- INSIDER recently spoke with runway stylist and jewelry expert Tanya Dukes to learn more about 2019’s biggest engagement ring trends.
- According to Dukes, diamond halos with unique shapes are surging in popularity.
- Fancy-cut diamond rings are another huge trend right now, thanks in part to celebrities like Jennifer Lopez, Priyanka Chopra, and Hailey Baldwin.
- Yellow gold and multi-stone rings are also trendy options after Meghan Markle’s engagement ring famously included both features, Dukes said.
Picking out an engagement ring can be overwhelming if you’re not sure where to start. These days, there are countless combinations of stones, settings, and bands to choose from, both in stores and online.
To help narrow down your search, INSIDER recently spoke with runway stylist and jewelry expert Tanya Dukes and learned more about 2019’s biggest engagement ring trends.
If you know your partner wants something a bit more modern, find out what’s in fashion below, from fancy-cut diamonds to yellow gold.
Diamond halos are surging in popularity.
Rings with halo settings feature center stones encircled by several other stones, typically in circular or rectangular shapes.
Accentuating a center stone with a diamond halo is one way to distinguish your engagement ring from others, especially if you opt for a classic round diamond, Dukes told INSIDER.
Many couples are choosing halos with unique shapes.
According to Dukes, there has been boom in "imaginative" halo styles from floral to geometric to lacy - "all of which complement the uniqueness of natural diamonds."
Fancy-cut diamonds are a huge trend right now.
A fancy-cut diamond - any type of cut that is not round - "has an eye-catching, glamorous look that feels a little unexpected," Dukes said.
Since "large, natural diamonds are increasingly rare," Dukes added, a fancy-cut stone is a great choice if you want your engagement ring to "make the biggest impression possible."
Not to mention, stones with elongated shapes like marquise, oval, and pear-cut diamonds "often look larger than round diamonds of a similar carat weight," she said.
According to Dukes, recently married celebrities like Hailey Baldwin have "put the spotlight on the wide range of diamonds available beyond the traditional round shape."
The model's engagement ring is from private New York City-based jeweler, Solow & Co.
In a July 2018 interview with People, the company's owner, Jack Solow, said Justin Bieber "wanted something that would gracefully accentuate" Baldwin's hands.
"We settled on an oval stone that was just exceptional in its length and grace," Solow said.
Priyanka Chopra's engagement ring also features a fancy-cut diamond.
In an October 2018 interview with People, Chopra confirmed that her now-husband Nick Jonas closed down an entire Tiffany & Co. store to pick out her engagement ring.
And Jennifer Lopez's massive engagement ring has a fancy-cut diamond as well.
According to the experts at jewelry retailer JamesAllen.com, the singer's ring features an emerald-cut diamond of approximately 15 carats with a solitaire setting.
"Emerald-cut diamonds became popular back in the 1920s, a time when clean lines and art deco styles were in fashion," the experts at JamesAllen.com said in a statement provided to INSIDER. "However we've recently seen a returned interest in this shape, with celebrities such as Amal Clooney and Beyoncé sporting the stone."
While the experts at JamesAllen.com estimated Lopez's ring to be worth over $1 million, the team of gemologists at Rare Carat told INSIDER the ring could cost around $4.5 million.
Engagement rings with multiple stones are also popular.
According to Dukes, there's a lot of interest in multi-stone rings right now from classic styles like three-stone diamond rings to more modern designs like diamond-studded bands.
Couples can also "get really creative by mixing diamonds of different shapes and sizes," Dukes said.
Meghan Markle famously has a three-stone diamond engagement ring.
In his and Markle's official engagement interview with BBC News, Prince Harry revealed that he sourced the main stone on the duchess' engagement ring - a cushion-cut diamond - from Botswana.
According to Harry, he also included two additional diamonds from the late Princess Diana's jewelry collection to "make sure that she's with [him and Markle] on [their] crazy journey together."
The Duchess of Sussex has also influenced the rise of another engagement ring trend: yellow gold.
"Nearly a year after her marriage, Markle is still influencing bridal style, especially with her choice of a yellow-gold engagement ring," Dukes said.
"For more than a decade, white metals - primarily platinum and white gold - dominated, but yellow gold has surged in popularity."
Yellow gold "feels warm, classic, and slightly vintage-inspired," Dukes said.
If your partner wants something timeless, yellow gold is a safe bet. The president of WP Diamonds, Andrew Brown, previously told INSIDER that the most popular engagement ring style over the last century is a round solitaire diamond set on a "simple yellow-gold band."
But yellow gold also looks great with modern ring styles, too. According to Dukes, more jewelers are combining yellow and white gold to create unique, versatile designs.
Visit INSIDER's homepage for more.
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