As of late we have been loving alternatives to the traditional classic colorless center diamond. Moissanites, semi-precious, and precious gems all make great alternatives to white diamonds. Traditionally, clients will come to us requesting white diamonds that are of J color and above. This way the diamond does not have any yellow undertone to it and looks white. However, there is another breed of technically white diamonds that often is overlooked. These are X Y Z colored diamonds and they make amazing options for a budget friendly center diamond  Continue reading →

In our previous post, we discussed the quality of sapphires and how to determine a nice-looking main stone. The basic idea is you want to make sure the sapphire has the right color vibrancy you are looking for. There is really no true ideal for sapphire and no strict standardization of quality grading as there is with diamonds. The beauty of the stone will depend on your specific taste since there are so many variations! With that being said, once you have an idea that you would like a sapphire it is time to start thinking about setting designs. At Lauren B we are known for customizing rings and featuring a sapphire center is a sure bet for a unique and elegant look. Continue reading →

Sapphires have once again become an increasingly popular center stone choice for engagement rings and even right hand rings. At Lauren B we love the look of these colorful stones which add a lot of character to an otherwise ordinary ring. To give you some context, sapphires are a precious gem stone along with rubies, emeralds, and diamonds. Sapphire which mineral make up is Corundum  is a very hard, durable, and stable stone making it suitable for everyday wear; they have a hardness of nine on the Mohs scale whereas diamonds are a rated as 10. S Continue reading →

Last week we posted on the most popular upcoming trend for 2017: the multi sided three row diamond engagement ring setting such as the RS-126. People love these settings for their bright sparkly look and they pair amazingly well with a variety of center stone shapes, ring designs, and metal colors. Because these bands are slightly thicker and have diamonds on all sides, picking a wedding and to go along with it can be a bit unnerving because of how the two rings will lay together. Thankfully we have been able to customize tons of bands to go along with this design and we will break some of them down for you. Continue reading →

As 2016 draws to a close, the engagement ring trends for the upcoming 2017 year start to really emerge. The end of a calendar year is the most popular time for ring purchases since so many people want to surprise their significant others with a proposal during the holidays which is spent with close family and friends. If you ask us what is at the top of the trending list it most definitely has to be our custom engagement ring settings that feature three rows of diamonds along the band. While we are well known for our dainty and delicate rings such as the iconic RS-63 design, the three-row band (also called multi-sided) has really become a favorite. These are perfect for someone who wants to have a little more substance and sparkler to their ring without detracting too much from their center diamond. Continue reading →

Selecting a diamond or style design for your engagement ring can be a daunting task to anyone. There is a lot of mixed information out there and trying to become a diamond expert in a matter of just a few short weeks, or months, is no simple project. As gemologists and diamond specialists, we go through hundreds of diamonds weekly and still find ourselves learning new things once in a while too ;) While it definitely helps to know the 4 C's, there are no hard rules and the main end goal is to end up picking a diamond you visually absolutely LOVE and a ring design that looks flattering on your hand. This means liking the shape, the cut, the color and real life appearance of the finished engagement ring.  Researching online can definitely help you familiarize yourself with the different terminology and basic pricing/quality guidelines but having visuals is the only way to know for certain what you will be getting.

For this reason we have curated a special online video gallery comparing loose diamond sizes, shapes, weights, and qualities which can be accessed here Continue reading →

A while back, we did a blog post on wedding bands that match with our micro-pave designs. While these styles of rings go hand in hand, finding a perfect match for a three-stone engagement ring might prove more challenging.  The look and structure of most three-stone engagement rings do not lend themselves well for eternity bands, however, at Lauren B we are always looking ahead and create all of our rings to sit well with almost any wedding band style you might like.  Three-stone rings are a timeless and classic design that truly never go out of style so you should never shy away from them on account of not having a band that will work well with it. On this post, we will explore eternity band options that work well with 3 stone diamond engagement rings from our custom collection Continue reading →

One question we get asked often is “how does a certain shade of gold metal color impact the look of the center diamond diamond in the finished ring?”  This is a very valid question and something everyone should consider as it is only reasonable to expect that placing a colorless stone in a backdrop of yellow or rose gold will cause it to look a little bit less colorless.  With rose gold, and even yellow gold, trending greatly in popularity of late it is good to keep the ideas we discuss below in mind when selecting your perfect ring.  Being unique with your engagement ring is all the rage now and what better way of achieving that than adding a nice touch of color. Whether or not this will have enough of an impact that it is distracting to your eye is based on several factors but we will break it down for you here by ring design: Continue reading →

As we all know by now, mega-celebrity Kim Kardashian had millions of dollars of jewelry robbed from her while vacationing abroad in a well-documented media event. Most of us are not walking around with a rare 15 carat diamond worth over four million dollars, but everyone should take their own precautions to ensure the safety of their jewelry.  Because this is such a physically small item relevant to its value, an engagement ring is an easy thing to misplace or even worse have stolen from its unsuspecting owner. We thought this would be a good opportunity to give you some tips on how to keep your engagement ring and other jewelry secure and out of harm’s way Continue reading →

Previously on the blog we went over ways to stretch your budget.  While there are certainly some excellent ways to maneuver when engagement ring shopping to help you save money while not losing anything visually, there are things that can have drastically negative effects which should be avoided by all means necessary.  This week we are going to give you six ways NOT to stretch your budget which will save you lots of time and money.  Cutting corners in these instances will not work in your favor

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We get asked often: “what is the best way to stretch my engagement ring budget?” In the simplest terms what is going to get you the most bang for your buck ;)  There are several ways to go about this but at the same time be cautious about not cutting corners on certain points that will end up lowering the aesthetics of your ring or cause you to end up with an unhappy fiancée.  Here we will break it down and give you some tips and tricks that can save you some money while not effecting the beauty of your engagement ring  Continue reading →

Today we are going to be discussing some more diamond quality recommendations broken down by diamond shape. The diamond cuts we will be diving into today are princess, emerald, asscher, and radiant cut. What these shapes all have in common is a square or rectangular shape giving them an edgy appeal and lots of shine!  As with all fancy shape diamonds choosing the perfect one can be very challenging because there are so many variations on their cut and quality to consider, much of which cannot be concluded from reading the diamond certificate alone.  Let's try to break things down for you here Continue reading →