Everyone knows that an engagement ring is one of the most significant pieces of jewelry a person will buy or receive in their lifetime. The most traditional style of engagement ring is a round brilliant cut diamond set on a single, solid band. This is a beautiful way to demonstrate your love for someone, but sometimes, a traditional and classic ring simply isn’t what you are looking for.

A great way to make your ring a little bit more special for that wonderful someone is to add a little color to the diamond itself. Your local jeweler should be able to show you some beautiful colored diamonds which are often rare and highly sought after. Colored diamonds most often are found in yellow, pink, blue, and green shades and are a beautiful way to show that you mean forever.

Birthstone rings are also a nice alternative to the traditional diamond ring. Birthstone engagement rings usually have the birthstone as the focal point of the ring, but accented by small diamonds for sparkle. This is very personal and elegant method of making it all about who she really is.

Cubic Zirconium (cz) rings have stones as their focal point that look like diamonds but they are much more easily affordable. These stones still have an incredible shine and can handle all of the same cuts as a diamond can. Look for some Cubic zirconium jewelry and engagement rings online so that you can get an idea of what it looks like and whether or not it’s for you. Don’t try to convince her it’s a diamond though! That might be a mess.

When purchasing a non-traditional engagement ring, you have to be sure to keep your partner’s preferences in mind. This will ensure that they are not disappointed in the ring that you do choose, making that extraordinary day as close as it can possibly get to perfection.

If you are interested in having an engagement ring or wedding band that is truly unique consider mokume gane. So what the heck is Mokume gane? Mokume translates from Japanese as wood eye, which refers to burl wood grain, and gane means metal. During the samurai era, mokume gane was utilized to construct the handle for the samurai’s sword and often symbolized wealth and status. Mokume was invented by Denbei Shoami, a 17th century master metalsmith. Currently, mokume refers to designs made in this Japanese lamination technique and is typically used to create jewelery.

Mokume gane is created by complex processes involving forging, twisting, rolling and bonding metal alloys together so that they are intimately and intricately entwined. Many layers (most often somewhere between 10-30 layers) of selected metals such as platinum, golds, palladium, silver and/or iron, are clamped together between steel blocks and are then heated in a kiln, which allow the layers to fuse but not melt. The resulting fused stack of metal is called a billet which is rolled to reduce its thickness.

The unique patterns of the Mokume gane are created by hand carving down through the layers in the laminated stack and then rolling and flattenning it out. The process of carving and rolling is performed repeatedly to create the finished pattern. The patterns formed in this manner are almost like a topographic map, showing the depth of the carving into the original laminate
Mokume gane rings are available in a variety of patterns, metals, widths, and embellishments. The mokume gane technique creates a distinctive pattern whereby several general styles can be created depending on how the initial sheets of metal are fused. For example, a “river” design has wavy stripes, while an “island” design has unique loops and swirls. Patterns can also be created to run horizontally or vertically along the ring. The types of metals used will contribute to the color of the rings. Typically two or three types of metals are used in the creation of Mokume Gane, with yellow and white gold being commonly used. Yellow gold creates a yellowish hue whereas white gold creates a grayish hue. The width of the ring is dependent on personal taste, although wider rings better accentuate mokume patterns. Concerning gemstones, you can choose to have a gemstone inserted in the band for an elaborate engagement ring or let the sheer beauty of the mokume gane stand on its own, sans precious stones.

You most likely won’t find Mokume Gane engagement rings at your local mall. Try googling “mokume gane and engagement rings” and you will come up with a number of small businesses specializing in this art-form. As with all online purchases, be sure the business has a solid reputation: ask for references, contact the Better Business Bureau, etc.

The author just celebrated her one year anniversary and sports a beautiful ascher cut ring. She and her husband put together the website: http://www.ultimate-engagement-ring-guide.com to help you find the perfect ring.