Be Mine: Lovely ‘Roses’ for Valentine’s Day
Roses are a go-to gift for your sweetheart for sure, but on Valentine’s Day nothing says you mean business more than jewelry. So we thought we’d share a few of our favorite recent pieces that deliver on both – roses and jewelry.
-ROSE GOLD-
One popular noble metal used in many of our recently crafted engagement rings and wedding bands is rose gold. The delicate pinkish hue in rose gold comes from its blushing alloy, copper. Gold on its own is soft and malleable, so alloys like zinc, nickel, or brass are added to both harden the metals and imbue it with different colors – this is where we get terms like white, green, pink or rose gold. The more alloy added to gold to harden it, the lesser the carat weight (e.g., 10,14,18 or 22K).
Rose gold can be used to create a whole piece and many find its coloring to look better with their skin tone than yellow gold. Alternatively, rose gold offers an opportunity to accent whiter metals like platinum, adding pops of color to otherwise monochromatic pieces. Either way, many of the custom engagement rings and wedding bands made in the Green Lake workshop have featured more and more rose gold in recent years, making it a popular choice for modern bridal ware.
-ROSE CUT DIAMONDS & SAPPHIRES-
Other popular ‘roses’ making a reprisal in fine jewelry are rose-cut diamonds and sapphires. New to most engagement ring shoppers, rose-cuts hearken back to a decadent renaissance era in Europe where gems were hand cut by skilled artisan craftsmen. Today the cut is back and many naturally colored diamonds are making their way into new and chic engagement rings. In fact, Green Lake recently began hand cutting our own gems, stylizing the traditional cuts and coming up with entirely custom ones too.
Rose cuts gemstones do not typically sparkle with as much ‘fire’ as a traditional round cut on account that it’s missing a deep pavilion beneath. Without the pavilion, rose cuts appear from the top to boast more carat weight than is really there, providing for a larger looking center stone for less.
Happy Valentine’s Day from all the artists at work here at Green Lake! To be in the business of supporting loving relationships is a great line of work to be in, indeed. Does the season have you thinking it’s time to pop the big question? Contact a Green Lake Designer today to have a ring like these created just for you.
