Choosing the Right Setting Style

There are many different setting styles to choose from which all have their own advantages and disadvantages.

Setting Styles

There are ten basic setting styles:

Prong (Claw) Setting

Channel Setting

Bezel (Tube) Setting

Bead or Pave Setting

Flush Setting

Bar Setting

Invisible Setting

Tension Setting

Illusion Setting

Peg Setting

Prong (Claw) Setting

This particular setting is the most common setting. It is mainly used for ladies' solitaire diamond rings. For this setting, a diamond is fitted into a metal head or basket which is secured by a minimum of three prongs or claws. There may be variations in the size and shape of the prongs. Some prongs may be elongated, rounded, or pointed. Overall, settings with six prongs are more secure than settings with four prongs.

Advantages of the prong setting:

• More of the stone is visible in this setting in comparison to other settings
• Easier to set diamonds in this setting
• Can hold larger diamonds more securely
• Easier to clean diamonds in this setting
• Can be used to set any type of gemstone

Disadvantages of the prong setting:

• Ring surface is not as smooth as with other styles so it's more possible for hair and clothing to get caught in the setting especially if the setting is high
• The diamond is not fully protected since most of the girdle area is exposed. For marquise, pear, and heart shape stones, V-tips can help protect the points of the stones.

Channel Setting

This setting is very popular for wedding bands. It may also be used to accent center stones. For this particular setting, the diamonds are placed in a channel of vertical walls with no metal separating the stones.

Advantages of the channel setting:

• Girdle area of the diamond is protected
• Smooth ring surface
• Enhances the shank (i.e., the part of a ring that encircles your finger which doesn't include the setting)
• Helps create a linear design with a tailored look

Disadvantages of the channel setting:

• More time consuming and costly in comparison to a prong setting
• Stones used in this setting could be damaged so fragile gems shouldn't be used

Bezel (Tube) Setting

With this setting, a band of metal surrounds the diamond and holds it in place. The bezel can fully or partially encircle the stone.

Advantages of the bezel setting:

• Provides good protection for the girdle and pavilion areas of the diamond
• Can be used to set all gemstones without causing any damage to them
• Accentuates the circumference of the stone which makes the stone appear larger than it really is
• Smooth ring surface
• Holds diamonds well and doesn't require much repair later on
• Don't wear out or require much repair and maintenance

Disadvantages of the bezel setting:

• Usually more time consuming and expensive than prong and bead settings

Bead or Pave Setting

For this particular setting, diamonds are placed inside of tapered holes within the ring and set so that the diamonds are almost level with the surface of the ring. The surrounding metal is then raised to form beads which hold the diamonds in place. Sometimes the raised metal is engraved to form decorative patterns. This style is used very often for women's rings. The stones that are best for this setting are diamonds, rubies, and sapphires. Fragile stones such as emeralds, opals, tourmalines, and diamonds with large cracks are not good choices for the pave setting because there is a greater chance that these stones might be damaged in the setting process.

If there are three or more rows of diamonds in the setting without partitions, this setting is referred to as pave. The term pave is a French term meaning paved like a cobblestone road. Overall, any bead setting is considered a pave setting. It's preferred to have pave-set diamonds placed in white gold or platinum because it gives the appearance that there is a continuous row of diamonds on the surface.

Advantages of the bead or pave setting:

• Protects the diamonds better than the prong setting
• Have uninterrupted designs of varying width
• Diamonds appear larger and more numerous than they actually are

Disadvantages of the bead or pave setting:

• Risk of damaging stones used in this setting
• Doesn't provide a smooth ring surface in comparison to the bezel, channel and flush setting
• Not as secure as other settings

Flush Setting

For this setting, stones are fit into a tapered hole which contains grooves that holds the girdle of the stone in place. The surrounding metal is hammered around the rim of the opening to secure the stone. If a center stone is flush set in a moderate-high dome shape at the top of the ring, it's referred to as a gypsy setting. This setting is very popular for individuals that perform a lot of work with their hands since diamonds in these settings are very secure.

Advantages of the flush setting:

• Protects the girdle of the diamonds
• It holds diamonds well
• Provides a smooth, tailored look

Disadvantages of the flush setting:

• More time consuming and expensive than a prong and bead setting
• Stones can be damaged during the setting process especially fragile gems

Bar Setting

This setting is similar to the channel setting but in this case the stones are set across the ring in channels and they are not completely enclosed in metal which leaves the edges of the stones exposed in the mounting.

Advantages of the bar setting:

• Girdle area of the diamond is protected
• Smooth ring surface
• Enhances the shank (i.e., the part of a ring that encircles your finger which doesn't include the setting)
• Helps create a linear design with a tailored look

Disadvantages of the bar setting:

• Bar-set stones can get loose or chipped

Invisible Setting

Unlike the bead or pave setting, the stones in this setting are placed tightly next to each other and the metal part of the shank is concealed underneath the stones, which allows the stones to form a continuous surface.

Advantages of the invisible setting:

• Stones are emphasized more in this setting since the metal is concealed
• Stones appear more brilliant in this setting since there isn't any metal to impede the entry of light into the stone

Disadvantages of the invisible setting:

• More expensive setting because it requires skillful setters and high-tech, expensive machinery
• Stones may fall out with continuous wear especially if the stones aren't set properly
• Difficult to repair stones in invisible settings especially round stones

Tension Setting

For this particular setting, a stone is placed between two points of the shank which applies tension to the stone. Since the stones in these settings are relatively exposed, it's not a suitable setting for a diamond ring. This setting works best with platinum since it's more malleable than other metals.

Advantages of the tension setting:

• Keeps the stone in place and secure
• More light can shine through the stone

Disadvantages of the tension setting:

• Tension-set stones fall out frequently
• Mostly small stones are used for this setting

Illusion Setting

For this setting, a white gold or platinum disc with a hole in the center is placed within the shank of the ring. A small stone is fitted inside of the hole and is usually bead set to create carved facets on the disc which enhances the stone.

Advantages of the illusion setting:

• Makes the stone look larger than its actual size
• Enhances the brilliance of the diamond
• Gives the stone a smoother appearance

Disadvantages of the illusion setting:

• Complicated and expensive
• Stones may not be as secure over time
• Not that easy to repair

Peg Setting

In this setting, tiny pegs or pins are used to hold the stones in place on the ring. The pegs that are used are fixed in the spaces between the stones and are pushed down into the ring so that they grip the surrounding stones. This setting allows for the close grouping of stones and cabochons or rose cut stones.

Advantages of the peg setting:

• Any shape stone can be fitted with this setting since the pegs can be adjusted

Disadvantages of the peg setting:

• Stones for this setting must have a flat base and well-angled sides