Diamond Contour Band 

It’s almost as though the list of rings is endless. There are so many styles, so many designs and so many occasions to use them. This makes them all the more desirable because you never get tired of seeing stunning rings. 

The engagement ring is a popular ring among various people across the world. So if you have gotten an engagement ring or any ring at all you may want to stack them. 

What happens when your rings stand the chance of rubbing against each other and getting unnecessary scratches? You get a diamond contour band. 

What Is A Diamond Contour Band? 

Technically, a band is the ring of metal you wear around your finger for religious, ethnic, political, or just plain aesthetic reasons.  

A simple piece of metal unadorned and free of embellishments passes as a band; that’s what is after all. Yet, a lot of see that as way too boring and crave some additional bling. This is where diamonds come in. 

Diamonds are certainly every human’s best friend. There’s hardly anything not to desire in diamonds. They are gorgeous on their own and even more gorgeous in a band. 

So, this ring features a diamond-encrusted band and a contour.

What Is A Contour?

In the jewelry world, a contour is a small bend or curve in a piece of metal while the other parts are straight. 

In a ring, the contour is usually the front of the ring. Though this can be the hidden part if you are wearing the ring alone. 

This ring is mostly made to accommodate the gemstone of another band. It gives it space to remain firm and will most likely not turn on your finger. 

Some people get a contour ring simply for the fact that it holds their other ring in place while others get them because they find the contour ring visually appealing. 

Whatever your reason is, you should certainly get yourself one of these diamond contour bands and you would be glad you did. 

Building Your Diamond Contour Band 

First things first, since one of the main things here is the band, you’re going to have to settle the metal then other things will follow. 

Choosing The Metal For Your Diamond Contour Band 

There are so many metals to choose from but before we dive into that,  keys look at some factors that will affect your metal choice. 

• Metal Color: The color of the metal you seek will determine what kind of metals you should check out. If you’re looking for a calm tone then you should go for white metals like platinum, white gold, and silver. If you want a warmer sensation then rose gold,  and yellow gold is the metals for you.
• Metal Allergies: This is the most important. Before you purchase any metal especially alloys check its composition. If you find that you’re allergic to any of those metals you should avoid them,  platinum would be your best bet. 

The most common allergen metals are zinc and nickel and they are present in a majority of gold alloys. Although there is the option of coating them with rhodium you may want to play it safe. 

Now that we have covered those factors, let’s take an in-depth look at the metals you can select. 

Gold 

When you are talking classic and timeless, gold hits all the bars. It doesn’t even need an introduction, it is beyond popular.  

Now, if you have decided to get your diamond contour bands in gold,  you have four options that are divided again! Let’s look at the initial choices you can make when dealing with this precious metal. 

• Gold plated 
• Gold vermeil 
• Gold filled 
• Solid Gold 
• Gold plated contour bands: This is by far one of the most common gold variations you would find. It’s present at most jewelry stores and it is a great choice.

Gold plated rings feature a base metal that is made of durable metal like zinc and coated in gold. The coating usually ranges from  1 to 3 microns thick. 

As a result of the nature of this gold type, gold plated diamond contour band will easily wear away. After a certain amount of time, the base metal will be exposed and your ring may not be as desirable as it once was. 

The good news about the whole wearing-away process is that you can always get your contour band re-plated. In the long run, this will cost more but it may be worth it since your ring retains its shine! 

• Gold Vermeil Contour Bands: This one is quite similar to gold-plated bands. The only difference is the base metal must be silver.  That’s it, no other metal coated in gold is considered to be gold vermeil. This makes it rather special, don’t you think? 

Unlike gold-plated diamond contour bands, the minimum gold coating for vermeil is 2.5 microns. Anything less is not considered gold vermeil according to US regulations. 

A lot of people worry that gold vermeil will tarnish. Well, this may happen but it is the silver that is tarnished and not gold. Of course, the silver can tarnish after the gold coating has worn away. 

Still, it may last much longer than the gold-plated variant. It’s certainly something to invest in if you’re an all-precious metal person.

• Gold-filled Contour Band: We like to consider this one as the older sibling to gold plated rings. They last much longer than any gold-plated jewelry ever will and for a good reason too. 

Just like in the other good types, a base metal is coated in gold.  However, in gold filled the gold is bonded to the metal at extreme pressures. In the US, for a ring to be considered gold-filled, the gold has to make up 5% or 1/20 of the metal’s total weight. 

You can rest easy if you get yourself gold-filled contour bands. The bands will last anywhere from 20 – 30 years. That’s a long time,  perfect for wedding bands. 

• Solid Gold: Upon hearing solid gold, you may be thinking 100%  gold. Well, you are correct but in this case, the name “solid gold”  is a misnomer.  

The types of gold you would find here are alloys. Gold is naturally too soft to use in a diamond contour band on its own. So, other metals are added to it to increase its strength. 

The common gold alloys that are suitable for everyday wear are: 

▪ White gold: Just like the name implies, this alloy is white. It is formed by the addition of white metals to gold. The white metals commonly used in this alloy are nickel(remember your allergy), palladium, or zinc.  

▪ Yellow gold: If you don’t want to steer away from the natural appearance of gold for your contour bands this is the alloy for you. Only a small amount of alloy metals is 

added to improve its durability. It maintains to a great percentage the natural hue of gold. 

▪ Rose gold: The addition of a red metal to gold is what results in this vintage color. The metal that is always used in this alloy is copper. Rose Gold is becoming more and more sought after and is a beautiful choice for your diamond contour bands. 

Silver 

As far as gorgeous cool metals go, silver is certainly a great choice.  Though you most likely will not find a ring that’s made of 100% pure silver. It’s not impossible but it is not a preferred choice. 

If you get a ring you may see a hallmark of “925”, which simply means that it is 92.5% pure silver and is sterling silver.  

Silver is highly prone to tarnishing though so you may not want to consider then for your bands. In the case that you do choose a sterling silver ring, there are anti-tarnishing bags and other maintenance practices to keep your ring's luster. 

Most people associated white-colored metals with silver because it was the first of that kind to be used in jewelry. Platinum has a whiter appearance than silver. Silver is more of a grayish-white hue. 

Platinum 

This metal has a remarkable white luster and is very popular in the jewelry world. There are hardly any jewelry stores that you would step into today and not find this precious metal. 

Funny enough, sometime during the 1900s, a ban was placed ok the use of platinum in jewelry and other purposes that we’re not military based. That was when white gold first came to the rescue. 

That ban has been rescinded for years and platinum is shining on. A  great feature of this metal is that it causes no allergic reactions whatsoever. It is a white metal that is hypoallergenic and this is 100%  safe for your skin. 

The above metals are all great choices for your diamond contour bands but that’s it, they are for your bands. Now you have to carefully select the diamond that will form that ring! 

Choosing The Diamond For Your Diamond Contour  Bands 

You want to select a diamond that speaks to you and the first thing to do is to choose its color. Contrary to most beliefs, diamonds are available in an array of colors. 

For most diamonds, it is the abundance of certain trace elements that lead to their formation. The colored diamonds you can consider are: 

• Yellow Diamond: This diamond is quite close to the brown variant and is a rather popular diamond. It is relatively abundant in nature so it is an affordable colored diamond to get.

The trace element that causes this color in diamonds is nitrogen.  Of course, diamonds exist in different intensities. Higher intensities will attract more value to the stone in question. 

• Blue Diamonds: Just the sound of the name at the tip of your tongue is enough to get you rushing to get yours for your diamond contour band. 

The blue hour of diamond typically occurs due to the presence of boron. The blue diamond is in high demand yet there is a limited supply of the stones. 

Radiation during the formation of a diamond can lead to it having a blue-green hue. Some other blue diamonds that appear more grayish owe that to the presence of hydrogen; these are extremely rare. 

• Orange Diamonds: Pure orange diamonds are very hard to find and even when found may contain overtones of yellow or brown.  It only makes sense since these diamonds are formed from the presence of nitrogen like the brown and yellow diamonds. 
• Champagne Diamonds: Here we are using champagne diamonds to classify most brown diamonds because the name is just so catchy! Their color is due to the presence of nitrogen as with yellow diamonds. 

It will interest you to know that the only colors that star from the colorless diamond scale are brown and yellow variants.

• Green Diamonds: You should not just imagine how gorgeous these diamonds would look at your diamond contour bands, get yourself one! 

The green hue is a result of the displacement of atoms in the diamond’s crystal structure by gamma radiation. As with most of the other colored diamonds, the green diamond is quite rare to find. 

The more common hues are green-yellow, grayish yellow-green, and yellowish-green diamonds. 

If you get yourself a green diamond, you would likely find that the girdle is left rough. This is because it is rather difficult to tell if a  green diamond is enhanced or not, so that part called try natural is present to enable the GIA and other geological institutes to test the diamond. 

• Pink Or Red Diamonds: We saved this color for last because the cause of it’s formation is yet to be known. Some scientists say that the radiation that the diamond is exposed to directly under the earth's surface is what gives it its color. This process supposedly also results in internal and external training in the diamonds. 

Overtones of purple, orange or brown are usually present in the most common pink diamonds. Pink diamonds without these overtones are rarer and much more expensive. 

Diamond Shapes

Now that you have selected the color of the diamonds the next step is to pick the shape you want your diamonds in. You should also decide if you want them to exhibit more brilliance or clarity in your diamond contour band. 

Some shapes that you can get your contour bands in are: 

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

And lots more. 

If you’re a bit stuck on your choices we would be happy to help. We want you to choose the ring that you will treasure for many years to come. 

Diamond Quality 

This is very important in your choice of a diamond. It goes much further than selecting the color and shape. You have to ensure that you’re getting a high-quality gemstone. 

Always buy diamonds that have GIA or AGS certifications for the  following: 

• Cut
• Color 
• Clarity 
• Carat 

A certificate is the best assurance that you are getting a diamond that is of top quality. 

How To Care For Your Diamond Contour Bands 

If you are like us, then you love rings that retain their first-time look for years to come. If you want this, you shouldn’t leave it to the band alone. You have to practice proper maintenance techniques for your diamond contour bands. 

You should take these rings for a proper inspection by a jewelry expert.  Let them carefully examine the ring and give it a deep cleaning. Do this at least once every year. 

You, on the other hand, can practice this simple cleaning process  regularly for your rings: 

• Take a clean bowl, fill it with water and add a few drops of mild detergent. 
• Soak your contour bands in this mixture for a few minutes. • Wipe the ring with a soft bristle brush such as a toothbrush. • Rinse your contour bands under running water once they are  

clean. Always close the sinkhole or place a bowl under your hands while you do this so that the rung doesn’t go down the drain. 

• Pat dry the rings with a soft fiber-free towel.

The storage techniques that complement the cleaning process above  are: 

• Wrap your ring in a soft cloth or in a fabric-lined jewelry box. • Store separately from every other price of the jewelry. This will prevent scratches to accumulate on the ring or another jewelry piece. 

The fact that diamond contour bands fit perfectly with others in a stack on your finger makes them a stunning choice!  

Are you ready to get one for yourself? Head over to Goldia for unique pieces that are perfect for you!