If you love the look of heirloom jewelry but don't exactly have any heirlooms, these bands are for you. The rings in this gallery, a mix of antique and vintage inspired styles, get their appeal from bygone jewelry trends such as oxidized metal, cabachon stones, and old European cuts like rose and old mine. From left to right: 1. Edwardian platinum ring with cushion-cut diamond and blue sapphires (Style 7RL-1024), $12,500, available at Empire Antiques, empireantiques.net. 2. Natural Burma star ruby, diamond, and platinum ring, $63,000, circa 1930s, available at Fred Leighton, 212-288-1872. 3. Vintage European cushion-cut diamond cluster 18k yellow gold ring, $7,000, Single Stone, singlestone.com. 4. Yellow diamond ring, $6,700, Zoe, available at Barneys New York, barneys.com. 5. 22k old gold, diamond, and white topaz "Narnia" ring, $4,530, Cathy Waterman, available at twistonline.com. 6. "Florea" diamond ring with one old European-cut diamond set in 18k yellow gold and platinum, $14,500, McTeigue and McClelland, mc2jewels.com. 7. Heart-shaped diamond and platinum ring, $15,000, available at Fred Leighton, 212-288-1872. 8. Diamond "Thread" ring with old European-cut diamonds set in platinum/noir, $12,500, by McTeigue & McClelland, mc2jewels.com. 9. 18k yellow gold hand-crafted "Single Stone" ring with five vintage cushion-cut diamonds, $28,000, Single Stone, singlestone.com. 10. Fancy brownish-yellow Emerald-cut diamond set in platinum, $7,000, Single Stone, singlestone.com.
Look on the bright side! The warmer metal -- with its sunny finish -- is back. From left to right: 1. Put two bands together -- one rose gold, one yellow gold -- for a dazzling duo. $1,520 and $1,650, Christopher Designs, christopherdesigns.com.. 2. This extra-wide knockout mixes round and baguette shapes. $35,400, David Webb, davidwebb.com. 3. Word alone or together, these fabulous fluted bands stack up brilliantly. Gold, $2,800, and platinum, $3,200, McTeigue & McClelland, mc2jewels.com. 4. This Milky Way-inspired blins is about as magical as it gets. $1,500, Nina Basharova, ninabasharova.com. 5. The folded gold and see-through pave setting makes this band stand out, $725, Doyle & Doyle, doyledoyle.com. 6. These raw, textured circles look like diamond-dusted rose petals. "Ashley," $2,900, Melinda Maria, melindamaria.com. 7. Want a fresh take on an antique style? Try this scroll ring on for size. $5,910, by Cathy Waterman, from Barneys New York, barneys.com.
If tradition is a word you vow never to utter, colored wedding baubles -- think emeralds, pink and blue sapphires, and yellow diamonds -- are just the bling, er, thing for you. The options are endless: Choose a bright stone as a solitaire, work them into your band, or combine them with classic diamonds. Need inspiration? 1. Sapphire and diamond band (D-980), Samuel Jewels, samuel-jewels.com. 2. 18k yellow gold rose-cut diamond and raw diamond cubes (trdr604-large), $8,750, Todd Reed, toddreed.com. 3. Black diamond 5-row band, $5,000; blue sapphire 5-row band, $2,750; yellow sapphire 5-row band, $2,750; all by Asprey, asprey.com. 4. Platinum or 18k ring with diamonds and sapphires, Varna, varna.com. 5. Yellow diamond ring, white diamond trillion side stones, set in platinum and gold, Harry Winston, harrywinston.com. 6. 18k white gold part-way band with channel-set green emeralds and round brilliant-set diamond accents, $3,870; platinum and 18k yellow gold band with round channel-set fancy yellow diamonds and pave white diamonds, $17,510; both by Sasha Primak, sashaprimak.com. 7. 18k yellow gold, emerald, and diamond "orchard" ring, $3,000, Alex Sepkus, alexsepkus.com. 8. 18k rose gold and white diamond pave band, $5,500, and yellow 18k gold and yellow diamond pave band, $7,450, both by Daniel K, danielk.net. 9. 18k yellow gold with sapphires and diamonds, $2,500, Single Stone, 213-892-0772. 10. 18k white gold old European-cut diamonds with old pear-shaped diamond and garnet (By Pass ring), $11,600, circa 1930, available at Platt Boutique Jewelry, plattboutiquejewelry.com. 11. Yellow band with radiant center and pave yellow diamonds, $55,000, Christian Tse, christiantse.com. 12. "Desire" band with yellow sapphires in 18k white gold, $4,950, Rocks and Jewels by Royal Asscher of America, royalasscher.com. 13. 18k rose gold ring with brown navette diamonds, $3,550, by Rettore, from Barneys New York, barneys.com. 14. 18k gold and fancy yellow diamond band (R584), $4,000, and 18K pink gold and pink diamond single-row pave band, $12,000, by Gumuchian, gumuchian.com. 15. Diamond and sapphire band (D-1962-5) and diamond and pink sapphire band (D-1963-PS), Samuel Jewels, samuel-jewels.com.
There is no rulebook that says you must wear your engagement ring and your wedding ring on the same hand. (And if there is, we don't want to read it!) These shop-stopping bands can be anything you want them to be -- an engagement ring and wedding band in one, a wedding band that's worn on your right hand, or an engagement ring that's worn on your left. Interested? Read on! 1. Diamond wedding band, $19,000, Bulgari, bulgari.com. 2. Allegria band with 3.78cts diamonds set in platinum, $18,000, De Beers, debeers.com. 3. Platinum 3ct channel-set emerald-cut diamond band with round pave diamond accents, $13,140, by Sasha Primak, sashaprimak.com. 4. Diamond wedding band, $13,475, Beaudry, michaelbeaudry.com. 5. Snowflake diamond band, $49,000, Van Cleef & Arpels, vancleef-arpels.com. 6. 18k white gold pave diamond ring, $4,350, Memoire Boutique, memoire.com. 7. Platinum diamond band with 1.68cts of white round diamonds and 0.82cts of fancy round yellow diamonds, $16,000, Jack Kelege, 800-653-5343. 8. Interlocking bands of diamonds (Crossover ring), $18,000, Harry Winston, harrywinston.com. 9. Fancy knot ring, diamonds in 18k white gold, Kwiat, kwiat.com. 10. Platinum, rose gold and diamond eternity band with nine baguettes and nine round bezel-set diamonds accented with pave-set diamonds (Crescent Silhouette Collection, #2706PK), starts at $5,390, Tacori, tacori.com. 11. Everlon pave "love knot" ring in 14k white gold or platinum, 1.00ct center stone, $7,000, from Elegant Collection, 866-599-4948. 12. Stack of five bands, French and vintage diamond eternity bands, $14,000, Single Stone, singlestone.com. 13. "Lulu" rose-cut clear topaz with diamonds (1.08cts) set in 18k white and rose gold, $13,890, Pomellato, pomellato.com. 14. Diamond ribbon-motif ring, $3,850, Chad Allison, chadallison.com. 15. Diamond band, available at Fred Leighton, 212-288-1872.
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These are great. I'd love to see some creative selections of male rings though. I've had a really hard time finding something unique for my man.