Did you know that the oldest piece of jewelry discovered so far is a set of beads made around 150,000 years ago? Of course, jewelry today is much more refined and can include many different materials such as gold, silver, diamonds, and more. Unique gold engagement rings, in particular, are some of the finest pieces of jewelry that you can get your hands on. 

But when it comes to gold rings, you'll find that there are many options to choose from, so how can you make the right choice? How can you make sure that your gold engagement ring doesn't look like every other engagement ring on the market? Keep reading and learn more about how you can find a perfectly unique engagement ring for your significant other. 

You Don’t Have to Choose a Gold and Diamond Ring

Many people think that engagement rings always have to consist of gold bands with a diamond on top. However, this isn't necessarily the case. This type of engagement ring might be the most popular, but in reality, you can get any kind of metal and gem combination you want. 

Some gem choices might even be much prettier than diamonds when paired with a gold band. After all, while diamonds might be very shiny and sparkly, they don't have much color. On the other hand, there are many other types of gems that are full of color that will impress anyone who sees them. 

Keep in mind that just because you get an engagement ring that doesn't have a diamond doesn't mean that the ring is cheap. As a matter of fact, there are many gems that are almost as expensive as diamonds. In some cases, a certain gemstone might even be more expensive than a diamond. 

This is not to mention that a colorful gemstone in itself will make the engagement ring very unique. Consider an emerald, for example. Emeralds are often cut into squares so that light can filter through them in the best way possible. 

What You Need to Know

You will find that emerald engagement rings will have a certain color and sparkle that ordinary diamond engagement rings can never compare to. This is not to mention that this rich, deep shade of green can make a world of difference when it comes to matching it with other items of jewelry or clothing. 

There are, of course, other colored gems that you can choose from, such as sapphires, rubies, and more. All of these gems are quite expensive and quite luxurious.

If you still want to make sure that there are diamonds somewhere on the engagement ring, you can choose a ring that has small diamonds surrounding a larger, colored gem. 

This can make the ring especially sparkly and, of course, especially unique. When choosing gems other than diamonds, you even have the chance to match the gem to your significant other's birthstone. But keep in mind that the gemstone isn't the only important part of the ring. 

When it comes to gold jewelry, the gold itself will be up for debate.

Different Types of Yellow Gold You Should Know About

You might have heard about 14K gold or 18K gold before, but you might not really know what those terms mean. When you plan on buying a gold engagement ring, you will certainly want to know more about the gold terms before buying anything; otherwise, you might end up disappointed. The first thing you should know is that pure gold jewelry isn't a thing. 

24K gold is considered pure gold. This means that it is not mixed with any other kind of metal. Most people have never even seen 24K gold; if you were to see it, you would likely think that it looks quite strange. 

This is because 24K gold is very yellow compared to ordinary gold jewelry you might see at the jewelry store or in commercials. Natural gold is very yellow because it does not contain any nickel, which is the typical metal that jewelry manufacturers tend to mix into jewelry. Nickel is silver in color, and for that reason, when a manufacturer mixes it with gold, the gold becomes paler in color. 

The reason why you can't find 24K gold anywhere is that it is much too soft to be practical. 24K is so soft that if you wore it as a ring, it would quickly get scratched and dented in a short period of time. Of course, no one wants to spend so much money on a piece of gold jewelry that will get destroyed within a year or so. 

For that reason, 18K gold is usually the highest purity of gold you can buy in the form of jewelry.

The Details

18K gold is still quite pure (around 75% pure) because most of it consists of gold. The remaining 25% of this gold will consist of filler metals such as nickel and other alloy metals. 

It is important to mix gold with these other metals because nickel in particular will harden the resulting gold. As a result, you won't have to worry so much about the gold ring getting dented or scratched. 18K will likely still look quite yellow to you. 

This is because you are more accustomed to seeing 14K gold jewelry, the most popular type of gold jewelry on the market. 14K gold is only about 58% gold. Of course, if you want your engagement ring to be unique, you'll probably want to avoid 14K gold because it is so common and average. 

18K gold, on the other hand, is special because of its especially rich gold tone. Just by looking at it, anyone will be able to tell that this kind of gold is very special. Although it isn't as hard or durable as 14K gold, it is still quite sturdy and it should last for many years without sustaining too much damage. 

Rose Gold and White Gold

If you want your engagement ring to look unique compared to most of the other engagement rings on the market, you might want to leave yellow gold behind and instead opt for rose gold or white gold. What are these special types of gold, you might ask? Both rose and white gold are normal types of gold, but they look quite different compared to traditional yellow gold.

This is because of the other metals they are mixed with. Rose gold, in particular, is perhaps the most striking type of gold you can find. It has a unique pink or red color that you won't be able to find anywhere else in the jewelry industry. 

Rose gold is actually a relatively modern type of gold since it was only created in the late 1800s. A jeweler decided to create this type of gold specially for the Russian Imperial family by mixing gold with a certain percentage of copper. Back then, this type of gold was so prized and precious that only the Russian Imperial family and a few members of the Russian aristocracy were allowed to have it. 

Today, you can find rose gold at many different jewelry stores. What makes rose gold unique is the addition of copper. Copper, of course, is a metal that has a deep orange or red hue. When you mix a certain amount of copper with gold, it will turn the gold a certain shade of pink or red. 

The resulting shade will depend on how much copper you add to the gold. For example, 18K rose gold rings are just barely pink. They are more of a blush pink which has a very delicate and dainty shade. 

Finding the Right Gold

18K rose gold only contains 25% copper or less, which is why the pink color is so faint. However, if you want to make sure that your engagement ring is still mostly gold, this should be the ideal choice for you. 14K rose gold, on the other hand, will have a much deeper pink hue, but it will have less gold in it. 

Finally, 10K rose gold will look almost red in appearance. But what about white gold, you might ask? White gold is a very elegant type of gold with an almost silvery hue. 

This is because instead of mixing copper or nickel with the gold, the jewelry manufacturer will instead mix silver and other silvery metals with the gold. As a result, the gold will be very pale and almost white in color. This type of gold tends to go wonderfully with diamonds. 

This is because the white color of the gold will not interfere with the clear hue of the diamond. As a result, the diamond will look much more sparkly and clear than it would if you got a rose gold or yellow gold engagement ring. Of course, if you don't plan on getting a diamond ring, then the color of white gold doesn't matter so much for that reason. 

However, a white gold engagement ring can still be a unique and beautiful choice. 

Choose the Right Gemstone Shape

Most engagement rings have the primary gem (usually a diamond) cut into a particular shape. More often than not, that shape is in some way circular when looked at head-on. However, there's no reason to settle for an ordinary gemstone cut when, in reality, there are many different cuts that you can choose from. 

For example, square and rectangular cuts are very unique because you don't often see them on engagement rings. The rectangular cut, in particular, can make one's fingers look long, slender, and elegant. On the other hand, the square cut is a very bold cut and it is perfect for making a statement. 

Both of these cuts go well with a whole variety of gemstones. Many emerald rings are cut into a rectangular or square shape. This shape does well to show off the depth of the emerald's color. 

However, both of these cuts can accomplish the same result with other gems such as sapphires or rubies. Of course, you can also get a diamond cut in this way, but it will likely be very expensive and the diamond may not be of very high quality because of its large size. You can also get a ring with an oval cut gemstone. 

All About Gem Cuts

Much like the rectangular cut, the oval cut can make one's fingers look very long and slim. Besides, that, an oval cut has many more cuts on the edges than a rectangular or square cut.

The more cuts a gemstone has, the shinier it will be because there will be more sides for the light to catch on. 

For that reason, if you want to make sure that your engagement ring is particularly shiny, don't hesitate to get a ring with an oval gemstone. There are also triangular and tear-drop-shaped cuts. Triangular cuts, much like square cuts, are very striking and they are not very common. 

For that reason, they could make your engagement ring look very unique. Tear-shaped gemstones are hard to come by because they are hard to create. However, they have many cut surfaces and, as a result, they are very shiny. 

How to Choose Unique Gold Engagement Rings

Choosing unique gold engagement rings can be difficult if you don't know what to look for. To make sure your ring is unique, consider the different gems you can choose from, the cut of those gems, and the type of gold you want. That way, you can make sure that your engagement ring doesn't look like any other ring on the market. 

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