How to Choose an Engagement Ring — The 'Cahve' Way

Surprise, or joint effort? Natural or lab-grown? Modern and edgy, or minimalist and understated? Navigating the engagement ring design can feel overwhelming, but it doesn't have to. This process should feel exciting and enjoyable. That's where we come in. Let us take a closer look at the key questions, and how you should approach a decision.

 

Engagement season is upon us, with lovebirds across the country preparing to pop the question over the holidays. Many of them—maybe you—are wondering where to start with planning a proposal. The obvious place, once you’re sure you’re ready to ask, is a once in a lifetime ring purchase!

At Cahve Studio, we believe an engagement ring should be as special and momentous as the milestone it celebrates. That can't be bought. It has to be designed, every inch, by you. Whether you’re plotting the ultimate surprise, or plan to embark on the design journey together, our studio experience is designed to ensure we help bring the perfect ring design to life, unique in every way possible to the wearer.

1. Design Together

Traditionally, dropping a knee and brandishing an engagement ring has always been a surprise. A sequence of meaningful decisions — the ring, the location, the words — coming together in one defining moment, the proposal. 

Today, more and more couples are choosing to embark on the design journey together. The ring is a once in a lifetime purchase, so getting it perfectly right is important.

At Cahve, that collaboration happens in real time. We have taken a unique approach design, giving you both an exciting opportunity to build the ring design live on-screen, alongside our team of designers. Whether you’re both there to make decisions or one of you leads the creative vision, the important part, is that you're writing your story together.

 

 

2. Selecting Your Diamond

Natural or lab-grown? The truth is — there is no right answer. 

Natural stones carry the quiet romance of time — shaped deep within the earth, each one utterly singular. Lab-grown diamonds, by contrast, embody a new kind of beauty: consciously created, identical in brilliance. 

When designing at Cahve, we'll give you the option to view both natural and lab-grown options, comparing subtle nuances, and ultimately deciding where to take the ring design. It is equally possible to combine natural and lab-grown diamonds, particularly with multi-stone designs. The best of both worlds?

 

3. Reimagining Heirloom Materials

Some stories begin long before the proposal. Maybe you have a family diamond or an heirloom ring that deserves a new chapter.

We specialise in modernising legacy pieces — keeping their sentiment, but reimagining them for today. Using advanced CAD modelling, we can show you, live, how your heirloom stone could be re-set into a new, exciting, timeless ring design that still carries its original soul.

Heirloom materials, reimagined.

 

 

4. Exciting Alternatives

Alternative stones like Sapphires, Emeralds and Rubies are no longer the exceptions — they’re now more popular than ever — chosen by those who value colour, character, and creative freedom as much as tradition.

At Cahve, we’ve partnered with some of the world’s foremost stone suppliers — specialists in unique alternatives to Diamonds — giving us (you!) access to some of the most exciting and distinctive stones on the planet.

When you design with Cahve, you’re not choosing from what exists — you’re creating what doesn’t yet.

 

5. Control Design and Budget

Bespoke shouldn’t mean unattainable. One of the biggest myths in jewellery is that “custom” equals costly — but at Cahve, we design around your priorities, not a preset price tag.

Every element — stone, setting style, base metal — is a creative decision that also shapes your budget. And because you’re involved at every stage, you can control design and budget.

 

 

6. The Right Ring Is the One You Create

The "perfect ring" can't be bought off-the-shelf. It has to be designed — by you, for you.

That’s why we don't hand you a tray of pre-designed options — we give you the expertise and the access to create your own. Something perfect. Something uniquely yours.

With expert designers guiding your vision, you can experiment, refine, and perfect the ring design until every detail feels right.

 

A New Tradition

We don't sell off-the-shelf designs, or create seasonal collections. We're not trying to sell something we've conjured. Where would the magic and the personalisation be in that?

We simply give you the means to design your own. Access to the brightest minds in the jewellery industry, here to serve your every requirement. Our job is to help bring to life, your vision, whatever that may be. 

If you can dream it, together, we can achieve it!

 

Ready to design your own engagement ring?
Explore our unique approach to engagement ring design and book your live design session at https://uk.cahve.com/pages/bespoke-engagement-rings