from such sources call the shots because they are automatically blessed with prestige. But one shouldn’t blindly trust a stone in terms of quality based on its source. I mean, it’s natural that not all stones can emanate the characteristics of a top-quality gem even though they’ve occurred in a particular region famous for producing top-quality gems.
Some of the most important sources of sapphires are Kashmir, Sri Lanka (formerly Ceylon), Myanmar (formerly Burma), Thailand, Cambodia, Australia, Madagascar and Montana. Let’s say your jeweler shows you a Burmese sapphire. Now in such a case, you should inquire about the stone’s origin. So, you should ask your jeweler whether the stone in question has been sourced from Sri Lanka or simply demonstrates the quality and grading factor of stones from this source. That’s because dishonest jewelers also use such regional descriptors to falsely sell stones to their customers at exorbitant prices.
You can choose a sapphire engagement ring stone based on its source or the quality and grading factors. If you’d rather invest in homegrown gemstones, Montana sapphires will surely catch your attention. Montana sapphires are known to exhibit the coveted cornflower blue color that many gems achieve after heat treatment. So, Montana sapphires are a great option.
How To Save Money On Your Sapphire Engagement Ring
If you’re likely to splurge on your sapphire engagement ring, you can skip this section of the article. However, if you’re looking for some money-saving options, continue reading it. Lab-made sapphires are great affordable alternatives to natural sapphires. Sapphires formed in laboratories are just like natural sapphires.
In fact, the naked eye can’t find out whether a sapphire is natural or lab-made. Moreover, there is no difference between natural and lab-made sapphires except their origins. Lab-made sapphires are formed in laboratories mimicking the set of conditions necessary for the formation of their natural counterparts. A lab-made sapphire will cost you much less than a natural sapphire of the same quality.
Are You Choosing A Sapphire For A Custom Ring?
This is a very important question because its answer will decide whether you’ll be required to break the bank and spend more than your set budget or not. If you’re choosing a sapphire for a custom ring, you probably know how much it’ll cost. However, if you’ll be choosing a pre-manufactured ring setting for your sapphire engagement ring, you better make sure that the stone in question supports the standard ring setting measurements.
Mass-produced jewelry settings often fit standard gem sizes. However, because it’s your engagement ring that we’re talking about, you shouldn’t take any chance. A skilled metalsmith can modify a custom ring setting to fit your chosen sapphire engagement ring stone. However, things get a little dramatic with gemstone shapes other than the traditional round, leading to increased expenses. So, it’s important to decide on this aspect of your sapphire engagement ring.
Making your own sapphire engagement ring can be difficult, especially when you want to be discreet. In such a case, you need a reputed jeweler with a ton of experience. Worry not, GemsNY is here for your rescue. With our bespoke services and preset items we can bring your fascination to life. Check out GemsNY reviews and see what people say about us
