Contour Rings 

Having gotten an engagement ring, what comes next to your mind is:  what kind of wedding ring do I get that would fit and compliment my engagement ring, a ring that you would be comfortable with. Knowing that you would be wearing it most of the time. 

This brings you to the point of checking out what works for you. That might just be contour rings! 

What Are Contour Rings? 

Contour is an outline representing the shape or form of something, therefore these rings are made to fit the shape of your engagement rings. What this means is that the ring enables the centerpiece of the engagement ring to shine. A contoured ring is designed to match the outline of the engagement ring, that is, the face of the wedding ring curves around the bottom side of the centerpiece of the engagement ring. 

What Does A Contour Ring Symbolize? 

As time passed, rings have been associated with everything from devotion, fidelity, and eternity to the representation of a deity. Today, rings are commonly used to denote love in engagements and weddings.  It symbolizes a journey through life during which true friendships are formed and a reminder that you are walking together and working against all odds.

The symbolism of rings has been associated with their shape – circle. A  circle embodies totality, wholeness, infinity, and timelessness. It has been associated with God and Perfection. By its very nature, the circle is not only love but also eternal love in contour rings. 

History has it that the earliest use of rings started with the Egyptians,  where reed and papyrus are woven in circles and worn especially by women. This tradition was embraced by the Greeks and Romans. They improved on the materials used from reed and papyrus to wood,  leather, and iron.  

The culture of exchanging rings waxed strong in European Countries thereby leading to the use of long-lasting metals such as gold, silver, and more recently platinum. Over the years, different ring styles have  emerged, these include: 

• Gimmel Ring: This style of wedding ring was designed like a puzzle. It was in vogue in the 16th and 17th centuries, it comprises two separate pieces that are interlocked. Usually, the bride and groom to wear each piece, then on the wedding day both pieces are interlocked and worn by the bride. 
• Poesy Rings: These rings are given as a token of love and friendship,  they are inscribed with poems from which it derives their name. This style was popular during the Renaissance. 
• Fede Rings: They were popular in the 12th century and were designed with clasping hands which signified betrothal, this resembles the Claddagh ring with the design of two hands holding a  crown common with the Irish. 

Wedding contour rings symbolize the love and commitment shared by two people and, as you know, show the world they are married.

Building A Contour Ring 

A lot goes into the building of that perfect ring that would make the pair stand out. Now is the time to put into consideration the materials to be used to create that ring that would compliment your engagement ring. Let’s begin by choosing from the different metals available. 

Choosing The Metals 

There are different metals to choose from when you want to build that ring. You might consider going classic traditional or modern, whatever you decide, make sure is satisfying and gives you pleasure because you are going to wear that ring for a long time. 

• Gold: From the earliest times, gold has been perceived as valuable because of its several qualities which include its attractiveness in color and brightness, durability, and the fact that the metal is found in nature in its pure form. 

Gold whether yellow, white, or rose is pleasing and workable. It does not tarnish or corrode so it is a perfect metal to use in making a  contour ring. 

• Platinum: It is one of the precious metals that can be used in building your ring. It has some of the best qualities: more ductile than gold, silver, and copper, has excellent resistance to corrosion, and is stable at high temperatures. 

Platinum though looks like white gold but it maintains its color for a  long time. A Platinum ring is stiffer than a white gold ring and does a  better job of holding gemstones in place for a long time. Platinum is quite expensive, it is valued more than gold and will make good material for your rings. 

• Sterling silver: It is a precious metal that is durable and can last a lifetime. Although not 100% pure, it comprises 925 out of 100 pure silver and other alloys such as copper, nickel, and zinc. This is so because pure silver which is 99.9% is a soft metal and when used in making jewelry easily loses shape and wears out.  

Sterling silver can be polished to remove scuffs and scratches and it is cost-effective when repairing or resizing it. Sterling silver tends to tarnish when exposed to moisture and air due to the copper element which requires constant polishing.  

Also, it is worthy to note that not all sterling silver is hypoallergenic because it may contain nickel which may irritate the skin. 

After you have selected the metal that works best for you, the gemstone comes next. 

Choosing The Gemstone For Your Contour Rings 

These rings are rather delicate pieces of jewelry and only the best gemstones fit them. Luckily, Goldia stocks up the best of the best when it comes to gemstones and these rings.

We’re going to start with diamonds since they are an all-time favorite. 

Diamonds  

Do you know how you would most likely get a contour ring for a wedding?  That’s similar to the most common use of diamonds. 

When you’re talking love, diamonds are the perfect gemstone. For a  long time, they have been used in romantic jewelry. It’s no wonder De Beer came up with the quote “a diamond is forever”. 

Alongside their romantic meanings, diamonds signify loyalty and patience, and strength. The reason for this is that diamonds are remarkably strong. Their score on Moh's hardness scale is a whopping  10. 

If you’re going to get a diamond for your contour rings, you may be thinking of colorless stones. Don't get it wrong, colorless diamonds are to die for. But every once in a while there is a need for some color,  don’t you think? 

We’re going to look at some of these colored gemstones 

• Green diamonds 
• Yellow diamonds 
• Blue diamonds 
• Pink diamonds 
• Brown diamonds 
• Orange diamonds 

Green Diamonds

The way green diamonds are formed is by the action of radiation on diamonds that displaces carbon atoms and causes green light to be reflected. Thus creating a green-colored diamond. These are the only fancy diamonds that achieve their color after they have reached the earth’s surface. 

Yellow Diamonds 

We can say that these beauties are present even in colorless diamonds because they are. They occur when nitrogen is a major component in the formation of diamond crystals. 

A minute quantity of nitrogen is usually present in colorless diamonds and is responsible for any hints of color in these stones. As diamonds transcend down the colorless diamond scale ranging from D – Z, the amount of nitrogen present in their crystal increases. And as soon as they pass the Z mark, they are considered to be yellow fancy diamonds. 

These diamonds are quite rare, however, in comparison to other fancy diamonds, they are relatively abundant. So, they are the cheapest fancy diamonds available. 

Blue Diamonds 

These diamonds are formed up to 6 times deeper than other fancy diamonds in the earth's crust. It is the presence of boron in the crystal structure that results in a blue hue. 

Boron absorbs yellow light and then reflects it as blue light. The positioning and concentration of these boron atoms in a diamond’s crystal lattice determine the shade of blue in the gemstone.

This is certainly an elegant fancy diamond to try out with your contour rings. You’ll only adore them! 

Pink Diamonds 

A lot of scientists claim that this diamond is formed in a process known as plastic deformation. However, there is still much controversy on the things that lead to the formation of pink color in a diamond. So, we can call this diamond a mysterious beauty. 

Brown Diamonds 

The most common of these diamonds are referred to as champagne diamonds. Mainly because the variations in the brown hue cause the diamond to resemble champagne. 

This diamond is formed in the same manner as the yellow diamonds; abundance of nitrogen present in the crystal lattice. Just like the yellow diamonds, the brown diamonds make an appearance on the colorless diamond scale. 

Orange Diamonds 

There isn’t much to say about these beauties other than they are very rare and belong to the same family as brown and yellow diamonds. This is why most orange diamonds will be found with slight brown or yellow overtones.

We have looked at this gorgeous stone that occurs naturally, diamonds. Now let’s take a look at a man-made gemstone for your contour rings that looks exactly like a diamond. 

Cubic Zirconia 

It doesn’t matter whether you are looking for colorless or colored gemstones, cubic zirconia is a perfect match. 

It is a diamond simulant – that is, it looks just like a diamond. It is very difficult for an untrained eye to tell whether a stone is CZ or not. CZ is the common acronym used to refer to cubic zirconia in the jewelry industry. 

As much as colored diamonds are rare, completely colorless diamonds are too. With CZ, the stone is always totally colorless and this is because it is majorly manufactured in the lab. 

There are lots of CZ-colored variations from yellow to brown to purple and even multi-colored! You never get bored with this lab-grown stone. 

Again, because cubic zirconia is lab-grown it can be gotten at a far cheaper price than diamonds. If you’re tight on a budget for your contour rings but would love the feel of a diamond, you can just opt for its simulant! 

Diamonds generally exhibit more brilliance – that is, reflect white light.  Cubic zirconia, on the other hand, reflects the light that enters it into rainbow colors resulting in fire. 

Regardless of your budget, you would certainly want to try out these gorgeous gemstones. CZ on a ring is simply stunning!

As soon as you decide on the gemstone, you should go on to choose a  shape that your stone will be cut into. You don't want a rough gemstone on your ring, now do you? 

Shapes Of Gemstones For Your Contour Rings 

The shape of your gemstone will determine how it is cut and by extension how much brilliance or fire it will give off. The common  gemstone shapes are: 

• Emerald cut 
• Round cut 
• Princess cut 
• Oval cut 
• Pear cut 
• Marquise cut 
• Radiant cut 

And many others. 

Now that you have your gemstone shape settled, you need to ensure that the gemstone for your contour ring is of high quality. 

Determining Gemstone Quality For Your Contour Rings - 

4 main factors will determine the quality of your gemstone. They are: 

• Color 

• Cut 

• Clarity  

• Carat

Color 

The deeper or higher intensity stones will cost much more than lighter hues. As for the colorless gemstones, they follow a color grade scale ranging from D – Z. The top of the scale signifies a lack of color and is represented by D. Then as you go down the scale the level of visible color increases, and is mostly undesired. 

As soon as the gemstone bursts out of the scale, particularly for diamonds, it becomes a fancy diamond and is much more valuable. 

Cut 

This is a measure of how well a gemstone is cut and is directly related to the gemstone's shape. It is the facets in a gemstone that reflect light and cause it to emit brilliance or fire. 

So, you should pay particular attention to the cut of the gemstone for your rings. Look for GIA-certified gemstones graded as “good” or  “excellent” for the cut. 

Clarity  

This is the level of inclusions that are present in a gemstone. Just like color, there is a grade scale for gemstone clarity. The scale is as  follows from top to bottom: 

• Flawless (F) 
• Internally flawless (IF) 
• Very very slightly included (VVS) 
• Very slightly included (VS) 
• Slightly included (SI)
• Included (I) 

The goal here is to get a gemstone that has no visible inclusions – that is, eye-clean. If your gemstone is eye clean at SI1, going for a VVS2  gemstone will only incur more expenses.  

Carat 

This simply represents the weight of a gemstone and it is 0.2 grams or  200 milligrams. This isn’t a major factor when judging the quality of a  gemstone so you don’t have to worry about getting a bigger gemstone. 

On the other hand, if your budget allows it you can go for big gemstones in your rings. Just make sure you don’t neglect the other C's in the process. 

When Can I Get A Contour Ring? 

The nature of contour rings makes them very well suited for wedding bands as we stated earlier. This will be your first consideration since it is made to accommodate the stone of your engagement ring. 

Speaking of engagement rings, you can even get them with a contour.  There’s no limit to what can be done with an engagement ring and these contour bands are certainly one to try out. 

Since we’re on the love topic, these rings make a perfect choice for an anniversary. You can even get the traditional gemstones for each marriage milestone on your rings. 

Alternatively, you can get these for any event, occasion, or celebration of your choice! They fit perfectly into any description and are perfect for a little addition to your jewelry collection.

How To Care For Your Contour Rings 

The last and most important thing for you to do concerning contour rings is to properly care for them.  

You should regularly take them for a proper inspection by a jewelry expert. By regularly we mean at least once a year. 

In addition to this, clean your rings at least every two weeks or after every other wear. Follow this simple cleaning process to get your  contour bands spick and span: 

• Add a few drops of mild dish soap to a bowl filled with clean water. 
• Soak your contour bands in this mixture for 5 – 10 minutes. • Use a soft brush to wipe the ring, and ensure you get to the nook and crannies of the contour. 
• Once it is clean, rinse the ring under running water. • Pat dry with a soft towel. 

Then store your rings separately from other pieces of jewelry. If you have access to a fabric-lined jewelry box that is divided into compartments, store your rings there. 

Contour rings are certainly a great choice especially if you're planning a  wedding! Are you ready to get a custom contour band? Goldia has a  variety of these rings that are sure to wow you! Go take a look now!