Did you know that the most popular time of year for proposals is between New Year and Valentines, and men typically spend around 3 months researching engagement rings before they buy. With this is mind I've decided to put together my predictions for the most popular engagement ring styles for 2021. 

Asymmetrical Engagement Ring

Away from the norm and traditional asymmetrical engagement rings are increasing in popularity. This style is a beautiful way to show off your unique personality.

Technical Tip: My advice when looking at this style is to make sure that the weight of the gemstones and top details are balanced otherwise the ring will fall to the heavier side when on the finger. Below are our Atlantis rings, a beautiful collection of asymmetrical cluster rings available in a wide variety of gemstone combinations......take a look here.

Pear Shaped & Marquise Shaped Diamonds & Gemstones

This style is classic yet modern, often with a delicate band adorned in diamonds or gemstones which shows of the main focal point which is often a diamond in all it's glory.

Technical Tip: In order for the ring to last the test of time, make sure that the even although the band is delicate, it shouldn't be so delicate that it will snap or weaken over time and through wear – remember this is a ring that you will wear every day forever.

 

Coloured gemstones are increasingly popular, and again this is an ideal way to show off your unique personality. The most traditional gemstone for engagement rings used are, sapphires, rubies and emeralds. This is because these gemstone are incredibly strong and durable. But there are many other gemstones that are equally as beautiful to choose from.

I love creating engagement rings with coloured gemstones, especially rings with a colour clash. My favourite at the moment is red and pink.

Did you know? Sapphires don't just come in the traditional and most common blue, you can also get red, pink, white and yellow all in many shades and hues.

Pearls

In the past year or so we have seen some celebrities show off their beautiful pearl engagement rings. My advice would be no, it's simple, just no. For an engagement ring pearls are simply not practical. They are highly porous, soft and are not suitable to withstand daily wear and tear. Hand-creams, soaps and everyday life will remove the lustre over time and they are easily scratched. As beautiful as they are I would not recommend a pearl engagement ring - pearls for the ear or neck are much more practical - or as an occasion wear ring - definitely not for everyday.

Champagne – Chocolate Diamonds

Champagne and chocolate coloured diamonds are stunning, vivid and full of life and are typically not as expensive as the traditional white diamond making them an increasingly popular choice. They are also perfectly paired with rose gold which only enhances their beauty and what's not to love about rose gold which has never been so popular.

Rose Gold

Rose gold engagement rings have been popular for quite a few years now with no signs of going away. For years I have been designing and making engagement rings which were mostly white gold with a few that were yellow. Now I'd say that rose gold is more popular than yellow with my clients. It has a softness about it which works very well with many different gemstones and skin tones.

So this is my guide to jewellery trends for 2021. If you want to take a look at our Engagement Ring page for more inspiration then click here. I'm a little obsessed with designing so you'll find new designs added regularly.

Art Deco

Art Deco has increased in popularity over the past few years, it oozes style and luxury. Many designs include baguette shaped diamonds and emeralds. My own engagement ring is Art Deco in style featuring a beautiful green tourmaline. Take a look at our bespoke jewellery page to discuss making your Art Deco style engagement ring.

A bit about me & Nude Jewellery:

Nude Jewellery was established in 2001 by me, Nikki Galloway. Originally based in the quaint village-like area of Shepherd's Market, Mayfair, London our boutique quickly became established and celebrated appearances in over 100 publications worldwide including Vogue,The Sunday Times Style, Elle, Evening Standard, and French Vogue. I have worked on hundred's of bespoke jewellery commissions over the years including for Elle Macpherson and the Sultan of Brunei. We are now based online with our design studio and workshop in Surrey and most days you'll find us liaising with clients to discuss which styles that they're looking for and creating their perfect engagement ring.

Thanks for reading, Nikki

Gifts To Treasure Forever

 Our new Alto Pearl Pendant:

Just designed and created is our Alto pearl pendant featuring a beautiful white freshwater cultured pearl set in a contemporary setting perfect for daytime to evening. Prices start at £95

Drip Drop Earrings

Feature a beautiful silver water droplet extended onto a chain to create flowing movement and a radiance of luster and light.

Classic and elegant, contemporary earrings, simply stunning. £120

Alto Alternative Hoop's:

Super cute dainty silver alternative hoops made from tiny silver bubbles. Each bubble is 1mm in diameter. Outside diameter of each hoop; 9 mm which sit flat against the ear. £40

Droplet Studs:

A subtle and delicate pair of solid silver droplet earrimgs, designed to create the most beautiful element in motion. £45

Vanilla Links Tri Pendant

3 silver links of varying sizes are suspended on a 16" snake chain. (Other lengths available) The links are lightly hammered, providing texture and catching the light. £125

Explaining Precious Metals

What are the differences when it comes to precious metals? Which precious metal should you choose? Which is better, gold or platinum? Our guide should help you decide on which metal works best for you.

Yellow gold

Gold, beauty, and power have always gone together. Gold in ancient times was made into plates, cups, vases and vessels of all kinds, and of course, jewellery for personal adornment. 
Gold is a dense and soft metal with a rich, lustrous, bright yellow colour. In it’s purest form it is too soft for everyday wear, so it is alloyed with a mixture of metals such as silver, copper and zinc to give it strength and durability. 
The higher the proportion of gold used in the final metal, the more valuable and expensive the metal will be. For example, an 18ct ring will be more expensive than a 14ct ring and a 14ct ring will be more expensive than a 9ct ring. Below is a table of gold carats and their percentages of pure gold.

• 9ct gold contains 37.5% pure gold

• 14ct gold contains 58.5% pure gold

• 18ct gold contains 75% pure gold

• 24ct gold contains 100% pure gold

White gold

All gold starts out yellow, before being mixed with other alloys to alter it’s tone (as with rose and green gold). Traditionally nickel was added to white gold but nickel is no longer used today as it can cause skin reactions. Other alloys used to make the gold ‘white‘ include, platinum, palladium, silver and manganese.
White gold as it is, is actually a light gray/yellowish colour so it is coated in rhodium to make it appear whiter. It is common practice to rhodium plate all white gold jewellery. 
Rhodium is in the same family as platinum and shares many of the same properties, including its colour. It’s a very white metal and is very hard, although it does wear with time. How long the rhodium plating lasts depends on the thickness of the plating, the conditions under which it was applied and the general day to day wear of the item.

Platinum

Platinum is the rarest and the heaviest of all the precious metals. A ring made in platinum would be much heavier than the same ring in gold, as it is a much denser element. Unlike gold and silver, there are no large above-ground platinum bullion stockpiles to protect against significant supply disruptions. Yearly, only about 133 tons of Platinum are mined, compared to about 1,782 tons of Gold. Platinum is the finest precious metal used in jewellery making. There is very little platinum on this earth and it’s found in very few places around the world. The rarity of platinum means that its price is invariably higher than gold. 

What are the differences between White Gold and Platinum?   

• Platinum is naturally white, whereas white gold has to be rhodium plated to make it whiter (white gold is naturally a light grey/yellowish colour)

• Platinum is approximately 40% heavier than gold

• Platinum is 30 times rarer than gold, so its price is invariably that much higher

• Platinum is generally 95% pure platinum, compared with gold which is 75% pure gold.

• Platinum is harder wearing than gold due to its density and weight. It does scratch like all other precious metals, but a scratch is merely a displacement of metal and none of its volume is lost

• If white gold has been rhodium plated, the colour difference between white gold and platinum is not noticeable. The two will look almost identical when new, however the rhodium plating will wear off over time leaving the metal looking slightly yellow in colour.

Palladium

Silver

Silver is a beautiful metal with a brilliant white lustre which has been used in jewellery making for centuries. In ancient Egypt and Medieval Europe, silver was often more valuable than gold. 
Silver has very similar working to gold but can achieve the most brilliant polish of any metal. Pure silver is often alloyed with small quantities of copper to make it durable for jewellery purposes. In many countries, Sterling Silver (92.5% silver, 7.5% copper) is the standard for Jewellery and has been since the 14th century. 
Silver is approximately 17 times more abundant than gold, which, as we all know, is indicated in it’s value and price.

Here at Nude Jewellery we specialise in bespoke jewellery service, so if you're looking for a piece of jewellery for a special occasion, an engagement ring or wedding rings, take a look at our bespoke jewellery page  or our engagement rings page, or simply get in touch. [email protected]

Visit our Contact Us page to ask any further questions or to arrange an appointment.

(this page was orignainlly published on 14th Nov 2013 and updated on the 30th Dec 2018)