RING ARCHITECTURE EXPLAINED
A practical guide to cathedral engagement rings, profile height, wedding-band fit and side-profile design.
WHERE TO START
Cut, colour, clarity and carat are the standard way a diamond is described. Fluorescence is recorded as well.
Start with cut, then colour, clarity and carat. Our fluorescence guide explains the GIA scale from None to Very Strong. These pages will help you read a certificate and brief a stone, rather than chase a single grade name.
THE RING
The stone shape, the setting and the metal decide how the ring looks and how it wears.
Browse diamond shapes, then the setting guides: solitaire, bezel, cathedral, pavé, halo, hidden halo, side stone, trilogy, cluster, toi et moi, east west, low profile and flush.
For the metal itself, see our metals guide.
COLOUR AND THE JOURNAL
If you want colour, or you want to read how a commission works, start here.
See gemstones, then sapphires, rubies, emeralds, coloured gemstone engagement rings and fancy colour diamonds. There are also guides to lab grown diamonds and natural diamonds.
For essays, explainers and process pieces, visit our journal.
How to use this hub
These pages are here to make a commission clearer: the stone, the setting, the metal and the way we work. When you are ready, you can start a design. Pieces start from £600, and nothing is made until you approve it in writing.
Start here
Six starting points covering the 4Cs, shapes, settings, metals, gemstones and the journal.
4Cs
How a diamond is graded, and what those grades mean when you are choosing a stone.
Shapes
Round, oval, emerald, cushion and the other shapes we set, with the trade offs of each.
Settings
Solitaire, bezel, cathedral, pavé, halo and the other settings we design around a brief.
Metals
How metal colour, hardness and finishing change the look and the upkeep of a ring.
Journal
Articles on settings, stones, commissions and wearing a ring, collected in the journal.
The 4Cs
Each C answers a different question. Read the full guide before you trade one against another.
Cut is the quality of a diamond's proportions, symmetry and polish. It is what makes a diamond look bright. GIA grades standard round brilliants from Excellent to Poor.
Usually the first C to get right.
GIA grades colourless to faintly tinted diamonds from D to Z. D is the highest (most colourless) grade on that scale.
What you see depends on metal and shape as well as the grade.
GIA grades clarity from Flawless (FL) to Included (I3). FL is the highest grade: no inclusions or blemishes visible under 10x magnification.
Many beautiful stones sit well below the top grades.
Carat is weight, not the same as how large the stone looks. Cut and shape change the apparent size.
Read carat with cut, not on its own.
Cut is the quality of a diamond's proportions, symmetry and polish. It is what makes a diamond look bright. GIA grades standard round brilliants from Excellent to Poor.
Usually the first C to get right.
GIA grades colourless to faintly tinted diamonds from D to Z. D is the highest (most colourless) grade on that scale.
What you see depends on metal and shape as well as the grade.
GIA grades clarity from Flawless (FL) to Included (I3). FL is the highest grade: no inclusions or blemishes visible under 10x magnification.
Many beautiful stones sit well below the top grades.
Carat is weight, not the same as how large the stone looks. Cut and shape change the apparent size.
Read carat with cut, not on its own.
Moderate
Lower
Highest
Moderate to high
Often good if basket is narrow
Depends on head clearance
Often best for straight bands
Depends on pavé and basket width
Elegant and balanced
Subtle
Most prominent
Brilliant and detailed
Good everyday balance
Most practical
More exposed
More maintenance points
Classic bespoke solitaires
Active wearers wanting some structure
Larger stones or flush band planning
Clients wanting extra sparkle on the shoulders
Plain arches, hidden halo
Clean arches, plain basket
Hidden halo, decorative gallery
Pavé, hidden halo, milgrain
Moderate
Lower
Highest
Moderate to high
Often good if basket is narrow
Depends on head clearance
Often best for straight bands
Depends on pavé and basket width
Elegant and balanced
Subtle
Most prominent
Brilliant and detailed
Good everyday balance
Most practical
More exposed
More maintenance points
Classic bespoke solitaires
Active wearers wanting some structure
Larger stones or flush band planning
Clients wanting extra sparkle on the shoulders
Plain arches, hidden halo
Clean arches, plain basket
Hidden halo, decorative gallery
Pavé, hidden halo, milgrain
Choose classic cathedral if you want elegant structure and more presence without making the ring highly ornate.
Choose low cathedral if you like the shape of cathedral shoulders but still want the ring to feel practical and relatively low-snag.
Choose high cathedral if straight wedding-band fit and strong centre-stone prominence matter more than keeping the profile low.
Not sure whether cathedral shoulders will help your ring or make it too high? We can check the profile before anything is made.
Talk to usMORE GUIDES
These are the other Learn paths, alongside the 4Cs and diamond shapes.
A protective rim setting. See the bezel engagement rings guide, including a short collet vs bezel answer.
Raised shoulders that frame the centre stone. The cathedral page links our cathedral vs tulip article.
Practical settings for daily wear, and profiles planned so a wedding band can sit close.
Sapphires, rubies, emeralds and coloured gemstone engagement rings, plus fancy colour diamonds.
Separate guides to lab grown diamonds and natural diamonds, written for a commission brief.
Articles and explainers, collected at our blog.
A protective rim setting. See the bezel engagement rings guide, including a short collet vs bezel answer.
Raised shoulders that frame the centre stone. The cathedral page links our cathedral vs tulip article.
Practical settings for daily wear, and profiles planned so a wedding band can sit close.
Sapphires, rubies, emeralds and coloured gemstone engagement rings, plus fancy colour diamonds.
Separate guides to lab grown diamonds and natural diamonds, written for a commission brief.
Articles and explainers, collected at our blog.
What to budget
Read the guides, then start a consultation. Nothing is made until you approve the design in writing.
Read
Pieces start from £600
Use the 4Cs, shapes, settings, metals and gemstone guides on this hub to shape the brief.
Design
Pieces start from £600
We design around your brief and send a written CAD. Making begins only after you approve it.
Make
Pieces start from £600
A 70 percent deposit is due after written CAD and stone approval, with the 30 percent balance before dispatch. Making time is usually 5 to 6 weeks.
Where to start, and how the pages fit together.
Short answers, with links to the full guides.
If you are choosing a diamond, start with cut, then colour, clarity and carat. If you already have a shape in mind, start with diamond shapes or a setting page.
The highest clarity grade on the GIA scale is Flawless (FL). Our clarity guide includes the full FL to I3 scale.
Yes. Our ring sizing guide includes a UK, US, EU and millimetre conversion chart, alongside how to measure.
In our journal.
No. They help you brief a ring. A consultation is still the place to talk through the stone, the setting and the budget. Pieces start from £600.
The diamond photographs on this Learn page are from our shapes guide. The setting drawings are illustrations, not photographs of finished rings.
Use design your bespoke engagement ring or contact us. Nothing is made until you approve the design in writing.
Not sure whether cathedral shoulders suit your stone and wedding band?
