Gemstone Rings

Both appear on this page, and every listing names which. Where a coloured gemstone is specified, that is real gemstone material. Where cubic zirconia is specified, that is a man-made stone rather than a mineral, used widely in gold fashion rings because it is bright and consistent from piece to piece.

The two are not graded the same way and are not priced the same way, so the stone line on the listing is the first thing worth reading.

Some designs combine them, using a coloured centre stone with cubic zirconia accents around or beside it. That combination is also stated on the listing.

A bezel gives the most protection. A continuous rim of metal covers the girdle of the stone - the edge where chips are most likely to begin - so the vulnerable perimeter is shielded rather than exposed.

Prong and solitaire settings do the opposite by design: they hold the stone at a few points, show as much of it as they can and let the most light through. They suit a ring where the stone is the entire point, and they ask for a little more care in wear.

A halo falls between the two, ringing the centre with smaller stones so the edge gets some cover while the stone still reads as the focus.

Measure rather than guess. Take a ring the wearer already wears on the intended finger and check its inside diameter against a standard size chart - that is far more reliable than estimating from hand size.

Fingers change through the day and with temperature, and a wide band sits tighter than a narrow one at the same nominal size, so many people go up slightly for a wide design.

If a size is genuinely uncertain, choosing a design that resizes easily - plain shoulders, stones only at the centre - leaves more room to correct it afterwards.

It depends on the design rather than on the metal. A ring with plain shoulders is generally straightforward for a jeweller to take up or let out.

A ring set with stones all the way around the band, or one with a closely fitted pattern along the shoulders, is a different job entirely: the circumference cannot change without disturbing the setting, and on some designs it is not practical.

Very small sizes, such as children's rings, are usually replaced rather than resized as the wearer grows.

Two-tone combines two gold colours in one piece - most often yellow with white, though yellow with rose also appears. Tricolor uses all three, yellow, white and rose together.

Both are achieved with different gold alloys rather than with plating, so the colours are part of the metal itself.

The practical appeal is versatility: a multi-colour ring sits comfortably next to whatever else the wearer owns, because it already contains the colour of it. It is also a long-standing look in Italian goldsmithing rather than a recent fashion.

The rings in that part of the range are scaled for small fingers and are generally kept low and simple, without tall settings to catch on things.

Any jewellery on a small child is worth treating as supervised rather than everyday. Small pieces and small stones present a choking hazard if they come loose, so these rings suit occasions, photographs and keepsakes better than continuous wear.

Because children outgrow a ring long before it wears out, many families buy them as gifts to be kept rather than as a size to be maintained.

A cocktail ring is a deliberately large, decorative ring worn for effect rather than as an everyday piece. The name comes from the 1920s, when they were worn to evening parties, and the style has never really left.

The defining features are scale and presence: a big centre stone, a broad cluster or a bold sculptural form, usually on the right hand rather than the left.

Because they are occasion pieces, height and drama are assets rather than drawbacks - the practical objections that apply to an everyday ring matter much less here.

All three appear across the page, along with two-tone and tricolor designs that combine them. Which colours a particular design is offered in is shown on its own listing.

The choice is largely about what the wearer already owns and what suits them. Yellow gold flatters warm stones and reads traditional. White gives blue, violet and green stones a cleaner background. Rose is a warm contrast that sits very naturally with pink stones.

White gold is typically finished with rhodium plating for brightness, and that surface finish wears with time and can be reapplied by a jeweller.

Yes. Toe rings use their own much smaller size range, and a finger size is no guide to a toe size at all.

Many toe ring designs are made as adjustable or open bands precisely because toe measurement is awkward, which gives some tolerance that a closed finger ring does not have.

Check the listing for whether a particular design is adjustable or fixed before ordering, since that decides how much precision the measurement needs.

Warm water with a little mild soap, a soft brush around and underneath the setting, a thorough rinse and a soft cloth. The underside is where residue builds up and where a stone loses its life, so it is the part most worth reaching.

Avoid ultrasonic and steam cleaners. Both are a genuine risk to treated stones and to any stone with a fracture reaching the surface. Keep the ring away from household cleaning chemicals and chlorinated water.

Take it off for manual work and sport, and have the setting checked from time to time. Prongs wear before anything else does, and tightening one is a small job compared with replacing a lost stone.