The question arrives more often now than it did five years ago, and it arrives with more precision. Not “is this diamond ethical?” which is a question that wants a reassuring answer but “what does ethical actually mean here, and how do I verify it?” That is a better question. It deserves a better answer […]
There is a particular kind of buyer who arrives at Smith and Green already knowing they do not want a diamond. Not because a diamond is wrong but because something else is more right. A deep Kashmir-blue sapphire in an 18ct white gold bezel. A vivid Mozambique ruby flanked by trillion-cut white diamonds. A Colombian […]
There are four decisions every engaged couple needs to make about the wedding band. Most people are aware of one of them. They choose a metal, assume the band will sit next to the engagement ring in a natural and obvious way, and then arrive at the fitting to discover that the engagement ring’s profile […]
Most couples arrive at this question after they have already decided they want a white metal. The stone is chosen or nearly chosen. The setting style is taking shape. And then the jeweller asks: platinum or white gold? For many buyers, the question lands as an unwelcome complication. Both metals look the same in the […]
Before any conversation about carat weight or setting style, there is one question a diamond buyer should ask, and almost nobody does: Who graded this stone, and does that matter? The short answer is yes. It matters considerably. A diamond certificate is not a universal document. It is the output of a specific laboratory, using […]
Stop worrying about fluorescence. Or rather: stop worrying about it without understanding it first. Because the answer is not “fluorescence is fine, ignore it” and it is not “fluorescence is a serious problem you need to avoid.” The answer is specific, and it depends on the stone in front of you and the grade on […]
Pick up a diamond grading certificate in a Hatton Garden consultation room, and you are holding something considerably more specific than a piece of reassurance. You are holding a scientific assessment: a record of how one diamond compares to every other diamond ever graded, produced by one of the two laboratories most buyers will encounter. […]
Stop searching for a definitive answer on jewellery forums and get one here. Platinum vs white gold is the most debated metal question in engagement ring buying, and the reason there is no consensus online is that most people writing about it are being diplomatically vague to avoid offending either camp. This article is not […]
Most people who are about to commission a bespoke engagement ring have the same quiet question somewhere in the background. Not whether it will be beautiful. That part, they are fairly confident about. The question is: what does this actually involve? How long will it take? What will I need to know, decide, bring, and […]
The question of matching a wedding band to an engagement ring is asked by more people than you might expect, and later than they should be asking it. Engagement ring purchased, proposal accepted, wedding date set, and then someone realises the wedding band has not been thought about at all. The good news is that […]
